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.
Samuel Matete is a retired male track and field athlete from Zambia, who competed mainly in 400 metres hurdles.
Equatorial Guinea participated in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, which was held from 15 September to 1 October 2000. The country's participation in Sydney marked its fifth appearance in the Summer Olympics since its debut at the 1984 Summer Olympics. The delegation included one middle-distance runner, one short-distance sprinter and two swimmers: José Luis Ebatela Nvo, Mari Paz Mosanga Motanga, Eric Moussambani and Paula Barila Bolopa respectively. All four athletes qualified for the games through wildcard places. Moussambani was selected as the flag bearer for the opening ceremony. The four athletes were unable to advance beyond the first rounds of their respective events, with Moussambani and Bolopa attracting attention for their poor performances, but were applauded by the crowds.
Usain St. Leo Bolt is a Jamaican retired sprinter, widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time. He is the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay.
Churandy Thomas Martina is a Dutch sprinter. He originally placed second in the 200 metres at the 2008 Beijing Olympics but was later disqualified due to a lane violation. Martina secured four and two individual top-five finishes at the Summer Olympics and World Athletics Championships respectively. He was the 100 metres 2007 Pan American Games champion representing the Netherlands Antilles and claimed three individual titles at the Central American and Caribbean Games. He won gold medals in the 200 m and 100 m at the 2012 and 2016 European Athletics Championships respectively.
Sally Pearson, OAM is a retired Australian athlete who competed on the 100 metre hurdles. She is the 2011 and 2017 World champion and 2012 Olympic champion in the 100 metres hurdles. She also won a silver medal in the 100 m hurdles at the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2013 World Championships.
Yohan Blake is a Jamaican sprinter specialising in the 100-metre and 200-metre sprint races. He won gold at the 100 m at the 2011 World Athletics Championships as the youngest 100 m world champion ever, and a silver medal in the 2012 Olympic Games in London in the 100 m and 200 m races for the Jamaican team behind Usain Bolt. His times of 9.75 in 100m and 19.44 in 200m are the fastest 100m and 200m Olympic sprints in history to not win the gold medal.
Zambia competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, held from 27 July to 12 August 2012. The country's participation at London marked its twelfth appearance in the Summer Olympics since its début at the 1964 Summer Olympics. The delegation consisted of seven competitors; three track and field athletes Gerald Phiri, Prince Mumba and Chauzje Choosha, one each in Boxing and Judo and two swimmers, Zane Jordan and Jade Ashleigh Howard. Phiri, Mumba, Choombe and Munyonga had qualified by meeting the standards in their respective sports, and Choosha, Jordan and Howard qualified by wildcard places. Mumba was the national flag bearer at the opening and closing ceremonies.
Shaunae Miller-Uibo is a Bahamian track and field sprinter who competes in the 200 and 400 metres. She is a two-time Olympic champion after winning the women's 400 metres at the 2016 Rio Olympics and again at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Gerald Phiri is a Zambian sprinter who participates in 60 metre, 100 metre and 200 metre events in both indoor and outdoor events. He began competing in athletics while in school and continued his career at Texas A&M University. He became the first sprinter to achieve a 100–200 sprint double at the Big 12 Conference event and earned an All-American award. Phiri's international début in the 2009 World Championship in Athletics where he was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 100 metres. He won a silver medal in a 60 metres event in his second year at university, and secured three medals at the 2010 Big 12 Conference meet.
Zharnel Hughes is an Anguillan-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.
Xie Zhenye is a Chinese sprinter. He is the current Asian record holder of the 200 metres with a time of 19.88 seconds. Xie's personal best in the 100 metres of 9.97 seconds makes 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.
Lidiane Lopes is a Cape Verdean sprinter who specialises in the 100 metres and 200 metres. She is the current Cape Verdean record holder in the 100-metre sprint. Lopes has competed at both the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics. At both Olympics, she competed in the 100 metres. She has also competed in a World Championships, a World Junior Championships, a World Youth Championships, a Jeux de la Francophonie, a Lusophony Games, an African Games, and an Ibero-American Athletics Championships.
Geraldina "Dina" Rachel Asher-Smith, OLY is a British sprinter. She is the fastest British woman on record. She won a gold medal in the 200 metres, silver in the 100 metres and another silver in the 4×100 m relay at the 2019 World Championships, breaking her own British records with further records which still stand. Aged 24, Asher-Smith was the first Briton to win three medals at a World Championships. She earned a bronze in the 200 m at the 2022 World Championships. As part of 4×100 m relay teams, she won medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics and 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and also at the 2013 and 2017 World Championships.
Ewa Nikola Swoboda is a Polish track and field sprinter who specialises in the short sprints. She is a three-time European Indoor Championships medallist in the 60 metres, having won the gold medal in 2019 and silvers in 2017 and 2023.
The Maldives competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's eighth consecutive appearance at the Summer Olympics. The delegation included two track and field athletes: Hassan Saaid and Afa Ismail, as well as swimmers Ibrahim Nishwan and Aminath Shajan. Both Shajan and Ismail were returning competitors from the 2012 London Olympics, with the former leading the Maldivian squad as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony. The Maldives, however, has yet to win its first ever Olympic medal.
Suwilanji Theresa Mpondela-Daka is a Zambian athlete who specializes in sprinting. Since 2019, She has been serving the Athletes Commission for the National Olympic Committee of Zambia (NOCZ). She is married to Zambian footballer Patson Daka.
The following table is an overview of all national records in the 100 metres.
