Where does true "distance running" begin, considering the popular events?

sky wrote:

I'd say 5,000 meters, though there could be an argument for the 3,000 meter steeplechase.

Thanks for starting this topic as a stand alone.

ww.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=8485648&page=1

the 600m AT list shows more 800 guys in the top 20 by about 10 to 1

Larry James and Lee Evans seem to be the only top of the list 400m guys on it I'll go with mid-distance as 600yds to 2000m.

500my/m not enough high end sample to judge from as it tends to be run more often indoors and in meets that also run 400 and 800.

E.L wrote:

600 meters or less = sprints

800 to 2000 meters = middle distance

3000 meters or more = distance

I pretty much agree with this, although I'd make a slight adjustment:

500 meters or less = sprints

600 to 2000 meters = middle distance

3000 meters or more = distance

The 500m is a rare distance but I have seen it run at some college meets. It was almost always done by sprinters, not distance runners.

via wikipedia

Events by distance

Sprints

Main article: Sprint (running)

Sprints are short running events in athletics and track and field. Races over short distances are among the oldest running competitions. The first 13 editions of the Ancient Olympic Games featured only one event – the stadion race, which was a race from one end of the stadium to the other.[71] There are three sprinting events which are currently held at the Olympics and outdoor World Championships: the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 400 metres. These events have their roots in races of imperial measurements which were later altered to metric: the 100 m evolved from the 100-yard dash,[72] the 200 m distances came from the furlong (or 1/8 of a mile),[73] and the 400 m was the successor to the 440 yard dash or quarter-mile race.[74]

At the professional level, sprinters begin the race by assuming a crouching position in the starting blocks before leaning forward and gradually moving into an upright position as the contest progresses and momentum is gained.[75] Athletes remain in the same lane on the running track throughout all sprinting events,[74] with the sole exception of the 400 m indoors. Races up to 100 m are largely focused upon acceleration to an athlete's maximum speed.[75] All sprints beyond this distance increasingly incorporate an element of endurance.[76] Human physiology dictates that a runner's near-top speed cannot be maintained for more than thirty seconds or so as lactic acid builds up, and leg muscles begin to be deprived of oxygen.[74]

The 60 metres is a common indoor event and it an indoor world championship event. Other less-common events include the 50 metres, 55 metres, 300 metres and 500 metres which are used in some high and collegiate competitions in the United States. The 150 metres, though rarely competed, has a star-studded history: Pietro Mennea set a world best in 1983,[77] Olympic champions Michael Johnson and Donovan Bailey went head-to-head over the distance in 1997,[78] and Usain Bolt improved Mennea's record in 2009.[77]

Middle distance

Main article: Middle-distance running

Middle distance running events are track races longer than sprints up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle distance event.[79] The 880 yard run, or half mile, was the forebear to the 800 m distance and it has its roots in competitions in the United Kingdom in the 1830s.[80] The 1500 m came about as a result of running three laps of a 500 m track, which was commonplace in continental Europe in the 1900s.[81]

Long distance

Main article: Long-distance running

Examples of longer-distance running events are long distance track races, marathons, ultramarathons, and multiday races.