heptathlon

noun

hep·​tath·​lon hep-ˈtath-lən  -ˌlän 

 nonstandard  -ˈta-thə-

: a 7-event athletic contest

specifically : a composite contest for female athletes that consists of the 100-meter hurdles, the high jump, the shot put, the 200-meter dash, the long jump, the javelin throw, and the 800-meter run

Examples of heptathlon in a Sentence

She won a gold medal in the heptathlon.

Recent Examples on the Web

Across the track, the Aggies also saw wins from its distance medley relay team and Blake Harris in the heptathlon and from Samuel Whitmarsh in the 800m. Whitmarsh earned his second straight SEC title, legging past Mississippi State’s Abdullah Hassan in 1:47.69. —Cory Mull, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025

Four years later, after competing in her second Olympics and winning two gold medals (in the long jump and the heptathlon), Joyner-Kersee fulfilled another dream by establishing the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation. —Kizzy Cox, Essence, 29 Jan. 2025

Anna Hall celebrates after finishing her last event of the Olympic Trials heptathlon. —Mark Dent, thehustle.co, 27 July 2024

In many ways, support for the decathlon and heptathlon is not trending in the right direction. —Mark Dent, thehustle.co, 27 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

hept- + -athlon (as in decathlon)

First Known Use

1977, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

heptathlon

noun

hep·​tath·​lon

hep-ˈtath-lən,

-ˌlän

: an athletic contest made up of seven different track-and-field events