GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
Does the torso or a hand or foot determine when a track athlete finishes?
Under the cited World Athletics track rule, placing is determined by when an athlete’s torso reaches the vertical plane at the nearer edge of the finish line. The head, neck, arms, legs, hands, and feet do not replace the torso as the placing criterion. This is a rule for placing; it does not let a viewer decide an official result from a cropped image or unreviewed video.
For Track viewers who want to understand a close finish or photo-finish placing. · Updated
The torso is compared with a specific plane
The finish is a line on the track, but the rule describes a vertical plane at the nearer edge of that line. Officials place athletes according to when each torso reaches that plane.
A hand can reach forward first, or a foot can trail behind, without changing the stated placing test. The rule distinguishes the torso from the head, neck, arms, legs, hands, and feet.
A frame from a video is not an official placing
A close finish is assessed using the competition’s official finish procedure and available photo-finish evidence. A cropped or unreviewed image may omit the relevant line, torso, or timing context.
The torso rule determines placing. Timing precision is governed separately by the timing method and event distance; this article does not infer a result from a viewer’s screenshot.
Confirm the competition’s rule edition
The cited 2026 consolidated rulebook states the torso criterion in Technical Rule 18.2. Its history table does not give a separate adoption or effective date for that wording. The competition’s adopted rules and official result procedure control.
When the hands and torsos cross in different orders
In a fictional finish, Athlete A’s hand reaches the line plane first. Athlete B’s torso reaches the plane before Athlete A’s torso. Under the torso placing criterion, B is placed ahead of A in this example. The hands do not decide the order, and the example is not a photo-finish adjudication.
Related questions
Can a hand crossing first make that runner the winner?
Not under the cited track placing criterion. The torso reaching the vertical plane at the nearer edge of the finish line determines the order.
Does this rule say how a time is rounded?
No. Placing and time recording are separate questions; the timing rule depends on the method and distance.