Athletics at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Men's 800 metres

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Men's 800 metres
at the Games of the XXVI Olympiad
VenueCentennial Olympic Stadium
Dates28 to 31 July
Competitors56 from 40 nations
Winning time1:42.58 OR
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Vebjørn Rodal
 Norway
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Hezekiél Sepeng
 South Africa
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Fred Onyancha
 Kenya
← 1992
2000 →
Athletics at the
1996 Summer Olympics
Olympic Athletics.png
Track events
100 mmenwomen
200 mmenwomen
400 mmenwomen
800 mmenwomen
1500 mmenwomen
5000 mmenwomen
10,000 mmenwomen
100 m hurdleswomen
110 m hurdlesmen
400 m hurdlesmenwomen
3000 m
steeplechase		men
4×100 m relaymenwomen
4×400 m relaymenwomen
Road events
Marathonmenwomen
10 km walkwomen
20 km walkmen
50 km walkmen
Field events
Long jumpmenwomen
Triple jumpmenwomen
High jumpmenwomen
Pole vaultmen
Shot putmenwomen
Discus throwmenwomen
Javelin throwmenwomen
Hammer throwmen
Combined events
Heptathlonwomen
Decathlonmen
Wheelchair races
  • v
  • t

The men's 800 metres event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia was held between 28 and 31 July 1996. There were a total of 57 competitors from 40 countries.[1] The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Vebjørn Rodal of Norway, the nation's first title in the men's 800 metres and first medal in the event since 1956. Hezekiél Sepeng's silver was South Africa's first 800 metres medal since 1920.

Background[]

This was the 23rd appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Four finalists from 1992 returned: bronze medalist Johnny Gray of the United States (also a finalist in 1984 and 1988), fourth-place finisher José Luiz Barbosa of Brazil (a 1988 finalist as well), fifth-place finisher Andrea Benvenuti of Italy, and sixth-place finisher Curtis Robb of Great Britain. Wilson Kipketer was the strongest 800 metres runner in 1996, having won the first of his three world championship titles in 1995; however, he was ruled ineligible for the Games during the process of changing his nationality from Kenya to Denmark. Without Kipketer, the field was open with no clear favorite.[2]

Burundi, the Czech Republic, Dominica, Guinea-Bissau, Kyrgyzstan, and Latvia appeared in the event for the first time. Great Britain made its 22nd appearance, most among all nations, having had no competitors in the event only in the 1904 Games in St. Louis.

Competition format[]

The men's 800 metres again used a three-round format, the most common format since 1912 though there had been variations. The "fastest loser" system introduced in 1964 was used for the first two rounds. There were eight first-round heats, each with 7 or 8 athletes; the top two runners in each heat as well as the next eight fastest overall advanced to the semifinals. There were three semifinals with 8 athletes each; the top two runners in each semifinal and the next two fastest overall advanced to the eight-man final.[2][3]

Records[]

Prior to the competition, the existing World and Olympic records were as follows.

World record  Sebastian Coe (GBR) 1:41.73 Florence, Italy 10 June 1981
Olympic record  Joaquim Cruz (BRA) 1:43.00 Los Angeles, United States 6 August 1984

In the final Vebjørn Rodal set a new Olympic record at 1:42.58.

Schedule[]

All times are Eastern Daylight Time (UTC-4)

Date Time Round
Sunday, 28 July 1996 19:15 Round 1
Monday, 29 July 1996 18:50 Semifinals
Wednesday, 31 July 1996 20:35 Final

Results[]

Round 1[]

Heat 1[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Vebjørn Rodal  Norway 1:45.30 Q
2 Curtis Robb  Great Britain 1:45.85 Q
3 José Luiz Barbosa  Brazil 1:46.58 q
4 David Matthews  Ireland 1:46.76 q
5 Joachim Dehmel  Germany 1:47.12
6 Joseph Rakotoarimanana  Madagascar 1:47.33
7 Tommy Asinga  Suriname 1:48.29

Heat 2[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Philip Kibitok  Kenya 1:45.34 Q
2 Nico Motchebon  Germany 1:45.82 Q
3 Bruno Konczylo  France 1:46.04 q
4 Adem Hecini  Algeria 1:47.23
5 Abdul Rahman Al-Abdullah  Qatar 1:48.52
6 Flavio Godoy  Brazil 1:48.91
7 Chérif Baba Aidara  Mauritania 1:56.20

Heat 3[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Norberto Téllez  Cuba 1:47.24 Q
2 Craig Winrow  Great Britain 1:47.41 Q
3 Pavel Soukup  Czech Republic 1:47.67
4 Andrés Manuel Díaz  Spain 1:47.86
5 Atle Douglas  Norway 1:48.60
6 Cedric Harris  Dominica 1:51.46
7 Fernando Arlete  Guinea-Bissau 2:00.07

Heat 4[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 David Kiptoo  Kenya 1:45.11 Q
2 Giuseppe D'Urso  Italy 1:45.27 Q
3 Johan Botha  South Africa 1:45.63 q
4 Jimmy Jean-Joseph  France 1:45.64 q
5 Ibrahim Aden  Somalia 1:47.31
6 Charles Nkazamyampi  Burundi 1:47.95
7 Tavakalo Kailes  Vanuatu 1:55.07
8 Naseer Ismail  Maldives 1:58.70

Heat 5[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Johnny Gray  United States 1:45.87 Q
2 Einārs Tupurītis  Latvia 1:45.88 Q
3 Savieri Ngidhi  Zimbabwe 1:46.46 q
4 Balázs Korányi  Hungary 1:46.63 q
5 Antonio Abrantes  Portugal 1:47.73
6 Clive Terrelonge  Jamaica 1:48.29
7 Themba Makhanya  Swaziland 1:59.02

Heat 6[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Arthémon Hatungimana  Burundi 1:47.10 Q
2 Andrea Benvenuti  Italy 1:47.45 Q
3 Marius van Heerden  South Africa 1:47.46
4 David Maxwell Strang  Great Britain 1:47.96
5 Boris Kaveshnikov  Kyrgyzstan 1:48.88
6 José Parrilla  United States 1:49.99
7 Yaya Terap Adoum  Chad 1:52.68

Heat 7[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Benyounes Lahlou  Morocco 1:45.85 Q
2 Fred Onyancha  Kenya 1:46.07 Q
3 Paul Byrne  Australia 1:47.05 q
4 Alex Morgan  Jamaica 1:47.40
5 Mohamed Babiker Yagoub  Sudan 1:48.50
6 Manlio Molinari  San Marino 1:56.08
— Roberto Parra  Spain DNS

Heat 8[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Hezekiél Sepeng  South Africa 1:45.45 Q
2 André Bucher  Switzerland 1:46.85 Q
3 Andrea Giocondi  Italy 1:47.26
4 Brandon Rock  United States 1:48.47
5 Jean Destine  Haiti 1:48.82
6 Saeed Basweidan  Yemen 1:49.35
7 Greg Rhymer  British Virgin Islands 1:50.03

Overall results for round 1[]

Rank Heat Athlete Nation Time Notes
Overall In heat
1 1 4 David Kiptoo  Kenya 1:45.11 Q
2 2 4 Giuseppe D'Urso  Italy 1:45.27 Q
3 1 1 Vebjørn Rodal  Norway 1:45.30 Q
4 1 2 Philip Kibitok  Kenya 1:45.34 Q
5 3 4 Johan Botha  South Africa 1:45.63 q
6 4 4 Jimmy Jean-Joseph  France 1:45.64 q
7 2 2 Nico Motchebon  Germany 1:45.82 Q
8 1 7 Benyounes Lahlou  Morocco 1:45.85 Q
2 1 Curtis Robb  Great Britain 1:45.85 Q
10 1 5 Johnny Gray  United States 1:45.87 Q
11 2 5 Einārs Tupurītis  Latvia 1:45.88 Q
12 3 2 Bruno Konczylo  France 1:46.04 q
13 2 7 Fred Onyancha  Kenya 1:46.07 Q
14 1 8 Hezekiél Sepeng  South Africa 1:45.45 Q
15 3 5 Savieri Ngidhi  Zimbabwe 1:46.46 q
16 3 1 José Luiz Barbosa  Brazil 1:46.58 q
17 4 5 Balázs Korányi  Hungary 1:46.63 q
18 4 1 David Matthews  Ireland 1:46.76 q
19 2 8 André Bucher  Switzerland 1:46.85 Q
20 3 7 Paul Byrne  Australia 1:47.05 q
21 1 6 Arthémon Hatungimana  Burundi 1:47.10 Q
22 5 1 Joachim Dehmel  Germany 1:47.12
23 4 2 Adem Hecini  Algeria 1:47.23
24 1 3 Norberto Téllez  Cuba 1:47.24 Q
25 3 8 Andrea Giocondi  Italy 1:47.26
26 5 4 Ibrahim Aden  Somalia 1:47.31
27 6 1 Joseph Rakotoarimanana  Madagascar 1:47.33
28 4 7 Alex Morgan  Jamaica 1:47.40
29 2 3 Craig Winrow  Great Britain 1:47.41 Q
30 2 6 Andrea Benvenuti  Italy 1:47.45 Q
31 3 6 Marius van Heerden  South Africa 1:47.46
32 3 3 Pavel Soukup  Czech Republic 1:47.67
33 5 5 Antonio Abrantes  Portugal 1:47.73
34 4 3 Andrés Manuel Díaz  Spain 1:47.86
35 6 4 Charles Nkazamyampi  Burundi 1:47.95
36 4 6 David Maxwell Strang  Great Britain 1:47.96
37 7 1 Tommy Asinga  Suriname 1:48.29
6 5 Clive Terrelonge  Jamaica 1:48.29
39 4 8 Brandon Rock  United States 1:48.47
40 5 7 Mohamed Babiker Yagoub  Sudan 1:48.50
41 5 2 Abdul Rahman Al-Abdullah  Qatar 1:48.52
42 5 3 Atle Douglas  Norway 1:48.60
43 5 8 Jean Destine  Haiti 1:48.82
44 5 6 Boris Kaveshnikov  Kyrgyzstan 1:48.88
45 6 2 Flavio Godoy  Brazil 1:48.91
46 6 8 Saeed Basweidan  Yemen 1:49.35
47 6 6 José Parrilla  United States 1:49.99
48 7 8 Greg Rhymer  British Virgin Islands 1:50.03
49 6 3 Cedric Harris  Dominica 1:51.46
50 7 6 Yaya Terap Adoum  Chad 1:52.68
51 7 4 Tavakalo Kailes  Vanuatu 1:55.07
52 7 2 Chérif Baba Aidara  Mauritania 1:56.20
53 8 4 Naseer Ismail  Maldives 1:58.70
54 7 5 Themba Makhanya  Swaziland 1:59.02
55 7 3 Fernando Arlete  Guinea-Bissau 2:00.07
56 6 7 Manlio Molinari  San Marino 1:56.08
— — 7 Roberto Parra  Spain DNS

Semifinals[]

Semifinal 1[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Hezekiél Sepeng  South Africa 1:45.16 Q
2 Nico Motchebon  Germany 1:45.40 Q
3 Philip Kibitok  Kenya 1:45.58
4 André Bucher  Switzerland 1:46.41
5 Giuseppe D'Urso  Italy 1:46.97
6 Paul Byrne  Australia 1:47.58
7 Bruno Konczylo  France 1:48.02
8 Craig Winrow  Great Britain 1:48.57

Semifinal 2[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Benyounes Lahlou  Morocco 1:43.99 Q
2 Johnny Gray  United States 1:44.00 Q
3 Fred Onyancha  Kenya 1:44.02 q
4 Arthémon Hatungimana  Burundi 1:44.92
5 Savieri Ngidhi  Zimbabwe 1:46.78
6 Curtis Robb  Great Britain 1:47.48
7 Johan Botha  South Africa 1:48.06
8 José Luiz Barbosa  Brazil 1:50.33

Semifinal 3[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Norberto Téllez  Cuba 1:43.79 Q
2 David Kiptoo  Kenya 1:43.90 Q
3 Vebjørn Rodal  Norway 1:43.96 q
4 Einārs Tupurītis  Latvia 1:46.41
5 David Matthews  Ireland 1:47.83
6 Jimmy Jean-Joseph  France 1:48.50
7 Balázs Korányi  Hungary 1:50.30
— Andrea Benvenuti  Italy DNF

Overall results for semifinals[]

Rank Heat Athlete Nation Time Notes
Overall In heat
1 1 3 Norberto Téllez  Cuba 1:43.79 Q
2 2 3 David Kiptoo  Kenya 1:43.90 Q
3 3 3 Vebjørn Rodal  Norway 1:43.96 q
4 1 2 Benyounes Lahlou  Morocco 1:43.99 Q
5 2 2 Johnny Gray  United States 1:44.00 Q
6 3 2 Fred Onyancha  Kenya 1:44.02 q
7 4 2 Arthémon Hatungimana  Burundi 1:44.92
8 1 1 Hezekiél Sepeng  South Africa 1:45.16 Q
9 2 1 Nico Motchebon  Germany 1:45.40 Q
10 3 1 Philip Kibitok  Kenya 1:45.58
11 4 1 André Bucher  Switzerland 1:46.41
4 3 Einārs Tupurītis  Latvia 1:46.41
13 5 2 Savieri Ngidhi  Zimbabwe 1:46.78
14 5 1 Giuseppe D'Urso  Italy 1:46.97
15 6 2 Curtis Robb  Great Britain 1:47.48
16 6 1 Paul Byrne  Australia 1:47.58
17 5 3 David Matthews  Ireland 1:47.83
18 7 1 Bruno Konczylo  France 1:48.02
19 7 2 Johan Botha  South Africa 1:48.06
20 6 3 Jimmy Jean-Joseph  France 1:48.50
21 8 1 Craig Winrow  Great Britain 1:48.57
22 7 3 Balázs Korányi  Hungary 1:50.30
23 8 2 José Luiz Barbosa  Brazil 1:50.33
— — 3 Andrea Benvenuti  Italy DNF

Final[]

Rank Lane Athlete Nation Time Notes
1st place, gold medalist(s) 1 Vebjørn Rodal  Norway 1:42.58 OR
2nd place, silver medalist(s) 6 Hezekiél Sepeng  South Africa 1:42.74
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 Fred Onyancha  Kenya 1:42.79
4 4 Norberto Téllez  Cuba 1:42.85
5 8 Nico Motchebon  Germany 1:43.91
6 5 David Kiptoo  Kenya 1:44.19
7 2 Johnny Gray  United States 1:44.21
8 3 Benyounes Lahlou  Morocco 1:45.52

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Athletics at the 1996 Atlanta Games: Men's 800 metres". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  2. ^ a b "800 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  3. ^ Official Report, vol. 3, pp. 74–75.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""