Since its inception in 1983, World Athletics Championship has become the jewel in the crown of the IAAF’s global competition programme and one of the biggest sporting events in the world. It was founded as a direct response to the IAAF’s dissatisfaction with the fact that the sport was only allowed to hold a single global event and the Olympics had been the world championship of track and field until the 1960s. At a meeting of IAAF members in 1976 the idea of a separate World Championships from the Olympic Games was approved. Helsinki, Finland won the bid to host the inaugural competition in 1983.
A number of world records were set at the first World Championships. These included a wind-aided 8.91m leap in the long jump by American Carl Lewis, which broke Bob Beamon’s 23-year old record of 8.92m and is still standing to this day. Other notable performers were American sprinter Usain Bolt who won three gold medals and British athlete Nicola Adams who won the women’s 400m hurdles.
It was a mixed bag for Team GB in 2025 in Tokyo with some great individual performances and others who were not quite at their best. US athletes were particularly well represented with Melissa Jefferson-Wooden completing the sprint treble, Mondo Duplantis and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone claiming golds in their respective events, and Leo Neugebauer winning the decathlon after a race full of twists and turns. Keely Hodgkinson won the 800m, but there were no medals in the relays and a disappointing end to a career of sorts for Scottish high jumper Scott Lincoln.