The IAAF Centenary Historic Exhibition will take place in the Museu Olímpic i de l'Esport Joan Antoni Samaranch – next to the 1992 Olympic Stadium on Montjuïc Hill – from October 13 to November 25.

It will involve a mixture of text, photographs and video illustrating the world governing body's progress since it began in Stockholm 100 years ago – as the International Amateur Athletic Association – and evolved into its current incarnation.

In lane onethe exhibition opens with 100 Years of IAAF, which presents the history of the organisation and its founding members set against a general historical timeline of the past century.

Lane two deals with World Championships highlights, a vast four metre-high display which details the greatest athletes of the Olympic Games and IAAF World Athletics Series.

The Museu Olímpic i de l'Esport Joan Antoni Samaranch in Barcelona will host the IAAF Centenary Historic Exhibition

Lane three is about IAAF competitions and concerns the general development of the body's competition programme.

Lane four, called IAAF Areas, highlights the athletics achievements of the world's six continental areas.

Lane five is entitled Women in Athletics and follows the struggle for equality and parity with men's athletics.

Lane six, all about technical dDevelopments, tracks the myriad changes in facilities, equipment, clothing and rules.

Lane seven, called Events Highlights, forms another huge display, and focuses on many of the greatest competition moments and stars of the last 100 years.

Finally, lane eight is Building for the Future and brings the exhibition to a fitting close by looking forward at the next 100 years with an emphasis placed on the IAAF School/Youth programme and IAAF/Nestlé Kids' Athletics.

Fanny Blankers-Koen, winner of four London 1948 gold medals, will be among the legendary Olympic athletes featured in the exhibition

Linking these lane displays are numerous glass exhibition cabinets stacked with over 300 items of athletics memorabilia – including an historic athletics shoe display from IAAF partner adidas – loaned by athletes, museums and private collections from around the world.

The artefacts date from antiquity to the present day, with the oldest being coins and vases from 256BC and the newest competition numbers and clothing from London 2012 gold medallists.

Medals from every Olympics Games from 1896 to 2008, along with the 13 editions of the IAAF World Championships from 1983 to 2011, plus clothing, equipment, statues and programmes which celebrate past and present heroes including Paavo Nurmi, Jesse Owens, Fanny Blankers-Koen, Sergey Bubka, Sebastian Coe, Carl Lewis, Usain Bolt and David Rudisha will undoubtedly prove popular.

The unique exhibition will close on the weekend of the IAAF Centenary Gala, being held on November 24 also in Barcelona.

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