World Records are those officially ratified by the IAAF. We have also listed the statistically best-acceptable marks in other non-ratified events that are “frequently” contested (+). If the ratified WR is altitude-aided—i.e., made at an altitude over 1000 meters in an event where the thinner air has a positive effect—we sub-list the unofficial best.
Symbols: (A) = altitude over 1000 meters; i = indoors; m = meters; M = miles; p = mark pending ratification; y = yards
| Track Events |
| 100 |
10.49 |
Florence Griffith Joyner (US) |
Indianapolis, Indiana |
7/16/88 |
| [T&FN believes the 10.49 race was illegally wind-aided and should never have been accepted as the WR. We consider the real fastest to be 10.54 by Elaine Thompson-Herah (Jamaica) in ’21 & Melissa Jefferson-Wooden (US) in ’25] |
| 200 |
21.34 |
Florence Griffith Joyner (US) |
Seoul, South Korea |
9/29/88 |
| 300+ |
34.41 |
Shaunae Miller-Uibo (Bahamas) |
Ostrava, Czechia |
6/20/19 |
| 400 |
47.60 |
Marita Koch (East Germany) |
Canberra, Australia |
10/06/85 |
| 600+ |
1:21.63 |
Mary Moraa (Kenya) |
Berlin, Germany |
9/01/24 |
| 800 |
1:53.28 |
Jarmila Kratochvílová (Czechoslovakia) |
Munich, Germany |
7/26/83 |
| 1000 |
2:28.98 |
Svetlana Masterkova (Russia) |
Brussels, Belgium |
8/23/96 |
| 1500 |
3:48.68 |
Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) |
Eugene, Oregon |
7/05/25 |
| Mile |
4:07.64 |
Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) |
Fontvieille, Monaco |
7/21/23 |
| 2000 |
5:19.70 |
Jessica Hull (Australia) |
Fontvieille, Monaco |
7/13/24 |
| Steeple |
8:44.32 |
Beatrice Chepkoech (Kenya) |
Fontvieille, Monaco |
7/20/18 |
| 3000 |
8:06.11 |
Junxia Wang (China) |
Beijing, China |
9/13/93 |
[Note: T&FN believes all the marks made in the Chinese National Games of ’93 and ’97 are flawed.
We believe the real fastest is 8:07.04 by Faith Kipyegon (Kenya) Chorzów, Poland 8/16/25] |
| 2 Miles+ |
8:58.58 |
Meseret Defar (Ethiopia) |
Brussels, Belgium |
9/14/07 |
| 5000 |
13:58.06 |
Beatrice Chebet (Kenya) |
Eugene, Oregon |
7/05/25 |
| 10,000 |
28:54.14 |
Beatrice Chebet (Kenya) |
Eugene, Oregon |
5/25/24 |
| 20,000+ |
1:05:26.6 |
Tegla Loroupe (Kenya) |
Borgholzhausen, Germany |
9/03/00 |
| Hour |
18,930m | 11M, 1341y |
Sifan Hassan (Netherlands) |
Brussels, Belgium |
9/04/20 |
| 100 Hurdles |
12.12 |
Tobi Amusan (Nigeria) |
Eugene, Oregon |
7/24/22 |
| 400 Hurdles |
50.37 |
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (US) |
St.-Denis, France |
8/08/24 |
| Relay Events |
| 4 x 100 |
40.82 |
United States |
London, England |
8/11/12 |
| (Tianna Bartoletta 11.0, Allyson Felix 9.9, Bianca Knight 10.9, Carmelita Jeter 9.9) |
| 4 x 200 |
1:27.46 |
United States |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
4/29/00 |
| (LaTasha Jenkins, LaTasha Colander-Richardson, Nanceen Perry, Marion Jones) |
| 4 x 400 |
3:15.17 |
Soviet Union |
Seoul, South Korea |
10/01/88 |
| (Tatyana Ledovskaya 50.12, Olga Nazarova 47.82, Maria Pinigina 49.43, Olga Bryzgina 47.80) |
| Mixed-Sex 4 x 400 |
3:07.41 |
United States |
St.-Denis, France |
8/02/24 |
| (Vernon Norwood 44.47, Shamier Little 49.32, Bryce Deadmon 44.17, Kaylyn Brown 49.45) |
| 4 x 800 |
7:50.17 |
Soviet Union |
Moscow, Russia |
8/05/84 |
| (Nadezhda Olizarenko, Lyubov Gurina, Lyudmila Borisova, Irina Podyalovskaya) |
| 4 x 1500 |
16:27.02 |
Nike Bowerman TC |
Portland, Oregon |
7/31/20 |
| (Colleen Quigley 4:08, Elise Cranny 4:09, Karissa Schweizer 4:06, Shelby Houlihan 4:04) |
| 800 Medley+ |
1:35.20 |
Team USA Penn Red |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
4/28/18 |
| (Destinee Brown, Aaliyah Brown, Kimberlyn Duncan, Raevyn Rogers 50.48) |
| Sprint Medley+ |
3:34.56 |
Jamaica |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
4/25/09 |
| (Sherri-Ann Brooks, Rosemarie Whyte, Moya Thompson 51.7, Kenia Sinclair 1:57.43) |
| Distance Medley |
10:36.50 |
United States |
Nassau, Bahamas |
5/02/15 |
| (Treniere Moser 3:18.38, Sanya Richards-Ross 50.12, Ajee’ Wilson 2:00.08, Shannon Rowbury 4:27.92) |
| [note: statistically acceptable 10:33.85 by U.S. in ’22 never ratified]
(no personnel entry) |
| 4 x 100H+ |
50.50 |
Team USA Blue Drake |
Des Moines, Iowa |
4/24/15 |
| (Brianna Rollins, Dawn Harper Nelson, Queen Harrison, Kristi Castlin) |
| Field Events |
| High Jump |
2.10 | 6-10¾ |
Yaroslava Mahuchikh (Ukraine) |
Paris, France |
7/07/24 |
| Pole Vault |
5.06 | 16-7¼ |
Yelena Isinbaeva (Russia) |
Zürich, Switzerland |
8/28/09 |
| Long Jump |
7.52 | 24-8¼ |
Galina Chistyakova (Soviet Union) |
St. Petersburg, Russia |
6/11/88 |
| Triple Jump |
15.74 | 51-7¾i |
Yulimar Rojas (Venezuela) |
Belgrade, Serbia |
3/20/22 |
| Shot |
22.63 | 74-3 |
Natalya Lisovskaya (Soviet Union) |
Moscow, Russia |
6/07/87 |
| Discus |
76.80 | 252-0 |
Gabriele Reinsch (East Germany) |
Neubrandenburg, Germany |
7/09/88 |
| Hammer |
82.98 | 272-3 |
Anita Włodarczyk (Poland) |
Warsaw, Poland |
8/28/16 |
| Javelin |
72.28 | 237-2 |
Barbora Špotáková (Czechia) |
Stuttgart, Germany |
9/13/08 |
| Multi Events |
| Heptathlon |
7291 |
Jackie Joyner-Kersee (US) |
Seoul, South Korea |
9/23–24/88 |
| (12.69, 1.86/6-1¼, 15.80/51-10, 22.56 [4264], 7.27/23-10¼, 45.66/149-10, 2:08.51 [3027]) |
| Decathlon |
8358 |
Austra Skujytė (Lithuania) |
Columbia, Missouri |
4/14-15/05 |
| (12.49, 46.19/151-6, 3.10/10-2, 48.78/160-0, 57.19 [3890], 14.22w, 6.12/20-1w, 16.42/53-10½, 1.78/5-10, 5:15.86 [4468]) |
| Road Events |
| Mile |
4:20.98 |
Diribe Welteji (Ethiopia) |
Riga, Latvia |
10/01/23 |
| 5K |
13:54 |
Beatrice Chebet (Kenya) |
Barcelona, Spain |
12/31/24 |
| (women-only) |
14:13 |
Beatrice Chebet (Kenya) |
Barcelona, Spain |
12/23/23 |
| 10K |
28:46 |
Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) |
Valencia, Spain |
1/14/24 |
| (women-only) |
29:27 |
Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) |
Herzogenaurach, Germany |
9/26/25 |
| 15K+ |
44:15 |
Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) |
Valencia, Spain |
10/27/24 |
| 10-Mile+ (women-only) |
49:53 |
Taylor Roe (US) |
Washington, DC |
4/06/25 |
| 20K+ |
61:25 |
Joyciline Jepkosgei (Kenya) |
Prague, Czech Republic |
4/01/17 |
| Half-Marathon |
62:52 |
Letesenbet Gidey (Ethiopia) |
Valencia, Spain |
10/24/21 |
| (women-only) |
65:16 |
Peres Jepchirchir (Kenya) |
Gdynia, Poland |
10/17/20 |
| Marathon |
2:09:56 |
Ruth Chepngetich (Kenya) |
Chicago, Illinois |
10/13/24 |
| (women-only) |
2:15:50 |
Tigst Assefa (Ethiopia) |
London, England |
4/27/25 |
| 50K |
2:59:54 |
Desiree Linden (US) |
Dorena Lake, Oregon |
4/13/21 |
| (women-only) |
3:00:30 |
Emane Seifu (Ethiopia) |
Gqeberha. South Africa |
2/26/23 |
| 100K |
6:33:11 |
Tomoe Abe (Japan) |
Lake Saroma, Japan |
5/25/00 |
| Ekiden Relay |
2:11:41 |
China |
Beijing, China |
2/28/98 |
| (Bo Jiang 15:42, Yanmei Dong 31:36, Fenting Zhao 15:16, Zaijie Ma 31:01, Lixin Lan 15:50, Xa Lin 22:16) |
| Walk Events |
| 10,000 |
41:56.23 |
Nadezhda Ryashkina (SU) |
Seattle, Washington |
7/24/90 |
| 10K (road) |
41:04 |
Yelena Nikolayeva (Russia) |
Sochi, Russia |
4/20/96 |
| 20,000 |
1:26:52.3 |
Olimpiada Ivanova (Russia) |
Brisbane, Australia |
9/06/01 |
| 20K (road) |
1:23:49 |
Jiayu Yang (China) |
Huangshan, China |
3/20/21 |
| 35,000 |
Pending |
|
|
|
| 35K (road) |
2:37:15 |
Mária Pérez (Spain) |
Podébrady, Czechia |
5/21/23 |
| 50K (road) |
3:59:15 |
Hong Liu (China) |
Huangshan, China |
3/09/19 |
| [3:57:08 Klavdiya Afanasyeva (Russia) ’19 not ratifiable because of lack of international-caliber judges] |
as of March 09, 2026
