IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics

The International Association of Athletics Federations World Indoor Championships were inaugurated as the World Indoor Games in 1985 in Paris, France and were subsequently renamed in 1987 as they are known today.

History

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 main IAAF World Championships (outdoors) in the future.

Championships

Events

The events held have remained more or less the same since they originated with the main alterations coming in the earlier years.

The 4 x 400 m relay race for both men and women was added to the full schedule in 1991 as was the women's triple jump, but only as an exhibition event before gaining full status at the following championships.

1993 saw the last of the racewalking events included and a 1600 m medley relay was tried but dropped for future games. This same year a men's heptathlon and women's pentathlon were successfully introduced as non-championship events and have remained in place since.

In 1997 the women's pole vault entered the fray – two years before it made an appearance at the games' outdoor counterpart.

The 200 m was absent from the 2006 championships in Moscow, as in recent years it has become too predictable. Because of the tight bends involved, athletes not drawn in one of the outside lanes have next to no chance of winning.

Outstanding achievements

even gold medals

In their short history the championships have seen Mozambique's Maria de Lurdes Mutola claim an incredible 7 gold medals in the women's 800 m from 1993 to 2006, her only defeats coming at the hands of Ludmila Formanová of the Czech Republic in 1999 in a championship record of 1 minute 56.9 seconds that still stands. Also, in 2008 she won bronze medal.

Natalya Nazarova has won 7 gold medals and 1 silver from 1999 to 2008. Her events are 400 m and 4x400m relay.

Five gold medals

Cuban Iván Pedroso took five straight golds in the men's long jump from 1993-2001.
Stefka Kostadinova of Bulgaria a high jumper has also taken top spot five times in the women's event.

Four gold medals

*Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia won 3 golds in the 3,000 m as well as 1 in the 1,500 m which he won in 1999 when winning both events.
*Sergey Bubka has taken 3 golds in the pole vault representing the Soviet Union as well as 1 representing Ukraine since the break up of the old Eastern bloc.
*Another Cuban Javier Sotomayor features in the list as he has taken 4 golds as well as a bronze in the men's high jump.
*Stefan Holm of Sweden claimed four gold medals in the men's High Jump competition.

External links

* [http://www.iaaf.org/ International Association of Athletics Federation]