To save track, you are tasked with cutting it down to 12 events. Which events do you choose?

So what you're saying is to hold discus without the net. I love it!

This is, in fact, how meets in my area are run.

This is how meets in my area are run.

100m, 400m, 800m, one mile, 5000m, marathon, sprint hurdles, high jump, long jump, discus, javelin, pentathlon/combined events.

Or, to increase public interest, we could ADD events! Something like a swimming meet. Instead of 100m Freestyle, 100m Backstroke, 100m Butterfly, 100m Breaststroke, 200m Freestyle, 200m Backstroke…etc. we could have
100m Freestyle (propel yourself any way you like)
100m Hopping
100m Skipping
100m Backwards
200m Freestyle…etc
And/or, we could re-instate those old favorites from early Olympic Games:
Standing Long Jump
Standing High Jump
Two-Hand Discus
Tug of War
We could even include a real crowd pleaser, the mixed-gender, race walk relay. Oh, I think that one’s already in the works…

100m
400m
800m
1500m
3000SC
110h
400h
4x100m
4x400m
SP
LJ
HJ

100

110H

400

mile

4x1

4x4

All field events that are part of the current decathlon. News flash but no one cares about distance events. Mile is only relevant for the casual fan to go "oh wow they broke a 4 minute mile!"

replace steeple with 800 and 10k with 5k and I like this.

5000 ✅ Limit of fan's patience

10000 ❌ Fan potty break time

10000 XC ✅ A test of variable terrain and conditions

Marathon ✅ A true test of endurance

They actually had this figured out in the first modern Olympics in 1896, exactly 12 events (including the marathon):

100m

400m

800m

1500m

110H

Marathon

Long Jump

Triple Jump

High Jump

Pole Vault

Shot Put

Discus Throw

en.wikipedia.org

Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics

At the 1896 Summer Olympics, the first modern Olympiad, twelve athletics events were contested. A total of 25 medals (12 silver for winners, 13 bronze for runner-up, none for third) were awarded. The medals were later denoted...

Link:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the...

Personally I like the idea of having the 1500/mile be the longest track event and adding a cross country race for something in between the 1500 and the marathon. I like the idea of getting rid of the obvious doubles like the 100/200 or the 400/800 or 800/1500 so I could see getting rid of the 800 as well. If someone is going to pick up a second medal they had better have some serious range or pick up another skill like hurdles or a field event.

I could also see substituting the triple jump for the javelin.

You said the 10k is potty break time yet you want to add a 2 hour marathon? Get real. Nobody will sit through that. Let alone on a track.

100

400

800

1500/1600

5000

3000s

Long jump

Pole vault

High jump

Shot put

4x4

4x8

• 100
  
• 110H
• 400
• Mile
• 5000
• Shot Put
  
• Discus
• High Jump
  
• Long Jump
  
• Pole Vault
  
• Multi (only chosen from above....and why shouldn't they have to run long?)
  

Staying consistent, I can only come up with 11 individual events.

For most non-championship meets, you can take out the multi, leaving only 10.

For championship meets, you can add the 4x400, getting you to 12.

Notes:

800: Faster folks can run the 400. Longer types can run the mile.

400H: The long sprinter's SC, so easily doesn't make the cut. I guess one could say the same about short sprinters and the 110H. But SOME hurdles race seems justified, and 110 wins.

Javelin: Maybe, but not clear.

10K would be more defensible than 5K, but.....yeah, boredom. Certainly wouldn't want the mile to be the longest. Would be like keeping the 100 and canning the 400.

4x100. Nah.

This is fun. I am sure someone already has my list but, ranked in order of importance/closest to getting cut (12th being closest to being cut):

(1) 100m

(2) 1600m (3.75 laps is nothing, 4.0225 laps is more of nothing)

(3a) Long Jump

(3b) High Jump

(5) Shot Put

(6) 400m

(7) 400h

(8) 3200m

(9) Discus

(10) 4x400

(11) Multi

(12) 800m

Since you said to save track we should keep all 11 current standard Olympic running events.

Note that those are different and distinct from the 8 field events

To be fair, 400/800 is probably the most difficult double to do of any adjacent pair of distances. I can't remember anyone doing it at a major championship since the days of Kratochvilova?

This is easy. You should only run one distance race and run it on the grass, or in a park. Much more time efficient and fun to watch.

You may be correct as to running events, but the all time best women in the high, long and triple jump would qualify for the Men’s NCAA D1 Eastern and Western preliminaries.