# 2012 in the sport of athletics

In 2012 the foremost competition in athletics was the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The International Association of Athletics Federations held four other global level competitions in 2012: the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships, 2012 IAAF World Race Walking Cup, 2012 World Junior Championships in Athletics and the 2012 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships.
For the first time since 1945, there was no global level championship for cross country running, as the IAAF World Cross Country Championships moved to a biennial format. Three of the major continental championships were held a month prior to the London Olympics: the 2012 African Championships in Athletics, 2012 European Athletics Championships and 2012 Oceania Athletics Championships.
The Diamond League entered its third year as the foremost seasonal track and field series.

## Major events
### World

* Olympic Games
* World Indoor Championships
* World Race Walking Cup
* World Half Marathon Championships
* Diamond League
* Paralympic Games
* World Junior Championships
* World Mountain Running Championships
* WMA World Masters Indoor Championships
* FISU Cross Country Championships
* IAU 24 Hour World Championships
* IAU 100 km World Championships

### Regional

* African Championships
* African Cross Country Championships
* Asian Indoor Championships
* Asian Junior Championships
* Asian Cross Country Championships
* Asian Race Walking Championships
* Oceania Athletics Championships
* European Athletics Championships
* European Cross Country Championships
* European Cup Winter Throwing
* European Mountain Running Championships
* Ibero-American Championships
* NACAC Cross Country Championships
* NACAC Under-23 Championships
* CAC Junior Championships
* CARIFTA Games
* South American U23 Championships
* South American Youth Championships
* South American Cross Country Championships

### Marathons

* Boston Marathon
* London Marathon
* Berlin Marathon
* Chicago Marathon

## World records
### Men

| Event | Athlete | Nation | Performance | Meeting | Place | Date |
| 400 m hurdles (indoor) | Felix Sánchez | Dominican Republic | 48.78 | Meeting National Val-de-Reuil | Val-de-Reuil, France | 18 February |
| Heptathlon (Indoor) | Ashton Eaton | United States | 6645 pts | World Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | 9–10 March 2012 |
| 800 metres | David Rudisha | Kenya | 1:40.91 | Olympic Games | London, Great Britain | 9 August 2012 |
| 25 km (road) | Dennis Kipruto Kimetto | Kenya | 1:11:18 | BIG 25 | Berlin, Germany | 6 May 2012 |
| 110 m hurdles | Aries Merritt | United States | 12.80 | Memorial Van Damme | Brussels, Belgium | 7 September 2012 |
| 4 × 100 m relay | Nesta Carter Michael Frater Yohan Blake Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 36.84 | Olympic Games | London, Great Britain | 11 August 2012 |
| Decathlon | Ashton Eaton | United States | 9039 pts | United States Olympic Trials | Eugene, United States | 22–23 June 2012 |

### Women

| Event | Athlete | Nation | Performance | Meeting | Place | Date |
| 2000 m steeplechase (Indoor) | Yelena Orlova | Russia | 6:06.11 | Moscow City Championships | Moscow, Russia | 12 February 2012 |
| Pole vault (Indoor) | Yelena Isinbayeva | Russia | 5.01 m | XL Galan | Stockholm, Sweden | 23 February 2012 |
| Pentathlon (Indoor) | Nataliya Dobrynska | Ukraine | 5013 pts | World Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | 9 March 2012 |
| 4 × 100 m relay | Tianna Madison Allyson Felix Bianca Knight Carmelita Jeter | United States | 40.82 | Olympic Games | London, Great Britain | 10 August 2012 |
| 20 km walk (road) | Elena Lashmanova | Russia | 1:25:02 | Olympic Games | London, Great Britain | 11 August 2012 |