The 3rd World Championships in Athletics (), under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held in the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, Japan between August 23 and September 1, 1991. 1,517 athletes from 167 countries participated in the event. Japan hosted again the championship in 2007 in Osaka and Tokyo hosted the event again in 2025 in a new venue built at the same location.
The event is best-remembered for the men's long jump competition, when Carl Lewis made the best six-jump series in history, only to be beaten by Mike Powell, whose jump broke Bob Beamon's long-standing world record from the 1968 Summer Olympics.
East and West Germany reunified into a single nation in 1990. As a result, this was the first global athletics championship since the 1964 Summer Olympics in which all German athletes competed as a single team.
Men's results
Track 1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995 100 m9.86(WR)9.88(PB)9.91(PB)200 m20.01(CR)20.3420.49400 m44.5744.6244.63800 m1:43.991:44.241:44.671500 m3:32.84(CR)3:34.843:35.285000 m13:14.45(CR)13:16.6413:22.7010,000 m27:38.7427:39.4127:41.74 Marathon2:14:572:15:262:15:36110 m hurdles13.0613.0613.25400 m hurdles47.6447.74(NR)47.86(NR)3000 m st.8:12.59 8:13.448:15.5420 km walk1:19:37(CR)1:19:461:20:2250 km walk3:53:093:53:093:55:144 × 100 m relayAndre CasonLeroy BurrellDennis MitchellCarl LewisMichael Marsh*37.50(WR)Max MorinièreDaniel SangoumaJean-Charles TrouabalBruno Marie-Rose37.87Tony JarrettJohn RegisDarren BraithwaiteLinford Christie38.09 4 × 400 m relayRoger BlackDerek RedmondJohn RegisKriss AkabusiAde Mafe*Mark Richardson*2:57.53(AR)Andrew ValmonQuincy WattsDanny EverettAntonio PettigrewJeff Reynolds*Mark Everett*2:57.57Patrick O'ConnorDevon MorrisWinthrop GrahamSeymour FaganHoward Burnett*3:00.10 Note: * Indicates athletes who ran in preliminary rounds.
Field 1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995 Long jump8.95(WR)8.918.42Triple jump17.7817.7517.62High jump2.38(CR)2.362.36Pole vault5.95(CR)5.905.85Shot put21.6720.75120.34Discus throw66.2065.8265.32Hammer throw81.7080.9480.44Javelin throw90.8288.1287.08Decathlon8812(CR)85498394
1 Georg Andersen of Norway originally won the silver medal, but he was disqualified after he tested positive for steroids.Track and Field. LA Times (1991-09-13). Retrieved on 2011-06-22.
Women's results
Track 1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995 100 m10.9911.0311.06200 m22.0922.1622.21400 m49.1349.4249.78800 m1:57.501:57.551:57.581500 m4:02.214:02.584:02.723000 m8:35.828:36.068:39.41(AR)10,000 m31:14.3131:35.0831:35.99Marathon2:29:532:29:572:30:10100 m hurdles12.5912.6312.69400 m hurdles53.11(CR)53.16NR53.4710 km walk42:57(CR)43:1343:13 4 × 100 m relayDahlia DuhaneyJuliet CuthbertBeverly McDonaldMerlene OtteyMerlene Frazer*41.94(NR)Natalya KovtunGalina MalchuginaYelena VinogradovaIrina Privalova42.20Grit BreuerKatrin KrabbeSabine RichterHeike Drechsler42.334 × 400 m relayTatyana LedovskayaLyudmila DzhigalovaOlga NazarovaOlha BryzhinaAnna Chuprina*Tatyana Alekseyeva*3:18.43Rochelle StevensDiane DixonJearl MilesLillie LeatherwoodNatasha Kaiser-Brown*3:20.15Uta RohländerKatrin KrabbeChristine WachtelGrit BreuerAnnett Hesselbarth*Katrin Schreiter*3:21.25 Note: * Indicates athletes who ran in preliminary rounds.
Field 1983 | 1987 | 1991 | 1993 | 1995 Long jump7.327.297.11High jump2.051.981.96Shot put20.83 20.2920.16Discus throw71.0269.1268.26Javelin throw68.7868.6866.80Heptathlon667264936448 Note: * Indicates athletes who only ran in the preliminary round and also received medals.
Medal table
See also 1991 in athletics (track and field)
References
External links IAAF 1991