Historical Track & Field Trends (1800s–Present Day)

Explore track & field performance data dating back to the 1800s across various events. Keep in mind that most world records were not officially recognized by the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF)—now called World Athletics—until 1912, and in some cases, much later. This delay was due to the gradual establishment of global standards, such as differentiating between handheld and fully automatic timing and accounting for wind assistance.

Fully automatic timing was first introduced in the Olympics in 1972 and did not become a requirement for official records until 1977. Here, we aim to present recorded times and distances to illustrate performance trends over time. While we include pre-IAAF records for context, we exclude any marks that were later voided due to doping or other disqualifications.

We prioritize fully automatic times over handheld ones. Once automatic timing is introduced for an event, any previous handheld records that are faster are replaced by the best corresponding automatic time for fairness and consistency.

Additionally, only the fastest or farthest performance recorded in a given year is displayed. If multiple records were set within the same year—either by one athlete or by different athletes—only the latest achievement is shown. Performances from mixed-gender competitions (e.g., women competing in races with men) are excluded from the results.

Choose an event and gender to see how records and top performances have evolved. Hover over points on the chart to view exact details.