The 2022 World Athletics Championships was the eighteenth edition of the World Athletics Championships. It was held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, United States, from July 15–24, 2022, with the country hosting that competition for the first time.[2][3][4] The competition was originally scheduled for August 6–15, 2021, but it was postponed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, World Athletics banned all Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from participating at the championships. In addition, the stringent vaccination requirements for people entering the United States caused visa delays for participants and officials, with some ultimately being unable to enter the country.[5][6] These issues caused the final total to stand at 179 nations (180 including the Athlete Refugee Team), the lowest number since Tokyo 1991.
A record 29 countries won at least one gold medal during the championships. Peru, Kazakhstan, and Nigeria won their first-ever gold medals. India and Burkina Faso had their best medal performances, winning a silver, and the Philippines won a bronze. A new award was the team event trophy,[7] which was won by the United States, which also won the most gold medals, with 13, and the most medals overall, with 33 (a record for a single edition). The event was the most-watched edition ever in US television history.[1] More than 146,000 tickets were sold, with several evening sessions sold out.[8]
The selection of the host city was announced on April 16, 2015 in Beijing, China.[9][10] Eugene was selected without a traditional bidding process, though Eugene did put in a bid for the 2019 World Championships, losing out to Doha.
Runner's World magazine reported that Eugene's selection by World Athletics, then known as the International Association of Athletics Federations, was an "unusual move".[2] They report the Association "bypassed the usual bidding process," and that the choice of Eugene would make the 2022 event "the first held in the United States." The event was the second held in North America, after Edmonton in 2001.
The Guardian reported that the lack of bidding triggered concern in European cities that had bid to host the event.[4]
They quoted Lamine Diack, IAAF president, who justified the lack of bidding with the claim the selection of Eugene to host the event, "enables us to take advantage of a unique opportunity to host a financially successful tournament that may never arise again."
Despite this, the 2022 event was not the first to lack the usual bidding process: as the 2007 World Championships were awarded to Osaka without bidding after the withdrawal of the two other candidate cities.
Venue
Hayward Field in 2007, prior to 2018-2020 renovation
The race walking was held on a 1-km loop on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, near Autzen Stadium, and the marathon race started from the same stadium, towards Pre's Trail and going to Springfield, Oregon and back.[12]
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
* Indicates the athletes only competed in the preliminary heats and received medals
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
* Indicates the athletes only competed in the preliminary heats and received medals
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)
Countries who had no male and/or no female athletes who had achieved the Entry Standard or considered as having achieved the entry standard (see above) or a qualified relay team, could enter one unqualified male athlete OR one unqualified female athlete in one event of the championships (except the road events and field events, combined events, 10,000 m and 3000 m steeplechase).
At the end of the qualification period, the 2021 World Athletics Rankings were published. They were used to invite additional athletes to the World Championships where the target number of athletes had not been achieved for that event through other methods of qualification.
The maximum of three athletes per country in individual events was not affected by this rule. Member federations retained the right to confirm or reject athlete selections through this method.
Where the highest ranked athletes were from a country that already had three entrants for the event, or where member federations had rejected an entrant, the next highest ranked athlete became eligible for entry via the world rankings.
Area Champions
The following regulations shall applied for Automatic Qualification to the 2022 World Athletics Championships (not applicable for relays and marathon).
1. The Area Champion (in each individual event to be contested at the World Championships) automatically qualifies for the World Championships, irrespective of whether his performance has reached the Entry Standard. This does not apply to 10,000 m, 3000 m Steeplechase, Combined Events, Field Events and Road Events where the entry of the athlete will be subject to the approval of the Technical Delegates
2. The Area Champion shall be the one who has achieved the title either in 2020, 2021 or 2022
3. The Member Federation of the Area Champion will have the ultimate authority to enter the athlete or not, based on its own domestic standard or qualification system
4. If the Member Federation of the Area Champion enters the athlete, he will be considered as having achieved the Entry Standard
5. If the Area Champion, for whatever reason, is not entered, his quota will not be delegated to the second placed athlete and the normal entry rules and conditions apply
6. For those Area Championships that do not have certain events, the Area Associations can organize alternate Area-specific event Championships with conditions conforming to Area Championships Regulations. World Athletics shall be notified of such alternative Championships at least one month in advance of the events being held
The 1500 meter final at the 2022 World Athletics Championship at Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon
1,972 athletes from 192 member federations were scheduled to compete at the championships,[15] but owing to vaccination requirements and resulting visa issues the final total was reduced to 179 nations (plus the Athlete Refugee Team) and more than 1,700 athletes, the lowest number since 1991 for the former and 2005 for the latter.[1]
A record 29 countries won at least one gold medal during the championships. Peru, Kazakhstan, and Nigeria won their first-ever gold medals, while India and Burkina Faso had their best medal performances, with silver, and the Philippines with bronze.[1][16]
There was a world record programme where if a world record was broken the athlete who broke it would get $100,000.
A total amount of $8,498,000 was also offered by World Athletics to finalists at Oregon 2022, of which $2 million has been ringfenced from the fines paid by the Russian Athletics Federation (for doping rules offenses).[18]
The prize money is as follows:
Individual events
Gold: $70,000
Silver: $35,000
Bronze: $22,000
Fourth place: $16,000
Fifth place: $11,000
Sixth place: $7,000
Seventh place: $6,000
Eighth place: $5,000
Relays (per each team)
Gold: $80,000
Silver: $40,000
Bronze: $20,000
Fourth place: $16,000
Fifth place: $12,000
Sixth place: $8,000
Seventh place: $6,000
Eighth place: $4,000
Media coverage
The event was streamed live in some territories on the World Athletics YouTube and Facebook channels.[19]
The event was the most watched World Athletics Championships in US television history, reaching an excess of 13.7 million viewers.[1]
^ abMonti, David (April 16, 2015). "Eugene to Host 2021 Track World Championships: Oregon City will be first U.S. site of global meet". Runner's World. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved August 28, 2015. In an unusual move that bypassed the usual bidding process, the International Association of Athletics Federations awarded Eugene, Oregon, the 2021 World Championships in Athletics in a special vote on the second day of their Council Meeting in Beijing
^
Clarey, Christopher (April 16, 2015). "Without Bidding, Eugene, Ore., Is Abruptly Awarded World Track Championships". New York Times. p. B12. Retrieved August 29, 2015. There was surprise in multiple time zones on Thursday when Eugene, Ore., became the first city in the United States to secure the world outdoor track and field championships. It will stage them in 2021 without the usual constraint of having had to win a formal bidding process(subscription required)
United States
