Athletics at the 2010 South American Games

The athletics events at the 2010 South American Games (Spanish: IX Juegos Suramericanos) were held from March 20–23 at the Alfonso Galvis Duque Stadium in Medellín, Colombia. The competition also acted at the 4th South American Under-23 Championships. A total of 42 events were contested, 21 by male athletes and 21 by female athletes. The stadium was 1541 metres above sea level, thus some athletes' performances benefited from altitude assistance.[1]

Athletics at the 9th South American Games
Athletics stadium at the Atanasio Girardot sports complex in Medellín, Colombia.
Dates	March 20 – March 23
Host city	Medellín, Colombia
Venue	Alfonso Galvis Duque Stadium
Level	U23
Events	42
Participation	13 nations
← 2006 Buenos Aires 2014 Santiago → 2010 South American Games

Athletics at the 2010 South American Games
Track events
100 m	men	women
200 m	men	women
400 m	men	women
800 m	men	women
1500 m	men	women
5000 m	men	women
10,000 m	men	women
100 m hurdles		women
110 m hurdles	men
400 m hurdles	men	women
3000 m steeplechase	men	women
4×100 m relay	men	women
4×400 m relay	men	women
Field events
Long jump	men	women
Triple jump	men	women
High jump	men	women
Pole vault	men	women
Shot put	men	women
Discus throw	men	women
Javelin throw	men	women
Hammer throw	men	women
Combined events
Heptathlon		women
Decathlon	men

Brazil topped the medal table with 13 golds and 41 medals overall. Hosts Colombia were the next most successful (11 golds and 35 total) while Venezuela and Peru took third and fourth place respectively. Ana Cláudia Lemos Silva provided one of the highlights of the competition, equalling the South American record in the women's 100 metres with a run of 11.17 seconds. Jorge McFarlane of Peru took victory in both the 110 metres hurdles and the long jump, setting championships and Games records in both events, as well as breaking the Peruvian record in the hurdles.[1]

Two Colombian athletes also set new championships and Games records in their events: María Lucelly Murillo set new best marks of 56.08 m in the women's discus throw and Rafith Rodríguez won in Colombian record time in the 800 metres (1:47.20). Other record breaking performances of note included Ana Camila Pirelli's Paraguayan record in heptathlon, although this was only enough for the bronze in the competition.[1]

The 10,000 m gold medallist and 5000 m runner-up Karina Alvarez of Peru was stripped of her medals after failing a drugs test for cocaine.[2] Bolivian 400 m runner Alison Mariana Delfin – who helped win a relay bronze medal – was also later disqualified and banned for two years due to a doping offence.[3]