Track and field is one of the oldest sports that can be dated back to the Olympic Games in Ancient Greece. Starting in 776 B.C., these athletic contests for men were popular and considered as a prestigious event. The Romans continued the Olympic tradition up until the rule of Emperor Theodosius I who banned the games in A.D. 394. Track and field developed into a modern sport in England during the 19th century. In 1849, the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst organized the first track and field meet of modern times but the sport did not flourish not until the late 1860s.

In 1866, the newly formed Amateur Athletic Club opened a competition to all athletes who did not get any financial recompense for their efforts which became the first English championship. This code has survived to the present day and serves as the foundation for the sport’s rules. However, in 1880 the Amateur Athletic Club was replaced by the Amateur Athletic Association which has hosted the yearly national championships ever since. In the United States, the Amateur Athletic Union of the United States (AAU) was formed in 1887 as an association for track and field clubs.

It was not until 1896 when the first modern Olympic Games were staged. Track and field had limited appeal but the olympics attracted the attention of athletes and grew steadily which made it an international sport. In 1913, International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) was formed by representatives from sixteen countries whose task was to define standards for sports, approving world records, and ensuring that the amateur code was followed up until today. Eight years later, six countries founded the Women's Athletic Federation which later united with the IAAF in 1936. The women’s participation in track and field has increased dramatically in many nations in recent years where many institutions have included it to their athletic programs.