Heptathlon Explained: Events, order, points system, records

India’s Nandini Agasara is leading the race for the gold medal in the heptathlon event at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025 in Gumi, South Korea.

Heptathlon is a combined track and field event where athletes are awarded points based on their performance in individual events. The competitor with the highest aggregate points at the end of all events wins the competition.

Here is all you need to know about heptathlon:

How many events are there in Heptathlon?

As the name suggests, heptathlon consists of seven events: 100 metres hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 metres, long jump, javelin throw, and 800 metres.

What is the order of events in Heptathlon?

The seven events are spread across two days.

• Day one: 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put and 200m
• Day two: long jump, javelin throw and 800m  

When was Heptathlon introduced in the Olympics?

Heptathlon made its Olympic debut at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

What is the scoring system for Heptathlon?

According to World Athletics, the heptathlon scoring system uses points tables for each event, which have a minimum recordable performance level. However, these benchmarks differ across the seven events.

The times, heights, and distances achieved are translated into points using a heptathlon score calculator.

Is Heptathlon only for women?

Heptathlon is a women-only competition in major events like the Olympics, World Championships and Continental Championships. But there are heptathlon events for men, which usually happen in indoor competitions.