The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα (déka, meaning "ten") and ἄθλος (áthlos, or ἄθλον, áthlon, meaning "contest" or "prize"). Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not by the position achieved. The decathlon is contested mainly by male athletes, while female athletes typically compete in the heptathlon.
Traditionally, the title of "World's Greatest Athlete" has been given to the person who wins the decathlon. This began when Gustav V of Sweden told Jim Thorpe, "Sir, you are the world's greatest athlete" after Thorpe won the decathlon at the Stockholm Olympics in 1912.
The event is similar to the pentathlon held at the ancient Greek Olympics, and also similar to a competition called an "all-around", which was contested at the United States amateur championships in 1884. Another all-around was held at the 1904 Summer Olympics. The modern decathlon first appeared at the 1912 Games.
In modern athletics, the ten events are: 100 metres, 400 metres, 1500 metres, 110 metre hurdles, long jump, high jump, pole vault, discus throw, javelin throw and shotput. The current official decathlon world record holder is Frenchman Kevin Mayer, who scored a total of 9,126 points at the 2018 Décastar in France.
Historical background
The decathlon developed from the ancient pentathlon competitions held at the ancient Greek Olympics. Pentathlons involved five disciplines – long jump, discus throw, javelin throw, sprint and a wrestling match. Introduced in Olympia during 708 BC, this competition was extremely popular for many centuries.
A ten-event competition known as the "all-around" or "all-round" championship, similar to the modern decathlon, was first contested at the United States amateur championships in 1884 and reached a consistent form by 1890. While an all-around event was held at the 1904 Summer Olympics, whether it was an official Olympic event has been disputed.
The modern decathlon first appeared in the Olympic athletics program at the 1912 Games in Stockholm.
Format
Men's decathlon
The vast majority of international and top-level men's decathlons are divided into a two-day competition, with the track and field events held in the order below. Traditionally, all decathletes who finish the event, rather than just the winner or medal-winning athletes, do a round of honour together after the competition. The current world record holder is Kevin Mayer from France with 9126 points which he set on September 16, 2018, in Talence, France.
Day 1
100 metres
Long jump
Shot put
High jump
400 metres
Day 2
110 metres hurdles
Discus throw
Pole vault
Javelin throw
1500 metres
Women's decathlon
At major championships, the women's equivalent of the decathlon is the seven-event heptathlon; before 1981 it was the five-event pentathlon. However, in 2001, the IAAF (now World Athletics) approved scoring tables for a women's decathlon; the current world record holder is Austra Skujytė of Lithuania, with 8,358. Women's disciplines differ from men's in the same way as for standalone events: the shot, discus, and javelin weigh less, and the sprint hurdles use lower hurdles over 100 m rather than 110 m. The points tables used are the same as for the heptathlon in the shared events. The schedule of events differs from the men's decathlon, with the field events switched between day one and day two; this is to avoid scheduling conflicts when men's and women's decathlon competitions take place simultaneously.
Day 1
100 metres
Discus throw
Pole vault
Javelin throw
400 metres
Day 2
100 metres hurdles
Long jump
Shot put
High jump
1500 metres
One hour
The one-hour decathlon is a special type of decathlon in which the athletes have to start the last of ten events (1500 m) within sixty minutes of the start of the first event. The world record holder is Czech decathlete Robert Změlík, who achieved 7,897 points at a meeting in Ostrava, Czechoslovakia, in 1992.