Decathlon and Heptathlon Points Calculator (World Athletics Scoring Tables)
Score a decathlon, heptathlon, indoor heptathlon or pentathlon with the World Athletics formulas: points per event, total, gap to the world record and marks for 1,000 points.
How it works
Running events: points = A × (B − T)^C (T = time in seconds) · Jumps: points = A × (M − B)^C (M = mark in centimetres) · Throws: points = A × (D − B)^C (D = distance in metres) · each event is rounded down to a whole number and the event points are added up
World Athletics scores combined events with one table per event, built from three constants A, B and C. B is the threshold mark that scores zero: 18 seconds in the decathlon 100 m, 2.20 m in the long jump, 1.5 m in the shot put. The further you are beyond B, the more points you get, and the exponent C (above 1) makes each extra centimetre or hundredth of a second worth a little more as performances get better. Every event result is rounded down to a whole number and the totals are added. Choose the competition, type each mark and the calculator returns the points for every event, your total, the average per event, the gap to the world record and the mark that would score exactly 1,000 points in each event. Leave later events blank to see a running total and a projection during a meet. Hand-timed sprints get the official correction (+0.24 s, or +0.14 s in the 400 m) if you switch it on under More options. Unlike a running pace or vertical jump tool, this page only converts marks to points; it does not judge whether a mark was legal (wind, false starts or three missed heights).
Worked example
Kevin Mayer’s world-record decathlon (Talence, 2018) is the default. The 100 m in 10.55 s scores 25.4347 × (18 − 10.55)^1.81 = 963.89 → 963 points. The long jump of 7.80 m is 780 cm, so 0.14354 × (780 − 220)^1.4 = 1,010 points. The rest: shot put 16.00 m 851, high jump 2.05 m 850, 400 m 48.42 s 889, 110 m hurdles 13.75 s 1,007, discus 50.54 m 882, pole vault 5.45 m 1,051, javelin 71.90 m 918 and 1500 m 4:36.11 (276.11 s) 705. The total is 9,126 points, exactly the world record, an average of 913 points per event.
Sources: Wikipedia: Decathlon (scoring formula, A, B, C constants and 1,000-point marks) · Wikipedia: Heptathlon (women’s and indoor event coefficients, record marks and points) · Wikipedia: Women’s pentathlon (world record series) · Omni Calculator: Heptathlon (formulas, hand-timing +0.24 s, 60 m and long jump examples)
Frequently asked questions
How are decathlon points calculated?
Each event has its own formula from the World Athletics scoring tables: A × (B − T)^C for running events and A × (M − B)^C for jumps and throws, where T is the time in seconds, jump marks are in centimetres and throws in metres. The result for each event is rounded down and the ten scores are added.
What is a good decathlon score?
Totals above 8,000 points are generally regarded as world-class, and a decathlete who scores 1,000 points in every event would finish with 10,000. The world record is 9,126 points by Kevin Mayer (2018). Use the average per event to compare across competitions: 800 points per event is a strong performance at any level below international.
What is the heptathlon world record?
Jackie Joyner-Kersee scored 7,291 points at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, with 12.69 s in the 100 m hurdles, 1.86 m high jump, 15.80 m shot put, 22.56 s 200 m, 7.27 m long jump, 45.66 m javelin and 2:08.51 in the 800 m. Choose Heptathlon to see the points for each event.
What mark scores 1,000 points?
In the decathlon it takes 10.39 s in the 100 m, 7.76 m in the long jump, 18.40 m in the shot put, 2.21 m in the high jump, 46.17 s in the 400 m, 13.80 s in the 110 m hurdles, 56.17 m in the discus, 5.29 m in the pole vault, 77.19 m in the javelin and 3:53.79 in the 1500 m. The table shows the 1,000-point mark for every event of the competition you choose.
Do hand-timed results count?
Yes. Before looking up points, add 0.24 s to hand times in the 100 m, 200 m and hurdles and 0.14 s in the 400 m. Turn on the hand-timing option to apply this automatically.
Why do the 1500 m and 800 m score so few points?
The tables give roughly equal points for equally rare performances in each event, but multi-event athletes are usually power athletes who run the 1500 m tired at the end of day two. A 4:30.00 1500 m scores 745 points, while a 10.80 s 100 m scores 906.
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This calculator is for educational purposes. Double-check important results before acting on them.