The decathlon is a summer sporting event that consists of ten track and field events over two days. The events in the decathlon are held in this order: 100 meters, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400 meters, 110 meters hurdle, discus throw, pole vault, javelin throw, 1500 meters. The Olympic decathlon is a male event, the winner is often considered the unofficial greatest all-around athlete in the world. The modern Olympic decathlon was first run at the 1912 games.
The heptathlon is a summer sporting event that consists of seven track and field events over two days. The events in the heptathlon are held in this order: 100 meters hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 meters, long jump, javelin throw and 800 meters. The Olympic heptathlon is a female event. The modern Olympic heptathlon was first contested in the 1984 games.
The pentathlon is a summer sporting event that consists of five events in the course of one day. The pentathlon as it is performed today is known as the modern pentathlon, the events are held in this order: épée fencing, 200 meter freestyle swim, horse show jumping, 3200 meter race combined with four stops for laser pistol shooting. The Olympic modern pentathlon was introduced as a male event at the 1912 games, a female event was introduced at the 2000 games. All multi-event Olympic sports are derived from the Ancient Olympic pentathlon, which consisted of the discus throw, the javelin throw, the long jump, wrestling, and the stadion or short foot race.
A triathlon is a summer sporting event that consists of three events that occur sequentially, one after another, with no break. The events are held in this order: 1.5 km freestyle swim, 40 km cycle road race, 10 km foot run. The Olympic triathlon holds separate events for men and women, the triathlon was first run at the 2000 games.
A biathlon is a winter sporting event that consists of cross-country skiing combined with rifle-shooting. The distances and number of shooting stops have varied over the years, currently men’s biathlon events include the 10 km, the 20 km, the 12.5 km pursuit, the 15 km mass start and the 4 x 7.5 km relay. Women’s biathlon events include the 7.5 km, the 15 km, the 10 km pursuit, the 12.5 km mass start and the 4 x 6 km relay. The male biathlon was first contested in the 1960 Olympics games, the female biathlon was first contested in the 1992 Olympic games.
Examples
After two days and 10 events, 17-year-old Bob Mathias took home gold for the United States in the decathlon at the 1948 London Olympics, becoming the youngest athlete to win gold in a track and field event. (The Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
Modern pentathlon has a proud heritage, having been conceived by Baron Pierre de Coubertin – the founder of the modern Olympics – but was subjected to a vote in 2013 to cling onto its place in sports’ greatest spectacle. (USA Today)
Rumors concerning a doping investigation of the Russian biathlon program were denied on Wednesday by International Biathlon Union (IBU) President Anders Besseberg. (Headlines and Global News)