1979 in the sport of athletics
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Major events
World records
Men
| Event | Athlete | Nation | Performance | Meeting | Place | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 m | Pietro Mennea |  Italy |
19.72 |  Mexico City, Mexico |
12 September | |
| 800 m | Sebastian Coe |  United Kingdom |
1:42.33 |  Oslo, Norway |
5 July | |
| 1500 m | Sebastian Coe | United Kingdom |
3:32.03 |  Zürich, Switzerland |
15 August | |
| Mile | Sebastian Coe | United Kingdom |
3:48.95 | Oslo, Norway |
17 July | |
| 110 m hurdles | Renaldo Nehemiah |  United States |
13.16 | San Jose, United States |
14 April | |
| 110 m hurdles | Renaldo Nehemiah | United States |
13.00 | Westwood, Los Angeles, California, United States |
6 May |
Women
| Event | Athlete | Nation | Performance | Meeting | Place | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 200 m | Marita Koch |  East Germany |
22.02 | Leipzig, East Germany |
3 June | |
| 200 m | Marita Koch | East Germany |
21.71 | Karl-Marx-Stadt, East Germany |
10 June | |
| 400 m | Marita Koch | East Germany |
48.89 | Potsdam, East Germany |
29 July | |
| 400 m | Marita Koch | East Germany |
48.60 | Turin, Italy |
4 August | |
| Mile | Natalia Mărășescu |  Romania |
4:22.1 |  Auckland, New Zealand |
27 January | |
| 100 m hurdles | Grażyna Rabsztyn |  Poland |
12.48[1] | Warsaw, Poland |
18 June | |
| 400 m hurdles | Marina Styepanova |  Russia |
54.78 | Moscow, Russia |
27 July | |
| Javelin throw | Ruth Fuchs | East Germany |
69.52 m | Dresden, East Germany |
13 June | |
| 4 × 100 metres relay | Marita Koch Romy Müller Ingrid Auerswald Marlies Göhr |
East Germany |
42.10 | Karl-Marx-Stadt, East Germany |
10 June | |
| 4 × 100 metres relay | Christina Lathan Romy Müller Ingrid Auerswald Marlies Göhr |
East Germany |
42.09 | Turin, Italy |
4 August | |
| 4 × 200 metres relay | Raisa Makhova Nina Zyuskova Tatyana Prorochenko Maria Kulchunova |
 Soviet Union |
1:30.74[2] | Moscow, Soviet Union |
29 July |
