IAAF Grand Prix


The IAAF Grand Prix was an annual, global circuit of one-day outdoor track and field competitions organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations. It was created in 1985 as the IAAF's first seasonal track and field circuit and lasted until 2009. Athletes scored points based on their performances on the circuit and the top athletes were invited to the annual IAAF Grand Prix Final.
The IAAF Grand Prix expanded over its lifetime to incorporate the IAAF Golden League, the IAAF Super Grand Prix, IAAF Grand Prix and IAAF Grand Prix II. IAAF/Area Permit Meetings were also attached to the series, allowing athletes to score additional points in certain events at lower level meetings. In 2003 the series concept was renamed at the IAAF World Outdoor Meetings and the Grand Prix was reduced to a single tier of competitions within that tour. The series was again folded into the IAAF World Athletics Tour upon its creation in 2006, before being rendered defunct by the introduction of the IAAF Diamond League and IAAF World Challenge in 2010.

History

Created in 1985, the IAAF Grand Prix was the first global series of outdoor invitational track and field meetings organised by the IAAF. It followed on from the IAAF Golden Events, where the IAAF helped finance meetings between the world's top athletes to encourage seasonal engagement with the sport outside of the Olympic cycle. The creation of the IAAF Grand Prix circuit came two years after the first World Championships in Athletics in 1983, highlighting the sports governing body's pivot to a more direct role in organising athletics competitions.
From 1985 to 1992 the series featured Grand Prix Meetings and IAAF Permit Meetings. The series culminated in the IAAF Grand Prix Final, which athletes gained qualification to based on their performances at the series' meetings. The competing athletes at the final earned additional points for their performances there, and the series winner of each event was the athlete with the highest score. In 1993 the Grand Prix format was amended so that the event winner was the first place athlete at the Final competitions, rather than the seasonal points leader, and this format continued until the last Grand Prix Final in 2002.
In 1993 the IAAF Council approved a new tier of IAAF Grand Prix II meetings, which Permit-level meetings could apply for after two years. That same year four of the Grand Prix meetings organised a Golden Four group of top-level European meetings within the series. In response, the IAAF Grand Prix series was again expanded with the foundation of the IAAF Golden League in 1998, which split out the Golden Four meetings as a new top tier within the IAAF Grand Prix circuit. After this point, the IAAF Grand Prix referred to multiple concepts in that it was both an annual series of track and field meetings incorporating four tiers as well as a term to refer to the second and third tiers of that series. In 2003, an IAAF Super Grand Prix level was added to the circuit, the IAAF Permit Meeting tier was dropped, and the Grand Prix Final was replaced with the IAAF World Athletics Final.
In 2003 the IAAF World Outdoor Meetings brand superseded the IAAF Grand Prix to the umbrella series concept and Grand Prix levels I and II continued within that series. In 2006, the IAAF World Athletics Tour was formed to replace the World Outdoor Meetings and at this time the IAAF Grand Prix II tier was dropped in favour of an Area Permit Meeting structure. The IAAF Grand Prix was made defunct along with the World Athletics Tour in 2010, as both were replaced by the IAAF Diamond League and IAAF World Challenge series.

Editions

The IAAF Grand Prix calendar was subject to change during its lifetime, with the number of meetings, the constituent meetings, the categorisation of meetings, and the duration of the series all regularly changing from year to year. Athletes received points based on their performances at the meetings on the circuit, with more points being given at the more prestigious and competitive competitions. From 2006 to 2009, series points could also be scored in certain events at Area Permit Meeting qualifiers, although the meetings themselves were not considered a formal part of the meeting series.
A total of seven meeting categories existed over the lifetime of the circuit:
  • GL : IAAF Golden League
  • SGP : IAAF Super Grand Prix
  • GP : IAAF Grand Prix
  • GP2 : IAAF Grand Prix II
  • GPF : IAAF Grand Prix Final
  • WAF : IAAF World Athletics Final
  • PM : IAAF/Area Permit Meeting
Key:
EditionYearStart dateEnd dateMeetsGLSGPGPGP2PMFinalFinal date
1198525 May7 September15––15–?1985 IAAF Grand Prix Final7 September
219863 May21 September15––15–131986 IAAF Grand Prix Final10 September
3198723 April11 September15*––15–?1987 IAAF Grand Prix Final11 September
4198828 May26 August16––16–?1988 IAAF Grand Prix Final13 September
5198927 May1 September16––16–?1989 IAAF Grand Prix Final1 September
6199020 May7 September19––19–?1990 IAAF Grand Prix Final7 September
7199119 May20 September18––18–?1991 IAAF Grand Prix Final20 September
8199225 February19 September17––17–151992 IAAF Grand Prix Final4 September
9199325 February10 September16––16–121993 IAAF Grand Prix Final10 September
10199424 February15 September23––15881994 IAAF Grand Prix Final3 September
11199523 February15 September24––159101995 IAAF Grand Prix Final9 September
12199629 February16 September29––1712101996 IAAF Grand Prix Final7 September
13199720 February20 September26––1610121997 IAAF Grand Prix Final13 September
14199825 February30 August266–911111998 IAAF Grand Prix Final5 September
15199925 February5 September287–1011?1999 IAAF Grand Prix Final11 September
1620002 March3 September267–910132000 IAAF Grand Prix Final5 October
1720011 March2 September287–1011112001 IAAF Grand Prix Final9 September
1820027 March8 September277–911102002 IAAF Grand Prix Final14 September
1920031 March7 September34671011–2003 IAAF World Athletics Final13–14 September
20200412 February12 September3468911–2004 IAAF World Athletics Final18–19 September
21200517 February4 September34681010–2005 IAAF World Athletics Final9–10 September
2220069 March3 September246612–252006 IAAF World Athletics Final9–10 September
2320072 March16 September246513–272007 IAAF World Athletics Final22–23 September
24200828 September 20079 September 2008256514–292008 IAAF World Athletics Final13–14 September
25200920 September 20086 September 2009256514–292009 IAAF World Athletics Final12–13 September

* Additionally in the 1987 season, four North American meetings each organized four or five individual events with Grand Prix status.