# 2004 in the sport of athletics

This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2004.
The major competition of the year was the 2004 Summer Olympics. At the event, Yelena Isinbayeva cleared a world record 4.91 m in the pole vault. Liu Xiang won the men's 110 metres hurdles with a world record-equalling time of 12.91 seconds, defying traditional beliefs about the physical calibre of Chinese (and Asian) sprint athletes. Hicham El Guerrouj capped off his prominent international career with two gold medals in the 1500 m and 5000 m. The Olympic competition in Athens was marred by an incident involving Greek Olympic medallists Konstantinos Kenteris and Ekaterini Thanou, who were alleged to have staged a motorcycle crash in order to avoid doping tests. Both athletes missed the competition and were later banned for missing three doping tests.

## Major events
### World

* Olympic Games
* Summer Paralympics
* World Indoor Championships
* World Athletics Final
* World Cross Country Championships
* World Half Marathon Championships
* World Race Walking Cup
* IAAF Golden League

### Regional

* African Championships
* Asian Indoor Championships
* Asian Cross Country Championships
* Pan Arab Games
* South Asian Games
* Balkan Games
* European Cross Country Championships
* European Cup
* European Mountain Running Championships
* Ibero-American Championships

## World records
### Men

| Event | Athlete | Nation | Performance | Place | Date |
| 5,000 metres | Kenenisa Bekele | Ethiopia | 12:37.35 | Hengelo, Netherlands | 31 May |
| 10,000 metres | Kenenisa Bekele | Ethiopia | 26:20.31 | Ostrava, Czech Republic | 31 May |
| 25 km (road) | Paul Malakwen Kosgei | Kenya | 1:12:45 | Berlin, Germany | 9 May |
| 110 m hurdles | Liu Xiang | China | 12.91 | Athens, Greece | 27 August |
| 3000 m steeplechase | Saif Saaeed Shaheen | Qatar | 7:53.63 | Brussels, Belgium | 3 September |

### Women

| Event | Athlete | Nation | Performance | Place | Date |
| 5,000 metres | Elvan Abeylegesse | Turkey | 14:24.68 | Bergen, Norway | 11 June |
| 3000 m steeplechase | Gulnara Samitova-Galkina | Russia | 9:01.59 | Heraklion, Greece | 10 August |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.83 m | Donetsk, Ukraine | 15 February |
| Pole vault | Svetlana Feofanova | Russia | 4.85 m | Athens, Greece | 22 February |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.86 m | Budapest, Hungary | 6 March |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.87 m | Gateshead, United Kingdom | 27 June |
| Pole vault | Svetlana Feofanova | Russia | 4.88 m | Heraklion, Greece | 4 July |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.89 m | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 25 July |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.90 m | London, United Kingdom | 30 July |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.91 m | Athens, Greece | 24 August |
| Pole vault | Yelena Isinbaeva | Russia | 4.92 m | Brussels, Belgium | 3 September |
| Decathlon | Marie Collonvillé | France | 8150 pts | Talence, France | 25-26 September |

## Season's bests

Best marks of the year :
| Event | Men | Men | Men | Women | Women | Women |
| Event | Athlete | Mark | Notes | Athlete | Mark | Notes |
| 60 metres | Jason Gardener (GBR) | 6.46 | | Yuliya Tabakova (RUS) | 7.06 | |
| 100 metres | Justin Gatlin (USA) | 9.85 | | Ivet Lalova (BUL) | 10.77 | |
| 200 metres | Shawn Crawford (USA) | 19.79 | | Veronica Campbell-Brown (JAM) | 22.05 | |
| 400 metres | Jeremy Wariner (USA) | 44.00 | | Tonique Williams-Darling (BAH) | 49.07 | |
| 800 metres | Wilfred Bungei (KEN) | 1:43.06 | | Tatyana Andrianova (RUS) | 1:56.23 | |
| 1500 metres | Bernard Lagat (KEN) | 3:27.40 | | Kelly Holmes (GBR) | 3:57.90 | |
| 3000 metres | Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) | 7:27.72 | | Isabella Ochichi (KEN) | 8:31.32 | |
| 5000 metres | Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) | 12:37.35 | WR | Elvan Abeylegesse (TUR) | 14:24.68 | |
| 10,000 metres | Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) | 26:20.31 | WR | Paula Radcliffe (GBR) | 30:17.15 | |
| 60 metres hurdles | Allen Johnson (USA) | 7.36 | | Perdita Felicien (CAN) | 7.75 | |
| 100/110 metres hurdles | Liu Xiang (CHN) | 12.91 | WR= | Joanna Hayes (USA) | 12.37 | |
| 400 metres hurdles | Félix Sánchez (DOM) | 47.63 | | Faní Halkiá (GRE) | 52.77 | |
| 3000 metres steeplechase | Saif Saaeed Shaheen (QAT) | 7:53.63 | WR | Gulnara Galkina (RUS) | 9:01.59 | WR |
| 10 kilometres | Gilbert Okari (KEN) | 27:35 | | Lornah Kiplagat (NED) | 30:41 | |
| 15 kilometres | Sileshi Sihine (ETH) | 41:38 | | Lydia Cheromei (KEN) | 47:02 | |
| 20 kilometres | Salah Hissou (MAR) | 57:54 | | Mizuki Noguchi (JPN) | 1:04:19 | |
| Half marathon | Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot (KEN) | 1:00:11 | | Mizuki Noguchi (JPN) | 1:07:47 | |
| 25 kilometres | Paul Malakwen Kosgei (KEN) | 1:12:45 | | Yoko Shibui (JPN) | 1:22:32 | |
| 30 kilometres | Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot (KEN) Evans Rutto (KEN) | 1:29:08 | | Yoko Shibui (JPN) | 1:39:07 | |
| Marathon | Felix Limo (KEN) | 2:06:14 | | Yoko Shibui (JPN) | 2:19:41 | |
| 20 kilometres race walk | Vladimir Stankin (RUS) | 1:17:23 | | Hongjuan Song (CHN) | 1:26:46 | |
| 50 kilometres race walk | Denis Nizhegorodov (RUS) | 3:35:29 | | — | — | — |
| Pole vault | Timothy Mack (USA) | 6.01 m | | Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS) | 4.92 m | WR |
| High jump | Stefan Holm (SWE) | 2.37 m | | Elena Slesarenko (RUS) | 2.06 m | |
| Long jump | Dwight Phillips (USA) | 8.60 m | | Tatyana Lebedeva (RUS) | 7.33 m | |
| Triple jump | Christian Olsson (SWE) | 17.93 m | (indoor) | Tatyana Lebedeva (RUS) | 15.36 m | WR (indoor) |
| Shot put | Christian Cantwell (USA) | 22.54 m | | Irina Korzhanenko (RUS) | 20.79 m | |
| Discus throw | Virgilijus Alekna (LTU) | 70.97 m | | Iryna Yatchenko (BLR) | 69.14 m | |
| Javelin throw | Aleksandr Ivanov (RUS) | 87.73 m | | Olisdeilys Menéndez (CUB) | 71.53 m | |
| Hammer throw | Ivan Tsikhan (BLR) | 84.46 m | | Yipsi Moreno (CUB) | 75.18 m | |
| Pentathlon | — | — | — | Naide Gomes (POR) | 4759 pts | |
| Heptathlon | Roman Šebrle (CZE) | 6438 pts | AR | Carolina Klüft (SWE) | 6952 pts | |
| Decathlon | Roman Šebrle (CZE) | 8893 pts | | — | — | — |
| 4×100 metres relay | United States Shawn Crawford Justin Gatlin Coby Miller Maurice Greene | 37.92 | | Jamaica Tanya Lawrence Sherone Simpson Aleen Bailey Veronica Campbell-Brown | 41.73 | |
| 4×400 metres relay | United States Otis Harris Derrick Brew Jeremy Wariner Darold Williamson | 2:55.91 | | Russia Olesya Forsheva Natalya Nazarova Olesya Zykina Natalya Antyukh | 3:20.16 | |

## Awards
### Men

| Award | Winner |
| IAAF World Athlete of the Year | Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) |
| Track & Field Athlete of the Year | Kenenisa Bekele (ETH) |
| European Athlete of the Year Award | Christian Olsson (SWE) |
| Best Male Track Athlete ESPY Award | Tom Pappas (USA) |

### Women

| Award | Winner |
| IAAF World Athlete of the Year | Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS) |
| Track & Field Athlete of the Year | Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS) |
| European Athlete of the Year Award | Kelly Holmes (GBR) |
| Best Female Track Athlete ESPY Award | Gail Devers (USA) |

## Seasonal rankings by event
### Men
#### 400 m Hurdles

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Félix Sánchez (DOM) | 47.63 |
| 2. | James Carter (USA) | 47.68 |
| 3. | Bershawn Jackson (USA) | 47.86 |
| 4. | Danny McFarlane (JAM) | 48.00 |
| 5. | Ockert Cilliers (RSA) | 48.02 |

#### 3000 m Steeplechase

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Saif Saeed Shaheen (QAT) | 7:53.63 |
| 2. | Paul Kipsiele Koech (KEN) | 7:59.65 |
| 3. | Brahim Boulami (MAR) | 8:02.66 |
| 4. | Ezekiel Kemboi (KEN) | 8:02.98 |
| 5. | Brimin Kipruto (KEN) | 8:05.52 |

#### Marathon

| RANK | NAME ATHLETE | TIME | EVENT |
| 1. | Evans Rutto (KEN) | 2:06:16 | Chicago Marathon |
| 2. | Evans Rutto (KEN) | 2:06:18 | London Marathon |
| 3. | Robert Cheboror (KEN) | 2:06:22 | Amsterdam Marathon |
| 4. | Felix Limo (KEN) | 2:06:44 | Berlin Marathon |
| 5. | Sammy Korir (KEN) | 2:06:48 | London Marathon |
| 6. | Joseph Riri (KEN) | 2:06:49 | Berlin Marathon |
| 7. | Joshua Chelanga (KEN) | 2:07:05 | Berlin Marathon |
| 8. | Gert Thys (RSA) | 2:07:06 | Seoul International Marathon |
| 9. | Jaouad Gharib (MAR) | 2:07:12 | London Marathon |
| 10. | José Rios (ESP) | 2:07:42 | Otsu Marathon |

#### Pole Vault

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | HEIGHT |
| 1. | Timothy Mack (USA) | 6.01 m |
| 2. | Toby Stevenson (USA) | 6.00 m |
| 3. | Jeff Hartwig (USA) | 5.86 m |
| 4. | Giuseppe Gibilisco (ITA) | 5.85 m |
| 4. | Aleksandr Averbukh (ISR) | 5.85 m |

#### Decathlon
### Women
#### 100 metres

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Ivet Lalova (BUL) | 10.77 |
| 2. | Veronica Campbell (JAM) | 10.91 |
| 3. | Yulia Nestsiarenka (BLR) | 10.92 |
| 4. | Christine Arron (FRA) | 10.95 |
| 5. | Lauryn Williams (USA) | 10.96 |

#### 200 metres

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Veronica Campbell (JAM) | 22.05 |
| 2. | Allyson Felix (USA) | 22.18 |
| 3. | Debbie Ferguson (BAH) | 22.30 |
| 4. | Aleen Bailey (JAM) | 22.33 |
| 5. | Tonette Dyer (USA) | 22.34 |
| 5. | Irina Khabarova (RUS) | 22.34 |

#### Half Marathon

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Benita Johnson (AUS) | 1:07:55 |

#### 100 m Hurdles

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Joanna Hayes (USA) | 12.37 |
| 2. | Yelena Krasovskaya (UKR) | 12.45 |
| 3. | Perdita Felicien (CAN) | 12.46 |
| 4. | Gail Devers (USA) | 12.50 |
| 5. | Delloreen Ennis-London (JAM) | 12.51 |

#### 400 m Hurdles

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Faní Halkiá (GRE) | 52.77 |
| 2. | Sheena Johnson (USA) | 52.95 |
| 3. | Yuliya Pechonkina (RUS) | 53.31 |
| 4. | Ionela Târlea-Manolache (ROM) | 53.32 |
| 5. | Brenda Taylor (USA) | 53.36 |

#### 3000 m Steeplechase

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | TIME |
| 1. | Gulnara Samitova-Galkina (RUS) | 9:01.59 |
| 2. | Lyubov Ivanova (RUS) | 9:28.02 |
| 3. | Dorcus Inzikuru (UGA) | 9:29.30 |
| 4. | Briana Shook (USA) | 9:29.32 |
| 5. | Salome Chepchumba (KEN) | 9:29.81 |

#### High Jump

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | HEIGHT |
| 1. | Yelena Slesarenko (RUS) | 2.06 m |
| 2. | Hestrie Cloete (RSA) | 2.04 m |
| 3. | Blanka Vlašić (CRO) | 2.03 m |
| 4. | Viktoriya Styopina (UKR) | 2.02 m |
| 5. | Iryna Mykhalchenko (UKR) | 2.01 m |
| 5. | Venelina Veneva (BUL) | 2.01 m |

#### Pole Vault

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | HEIGHT |
| 1. | Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS) | 4.92 m |
| 2. | Svetlana Feofanova (RUS) | 4.88 m |
| 3. | Stacy Dragila (USA) | 4.83 m |
| 4. | Tatyana Polnova (RUS) | 4.78 m |
| 5. | Monika Pyrek (POL) | 4.72 m |

#### Heptathlon

| RANK | 2004 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS | POINTS |
| 1. | Carolina Klüft (SWE) | 6952 |
| 2. | Svetlana Sokolova (RUS) | 6594 |
| 3. | Austra Skujyté (LTU) | 6435 |
| 4. | Kelly Sotherton (GBR) | 6424 |
| 5. | Nataliya Dobrynska (UKR) | 6387 |

#### Marathon

| RANK | NAME ATHLETE | TIME | EVENT |
| 1. | Yoko Shibui (JPN) | 2:19:41 | Berlin Marathon |
| 2. | Margaret Okayo (KEN) | 2:22:35 | London Marathon |
| 3. | Paula Radcliffe (GBR) | 2:23:10 | New York Marathon |
| 4. | Susan Chepkemei (KEN) | 2:23:13 | New York Marathon |
| 5. | Hiromi Ominami (JPN) | 2:23:26 | Berlin Marathon |
| 6. | Zhou Chunxiu (CHN) | 2:23:28 | Xiamen Marathon |
| 7. | Constantina Tomescu (ROM) | 2:23:45 | Chicago Marathon |
| 8. | Reiko Tosa (JPN) | 2:23:57 | Nagoya Marathon |
| 9. | Sun Yingjie (CHN) | 2:24:11 | Beijing Marathon |
| 10. | Catherine Ndereba (KEN) | 2:24:27 | Boston Marathon |

## Deaths

* April 23 – Manuel Alcalde (47), Spanish race walker (b. 1956)
* December 4 – June Maston (76), Australian sprinter and athletics coach (b. 1928)
* December 25 – Ian Syster (28), South African long-distance runner (b. 1976)