Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics – Men's 800 metres

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Men's 800 metres
at the Games of the X Olympiad
Venue Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
DatesAugust 1 and August 2, 1932
Competitors21 from 11 nations
Winning time1:49.7 WR
Medalists
Gold medal icon.svg Tommy Hampson
Flag of the United Kingdom (3-2).svg  Great Britain
Silver medal icon.svg Alex Wilson
Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada
Bronze medal icon.svg Phil Edwards
Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada
  1928
1936  

The men's 800 metres middle distance event at the 1932 Summer Olympics took place on August 1 and August 2 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. [1] Twenty-one athletes from 11 nations competed. [2] The 1930 Olympic Congress in Berlin had reduced the limit from 4 athletes per NOC to 3 athletes. [3] The event was won by Tommy Hampson, the fourth consecutive British victory (it would be the last in the streak) and fifth overall British title in the 800 metres. Canada won its first two 800 metres medals with silver (Alex Wilson) and bronze (Phil Edwards).

Background

This was the ninth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. None of the medalists from 1928 returned, but three finalists did: fourth-place finisher Phil Edwards of Canada, sixth-place finisher Séra Martin of France, and eighth-place finisher Jean Keller of France. American Ben Eastman would have been favored in the event, but he ran only in the 400 metres in Los Angeles. The field was otherwise "considered open." [2]

New Zealand appeared in the event for the first time. Great Britain and the United States each made their eighth appearance, tied for the most among all nations.

Competition format

With only 21 athletes, the three-round format introduced in 1912 was impractical. Only two rounds were held, still with the nine-man final introduced in 1920. There were three semifinals with 7 athletes each; the top three runners in each semifinal advanced to the nine-man final. [2] [4]

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in minutes) prior to the 1932 Summer Olympics.

World recordFlag of France.svg  Séra Martin  (FRA)1:50.6 Paris, France 14 July 1928
Olympic recordFlag of the United Kingdom (3-2).svg  Douglas Lowe  (GBR)1:51.8 Amsterdam, Netherlands 31 July 1928

Tommy Hampson broke the world record in the final, setting the new record at 1:49.7.

Schedule

DateTimeRound
Monday, 1 August 193216:30Semifinals
Tuesday, 2 August 193215:45Final

Results

Semifinals

Three heats were held; the fastest three runners in each advanced to the final round.

Semifinal 1

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Edwin Genung US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 1:54.8Q
2 Phil Edwards Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada 1:55.1Q
3 Jack Powell Flag of the United Kingdom (3-2).svg  Great Britain 1:55.6Q
4 Don Evans Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 1:56.6
5 Paul Martin Civil Ensign of Switzerland (Pantone).svg  Switzerland 1:58.4
6 Nestor Gomes Flag of Brazil (1889-1960).svg  Brazil 2:00.5
Jean Keller Flag of France.svg  France DNF

Semifinal 2

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Chuck Hornbostel US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 1:52.4Q
2 Alex Wilson Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada 1:52.5Q
3 Otto Peltzer Flag of Germany (3-2 aspect ratio).svg  Germany 1:53.6Q
4 Hjalle Johannesen Flag of Norway.svg  Norway 1:54.3
5 Hermenegildo del Rosso Flag of Argentina (1861-2010).svg  Argentina 1:54.9
6 René Morel Flag of France.svg  France 1:55.2
7 José Lucílo Iturbe Flag of Mexico (1916-1934).svg  Mexico 1:55.6

Semifinal 3

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Tommy Hampson Flag of the United Kingdom (3-2).svg  Great Britain 1:53.0Q
2 Séra Martin Flag of France.svg  France 1:53.2Q
3 Edwin Turner US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 1:54.0Q
4 Eddie King Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada 1:54.4
5 Max Danz Flag of Germany (3-2 aspect ratio).svg  Germany 1:58.9
6 Domingos Puglisi Flag of Brazil (1889-1960).svg  Brazil 1:59.4
7 Miguel Vasconcelos Flag of Mexico (1916-1934).svg  Mexico 2:00.0

Final

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
Gold medal icon.svg Tommy Hampson Flag of the United Kingdom (3-2).svg  Great Britain 1:49.7 WR
Silver medal icon.svg Alex Wilson Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada 1:49.9
Bronze medal icon.svg Phil Edwards Flag of Canada (1921-1957).svg  Canada 1:51.5
4 Edwin Genung US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 1:51.7
5 Edwin Turner US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 1:52.5
6 Chuck Hornbostel US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 1:52.7
7 Jack Powell Flag of the United Kingdom (3-2).svg  Great Britain 1:53.0
8 Séra Martin Flag of France.svg  France 1:53.6
9 Otto Peltzer Flag of Germany (3-2 aspect ratio).svg  Germany 1:55.0

References

  1. "Athletics at the 1932 Los Angeles Summer Games: Men's 800 metres". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "800 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  3. Official Report, p. 377.
  4. Official Report, pp. 414–15.