| World Athletics Indoor Championships | |
|---|---|
| Status | active |
| Genre | AthleticsWorld championship |
| Date | varying |
| Frequency | biennial |
| Country | varying |
| Inaugurated | 1985 |
| Most recent | 2025 |
| Next event | 2026 |
| Organised by | World Athletics |
| Website | worldathletics.org |
TheWorld Athletics Indoor Championships are a biennialindoor track and field competition served as the global championship for that version of the sport. Organised by theWorld Athletics, the competition was inaugurated as theWorld Indoor Games in 1985 in Paris, France and were subsequently renamed toIAAF World Indoor Championships in 1987. The current name was adapted with the name change of the sports governing body in 2019.
They have been held every two years except for when they were held in consecutive years 2003 and 2004 to facilitate the need for them to be held in alternate years to the outdoorWorld Athletics Championships in the future, and in 2024, 2025, and 2026. The Championships due to be held in China in 2020 were postponed because of the COVID pandemic, as were the attempted running of the China edition in then 2021 and 2023, eventually being scheduled for 2025. Two standard editions of the Championships were held in 2022 and 2024.[1][2]
The events held have been composed of a regular disciplines, with the main alterations coming in the earlier years. The 4 x 400 mrelay race for both men and women was added to the full schedule in 1991 with the women'striple jump, the latter as an exhibition event, and gaining full status at the following championships.
Racewalking events were dropped after 1993, and a 1600 m medley relay was tried but was discontinued were due to alleged poor interest. This same year, a men's heptathlon and women's pentathlon were successfully introduced as non-championship events, and have remained on the program since.
In 1997 the women'spole vault entered the fray, two years before it made an appearance at the event's outdoor counterpart.
Despite the event's popularity, the 200 m was removed from the program after the 2004 championships, as the event was deemed unfair to all participants and too predictable, with the tighter bends of an indoor track causing any athletes not drawn in either of the outside lanes having minimal or no chance of winning.
Key to tables: Disqualified or later rescinded
| Event | Record | Athlete | Nation | Date | Championships | Place | Ref. | Video | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 m | 6.95 | Gail Devers |  United States | 12 March 1993 | 1993 Championships | Toronto, Canada | ||||||||||
| 400 m | 49.17 | Femke Bol |  Netherlands | 2 March 2024 | 2024 Championships | Glasgow, United Kingdom | [13] | [3] | ||||||||
| 800 m | 1:56.90 | Ludmila Formanová |  Czech Republic | 7 March 1999 | 1999 Championships | Maebashi, Japan | ||||||||||
| 1500 m | 3:54.86 | Gudaf Tsegay |  Ethiopia | 23 March 2025 | 2025 Championships | Nanjing, China | [14] | |||||||||
| 3000 m | 8:20.87 | Elle St. Pierre | United States | 2 March 2024 | 2024 Championships | Glasgow, United Kingdom | [15] | |||||||||
| 60 m hurdles | 7.65 | Devynne Charlton |  Bahamas | 3 March 2024 | 2024 Championships | Glasgow, United Kingdom | [16] | |||||||||
| High jump | 2.05 m | Stefka Kostadinova |  Bulgaria | 8 March 1987 | 1987 Championships | Indianapolis, United States | [17] | |||||||||
| Pole vault | 4.95 m | Sandi Morris | United States | 3 March 2018 | 2018 Championships | Birmingham, United Kingdom | [18] | |||||||||
| Long jump | 7.23 m | Brittney Reese | United States | 11 March 2012 | 2012 Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | [19] | [4] | ||||||||
| Triple jump | 15.74 m | Yulimar Rojas |  Venezuela | 20 March 2022 | 2022 Championships | Belgrade, Serbia | [20] | |||||||||
| Shot put | 20.67 m | Valerie Adams |  New Zealand | 8 March 2014 | 2014 Championships | Sopot, Poland | ||||||||||
| 20.85 mX | Nadzeya Ostapchuk |  Belarus | 14 March 2010 | 2010 Championships | Doha, Qatar | [21] | ||||||||||
| Pentathlon | 5013 pts | Nataliya Dobrynska |  Ukraine | 9 March 2012 | 2012 Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | [22] | |||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| 4 × 400 m relay | 3:23.85 | Quanera Hayes Georganne Moline Shakima Wimbley Courtney Okolo | United States | 4 March 2018 | 2018 Championships | Birmingham, United Kingdom | [23] | |||||||||
| Event | Record | Athlete | Nation | Date | Championships | Place | Ref. | Video |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 m | 6.61 | Chris Huffins | United States | 8 March 1997 | 1997 Championships | Paris, France | ||
| Long jump | 8.16 m | Ashton Eaton | United States | 9 March 2012 | 2012 Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | [24] | [5] |
| Shot put | 17.17 m | Aleksey Drozdov |  Russia | 12 March 2010 | 2010 Championships | Doha, Qatar | [25] | |
| High jump | 2.21 m | Andrei Krauchanka | Belarus | 7 March 2014 | 2014 Championships | Sopot, Poland | [26] | |
| 60 m hurdles | 7.61 | Damian Warner |  Canada | 19 March 2022 | 2022 Championships | Belgrade, Serbia | [27] | |
| Pole vault | 5.50 m | Erki Nool |  Estonia | 7 March 1999 | 1999 Championships | Maebashi, Japan | ||
| 1000 m | 2:29.04 | Curtis Beach | United States | 19 March 2016 | 2016 Championships | Portland, United States | [28] |
| Event | Record | Athlete | Nation | Date | Championships | Place | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 m hurdles | 7.91 | Jessica Ennis |  Great Britain | 9 March 2012 | 2012 Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | [29] |
| High jump | 1.99 m | Tia Hellebaut |  Belgium | 7 March 2008 | 2008 Championships | Valencia, Spain | |
| Shot put | 17.18 m | Nataliya Dobrynska | Ukraine | 7 March 2008 | 2008 Championships | Valencia, Spain | |
| Long jump | 6.69 m | Natalya Sazanovich | Belarus | 9 March 2001 | 2001 Championships | Lisbon, Portugal | |
| Kendell Williams | United States | 18 March 2022 | 2022 Championships | Belgrade, Serbia | [30] | ||
| 800 m | 2:08.09 | Jessica Ennis | Great Britain | 9 March 2012 | 2012 Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | [31] |
| Event | Record | Athlete | Nation | Date | Championships | Place | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 m | 20.10 | Frank Fredericks |  Namibia | 6 March 1999 | 1999 Championships | Maebashi, Japan | |
| 5000 m walk | 18:23.55 | Mikhail Shchennikov |  Soviet Union | 10 March 1991 | 1991 Championships | Seville, Spain | |
| 1600m medley relay (non-championship event) | 3:15.10 | Mark Everett James Trapp Kevin Little Butch Reynolds | United States | 14 March 1993 | 1993 Championships | Toronto, Canada |
| Event | Record | Athlete | Nation | Date | Championships | Place | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 m | 22.15 | Irina Privalova | Russia | 14 March 1993 | 1993 Championships | Toronto, Canada | |
| 3000 m walk | 11:49.73 | Yelena Nikolayeva | Russia | 13 March 1993 | 1993 Championships | Toronto, Canada | |
| 1600m medley relay (non-championship event) | 3:45.90 | Joetta Clark Wendy Vereen Kim Batten Jearl Miles | United States | 14 March 1993 | 1993 Championships | Toronto, Canada |
Medal table includes 1985–2025 Championships.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  United States | 125 | 95 | 84 | 304 |
| 2 | Russia | 52 | 48 | 45 | 145 |
| 3 | Ethiopia | 35 | 17 | 16 | 68 |
| 4 | Great Britain | 24 | 36 | 35 | 95 |
| 5 |  Cuba | 19 | 18 | 17 | 54 |
| 6 | Soviet Union | 19 | 17 | 17 | 53 |
| 7 |  Jamaica | 18 | 25 | 18 | 61 |
| 8 |  France | 17 | 15 | 22 | 54 |
| 9 |  Germany | 14 | 23 | 22 | 59 |
| 10 |  Sweden | 14 | 10 | 9 | 33 |
| 11 |  East Germany | 12 | 7 | 5 | 24 |
| 12 | Canada | 11 | 4 | 15 | 30 |
| 13 | Ukraine | 10 | 16 | 12 | 38 |
| 14 |  Kenya | 10 | 15 | 17 | 42 |
| 15 |  Australia | 9 | 12 | 10 | 31 |
| 16 |  Romania | 9 | 10 | 9 | 28 |
| 17 |  Italy | 9 | 9 | 15 | 33 |
| 18 |  Bulgaria | 9 | 5 | 7 | 21 |
| 19 | Czech Republic | 8 | 8 | 11 | 27 |
| 20 | Netherlands | 8 | 7 | 9 | 24 |
| 21 | New Zealand | 8 | 4 | 6 | 18 |
| 22 |  Morocco | 7 | 6 | 8 | 21 |
| 23 |  Greece | 7 | 4 | 6 | 17 |
| 24 |  Mozambique | 7 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| 25 | Bahamas | 6 | 8 | 10 | 24 |
| 26 | Belgium | 6 | 5 | 1 | 12 |
| 27 |  Ireland | 6 | 3 | 2 | 11 |
| 28 |  Poland | 5 | 14 | 19 | 38 |
| 29 |  Brazil | 5 | 6 | 6 | 17 |
| 30 |  Portugal | 5 | 5 | 7 | 17 |
| 31 |  Switzerland | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 |
| 32 |  South Africa | 4 | 4 | 3 | 11 |
| 33 |  Norway | 4 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
| 34 |  Spain | 3 | 21 | 20 | 44 |
| 35 | Belarus | 3 | 12 | 8 | 23 |
| 36 |  China | 3 | 8 | 9 | 20 |
| 37 |  Kazakhstan | 3 | 5 | 2 | 10 |
| 38 | Venezuela | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 39 |  Nigeria | 2 | 7 | 3 | 12 |
| 40 | Czechoslovakia | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| 41 |  Hungary | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 42 | West Germany | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| 43 |  Burundi | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 44 |  Croatia | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 |
| 45 |  Serbia | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
 Sudan | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 47 |  Finland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| – |  Authorised Neutral Athletes[1] | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 48 |  South Korea | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 49 |  Grenada | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 50 |  Qatar | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 51 |  Denmark | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 52 |  Ivory Coast | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 53 |  Trinidad and Tobago | 1 | 2 | 5 | 8 |
| 54 |  Bahrain | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| 55 |  Algeria | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
 Bermuda | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
| 57 |  Ghana | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Namibia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
| 59 |  Burkina Faso | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 60 |  Costa Rica | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
 Djibouti | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
 Dominica | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
 Saint Lucia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 64 |  Austria | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 65 | Estonia | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| 66 |  Slovenia | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 67 |  Iceland | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 68 |  Cameroon | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 70 |  Barbados | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
 Latvia | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 72 |  Botswana | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Cayman Islands | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 Panama | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 Turkey | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 U.S. Virgin Islands | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 77 |  Japan | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 78 |  Lithuania | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
 Mexico | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
 Serbia and Montenegro | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 81 |  Antigua and Barbuda | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Benin | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 British Virgin Islands | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Chile | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Cyprus | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 DR Congo | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Dominican Republic | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Luxembourg | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Saudi Arabia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Senegal | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Suriname | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Uganda | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (92 entries) | 560 | 571 | 574 | 1,705 | |
^[1]ANA was the name, under which Russian athletes competed in the2018 Championships. Their medals were not included in the official medal table.[32]
In theWorld Athleticsplacing table the total score is obtained from assigning eight points to the first place and so on to one point for the eight place. Points are shared in situations where a tie occurs.
Updated after 2022 Championships[33]
| Rank | Country |  |  |  | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Medals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 113 | 81+1 | 73+2 | 69+1 | 51+4 | 40+3 | 34+2 | 32 | 270 | 2724 |
| 2 | Russia[2] | 51+1 | 40+3 | 36+1 | 25+1 | 34 | 29+1 | 20+1 | 9 | 132 | 1341 |
| 3 | Germany[3] | 24 | 27 | 29+2 | 28+1 | 31+2 | 20+2 | 18 | 21+3 | 82 | 964.5 |
| 4 | Great Britain | 18 | 27+1 | 27+1 | 21+1 | 23+1 | 26+3 | 14 | 11+1 | 74 | 836.5 |
| 5 | Jamaica | 17 | 22 | 12+1 | 16+1 | 20 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 52 | 589 |
| 6 | Cuba | 9 | 15 | 12+1 | 12 | 20+2 | 10 | 16+1 | 7 | 47 | 552 |
| 7 | France | 13 | 9 | 17+1 | 14 | 13+1 | 17+2 | 15 | 14 | 40 | 500 |
| 8 | Ethiopia | 30 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 53 | 496 |
| 9 | Spain | 2 | 19 | 15 | 16+1 | 17+2 | 17 | 15+1 | 13+1 | 36 | 494.5 |
| 10 | Poland | 4+1 | 12 | 15+1 | 25 | 8+2 | 18+3 | 5 | 8 | 33 | 462.5 |
^[2] Does not include results achieved byAuthorized Neutral Athletes in 2018.
^[3] Includes results achieved by East Germany and West Germany between 1987 and 1989.
A total of 8 men and 19 women have won five or more medals at the competition.[34]
| Name | Country | Years | Total | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Javier Sotomayor | Cuba | 1985-1999 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Chris Brown | Bahamas | 2006-2016 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Iván Pedroso | Cuba | 1993-2001 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Bernard Lagat | Kenya / United States | 2003-2014 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Tom Walsh | New Zealand | 2014-2024 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Roman Šebrle | Czech Republic | 1999-2006 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Yaroslav Rybakov | Russia | 2003-2010 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Jamie Baulch | United Kingdom | 1997-2003 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Name | Country | Years | Total | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maria Mutola | Mozambique | 1993-2008 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| Natalya Nazarova | Russia | 1999-2008 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| Meseret Defar | Ethiopia | 2003-2016 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Sandie Richards | Jamaica | 1993-2003 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| Merlene Ottey | Jamaica / Slovenia | 1987-2003 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Olesya Zykina | Russia | 2001-2008 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| Gail Devers | United States | 1993-2004 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Svetlana Goncharenko | Russia | 1995-2004 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Jearl Miles Clark | United States | 1991-1999 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Stefka Kostadinova | Bulgaria | 1985-1997 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Genzebe Dibaba | Ethiopia | 2012-2018 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Gabriela Szabo | Romania | 1995-2001 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Yelena Isinbayeva | Russia | 2003-2012 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Olga Kotlyarova | Russia | 1997-2004 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Valerie Adams | New Zealand | 2008-2016 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| Irina Privalova | Russia | 1991-1995 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Natasha Hastings | United States | 2010-2016 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Grit Breuer | Germany | 1991-2003 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Svetlana Feofanova | Russia | 2001-2010 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
World Championships organised byWorld Athletics | |
|---|---|
| Outdoor | |
| Indoor | |
| Continental Cup* | |
| U20 | |
| U18 | |
| Cross Country | |
| Race Walking | |
| Women's Road Race | |
| Marathon | |
| Half Marathon | |
| Road Relay | |
| Relays | |
| Ultimate | |
| Road Running | |
| World |
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Records in athletics | |||||||||||
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| Area records |
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| World events | |||||||||||
| Africa | |||||||||||
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| Community |
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