Heptathlon and decathlon events explained, in order

The decathlon and heptathlon exist to answer one question: who is the most complete athlete. Both spread a mix of sprints, jumps, throws and endurance across two demanding days, and the order the events run in is fixed rather than arbitrary.

Decathlon (men), in order

Day one: 100m, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400m.
Day two: 110m hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin, 1500m.

Each day builds from a sprint into a jump and a throw before ending with the day's toughest test: a flat out 400m to finish day one, and a gruelling 1500m to close day two, when fatigue from nine other events is already well established.

Heptathlon (women), in order

Day one: 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200m.
Day two: Long jump, javelin, 800m.

Seven events rather than ten, but the same underlying idea: a spread across sprinting, jumping and throwing, with an endurance event closing out each day.

How scoring actually works

Every performance, whether a time or a distance, is converted into points using World Athletics' published scoring tables, specific to each event. The tables are not linear: getting faster or further from an already strong mark is worth more points than the same improvement from a weak one, which rewards genuine excellence in each discipline rather than just consistency. Points from every event are added together, and the highest total wins.

Where to start if you want to try it

Combined events need a genuinely well-rounded skill set, so most athletes come to it after already training in one or two disciplines. Our technique guides cover shot put, long jump, and javelin, plus sprinting for the events that open and close every combined events day.