50 metres, or 50-meter dash, is a
sprint event in
track and field
Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...
. It is a relatively uncommon non-championship event for indoor track and field, normally dominated by the best outdoor
100 metres
The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at ...
runners. At outdoor
athletics
Athletics may refer to:
Sports
* Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking
** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport
* Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...
competitions it is used in the
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in 172 countries. Special Ol ...
and a rare distance, at least for senior athletes. It is an alternative to the
60 metres
60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At indoor events, the 60 metres is run on lanes set out in the mi ...
running event. The imperial distance for 50 metres is 54.68 yards.
Records and personal bests in the 50 metres are frequently achieved in February and March as these dates coincide with the indoor athletics season.
All-time top 25
''Indoor results only''
+ = en route to a longer distance
A = affected by altitude
Men
*Updated February 2025.
*
Ben Johnson of Canada ran 5.55 at Ottawa, Canada on 31 January 1987, but this time was rescinded after Johnson admitted to using steroids between 1981 and 1988.
Notes
Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 5.63:
*
Maurice Greene also ran 5.59 (1999).
*
Michael Green also ran 5.62 (1997).
*
Donovan Bailey
Donovan Bailey (born December 16, 1967) is a retired Jamaican-Canadian sprinter. He once held the world record for the 100 metres. He recorded a time of 9.84 seconds to become Olympic champion in 1996. He was the first Canadian to legally br ...
also ran 5.62 (1996).
*
Deji Aliu also ran 5.63 (1999).
*
Freddy Mayola also ran 5.63 (2001).
Outdoor best performances
+ = en route to 100m mark.
N.B. The Seville marks listed are excluding the athlete's reaction times. Bolt's & Su's times are inclusive.
Women
*Correct as of February 2025.
Note:
Angella Issajenko of Canada ran a world record 6.06 in Ottawa on 13 January 1987, this performance was rescinded after Issajenko's admittance of long term drug use at the
Dubin Inquiry in 1989.
Notes
Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 6.11:
*
Irina Privalova also ran 6.01 (1994), 6.03 (1994), 6.04 (1993), 6.05 (1993, 1997), 6.07 (1994), 6.08 (1994), 6.08 (1997), 6.09 (1994) and 6.11 (1996).
*
Gail Devers
Yolanda Gail Devers ( ; born November 19, 1966) is an American retired track and field sprinter who competed in the 60 metres, 60 m hurdles, 100 m and 100 m hurdles. One of the greatest and most decorated female sprinters of all time, she was ...
also ran 6.03 (1999) and 6.10 (1993).
*
Merlene Ottey
Merlene Joyce Ottey (born 10 May 1960) is a Jamaican-Slovenian former track and field sprint (running), sprinter. She began her career representing Jamaica in 1978 and continued to do so for 24 years before representing Slovenia from 2002 to 20 ...
also ran 6.06 (1999), 6.08 (1999) and 6.11 (1996).
*
Savatheda Fynes also ran 6.07 (1999).
*
Philomena Mensah also ran 6.07 (1999).
*
Christy Opara-Thompson also ran 6.11 (1997).
Outdoor best performances
+ = en route to 100m mark
Season's bests
Men
Women
References
{{Athletics events
Events in track and field
Sprint running disciplines
Indoor track and field
Metres
The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...