Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metres hurdles

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Men's 400 metres hurdles
at the Games of the XXX Olympiad
Felix Sanchez 2012.JPG
Félix Sánchez
VenueOlympic Stadium
Dates3–6 August
Competitors49 from 33 nations
Winning time47.63
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Félix Sánchez
 Dominican Republic
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Michael Tinsley
 United States
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Javier Culson
 Puerto Rico
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Athletics at the
2012 Summer Olympics
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The men's 400 metres hurdles competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom took place on 3–6 August at the Olympic Stadium.[1] There were 49 competitors from 33 nations.[2] The event was won by Félix Sánchez of the Dominican Republic, the second victory in the men's long hurdles for both the man and the nation. Sánchez was the eighth man to win multiple medals in the event and fourth to win two golds. Michael Tinsley of the United States earned silver. Javier Culson's bronze was Puerto Rico's first medal in the event.

Background[]

This was the 25th time the event was held. It had been introduced along with the men's 200 metres hurdles in 1900, with the 200 being dropped after 1904 and the 400 being held through 1908 before being left off the 1912 programme. However, when the Olympics returned in 1920 after World War I, the men's 400 metres hurdles was back and would continue to be contested at every Games thereafter.

Four of the eight finalists from the 2008 Games returned: gold medalist (and 2000 gold medalist) Angelo Taylor of the United States, silver medalist Kerron Clement of the United States, fifth-place finisher L. J. van Zyl of South Africa, and eighth-place finisher Periklis Iakovakis of Greece. Also returning was 2004 gold medalist Félix Sánchez of the Dominican Republic, who had not advanced out of the quarterfinals in Beijing 2008. The American team had swept the medals four years earlier; Michael Tinsley won the 2012 U.S. trials to join Taylor and Clement (replacing 2008 bronze medalist Bershawn Jackson on the three-man team). Clement was World Champion in 2007 and 2009. The reigning (2011) world champion was Dai Greene of the host Great Britain. Javier Culson had finished second in both the 2009 and 2011 World Championships. He was a slight favorite among the impressive field.[2]

Comoros, Estonia, Serbia, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay each made their debut in the event. The United States made its 24th appearance, most of any nation, having missed only the boycotted 1980 Games.

Summary[]

In the qualifying round, local favorite Dai Greene ran the fastest ever opening round race in the third heat, only to see that mark passed by three athletes in the following heat, led by an eased up Javier Culson. The slowest time qualifier was Kenneth Medwood in 49.78, though Stanislav Melnykov managed to get into the semis automatically with a 50.13 in the slow fifth heat.

With only two automatic qualifiers going to the final from each heat, the first semifinal stacked three former World Champions into one race. Less than a month before his 35th birthday, Félix Sánchez, the 2001 and 2003 World Champion showed he was still in the game, running a season best 47.76. Jehue Gordon upset the form setting the Trinidad and Tobago national record 47.96 in second, leaving 2007 and 2009 World Champion Kerron Clement in 3rd and 2011 World Champion Dai Greene in 4th to hope to qualify on time. The second semi was dominated by world leader Javier Culson and defending champion Angelo Taylor. In the third semi, American trials champion Michael Tinsley and Leford Green separated from the rest of the field. After a nervous wait Clement and Greene made the final on time.

In the final, Taylor, Culson and Sanchez led the way, arriving at the 8th hurdle about even. Taylor took the hurdle awkwardly and started losing ground. While Culson looked to struggle, Sanchez powered away down the stretch for the win, in exactly the same time as his 2004 victory. Tinsley came back from a couple steps back to pass Culson over the last hurdle for the silver, with Greene also trying to make a stretch run to finish fourth.

This was the second ever Olympic medal in Athletics, and the third gold medal overall for the Dominican Republic, the first being Sanchez' in 2004.

In repeating as Olympic champion non-consecutively, Sánchez joined a rare club including Paavo Nurmi, Volodymyr Holubnychy, Heike Drechsler, Nina Romashkova, Edwin Moses (caused by the boycott) and Angelo Taylor. Both Moses and Taylor were in this same event. Ulrike Meyfarth did it remarkably 12 years apart. Ezekiel Kemboi completed such a double the day before and Meseret Defar would complete one four days later.

Qualification[]

Main article: Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Qualification

A National Olympic Committee (NOC) could enter up to 3 qualified athletes in the men's 400 metres hurdles event if all athletes met the A standard, or 1 athlete if they met the B standard. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The qualifying time standards could be obtained in various meets during the qualifying period that had the approval of the IAAF. Both outdoor meets and indoor meets were eligible. The A standard for the 2012 men's 400 metres hurdles was 49.50 seconds; the B standard was 49.80 seconds. The qualifying period for was from 1 May 2011 to 8 July 2012. NOCs could also have an athlete enter the 400 metres hurdles through a universality place. NOCs could enter one male athlete in an athletics event, regardless of time, if they had no male athletes meeting the qualifying A or B standards in any men's athletic event.[3][4][5]

Competition format[]

The men's 400 metres hurdles competition consisted of quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final.[6] The fastest competitors from each race in the heats qualified for the semifinals along with the fastest overall competitors not already qualified that were required to fill the available spaces in the semifinals.[7] 24 competitors qualified from the heats for the semifinals. There were three semifinals, with the top two runners in each along with the next two fastest overall qualifying for the eight-man final.

Records[]

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

World record  Kevin Young (USA) 46.78 Barcelona, Spain 6 August 1992
Olympic record  Kevin Young (USA) 46.78 Barcelona, Spain 6 August 1992

The following national records were set during this competition.

Nation Athlete Time
Serbia Emir Bekrić 49.21
Trinidad and Tobago Jehue Gordon 47.96

Schedule[]

All times are British Summer Time (UTC+1)

Date Time Round
Friday, 3 August 2012 11:15 Quarterfinals
Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:00 Semifinals
Monday, 6 August 2012 20:45 Final

Results[]

Quarterfinals[]

Official Video of First Round

Qual. rule: first 3 of each heat (Q) plus the 6 fastest times (q) qualified.[8]

Quarterfinal 1[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Amaurys Valle  Cuba 49.19 Q, PB
2 Brendan Cole  Australia 49.24 Q, PB
3 Amaechi Morton  Nigeria 49.34 Q
4 Kenneth Medwood  Belize 49.78 q
5 Roxroy Cato  Jamaica 50.22
6 Chen Chieh  Chinese Taipei 50.27
7 Li Zhilong  China 50.36
— Takayuki Kishimoto  Japan DSQ

Quarterfinal 2[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Michael Tinsley  United States 49.13 Q
2 Leford Green  Jamaica 49.30 Q
3 Kurt Couto  Mozambique 49.31 Q
4 Eric Alejandro  Puerto Rico 49.39 q
5 Rasmus Mägi  Estonia 50.05
6 Winder Cuevas  Dominican Republic 50.15 SB
— Akihiko Nakamura  Japan DSQ
— Kariem Hussein  Switzerland DNS

Quarterfinal 3[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Dai Greene  Great Britain 48.98 Q
2 Emir Bekrić  Serbia 49.21 Q, NR
3 José Reynaldo Bencosme de Leon  Italy 49.35 Q
4 Brent Larue  Slovenia 49.38 q, PB
5 Jamele Mason  Puerto Rico 49.89
6 Cheng Wen  China 50.38
7 Vincent Kiplangat Koskei  Kenya 50.80
8 Cornel Fredericks  South Africa 52.29
— Lankantien Lamboni  Togo DSQ

Quarterfinal 4[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Javier Culson  Puerto Rico 48.33 Q
2 Kerron Clement  United States 48.48 Q, SB
3 Omar Cisneros  Cuba 48.63 Q, SB
4 Tristan Thomas  Australia 49.13 q, SB
5 Rhys Williams  Great Britain 49.17 q, SB
6 Michael Bultheel  Belgium 49.18 q, PB
7 Viacheslav Sakaev  Russia 50.36
8 Jorge Paula  Portugal 51.40
9 Maoulida Daroueche  Comoros 53.49

Quarterfinal 5[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Angelo Taylor  United States 49.29 Q
2 Jehue Gordon  Trinidad and Tobago 49.37 Q
3 Stanislav Melnykov  Ukraine 50.13 Q
4 Silvio Schirrmeister  Germany 50.21
5 Periklis Iakovakis  Greece 50.27
6 L. J. van Zyl  South Africa 50.31
7 Josef Prorok  Czech Republic 50.33
8 Viktor Leptikov  Kazakhstan 51.67

Quarterfinal 6[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Félix Sánchez  Dominican Republic 49.24 Q
2 Jack Green  Great Britain 49.49 Q
3 Mamadou Kasse Hanne  Senegal 49.63 Q
4 Tetsuya Tateno  Japan 49.95
5 Josef Robertson  Jamaica 49.98
6 Boniface Mucheru  Kenya 50.33
7 Artem Dyatlov  Uzbekistan 51.55
8 Andrés Silva  Uruguay 53.38

Semifinals[]

Official Video of Semifinal Round

Qual. rule: first 2 of each heat (Q) plus the 2 fastest times (q) qualified.

Semifinal 1[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes[8]
1 Félix Sánchez  Dominican Republic 47.76 Q, SB
2 Jehue Gordon  Trinidad and Tobago 47.96 Q, NR
3 Kerron Clement  United States 48.12 q, SB
4 Dai Greene  Great Britain 48.19 q
5 Mamadou Kasse Hanne  Senegal 48.80 PB
6 Michael Bultheel  Belgium 49.10 PB
7 Eric Alejandro  Puerto Rico 49.15
8 Kurt Couto  Mozambique 51.55

Semifinal 2[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Javier Culson  Puerto Rico 47.93 Q
2 Angelo Taylor  United States 47.95 Q, SB
3 Omar Cisneros  Cuba 48.23 SB
4 Emir Bekrić  Serbia 49.62
5 Kenneth Medwood  Belize 49.87
6 Stanislav Melnykov  Ukraine 50.19
7 Tristan Thomas  Australia 50.55
— Jack Green  Great Britain DNF

Semifinal 3[]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Michael Tinsley  United States 48.18 Q, SB
2 Leford Green  Jamaica 48.61 Q, SB
3 Brent Larue  Slovenia 49.45
4 Rhys Williams  Great Britain 49.63
5 Brendan Cole  Australia 49.65
6 José Reynaldo Bencosme de Leon  Italy 50.07
7 Amaurys Valle  Cuba 50.48
— Amaechi Morton  Nigeria DSQ

Final[]

[9]

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1st place, gold medalist(s) Félix Sánchez  Dominican Republic 47.63 WL, SB
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Michael Tinsley  United States 47.91 PB
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Javier Culson  Puerto Rico 48.10
4 Dai Greene  Great Britain 48.24
5 Angelo Taylor  United States 48.25
6 Jehue Gordon  Trinidad and Tobago 48.86
7 Leford Green  Jamaica 49.12
8 Kerron Clement  United States 49.15

Results summary[]

Rank Athlete Nation Quarterfinals Semifinals Final Notes
1st place, gold medalist(s) Félix Sánchez  Dominican Republic 49.24 47.76 47.63 WL, SB
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Michael Tinsley  United States 49.13 48.18 47.91 PB
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Javier Culson  Puerto Rico 48.33 47.93 48.10
4 Dai Greene  Great Britain 48.98 48.19 48.24
5 Angelo Taylor  United States 49.29 47.95 48.25 SB
6 Jehue Gordon  Trinidad and Tobago 49.37 47.96 48.86 NR
7 Leford Green  Jamaica 49.30 48.61 49.12 SB
8 Kerron Clement  United States 48.48 48.12 49.15 SB
9 Omar Cisneros  Cuba 48.63 48.23 Did not advance SB
10 Mamadou Kasse Hanne  Senegal 49.63 48.80 PB
11 Michael Bultheel  Belgium 49.18 49.10 PB
12 Eric Alejandro  Puerto Rico 49.39 49.15
13 Brent Larue  Slovenia 49.38 49.45 PB
14 Emir Bekrić  Serbia 49.21 49.62 NR
15 Rhys Williams  Great Britain 49.17 49.63 SB
16 Brendan Cole  Australia 49.24 49.65 PB
17 Kenneth Medwood  Belize 49.78 49.87
18 José Reynaldo Bencosme de Leon  Italy 49.35 50.07
19 Stanislav Melnykov  Ukraine 50.13 50.19
20 Amaurys Valle  Cuba 49.19 50.48 PB
21 Tristan Thomas  Australia 49.13 50.55 SB
22 Kurt Couto  Mozambique 49.31 51.55
23 Jack Green  Great Britain 49.49 DNF
24 Amaechi Morton  Nigeria 49.34 DSQ
25 Jamele Mason  Puerto Rico 49.89 Did not advance
26 Tetsuya Tateno  Japan 49.95
27 Josef Robertson  Jamaica 49.98
28 Rasmus Mägi  Estonia 50.05
29 Winder Cuevas  Dominican Republic 50.15 SB
30 Silvio Schirrmeister  Germany 50.21
31 Roxroy Cato  Jamaica 50.22
32 Chen Chieh  Chinese Taipei 50.27
Periklis Iakovakis  Greece 50.27
34 L. J. van Zyl  South Africa 50.31
35 Boniface Mucheru  Kenya 50.33
Josef Prorok  Czech Republic 50.33
37 Li Zhilong  China 50.36
Viacheslav Sakaev  Russia 50.36
39 Cheng Wen  China 50.38
40 Vincent Kiplangat Koskei  Kenya 50.80
41 Jorge Paula  Portugal 51.40
42 Artem Dyatlov  Uzbekistan 51.55
43 Viktor Leptikov  Kazakhstan 51.67
44 Cornel Fredericks  South Africa 52.29
45 Andrés Silva  Uruguay 53.38
46 Maoulida Daroueche  Comoros 53.49
47 Takayuki Kishimoto  Japan DSQ
Lankantien Lamboni  Togo DSQ
Akihiko Nakamura  Japan DSQ
— Kariem Hussein  Switzerland DNS

References[]

  1. ^ Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "400 metres Hurdles, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  3. ^ "QUALIFICATION SYSTEM – GAMES OF THE XXX OLYMPIAD" (PDF). IAAF. Retrieved 14 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Olympic Qualifying Procedures for Athletics". Telegraph. 15 April 2011. Archived from the original on 19 April 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
  5. ^ "Amended Qualifying Standards". IAAF. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  6. ^ "Men's 400m Hurdles". London 2012 Organising Committee. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  7. ^ "Men's 400m competition format". London 2012 Organising Committee. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b "400 Metres Hurdles - M. Heats". london2012.com. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
  9. ^ "400 Metres Hurdles - M. Final". london2012.com. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
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