How is a road race timed, and who is placed first?
B · Beginner · The race · 4 of 4Athletes are placed in the order their torsos reach the finish line. The official time runs from the start signal to the finish and is rounded up to the next whole second. Timing chips may be used, and a chip can tell an athlete how long they took from the start line, but that time is not official.
How it works
- Placing: athletes are placed in the order in which any part of the torso reaches the near edge of the finish line. The head, arms, legs, hands and feet do not count.
- The finish line outside a stadium: may be up to 0.30 m wide and in any colour that stands out from the road.
- Chips: a transponder timing system is permitted for races held outside the stadium. Its equipment must not obstruct athletes, the transponder must not be a significant weight and the athlete must not have to do anything to make it work.
- Started by the gun: the system is started by the starter's gun or synchronised with the start signal.
- Rounding: "all times not ending in zero shall be converted and recorded to the next longer whole second". The rule's example is 2:09:44.3, recorded as 2:09:45.
- The official time: "the time elapsed between the firing of the starting gun (or the synchronised start signal) and the athlete reaching the finish line".
- Chip time: the time between crossing the start line and the finish line "can be made known to them, but will not be considered an official time".
- Close finishes: the torso rule still applies. Judges or video are recommended to help decide the order and identify athletes.
- A tie: if the athletes cannot be separated, it is a tie.
- The road mile: its times are converted to the next longer tenth of a second.
Tricky cases
An athlete takes two minutes to reach the start line in a big field. Is that taken off their official time?
No. The official time runs from the start signal. The start-line-to-finish time may be given to them, but it is not official.
Two athletes finish together and the chips give the same second. Who is ahead?
The one whose torso reached the line first. The torso rule is applied, with judges or video to help.
An athlete finishes in 1:01:00.2. What time is recorded?
1:01:01. A time that does not end in zero goes up to the next whole second.
Does an athlete's chip have to cross the line for them to have finished?
No. The finish is the torso reaching the line. The chip records a time and does not decide the placing in a close finish.
Why the rule exists
A race is against the other athletes, and they all started on the same signal, so the official time starts there too. Rounding up to the whole second reflects how exact timing can be over a long distance on the road, and it means nobody is credited with a time faster than they achieved.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| World Athletics rules | As above | TR 18.1; TR 18.2; TR 19.24 to 19.26; TR 21.1 |
| Track races up to 10,000 m | Recorded to the next longer hundredth of a second | TR 19.23.1 |
| No chip system | A funnel system at the finish is recommended as a way of recording the order | TR 55 commentary |
| Records for women | Kept separately for mixed and women-only races | CR 32 (note i) |
From the rule book
World Athletics, Competition and Technical Rules, 2026 Edition, Technical Rules 18.1, 18.2, 19.24 to 19.26 and 21.1 with the commentary printed under rule 19. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: World Athletics Competition and Technical Rules 2026 (PDF).