The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and race in separate lanes for the entire course. In many countries, athletes previously competed in the 440-yard dash (402.336 m)—which is a quarter of a mile and was referred to as the "quarter-mile"—instead of the 400 m (437.445 yards), though this distance is now obsolete.
Muriel Hurtis-Houairi is a French track and field athlete. She came to prominence in 2002 when she won the 200 m gold medals at both the European Indoor Championships and the European Athletics Championships. The following year she added the World Indoor title and won a bronze medal at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics and a gold in the 4×100 metres relay with France.
60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At indoor events, the 60 metres is run on lanes set out in the middle of the 'field', as is the hurdles event over the same distance, thus avoiding some of the effects of the banked track encircling the venue, upon which other track events in indoor events are run. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior athletes. The format of the event is similar to other sprint distances. The sprinters follow three initial instructions: 'on your marks', instructing them to take up position in the starting blocks; 'set', instructing them to adopt a more efficient starting posture, which also isometrically preloads their muscles. This will enable them to start faster. The final instruction is the firing of the starter's pistol. Upon hearing this the sprinters stride forwards from the blocks.
Carmelita Jeter is a retired American sprinter, who competed in the 60 metres, 100 m and 200 m. For over a decade, between 2009 and 2021, Jeter was called the "Fastest woman alive" after running a 100 m personal best of 10.64 seconds at the 2009 Shanghai Golden Grand Prix. In the 100 m, she was the 2011 world champion and the 2012 silver medalist. She is also a three-time Olympic medallist.
Ezinne Okparaebo is a Norwegian sprinter. She is Scandinavia's fastest woman ever over 60m and 100m. Okparaebo has won the 100m national title 13 times. She moved to Norway as a nine-year old and grew up in Ammerud. She visited the Haugen skole, where her sprinting talent was discovered on a sports school day. She has been the top female sprinter in Norway since 2005, and is competing for the club IL Norna-Salhus. She won the silver medal at 60 metres for women in the 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships and the bronze medal in the same discipline in 2011 European Athletics Indoor Championships.
Mujinga Kambundji is a Swiss sprinter. She won the bronze medal in the 200 metres at the 2019 World Championships. Kambundji is the 60 metres 2022 World indoor champion, becoming the joint fourth-fastest woman of all time in the event, after earning a bronze in 2018. She is a three-time European Championships medallist, with gold for the 200 m and silver for the 100 m in 2022, and bronze for the 100 m in 2016. At the European Indoor Championships, she earned gold in the 60 m in 2023 and bronze in 2017.
Dafne Schippers is a Dutch retired track and field athlete who competed in sprinting and the combined events. She holds the European record in the 200 metres with a time of 21.63 seconds, making her the sixth-fastest woman of all time at this distance. She also holds the Dutch records in the 100 metres and long jump, and shares the Dutch records in the 60 metres indoor and 4 × 100 metres relay.
Murielle Ahouré-Demps is an Ivorian sprinter who competes in the 60 meters, 100 m and 200 m. She was a double silver medalist at the 2013 world championships in Moscow. She came second in both the 100 and 200 meters at this event. Ahouré was the gold medallist in the 60 m at the 2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships.
Geraldina "Dina" Rachel Asher-Smith, OLY is a British sprinter.
Abbey Cooper is an American middle- and long-distance runner. Cooper is the most decorated Ivy League athlete in track and field and cross country running. She is the first Dartmouth female distance runner to win an NCAA title. She won a total of seven NCAA titles in her career. In 2014, she became a professional runner for New Balance.
Candace Kathryn Hill is an American track and field athlete who competes in the 100 metres and 200 metres. She graduated from Rockdale County High School. She became the world's first high school woman to break the 11-second barrier clocking 10.98 in the 100 meters sprint at the 2015 Brooks PR Invitational on 21 June 2015 in Shoreline, Washington, United States. Her mark, quickly ratified, is the world youth best, the terminology for world record among athletes before the year of their 18th birthday. Since the mark was set outside of the sanctioned NFHS season, the mark is not eligible for the NFHS High School Record. Out of season marks like this are recognized by Track and Field News which has not yet published it as the National High School Record. Candace Hill is the first US high school female to run under 11.10 for 100 meters.
Kendra "Keni" Harrison is an American hurdler. Harrison held the world record in the women's 100 metres hurdles with a time of 12.20 seconds, set on July 22, 2016 at the London Müller Anniversary Games, breaking the previous world record of 12.21 seconds achieved nearly 28 years earlier by Bulgarian athlete Yordanka Donkova.
Nadine Visser is a Dutch track and field athlete who competed in the combined events until 2017 and specialises in short hurdling since 2018.
Naomi Sedney is a Dutch sprinter. She has been most successful as the anchor of the Dutch Relay team and is co-holder of the national record 4 x 100 m relay. In 2022 her younger sister Zoë Sedney joined her in the Dutch Relay team.
Laura Roesler is an American middle distance runner who specializes in the 800 metres. She is currently coached by Rose Monday and based in Florida.
Christian Coleman is an American professional track and field sprinter who competes in the 100 meters and 200 meters. The 2019 world champion in the 100 meters, he also won gold as part of men's 4 × 100-meter relay. He holds personal bests of 9.76 seconds for the 100 m, which made him the 6th fastest all-time in the history of 100 metres event, and 19.85 for the 200 m. Coleman is the world indoor record holder for the 60 meters with 6.34 seconds. He was the Diamond League champion in 2018 & 2023 and the world number one ranked runner in the men's 100 m for the 2017, 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Noah Lyles is an American professional track and field sprinter competing in the 100 meters and 200 meters. He is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic 200 m bronze medalist and a six-time World champion, having won the 200 m and 4 × 100 m at the 2019 World Championships, the 200 m at the 2022 World Championships, and the 100 m, 200 m, and 4 × 100 m events at the 2023 World Championships, becoming the first man since Usain Bolt in 2015 to complete the sprint treble at a World Championships. At the 2022 Championships, Lyles also earned a silver medal in the 4 × 100 m relay. He holds personal bests of 9.83 seconds for the 100 m and 19.31 seconds for the 200 m, the latter being an American record making him the third fastest on the respective world all-time list.
Kendall Ellis is an American sprinter. Ellis won gold in the 4x400 m relay and bronze in the Mixed 4x400 metres at the Tokyo Olympics. She competed in the 400 meters at the 2017 and 2019 World Championships, winning gold medals as a part of prelim 4×400 m relays. As a junior, Ellis took gold in the 4×400 m relay and bronze in the 400 meters at the 2015 Pan American Junior Championships.
Christina Clemons is an American track and field athlete who specializes in the 100 meters hurdles. She won the silver medal in the 60 metres hurdles at the 2018 World Indoor Championships. Her time of 7.73 in the event is tied for the fifth-fastest time in history and 0.05 seconds off the world record.
The women's 60 metres at the 2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships took place on 2 March 2018.
