Track and Field News: World Athletics Council Greenlights Significant Restructure for Upcoming Season

World Athletics has lately been in the news for its efforts to incorporate several changes in the sport. A few days back, this somewhat went south regarding its proposed rule changes in the long jump. However, being the apex body of track and field, it remains committed to uplifting the sport. Along similar lines, it recently announced some revamping measures from the 2025 session.

This restructuring targets to harmonize the global athletics schedule. The World Athletics recently held its 234th World Athletics Council Meeting in Glasgow, where the measures were approved. Alongside, important updates regarding the venue of upcoming events were also given.

The latest revamps in the track and field in forthcoming years

A World Athletics press release recently spilled the beans about the changes to take place from the 2025 session. It aims to restructure the summer track and field season creating a “season-long narrative” while establishing “a more consistent global calendar,” reads the release.

The major step to ensure this consistency is that from 2025 onwards, every track and field season will end with the World Athletics Championships. This will ensure that there is a “clear season climax during a defined window in mid-September,” said World Athletics. Some important on-track changes are also there.

“The World Athletics Council has also approved the systematic use of all nine lanes (when available) for semifinals and finals in the laned events (sprints and all races up to and including 800m) at the World Athletics Championships,” informed the organization. This new arrangement will lead to having the first three athletes from each semifinal advance to the final, where nine athletes/teams will compete. Apart from the structural changes, the World Athletics also confirmed the venue for the 2027 World Athletics Championships.

Beijing rises to the athletic occasion

Almost two decades after hosting the Beijing Olympics, the Chinese Capital is once again set to hold another global sporting spectacle as the World Athletics Championships. Alongside, China will also host the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing in the next year. Marking the occasion, Sebastian Coe, President of World Athletics, said, “With a population of more than 1.4 billion, China is one of the biggest sports markets in the world. It was the top performer for Wanda Diamond League broadcast consumption in 2023 with a cumulative audience of 368.9 million. This poses a massive opportunity to grow our sport and fan base in one of the biggest commercial markets in the world.”

Read more: World Indoor Athletics Championships 2024: Origin, History and All Revealed

Acknowledging the opportunity, Wang Nan, a World Athletics Council Member, conceded, “The CAA will work together with the Beijing organizing committee to make every effort to prepare for the championships, ensure that the championships will be held to the highest quality standard, and strive to present a wonderful World Athletics Championships to make more contributions to the development of athletics across the world. Notably, will host the 2025 iteration of the event.