The timetable for the event in South Korea, which is due to open on August 27, has been developed in conjunction with athletes, and the sport’s broadcasters and marketing partners, with the goal to increase the appeal of the biennial IAAF World Championships to the world’s television audience, especially to younger viewers.

Shorter, with more impact, the main evening sessions will feature only semi-finals and finals, the IAAF have announced.

All the main sessions will last less than three hours long, and there will be a balanced number of finals across all days, with qualification rounds only in the morning sessions, and relays spread over more days.

At the core of the planning has been the requirement to improve the timing to better tell the story of each event at the Championships, the IAAF claimed.

Lamine Diack, the President of the IAAF, said: "We are delighted to present this new look timetable for Daegu 2011.

"It ushers in a new era for our sport, helping to meet the demands of a world in which athletics must compete ever harder to attract, excite and retain the public’s interest in an increasingly diverse sports and entertainment market worldwide."

The highlights of the schedule includes the final of the men's 100 and 200 metres which are expected to feature Jamaica's Usain Bolt defending the titles he won in Berlin last year, setting world records in both events.

They are due to be held on the second and eighth days of the Championships.

The heptathlon, which Britain's Jessica Ennis won in Berlin, is due to be held on the third and fourth days while the triple jump, won by Philips Idowu last year, will take place on the last day of the Championships on September 4. 

Diack said: "After a phenomenally successful edition of the IAAF World Championships in Berlin in 2009, for which we made changes to the competition’s presentation, it is vital for the long term popularity of our sport that we continue to adapt, while acknowledging the inherent strengths of Athletics which over the decades has provided the world with many of its most enduring sporting moments."

To see the full timetable click here.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]