| Event: | Athletics |
| Games: | 1996 Summer |
| Dates: | July 26 August 3, 1996 |
| Num Events: | 44 |
| Nations: | 191 |
| Competitors: | 2053 |
| Prev: | Barcelona 1992 |
| Next: | Sydney 2000 |
At the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, 44 events in athletics were contested. There were a total number of 2053 participating athletes from 191 countries.
A total of two world records and 14 Olympic records were set during the competition.
| 100 metres | 9.84 (WR) | 9.89 | 9.90 | ||||||
| 200 metres | 19.32 (WR) | 19.68 (AR) | 19.80 | ||||||
| 400 metres | 43.49 (OR) | 44.41 | 44.53 | ||||||
| 800 metres | 1:42.58 (OR) | 1:42.74 | 1:42.79 | ||||||
| 1500 metres | 3:35.78 | 3:36.40 | 3:36.72 | ||||||
| 5000 metres | 13:07.96 | 13:08.16 | 13:08.37 | ||||||
| 10,000 metres | 27:07.34 (OR) | 27:08.17 | 27:24.67 | ||||||
| 110 metres hurdles | 12.95 (OR) | 13.09 | 13.17 | ||||||
| 400 metres hurdles | 47.54 | 47.78 | 47.96 | ||||||
| 3000 metres steeplechase | 8:07.12 | 8:08.33 | 8:11.28 | ||||||
| 4 × 100 metres relay | valign=top | Robert Esmie Glenroy Gilbert Bruny Surin Donovan Bailey Carlton Chambers | 37.69 | valign=top | Jon Drummond Tim Harden Michael Marsh Dennis Mitchell Tim Montgomery | 38.05 | valign=top | 38.41 | |
| 4 × 400 metres relay | valign=top | LaMont Smith Alvin Harrison Derek Mills Anthuan Maybank Jason Rouser | 2:55.99 | valign=top | Iwan Thomas Jamie Baulch Mark Richardson Roger Black Mark Hylton | 2:56.60 | valign=top | Michael McDonald Greg Haughton Roxbert Martin Davian Clarke Dennis Blake | 2:59.42 |
| Marathon | 2:12:36 | 2:12:39 | 2:12:44 | ||||||
| 20 kilometres walk | 1:20:07 | 1:20:16 | 1:20:23 | ||||||
| 50 kilometres walk | 3:43:30 | 3:43:36 | 3:44:19 | ||||||
| High jump | 2.39 m (OR) | 2.37 m | 2.35 m | ||||||
| Pole vault | 5.92 m | 5.92 m | 5.92 m | ||||||
| Long jump | 8.50 m | 8.29 m | 8.24 m | ||||||
| Triple jump | 18.09 m (OR) | 17.88 m | 17.44 m | ||||||
| Shot put | 21.62 m | 20.79 m | 20.75 m | ||||||
| Discus throw | 69.40 m | 66.60 m | 65.80 m | ||||||
| Hammer throw | 81.24 m | 81.12 m | 80.02 m | ||||||
| Javelin throw | 88.16 m | 87.44 m | 86.98 m | ||||||
| Decathlon | 8824 pts | 8706 pts | 8664 pts |
| 100 metres | 10.94 | 10.94 | 10.96 | ||||||
| 200 metres | 22.12 | 22.24 | 22.38 | ||||||
| 400 metres | 48.25 (OR) | 48.63 | 49.10 | ||||||
| 800 metres | 1:57.73 | 1:58.11 | 1:58.71 | ||||||
| 1500 metres | 4:00.83 | 4:01.54 | 4:03.02 (NR) | ||||||
| 5000 metres | 14:59.88 (OR) | 15:03.49 | 15:07.52 | ||||||
| 10,000 metres | 31:01.63 (OR) | 31:02.59 | 31:06.65 | ||||||
| 100 metres hurdles | 12.58 | 12.59 | 12.65 | ||||||
| 400 metres hurdles | 52.82 (OR) | 53.08 | 53.22 | ||||||
| 4 × 100 metres relay | valign=top | Chryste Gaines Gail Devers Inger Miller Gwen Torrence Carlette Guidry | 41.95 | valign=top | Eldece Clarke Chandra Sturrup Savatheda Fynes Pauline Davis-Thompson Debbie Ferguson | 42.14 | valign=top | Michelle Freeman Juliet Cuthbert Nikole Mitchell Merlene Ottey Gillian Russell | 42.24 |
| 4 × 400 metres relay | valign=top | Rochelle Stevens Maicel Malone-Wallace Kim Graham Jearl Miles Linetta Wilson | 3:20.91 | valign=top | 3:21.04 | valign=top | 3:21.14 | ||
| Marathon | 2:26:05 | 2:28:05 | 2:28:39 | ||||||
| 10 kilometres walk | 41:49 (OR) | 42:12 | 42:19 | ||||||
| High jump | 2.05 m | 2.03 m | 2.01 m | ||||||
| Long jump | 7.12 m | 7.02 m | 7.00 m | ||||||
| Triple jump | 15.33 m (OR) | 14.98 m | 14.98 m | ||||||
| Shot put | 20.56 m | 19.88 m | 19.35 m | ||||||
| Discus throw | 69.66 m | 66.48 m | 65.64 m | ||||||
| Javelin throw | 67.94 m | 65.54 m | 64.98 m | ||||||
| Heptathlon | 6780 pts | 6563 pts | 6489 pts |
Note: Any world record is also an Olympic record
| Event | Date | Round | Name | Nationality | Time | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100m | 27 July | Final | 9.84 | |||
| 200m | 29 July | Michael Johnson | 19.32 | |||
| 400m | 27 July | 43.49 | OR | |||
| 800m | 30 July | 1:42.58 | ||||
| 10,000m | 26 July | 27:07.34 | ||||
| 110m hurdles | 28 July | 12.95 | ||||
| High jump | 30 July | 2.39 | ||||
| Pole vault | 1 August | 5.92 | ||||
| Triple jump | 2 August | 18.09 | ||||
| Event | Date | Round | Name | Nationality | Time | Record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 400m | 28 July | Final | 48.26 | OR | |||
| 5000m | 29 July | 14:59.88 | |||||
| 400m hurdles | 2 August | 52.82 | |||||
| 10 km race walk | 27 July | 41:49 | |||||
| Triple jump | 30 July | 15.33 | |||||
A total of 190 nations participated in the different Athletics events at the 1996 Summer Olympics.