IAAF World Championships in Athletics - History

History

The idea of having an Athletics World Championships was around well before the competition's first event in 1983. In 1913, the IAAF decided that the Olympic Games would serve as the World Championships for athletics. This was considered suitable for over 50 years until in the late 1960s the desire of many IAAF members to have their own World Championships began to grow. In 1976 at the IAAF Council Meeting in Puerto Rico an Athletics World Championships separate from the Olympic Games was approved.

Following bids from both Stuttgart, West Germany and Helsinki, Finland, the IAAF Council awarded the inaugural competition to Helsinki, to take place in 1983 and be held in the Helsinki Olympic Stadium (where the 1952 Summer Olympics were held).

Over the years the competition has grown in size. In 1983 an estimated 1,300 athletes from 154 countries participated. By the 2003 competition, in Paris, it had grown to 1,907 athletes from 203 countries with coverage being transmitted to 179 different countries.

There has also been a change in the schedule over the years, with several new events, all for women, being added. By 2005 the schedule for men and women was almost equal. The only differences being the men had the extra event of the 50 km Walk, while women competed in the 100 m Hurdles and Heptathlon compared to the men in the 110m Hurdles and Decathlon respectively.

The following list shows when new events were added for the first time.

• 1987, women's 10,000 m and 10 km walk were added.
• 1993, women's triple jump was added.
• 1995, women's 5000 m was added, replacing the 3000 m race.
• 1999, women's pole vault and hammer were added and the women's 20 km walk replaced the 10 km walk.
• 2005, women's 3000 m Steeplechase was added.