Athletics at the 1952 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metres

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Men's 400 metres
at the Games of the XV Olympiad
Venue Olympic Stadium
DatesJuly 24 (heats and quarterfinals)
July 25 (semifinals and final)
Competitors71 from 35 nations
Winning time46.09 OR
Medalists
Gold medal icon.svg George Rhoden
Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica
Silver medal icon.svg Herb McKenley
Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica
Bronze medal icon.svg Ollie Matson
US flag 48 stars.svg  United States
  1948
1956  
Video on YouTube amateur film TV-icon-2.svg
Video on YouTube amateur film

The men's 400 metres sprint event at the 1952 Olympic Games took place between July 24 and July 25. [1] Seventy-one athletes from 35 nations competed. [2] The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by George Rhoden of Jamaica, the second consecutive title in the event by a Jamaican. Herb McKenley repeated his silver medal performance from 1948, becoming the second man to win two medals in the event (after Guy Butler of Great Britain in 1920 and 1924).

Summary

In only their second Olympics, the Jamaican team came with the top runners including the world record holder George Rhoden and returning gold and silver medalists, Arthur Wint and Herb McKenley, respectively. In the final, Rhoden on the far outside in lane 7 was unable to see the competitors staggered behind him. Alone he went out hard. The stagger behind him in lane 6, Ollie Matson, who like Rhoden trained in San Francisco, stayed in Rhoden's shadow, trying to match pace. On the inside, in lane 3, defending champion Went also went out hard, quickly making up the stagger on Karl-Friedrich Haas to his outside. Down the backstretch and through the final turn, Rhoden opened up a 5 metre lead on Wint, with Matson losing a couple of more metres. Through the final turn, McKenley began to get up a head of steam, catching Matson just before the home straight, still two metres behind Wint. At that point, Jamaica held the three medal positions, but McKenley was moving much faster than everyone else, quickly catching Wint and off after Rhoden. Wint had nothing to offer the challenge and instead began moving backward. Rhoden crossed the line just ahead of the fast closing McKenley, Matson also cruising past Wint, who was pipped by Haas at the line and almost caught by Mal Whitfield.

Background

This was the twelfth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Jamaica's team was the same as in 1948: Arthur Wint (London gold medalist), Herb McKenley (silver), and George Rhoden (semifinalist; now also world record holder). The United States had 1948 bronze medalist Mal Whitfield return, this time joined by Gene Cole and future National Football League star Ollie Matson. Australia's finalist from London, Morris Curotta, also returned, making 4 of 6 finalists to come back. [2]

Guatemala, Israel, Pakistan, Puerto Rico, the Soviet Union, Thailand, and Venezuela appeared in this event for the first time. The United States made its twelfth appearance in the event, the only nation to compete in it at every Olympic Games to that point.

Competition format

The competition retained the basic four-round format from 1920, and the only change from 1948 was that the first round heats were larger. There were 12 heats in the first round, each with between 4 and 7 athletes. The top two runners in each heat advanced to the quarterfinals. There were 4 quarterfinals of 6 runners each; the top three athletes in each quarterfinal heat advanced to the semifinals. The semifinals featured 2 heats of 6 runners each. The top two runners in each semifinal heat advanced, making a six-man final. [2] [3]

Records

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

World recordFlag of Jamaica.svg  George Rhoden  (JAM)45.9 Eskilstuna, Sweden 22 August 1950
Olympic recordUS flag 48 stars.svg  Bill Carr  (USA)46.2 Los Angeles, United States 5 August 1932

George Rhoden set a new Olympic record at 46.09 seconds in the final.

Schedule

All times are Eastern European Summer Time (UTC+3)

DateTimeRound
Thursday, 24 July 195215:20
18:35
Round 1
Quarterfinals
Friday, 25 July 195215:00
17:05
Semifinals
Finals

Results

Heats

The fastest two runners in each of the twelve heats advanced to the quarterfinal round.

Heat 1

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Karl-Friedrich Haas Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 47.58Q
2 Leslie Lewis Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 47.95Q
3 Edwin Carr, Jr. Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 48.23
4 Zoltán Adamik Flag of Hungary (1949-1956).svg  Hungary 48.70
5 Evelio Planas Flag of Cuba.svg  Cuba 49.44
6 Abdul Rehman Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan 51.47

Heat 2

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Ardalion Ignatyev Flag of the Soviet Union (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union 48.22Q
2 Rolf Back Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 48.58Q
3 Rupert Blöch Flag of Austria.svg  Austria 49.82
4 Gérard Rasquin Flag of Luxembourg.svg  Luxembourg 50.12
5 John Anderton Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg  South Africa 50.35
6 Pongummart Ummarttayakul Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 53.23

Heat 3

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Arthur Wint Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 47.42Q
2 Jack Carroll Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 48.05Q
3 Egon Solymossy Flag of Hungary (1949-1956).svg  Hungary 49.32
4 Josef Steger Flag of Switzerland.svg  Switzerland 49.35
5 Jaakko Suikkari Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 50.92
6 Aurang Zeb Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan 51.25

Heat 4

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Lars-Erik Wolfbrandt Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 48.57Q
2 Terry Higgins Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 48.77Q
3 Junkichi Matoba Flag of Japan (1870-1999).svg  Japan 49.57
4 Vasilios Sillis Flag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece 49.79
5 Doğan Acarbay Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey 50.83
6 Ivan Jacob Flag of India.svg  India 51.48

Heat 5

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Herb McKenley Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 48.09Q
2 Louis van Biljon Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg  South Africa 48.31Q
3 Roger Moens Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 48.71
4 Ferenc Bánhalmi Flag of Hungary (1949-1956).svg  Hungary 49.55
5 Arie Gill-Glick Flag of Israel.svg  Israel 50.27
6 Ernst von Gunten Flag of Switzerland.svg  Switzerland 50.88
Tage Ekfeldt Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden DSQ

Heat 6

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Mal Whitfield US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 48.68Q
2 Guillermo Gutiérrez Flag of Venezuela (1930-1954).svg  Venezuela 48.82Q
3 Gianni Rocca Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 49.51
4 Gösta Brännström Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 50.32
5 Javier Souza Flag of Mexico (1934-1968).svg  Mexico 50.47
6 Emin Doybak Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey 51.34
7 Fernando Casimiro Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 52.33

Heat 7

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Jacques Degats Flag of France.svg  France 48.60Q
2 Morris Curotta Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 48.87Q
3 Vincenzo Lombardo Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 49.53
4 Rudolf Haidegger Flag of Austria.svg  Austria 50.01
5 Albert Lowagie Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 50.26

Heat 8

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Hans Geister Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 47.99Q
2 Yves Camus Flag of France.svg  France 48.06Q
3 Milan Filo Flag of Czechoslovakia.svg  Czechoslovakia 48.91
4 Guðmundur Lárusson Flag of Iceland.svg  Iceland 49.81
5 Sompop Svadanandana Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 53.68
6Jeremías StokesFlag of Guatemala.svg  Guatemala 53.81

Heat 9

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Gene Cole US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 48.44Q
2 Alan Dick Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 48.84Q
3 Edmunds Pīlāgs Flag of the Soviet Union (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union 49.29
4 Angel García Flag of Cuba.svg  Cuba 49.34
5 Antoine Uyterhoeven Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 50.21
6 Jean Hamilius Flag of Luxembourg.svg  Luxembourg 50.75

Heat 10

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 George Rhoden Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 48.28Q
2 Gerard Mach Flag of Poland (1928-1980).svg  Poland 48.64Q
3 Paul Dolan Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland 48.81
4 Jean-Pierre Goudeau Flag of France.svg  France 48.94
5 Doug Clement Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 50.19

Heat 11

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 James Lavery Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 48.47Q
2 Yuriy Lituyev Flag of the Soviet Union (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union 49.01Q
3 Frank Rivera Puerto rico national sport flag.svg  Puerto Rico 49.48
4 Antonio Siddi Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 51.03

Heat 12

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Ollie Matson US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 48.17Q
2 Hans Ernst Schneider Flag of Switzerland.svg  Switzerland 48.86Q
3 Argemiro Roque Flag of Brazil (1889-1960).svg  Brazil 49.05
4 Schalk Booysen Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg  South Africa 49.17
5 Jiří David Flag of Czechoslovakia.svg  Czechoslovakia 49.23
6 Fred Hammer Flag of Luxembourg.svg  Luxembourg 49.90
7 Ossi Mildh Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 50.36

Quarterfinals

The fastest three runners in each of the four heats advanced to the semifinal round. Gerard Mach of Poland and Yuriy Lituyev of the Soviet Union were qualified but did not compete.

Quarterfinal 1

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Arthur Wint Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 46.98Q
2 James Lavery Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 47.67Q
3 Lars-Erik Wolfbrandt Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 48.08Q
4 Guillermo Gutiérrez Flag of Venezuela (1930-1954).svg  Venezuela 48.75
5 Leslie Lewis Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 49.09
6 Hans Ernst Schneider Flag of Switzerland.svg  Switzerland 49.32

Quarterfinal 2

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 George Rhoden Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 47.24Q
2 Ollie Matson US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 47.53Q
3 Karl-Friedrich Haas Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 47.66Q
4 Morris Curotta Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 48.86
5 Rolf Back Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 51.53

Quarterfinal 3

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Mal Whitfield US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 47.74Q
2 Hans Geister Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 47.81Q
3 Jack Carroll Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 47.82Q
4 Louis van Biljon Flag of South Africa (1928-1994).svg  South Africa 48.63
5 Jacques Degats Flag of France.svg  France 48.90
6 Alan Dick Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 49.20

Quarterfinal 4

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Herb McKenley Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 47.56Q
2 Gene Cole US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 47.88Q
3 Ardalion Ignatyev Flag of the Soviet Union (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union 48.25Q
4 Yves Camus Flag of France.svg  France 48.43
5 Terry Higgins Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 49.22

Semifinals

The fastest three runners in each of the two heats advanced to the final round.

Semifinal 1

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Arthur Wint Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 46.38Q
2 Karl-Friedrich Haas Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 46.56Q
3 Mal Whitfield US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 46.64Q
4 Gene Cole US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 46.94
5 Ardalion Ignatyev Flag of the Soviet Union (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union 47.49
6 James Lavery Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 47.83

Semifinal 2

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Herb McKenley Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 46.53Q
2 George Rhoden Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 46.61Q
3 Ollie Matson US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 46.99Q
4 Hans Geister Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 47.00
5 Jack Carroll Canadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 47.61
Lars-Erik Wolfbrandt Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden DNS

Final

RankLaneAthleteNationTimeNotes
Gold medal icon.svg6 George Rhoden Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 46.09 OR
Silver medal icon.svg4 Herb McKenley Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 46.20
Bronze medal icon.svg5 Ollie Matson US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 46.94
43 Karl-Friedrich Haas Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 47.22
52 Arthur Wint Flag of Jamaica (1906-1957).svg  Jamaica 47.24
61 Mal Whitfield US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 47.30

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References

  1. "Athletics at the 1952 Helsinki Summer Games: Men's 400 metres". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "400 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  3. Official Report, pp. 275–77.