IAAF World Championships in Athletics

Outside of the Olympic Games, track and field’s major event is the IAAF World Championships in Athletics, currently held in odd-numbered years. The event began in Helsinki in 1983. Double-winners at the initial World Championships included Carl Lewis in the 100 and the long jump, Jarmila Kratochvilova of Czechoslovakia in the 400 (with a then-world record time of 47.99) and the 800, and American Mary Decker-Slaney in the 1500 and 3000.

Other highlights included victories by Edwin Moses in the 400 hurdles, Russian Sergei Bubka in the pole vault and Great Britain’s Daley Thompson in the decathlon. Additionally, Great Britain’s Steve Cram edged American Steve Scott in the 1500, 3:41.59 to 3:41.87, while the U.S. set a then-world record of 37.86 in the 4 x 100 relay.

The 2009 World Championships will be held in Berlin, Germany, Aug. 15-23. The 2011 World Championships are scheduled for Aug. 27-Sept. 4 in Daegu, Korea. The 2013 World Championships will take place in Moscow, Russia, from Aug. 10-18.