Events

There are two versions of the heptathlon. The first is contested outdoors by women, and consists of the following events, with the first four contested on the first day, the remaining three on day two:

• 100m hurdles
• high jump
• shot put
• 200m
• long jump
• javelin throw
• 800m

The other version is only contested during the indoor season, and normally only by men. It consists of the following events, the first four of which are on day one, with the remaining three on day two:

• 60m
• long jump
• shot put
• high jump
• 60m hurdles
• pole vault
• 1000m

The scoring is similar for both versions. In each event, the athlete scores points according to the marks achieved. The athlete accumulating the highest number of points wins the competition. The heptathlon has been contested by female athletes since the early 1980s, when it replaced the pentathlon as the women's multi-event contest.