2003 in athletics
Action at the World Championships in Paris
Major world events	World Championships World Indoor Championships
IAAF Athletes of the Year	Hicham El Guerrouj Hestrie Cloete
← 2002 2004 →

This article contains an overview of the sport of athletics, including track and field, cross country and road running, in the year 2003.

The foremost competition of the year was the 2003 World Championships in Athletics, followed by the 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships. At regional level, athletics was featured at two major games that were held that year: the 2003 Pan American Games and the 2003 All-Africa Games.

Event	Athlete	Nation	Performance	Meeting	Place	Date
30 kilometres (road)	Takayuki Matsumiya	Japan	1:28.36		Kumamoto, Japan	16 February
Marathon	Paul Tergat	Kenya	2:04:55		Berlin, Germany	28 September

Event	Athlete	Nation	Performance	Meeting	Place	Date
10 kilometres (road)	Paula Radcliffe	United Kingdom	30:21		San Juan, Puerto Rico	23 February
Marathon	Paula Radcliffe	United Kingdom	2:15:25		London, Great Britain	13 April
3000 m steeplechase	Gulnara Samitova-Galkina	Russia	9:08.33		Tula, Russia	10 August
400 m hurdles	Yuliya Pechonkina	Russia	52.34 m		Tula, RUS	8 August
Pole vault	Yelena Isinbayeva	Russia	4.82 m		Gateshead, Great Britain	13 July

2003 TRACK & FIELD AWARDS	WINNER
IAAF World Athlete of the Year	Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR)
Track & Field Athlete of the Year	Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR)
European Athlete of the Year Award	Christian Olsson (SWE)
Best Male Track Athlete ESPY Award	Tim Montgomery (USA)

2003 TRACK & FIELD AWARDS	WINNER
IAAF World Athlete of the Year	Hestrie Cloete (RSA)
Track & Field Athlete of the Year	Hestrie Cloete (RSA)
European Athlete of the Year Award	Carolina Klüft (SWE)
Best Female Track Athlete ESPY Award	Gail Devers (USA)

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Félix Sánchez (DOM)	47.25
2.	Kemel Thompson (JAM)	48.05
3.	Periklís Iakovákis (GRE)	48.17
4.	Joey Woody (USA)	48.18
5.	Bershawn Jackson (USA)	48.23

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Saif Saeed Shaheen (QAT)	7:57.38
2.	Paul Kipsiele Koech (KEN)	7:57.42
3.	Ezekiel Kemboi (KEN)	8:02.49
4.	Bouabdellah Tahri (FRA)	8:06.91
5.	Kipkirui Misoi (KEN)	8:07.74

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	HEIGHT
1.	Romain Mesnil (FRA)	5.95 m
2.	Aleksandr Averbukh (ISR)	5.93 m
3.	Tim Lobinger (GER)	5.91 m
4.	Giuseppe Gibilisco (ITA)	5.90 m
5.	Oscar Janson (SWE)	5.87 m

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Chryste Gaines (USA)	10.86
2.	Chandra Sturrup (BAH)	10.89
3.	Torri Edwards (USA)	10.93
4.	Debbie Ferguson (BAH)	10.97
5.	Zhanna Block (UKR)	10.99

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Allyson Felix (USA)	22.11
2.	Torri Edwards (USA)	22.28
3.	LaTasha Jenkins (USA)	22.31
4.	Anastasiya Kapachinskaya (RUS)	22.38
5.	Muriel Hurtis-Houairi (FRA)	22.41

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Paula Radcliffe (GBR)	1:05:39

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Gail Devers (USA)	12.45
	Brigitte Foster-Hylton (JAM)
3.	Miesha McKelvy (USA)	12.51
4.	Perdita Felicien (CAN)	12.53
5.	Donica Merriman (USA)	12.65

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Yuliya Pechonkina (RUS)	52.34
2.	Jana Rawlinson (AUS)	53.22
3.	Sandra Glover (USA)	53.34
4.	Andrea Blackett (BAR)	53.71
5.	Ionela Târlea (ROM)	53.87

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	TIME
1.	Gulnara Samitova-Galkina (RUS)	9:08.33
2.	Alesya Turova (BLR)	9:20.28
3.	Lyubov Ivanova (RUS)	9:24.78
4.	Yekaterina Volkova (RUS)	9:32.31
5.	Dorcus Inzikuru (UGA)	9:39.51

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	HEIGHT
1.	Kajsa Bergqvist (SWE)	2.06 m
	Hestrie Cloete (RSA)	2.06 m
3.	Marina Kuptsova (RUS)	2.02 m
4.	Inga Babakova (UKR)	2.01 m
	Viktoriya Palamar (UKR)	2.01 m
	Blanka Vlašić (CRO)	2.01 m
	Amy Acuff (USA)	2.01 m
	Venelina Veneva (BUL)	2.01 m

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	HEIGHT
1.	Yelena Isinbayeva (RUS)	4.82 m
2.	Svetlana Feofanova (RUS)	4.75 m
3.	Yvonne Buschbaum (GER)	4.70 m
	Tatyana Polnova (RUS)
	Annika Becker (GER)

RANK	2003 WORLD BEST PERFORMERS	POINTS
1.	Carolina Klüft (SWE)	7001
2.	Eunice Barber (FRA)	6755
3.	Natalya Sazanovich (BLR)	6524
4.	Yelena Prokhorova (RUS)	6452
5.	Denise Lewis (GBR)	6282

RANK	ATHLETE	TIME
	Vanderlei de Lima (BRA)	2:19:08
	Bruce Deacon (CAN)	2:20:25
	Diego Colorado (COL)	2:21:48

RANK	NAME ATHLETE	TIME	EVENT
1.	Paul Tergat (KEN)	2:04:55 WR	Berlin Marathon
2.	Sammy Korir (KEN)	2:04:56	Berlin Marathon
3.	Evans Rutto (KEN)	2:05:50	Chicago Marathon
4.	Titus Munji (KEN)	2:06:15	Berlin Marathon
5.	Michael Kosgei Rotich (KEN)	2:06:33	Paris Marathon
6.	Benoît Zwierzchiewski (FRA)	2:06:36	Paris Marathon
7.	William Kipsang (KEN)	2:06:38	Amsterdam Marathon
8.	Felix Limo (KEN)	2:06:42	Amsterdam Marathon
9.	Wilson Onsare (KEN)	2:06:47	Paris Marathon
10.	Driss El Himer (FRA)	2:06:48	Paris Marathon

RANK	ATHLETE	TIME
	Márcia Narloch (BRA)	2:39:54
	Mariela González (CUB)	2:42:55
	Érika Olivera (CHI)	2:44:52

RANK	NAME ATHLETE	TIME	EVENT
1.	Paula Radcliffe (GBR)	2:15:24 WR	London Marathon
2.	Sun Yingjie (CHN)	2:19:39	Beijing Marathon
3.	Catherine Ndereba (KEN)	2:19:55	London Marathon
4.	Deena Kastor (USA)	2:21:15	London Marathon
5.	Mizuki Noguchi (JPN)	2:21:18	Osaka International Ladies Marathon
6.	Masako Chiba (JPN)	2:21:45	Osaka Marathon
7.	Naoko Sakamoto (JPN)	2:21:51	Osaka Marathon
8.	Lornah Kiplagat (KEN)	2:22:22	Osaka Marathon
9.	Margaret Okayo (KEN)	2:22:31	New York Marathon
10.	Catherine Ndereba (KEN)	2:23:03	New York Marathon

• April 22 — Mike Larrabee, American athlete (b. 1933)
• April 25 — Samson Kitur (37), Kenyan middle-distance runner (b. 1966)
• April 28 — Juha Tiainen (47), Finnish hammer thrower (b. 1955)
• September 24 — Benson Masya (33), Kenyan long-distance runner (b. 1970)

• ARRS