The World Championships in Athletics is a biennial event which began in 1983. Organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), the World Championships are a competition comprising track and field athletics events available to male and female athletes from any of the IAAF's 213 member federations. Championship records are set when an athlete achieves the best mark in an event at one of the editions of the Championships. World, area, and national records have been set at the championships over the course of its history.

Competitors at the World Championships come from around the globe and records have been broken by athletes from all six continents. The United States has been the most successful competitor at the World Championships in both medals and records; all four relay race records are currently held by American teams, three of which were set at the 2003 World Championships. The record in the men's 4 × 400 metres relay is the current world record in the event.

Four athletes hold multiple records: Marion Jones holds both the individual and relay record in the 100 metres, Michael Johnson holds individual and relay records in the 400 metres, Jackie Joyner-Kersee broke both the heptathlon and long jump records in 1987, and Jarmila Kratochvílová set the records in the 400 and 800 metres at the inaugural Championships in 1983. Kratochílová's records have gone unbeaten for over 25 years and are the two oldest records of the Championships; her 800 metres record is still the current world record over the distance. Two records were set at the last edition of the Championships: Tyson Gay broke the 200 metres record and Yekaterina Volkova beat the 3000 metres steeplechase record in 2007 in Osaka. The next competition will begin on August 15, 2009 in Berlin.

Men

• Note:World records in bold are current world records, those in bold italics are former world records

Statistics are correct as of June 2009

Event	Record	Name	Location	Date	Notes
100 metres	9.58 (+0.9 m/s)		Berlin	16 August 2009
200 metres	19.19 (-0.3 m/s)		Berlin	20 August 2009
400 metres	43.18		Sevilla	26 August 1999
800 metres	1:43.06		Rome	1 September 1987
1,500 metres	3:27.65		Sevilla	24 August 1999
5,000 metres	12:52.79		Paris	31 August 2003
10,000 metres	26:46.31		Berlin	17 August 2009
110 metre hurdles	12.91 (+0.5 m/s)		Stuttgart	20 August 1993
400 metre hurdles	47.18		Stuttgart	19 August 1993
4x100 metres relay	37.31	Steve Mullings Michael Frater Usain Bolt Asafa Powell	Berlin	22 August 2009
4x400 metres relay	2:54.29	Andrew Valmon Quincy Watts Harry Reynolds Michael Johnson	Stuttgart	22 August 1993
3,000 m steeplechase	8:00.43		Berlin	18 August 2009
Marathon	2:06:54		Berlin	22 August 2009
20 kilometre walk	1:17:21		Paris	23 August 2003
50 kilometre walk	3:36:03		Paris	27 August 2003
Discus throw	70.17		Helsinki	7 August 2005
Hammer throw	83.89		Helsinki	8 August 2005
High jump	2.40		Stuttgart	22 August 1993
Javelin throw	92.80		Edmonton	12 August 2001
Long jump	8.95 (+0.3 m/s)		Tokyo	30 August 1991
Pole vault	6.05		Edmonton	9 August 2001
Shot put	22.23		Rome	29 August 1987
Triple jump	18.29 (+1.3 m/s)		Gothenborg	7 August 1995
Decathlon	8902		Edmonton	7 August 2001

Key:
World record	Area record	National record	Athlete's personal best

Women

• Note:World records in bold are current world records, those in bold italics are former world records

Statistics are correct as of 8 May 2009

Event	Record	Name	Location	Date	Notes
100 metres	10.70		Sevilla	28 August 1999
200 metres	21.74		Rome	3 September 1987
400 metres	47.99		Helsinki	10 August 1983
800 metres	1:54.68		Helsinki	9 August 1983
1,500 metres	3:58.52		Paris	31 August 2003
3,000 metres (defunct since 1993)	8:28.71		Stuttgart	16 August 1993
5,000 metres	14:38.59		Helsinki	13 August 2005
10,000 metres	30:04.18		Paris	23 August 2003
100 metre hurdles	12.34		Rome	4 September 1987
400 metre hurdles	52.42		Berlin	20 August 2009
4x100 metres relay	41.47	Chryste Gaines Marion Jones Inger Miller Gail Devers	Athens	9 August 1997
4x400 metres relay	3:16.71	Gwen Torrence Maicel Malone-Wallace Natasha Kaiser-Brown Jearl Miles	Stuttgart	22 August 1993
3,000 m steeplechase	9:06.57		Osaka	27 August 2007
Marathon	2:20:57		Helsinki	14 August 2005
10,000 metres track walk (defunct since 1997)	42:55.49		Athens	7 August 1997
10 kilometres race walk (defunct since 1995)	42:13		Gothenburg	7 August 1995
20 kilometres race walk	1:25:41		Helsinki	7 August 2005
Discus throw	71.62		Rome	31 August 1987
Hammer throw	77.96		Berlin	22 August 2009
High jump	2.09		Rome	30 August 1987
Javelin throw	71.70		Helsinki	14 August 2005
Long jump	7.36		Rome	4 September 1987
Pole vault	5.01		Helsinki	12 August 2005
Shot put	21.24		Rome	5 September 1987
Triple jump	15.50		Gothenburg	10 August 1995
Heptathlon	7128		Rome	1 September 1987

Key:
World record	Area record	National record	Athlete's personal best

See also

• List of world records in athletics
• List of Olympic records in athletics
• List of Commonwealth Games records in athletics

References

General

• Official record tables. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-06-17.
• Competition websites. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-05-09.

Specific

1. Results - 4 X 400 METRES - Men - Final. IAAF (2003-08-22). Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
2. Gains, Paul (2005-08-13). Dibaba makes history. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
3. Official Results - 4 X 100 METRES Women - Final. IAAF (1997-08-09). Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
4. Results - 4 X 400 METRES - Women - Final. IAAF (1997-08-22). Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
5. Peters, Samuel (2005-08-12). 5.01m Pole Vault WORLD RECORD - Guess who?. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-05-08.

External links

• Official website
• Results of past World Championships