The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of 10 track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα and ἄθλος. Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not by the position achieved. The decathlon is contested mainly by male athletes, while female athletes typically compete in the heptathlon.
Linford Christie is a Jamaican-born British former sprinter and athletics coach. He is the only British man to have won gold medals in the 100 metres at all four major competitions open to British athletes: the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games. He was the first European athlete to break the 10-second barrier in the 100 m and held the British record in the event for close to 30 years. He is a former world indoor record holder over 200 metres, and a former European record holder in the 60 metres, 100 m and 4 × 100 metres relay.
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.
The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the 100-meter (109.36 yd) dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1928 for women. The inaugural World Championships were in 1983.
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.
The 100 metres hurdles, or 100-meter hurdles, is a track and field event run mainly by women. For the race, ten hurdles of a height of 33 inches (83.8 cm) are placed along a straight course of 100 metres (109.36 yd). The first hurdle is placed after a run-up of 13 metres from the starting line. The next 9 hurdles are set at a distance of 8.5 metres from each other, and the home stretch from the last hurdle to the finish line is 10.5 metres long. The hurdles are set up so that they will fall over if bumped into by the runner, but weighted so this is disadvantageous. Fallen hurdles do not count against runners provided that they do not run into them on purpose. Like the 100 metres sprint, the 100 m hurdles begins with athletes in starting blocks.
Gabrielle Lisa Thomas is an American track and field athlete in 100 and 200 meter sprint. She won the bronze medal in the 200 m and a silver as part of the women's 4 × 100 m relay at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. On August 25, 2023, she claimed the 200m silver medal in the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest with a time of 21.81 seconds. She would also go on to win gold as part of Team USA in the women's 4x100m relay final with a championship record of 41.03 seconds.
Masters Athletics managed by World Masters Athletics is a class of the sport of athletics for athletes of 35 years of age and over organized by World Masters Athletics. The events include track and field, road running and cross country running. Competitors are bracketed into five-year age groups. For international events the first age group is 35 to 39. Men as old as 105 and women in their 100s have competed in running, jumping and throwing events. Masters athletes are sometimes known as "veterans" and the European Masters Championships, for instance, is known as "Eurovets". This and other high level events including biennial World Championships cater largely to elite-level athletes, but many masters athletes are novices to athletics and enjoy the camaraderie offered by masters competition at the local, National and International level. Most National governing bodies for track and field hold annual Masters championships. Prestigious National meets such as the Penn Relays and the United States Olympic Trials put on exhibition events for top masters athletes. Masters athletics is growing Internationally with over 6000 athletes competing at recent World Championships. World; National and Regional records are maintained for each age group.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is a Jamaican track and field sprinter competing in the 60 metres, 100 m and 200 m. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time.
Shirley Ngarita Peterson was a New Zealand track and field athlete. She represented her country at the 1950 British Empire Games, winning a silver medal in the women's 440 yards relay. From 1980, she became active in masters athletics, setting world records in various events and age-group categories, and winning multiple world masters athletics championship titles.
Zharnel Hughes is an Anguilla-born British sprinter who specialises in the 100 metres and 200 metres. Born and raised in the British Overseas Territory of Anguilla, he has competed internationally for Great Britain in the Olympic Games, World Athletics and European Athletics events, and for England at the Commonwealth Games, since 2015. A double Commonwealth Games, double European Championships gold medalist as part of the 4 x 100 metres relay, Hughes has twice been European champion individually; over 100 metres in 2018, and 200 metres in 2022. In 2023, he broke both British sprint records, before winning his first global individual medal, a bronze in the 100 metres at the 2023 World championships.
Xie Zhenye is a Chinese sprinter. He is the current Asian record holder of the 200 metres with a time of 19.88 seconds. In 2018, Xie ran a personal best of 9.97 seconds in the 100 metres, making him the second Chinese sprinter to record a time below the 10-second barrier, after his compatriot Su Bingtian. Xie represented China at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2016 Summer Olympics and 2020 Summer Olympics where he became the first Chinese athlete to have ever qualified for a semi-final of men's 200 metres at any Summer Olympic Games. In 2023, in the absence of his injured compatriot Su Bingtian, Xie became the 2022 Asian Games champion in the 100 metres event, with a time of 9.97 seconds.
Frentorish "Tori" Bowie was an American track and field athlete, who primarily competed in the long jump, 100 meters, and 200 meters. She won the silver medal in the 100 m and bronze in the 200 m at the 2016 Rio Olympics, bronze and gold in the 100 m at the 2015 and 2017 World Championships, respectively, and also earned gold medals as part of U.S. women's 4 × 100 m relays at both the 2016 Olympic Games and 2017 World Championships.
Shericka Jackson is a Jamaican sprinter competing in the 60 m, 100 m, 200 m, and 400 metres. In the 100 m, she’s the fifth fastest woman of all time, while in the 200 m, she’s the second fastest woman in history.
Oluwatobiloba Ayomide "Tobi" Amusan is a Nigerian track and field athlete who specialises in the 100 metres hurdles and also competes as a sprinter. Amusan is the current world record holder in the 100 metres hurdles with a time of 12.12 seconds which she set at the 2022 women's 100 metres hurdles semi final in Eugene Oregon. She is the current Commonwealth and African champion in the 100 m hurdles, as well as the meet record holder in those two competitions. Amusan became the first ever Nigerian world champion and world record holder in an athletics event when she won the 2022 World Championships 100 m hurdles gold medal, setting the current world record of 12.12 seconds (+0.9 m/s) in the semi-final, followed up by a 12.06 seconds (+2.5 m/s) in the final. She won back-to-back Commonwealth and African titles in 2018 and 2022 in the 100 m hurdles and is also a two-time African Games champion in the event. She is also the current Diamond league champion in the 100 metres hurdles having won the final in 12.33 seconds (+1.8 m/s) achieving a winning streak in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Noah Lyles is an American professional track and field sprinter who primarily competes in the 100 meters and 200 meters. Lyles holds a personal best of 19.31 seconds in the 200 m, the American record and fourth fastest of all-time.
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