Athletics Olympics: Athletics is also known as track and field or track and field athletics. This is a collection of sports events like running, throwing and jumping. The name athletics has been derived from athlon , the Greek word. In Greek, athlon means " contest ". In some languages, running, throwing and jumping are referred to as light athletics to differentiate them from weight lifting, wrestling, which are categorized as " heavy athletics ".
Athletics in the Summer Games: Athletics was the original event at the first Summer Games which took place in 776 B.C. The only event held in that Summer Games was the stadium-length foot race or " stade ". Athletics has been included in the schedule of the modern Summer Games since 1896 , the very first modern Summer Games held in Athens. From then on, the sport has made a permanent place in the Olympics program.
Athletics at the 2008 Summer Games: At the 2008 Summer Games, athletics will be held for 10 days from 15 th August to 24 th August. The events will take place in the Beijing National Stadium in the Olympic Green in Beijing . The stadium is currently under construction for the Games. In the Summer Games , athletics is divided into four sets of events. These events are track events, field events, combined events and road events .
The track events will include sprints (100 meter, 200 meter and 400 meter), middle-distance running (800 meter and 1500 meter) and long-distance running (5000 meter and 10,000 meter). Obstacle events will include hurdling (100 meter and 400 meter for women, 110 meter and 400 meter for men), relays (4 x 100 meter and 4 x 400 meter) and the 3000 meter steeplechase. The field events of athletics will include long jump, triple jump, high jump, pole vault, discus, shot put, javelin and hammer throw for both men and women. Combined events will consist of the decathlon for men and the heptathlon for women. The heptathlon will be a combination of 100 meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump, javelin, 200 meter and 800 meter. The decathlon will include 100 meter, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400 meter, 110 meter hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1500 meter. Each competition will take place over two days. The road events will include a Marathon and a 20 kilometer Race Walk for both men and women. In addition, the men will compete in a 50 kilometer Race Walk. A total of 47 gold medals will be given away in the discipline of athletics in the twenty-ninth Summer Games.
Asafa Powell, Maurice Greene, Francis Obiorah Obikwelu, Shawn Crawford, Bernard R. Williams III, Jeremy Wariner, Otis Harris, Yuriy Mikhailovich Borzakovskiy, Mbulaeni Mulaudzi , Bernard Kipchirchir Lagat, Rui Silva, Kenenisa Bekele, Eliud Kipchoge, Sileshi Sihine, Zersenay Tadesse, Stefano Baldini, Mebrahtom (Meb) Keflezighi, Liu Xiang, Terrence R. Trammell, Anier García Ortiz, Danny McFarlane, Naman Keita, Ezekiel Kemboi Cheboi, Brimin Kipruto, Paul Kipsiele Koech, Denis Nizhegorodov, Stefan Christian Holm, Dwight Phillips , Christian Olsson, Virgilijus Alekna, Koji Alexander Murofushi, Andreas Thorkildsen, Roman ebrle and Bryan Clay are the expected men contenders in the 2008 Summer Games . Among women, Yulia Nesterenko, Lauryn Williams, Veronica Campbell, Allyson Felix, Ana Gabriela Guevara Espinoza, Natalya Nikolayevna Antyukh, Hasna Benhassi, Tatyana Tomashova, Meseret Defar, Xing Huina, Paula Radcliff , Faní Halkiá, Tetiana Tereschuk-Antipova , Yelena Vladimirovna Slesarenko, Yelena Isinbayeva, Tatyana Lebedeva, Yipsi Moreno, Osleidys Menéndez and Carolina Evelyn Klüft are some of the top contenders in the Beijing 2008 Summer Games .
