The 2012 Olympic athletics program brought over 2,000 athletes from 201 nations to London, including the first amputee sprinter to compete at the Games.
Key Facts
- Athletes competing
- Over 2,000
- Nations represented
- 201
- Total events
- 47
- Competition dates
- 3–12 August 2012
- Youngest participant age
- 15 (Cristina Llovera, Andorra)
- Oldest participant age
- 46 (Oleksandr Dryhol, Ukraine)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
As the centerpiece of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, athletics was scheduled across the final ten days of the Games, drawing the world's top track and field competitors to the newly constructed Olympic Stadium in east London and road courses along The Mall.
From 3 to 12 August 2012, more than 2,000 athletes from 201 nations competed in 47 events split between men and women, with track and field at the Olympic Stadium and road events starting and finishing on The Mall. South African Oscar Pistorius made history as the first amputee sprinter to compete at an Olympic Games.
The competition produced a broad showcase of athletic achievement across 47 events, with Pistorius's participation setting a precedent for amputee athletes at the Olympic level and broadening the boundaries of eligibility in elite international sport.