Athletics at the 1956 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres

Last updated

Contents

Men's 1500 metres
at the Games of the XVI Olympiad
Olympic Athletics.png
Olympic Athletics
Venue Melbourne Cricket Ground
DatesNovember 29 (semifinals)
December 1 (final)
Competitors37 from 22 nations
Winning time3:41.2 OR
Medalists
Gold medal icon.svg Ron Delany
Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland
Silver medal icon.svg Klaus Richtzenhain
Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany
Bronze medal icon.svg John Landy
Flag of Australia.svg  Australia
  1952
1960  
Video on YouTube Official Video @13:13 TV-icon-2.svg
Video on YouTube Official Video @13:13

The men's 1,500 metres was an event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, with the final held on Saturday, December 1, 1956. [1] There were a total number of 37 participants from 22 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Ron Delany of Ireland, the nation's first 1500 metres medal. The silver medalist was Klaus Richtzenhain, the only medalist in the event for the United Team of Germany. John Landy took bronze, Australia's first medal in the event since 1896.

Summary

Among the non-qualifiers for the final were defending champion Josy Barthel, future silver medalist Michel Jazy and eventual marathon champion Mamo.

The final had twelve men toe the line. Uniquely, Murray Halberg used a sprinter's crouched start in lane 1 and sprinted into the lead from the gun. In future years, this kind of start would become forbidden in a long race. Halberg held that lead until there were two laps to go where he was passed in a rush by Mervyn Lincoln running in front of a home crowd. Lincoln held the lead until just after the bell when he was swallowed up by a rush led by Brian Hewson. Ten men went around Lincoln and he was cooked. Klaus Richtzenhain was the next to follow with Halberg making one more rush down the backstretch before he too was cooked. From tenth place, Ron Delany began picking off runners on the backstretch, as Halberg slowed, Delany used the traffic to step into fifth place at the start of the final turn. Passing in lane 2, Delany ran around the field, catching Hewson at the head of the straightaway. Hewson looked helplessly at Delany as he passed. Fighting out of the group Delany passed at the start of the turn, another home town favorite John Landy chased from behind, still in sixth at the head of the straight. With a stiff, upright sprinting style, Delany pulled away from the field. Hewson struggled down the final straight, watching Richtzenhain run past on the outside. Landy made a late final charge in lane 3 but just came up short in trying to catch Richtzenhain for silver.

Background

This was the 13th appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Two finalists from the 1952 Games returned: gold medalist Josy Barthel of Luxembourg and eighth-place finisher Ingvar Ericsson of Sweden. The world record had changed hands six times since the 1952 Games; three of the men who had had it but were surpassed (László Tábori of Hungary, John Landy of Australia, and Gunnar Nielsen of Denmark) competed in Melbourne, along with the man who still held it (István Rózsavölgyi]] of Hungary). Five men had run a sub-four minute mile; the first to do so (Roger Bannister of Great Britain, who had finished fourth in this event in 1952) had retired, but three of those men (Tábori, Landy, and Brian Hewson, also of Great Britain) competed. [2]

Ethiopia and Pakistan each made their first appearance in the event; Germany competed as the United Team of Germany for the first time. The United States made its 13th appearance, the only nation to have competed in the men's 1500 metres at each Games to that point.

Competition format

After a one-Games stint at three rounds in 1952, the 1956 competition returned to two rounds. There were three heats with 15 runners each (before withdrawals), with the top four runners in each advancing to the typical 12-man final race. [2] [3]

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records prior to the 1956 Summer Olympics.

World recordFlag of Hungary.svg  István Rózsavölgyi  (HUN)3:40.6 Tata, Hungary 3 August 1956
Olympic recordFlag of Luxembourg.svg  Josy Barthel  (LUX)3:45.2 Helsinki, Finland 26 July 1952

During the final, Ron Delany set a new Olympic record at 3:41.2. The top ten men in the final all surpassed the old Olympic record; the eleventh man matched it.

Schedule

All times are Australian Eastern Standard Time (UTC+10)

DateTimeRound
Thursday, 29 November 195616:30Semifinals
Saturday, 1 December 195616:15Final

Results

Semifinals

Semifinal 1

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Klaus Richtzenhain Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany 3:46.6Q
2 Stanislav Jungwirth Flag of Czechoslovakia.svg  Czechoslovakia 3:46.6Q
3 Ian Boyd Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:47.0Q
4 Murray Halberg Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 3:47:2Q
5 István Rozsavolgyi Flag of Hungary (1946-1949, 1956-1957).svg  Hungary 3:49:4
6 André Ballieux Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 3:49:8
7 Michel Jazy Flag of France.svg  France 3:50:0
8 Ted Wheeler US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 3:50:1
9 Jonas Pipynė Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 3:50:6
10 Josy Barthel Flag of Luxembourg.svg  Luxembourg 3:50:6
11 Mamo Wolde Flag of Ethiopia (1897-1936; 1941-1974).svg  Ethiopia 3:51:0
Jim BaileyFlag of Australia.svg  Australia DNS
Phol JaiswangFlag of Thailand.svg  Thailand DNS
Dimitrios KonstantinidisFlag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece DNS
Joseph NarmathFlag of Liberia.svg  Liberia DNS

Semifinal 2

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Mervyn Lincoln Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 3:45:4Q
2 Kenneth Wood Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:46:6Q
3 Ron Delany Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland 3:47.4Q
4 Laszlo Tabori Flag of Hungary (1946-1949, 1956-1957).svg  Hungary 3:48.0Q
5 Ingvar Ericsson Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 3:49:0
6 Yevgeny Sokolov Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 3:49:2
7 Evangelos Depastas Flag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece 3:52:0
8 Olavi Salsola Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 3:55:0
9 Günther Dohrow Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany 3:58:0
10 Ramón Sandoval Flag of Chile.svg  Chile 3:58:1
11 Donald Bowden US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 3:59.7
12 Emile Leva Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 4:06:0
13 Sank Ok-Sim Flag of South Korea (1949-1984).png  South Korea 4:09.0
14 Mahmoud Jan Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan 4:15:0
15 Somnuek Srisombat Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 4:30:0

Semifinal 3

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Neville Scott Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 3:48:0Q
2 Brian Hewson Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:48:0Q
3 John Landy Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 3:48.6Q
4 Gunnar Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark 3:48.6Q
5 Dan Waern Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 3:48:8
6 Gianfranco Baraldi Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 3:52:0
7 Sergey Soukhanov Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 3:53:0
8 Jerome Walters US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 3:55:7
9 Georgios Papavassiliou Flag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece 3:57:0
10 Eduardo Fontecilla Flag of Chile.svg  Chile 3:58:6
Siegfried Herrmann Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany DNF
Muhammad AnwarFlag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan DNS
Audun BoysenFlag of Norway.svg  Norway DNS
George JohnsonFlag of Liberia.svg  Liberia DNS
Veliša MugošaFlag of SFR Yugoslavia.svg  Yugoslavia DNS

Overall results for semifinals

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1 Mervyn Lincoln Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 3:45:4Q
2 Stanislav Jungwirth Flag of Czechoslovakia.svg  Czechoslovakia 3:46.6Q
Klaus Richtzenhain Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany 3:46.6Q
Kenneth Wood Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:46:6Q
5 Ian Boyd Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:47.0Q
6 Murray Halberg Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 3:47:2Q
7 Ron Delany Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland 3:47.4Q
8 Brian Hewson Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:48:0Q
Neville Scott Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 3:48:0Q
Laszlo Tabori Flag of Hungary (1946-1949, 1956-1957).svg  Hungary 3:48.0Q
11 John Landy Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 3:48.6Q
Gunnar Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark 3:48.6Q
13 Dan Waern Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 3:48:8
14 Ingvar Ericsson Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 3:49:0
15 Yevgeny Sokolov Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 3:49:2
16 István Rozsavolgyi Flag of Hungary (1946-1949, 1956-1957).svg  Hungary 3:49:4
17 André Ballieux Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 3:49:8
18 Michel Jazy Flag of France.svg  France 3:50:0
19 Ted Wheeler US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 3:50:1
20 Jonas Pipynė Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 3:50:6
Josy Barthel Flag of Luxembourg.svg  Luxembourg 3:50:6
22 Mamo Wolde Flag of Ethiopia (1897-1936; 1941-1974).svg  Ethiopia 3:51:0
23 Gianfranco Baraldi Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 3:52:0
Evangelos Depastas Flag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece 3:52:0
25 Sergey Soukhanov Flag of the Soviet Union.svg  Soviet Union 3:53:0
26 Olavi Salsola Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 3:55:0
27 Jerome Walters US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 3:55:7
28 Georgios Papavassiliou Flag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece 3:57:0
29 Günther Dohrow Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany 3:58:0
30 Ramón Sandoval Flag of Chile.svg  Chile 3:58:1
31 Eduardo Fontecilla Flag of Chile.svg  Chile 3:58:6
32 Donald Bowden US flag 48 stars.svg  United States 3:59.7
33 Emile Leva Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 4:06:0
34 Sank Ok-Sim Flag of South Korea (1949-1984).png  South Korea 4:09.0
35 Mahmoud Jan Flag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan 4:15:0
36 Somnuek Srisombat Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 4:30:0
Siegfried Herrmann Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany DNF
Muhammad AnwarFlag of Pakistan.svg  Pakistan DNS
Jim BaileyFlag of Australia.svg  Australia DNS
Audun BoysenFlag of Norway.svg  Norway DNS
Phol JaiswangFlag of Thailand.svg  Thailand DNS
George JohnsonFlag of Liberia.svg  Liberia DNS
Dimitrios KonstantinidisFlag of Greece (1828-1978).svg  Greece DNS
Veliša MugošaFlag of SFR Yugoslavia.svg  Yugoslavia DNS
Joseph NarmathFlag of Liberia.svg  Liberia DNS

Final

RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
Gold medal icon.svg Ron Delany Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland 3:41.2 OR
Silver medal icon.svg Klaus Richtzenhain Flag of Germany.svg  United Team of Germany 3:42.0
Bronze medal icon.svg John Landy Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 3:42.0
4 Laszlo Tabori Flag of Hungary (1946-1949, 1956-1957).svg  Hungary 3:42.4
5 Brian Hewson Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:42.6
6 Stanislav Jungwirth Flag of Czechoslovakia.svg  Czechoslovakia 3:42.6
7 Neville Scott Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 3:42.8
8 Ian Boyd Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:43.0
9 Kenneth Wood Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 3:44.3
10 Gunnar Nielsen Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark 3:45.0
11 Murray Halberg Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 3:45.2
12 Mervyn Lincoln Flag of Australia.svg  Australia 3:51.9

Related Research Articles

1956 Summer Olympics Multi-sport event in Melbourne, Australia

The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad and commonly known as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which were held in Stockholm, Sweden, in June 1956.

Ron Delany Irish middle-distance runner

Ronald Michael DelanyOLY is an Irish former athlete, who specialised in middle-distance running. He won a gold medal in the 1500 metres event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. He later earned a bronze medal in the 1500 metres event at the 1958 European Athletics Championships in Stockholm.

Joseph ("Josy") Barthel was a Luxembourgish athlete. He was the surprise winner of the Men's 1500 metres at the 1952 Summer Olympics, and the only athlete representing Luxembourg to have won a gold medal at the Olympics. Besides athletics, Barthel also led successful careers in both chemistry and politics.

Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres was the third-longest of the seven men's track races in the Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics program in Tokyo. It was held on 17 October, 19 October, and 21 October 1964. 50 athletes from 34 nations entered, with 7 not starting the first round. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The first round was held on 17 October, with the semifinals on 19 October and the final on 21 October.

Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics – Mens 5000 metres

The men's 5000 metres was the second-longest of the seven men's track races in the Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics program in Tokyo. It was held on 16 October and 18 October 1964. 54 athletes from 35 nations entered, with 6 not starting the first round. The first round was held on 16 October and the final on 18 October.

Athletics at the 1988 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres event at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 59 competitors from 46 nations, with four qualifying heats (59) and two semi-finals (26), before the final (12) took place on Saturday October 1, 1988. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Peter Rono of Kenya, the nation's first title in the event since 1968 and second overall.

Athletics at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres was an event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. There were 57 competitors from 37 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event took place between 29 July and 3 August. The event was won by Noureddine Morceli of Algeria, the nation's first championship in the men's 1500 metres. Fermín Cacho of Spain was unable to repeat as gold medalist, but took silver to become the fourth man to win two medals in the event.

Wes Santee American middle-distance runner

David Wesley Santee was an American middle distance runner and athlete who competed mainly in the 1,500 meters and mile events.

Brian Hewson British middle-distance runner

Brian Stanford Hewson is a retired middle-distance runner, who represented Great Britain at the 1956 and 1960 Olympics. He won the gold medal in the 1500 metres at the 1958 European Championships.

Athletics at the 1992 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres was an event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. There were a total number of 51 participating athletes from 40 nations, with four qualifying heats. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was held from 3 August to 8 August 1992. The event was won by Fermín Cacho of Spain, the nation's first title in the men's 1500 metres. Morocco won its first medal in the event with Rachid El Basir's silver. Qatar won its first Olympic medal in any event with Mohamed Suleiman's bronze.

László Tábori

László Tábori was a Hungarian middle- and long-distance runner, best known for equalling the 1500 metres world record and placing 4th in that event at the 1956 Summer Olympics.

The men's 400 metres sprint event at the 1952 Olympic Games took place between July 24 and July 25. Seventy-one athletes from 35 nations competed. 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.

The men's 800 metres middle distance event at the 1960 Olympic Games took place between August 31 and September 2. Fifty-one athletes from 35 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress.

Athletics at the 1960 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres was an event at the 1960 Summer Olympics, held on 3 and 6 September. Thirty-nine athletes from 25 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Herb Elliott of Australia, the nation's second victory in the 1500 metres and first since 1896. Michel Jazy of France took silver, the third time a French athlete had achieved that mark. Hungary won its first 1500 metres medal with István Rózsavölgyi's bronze.

The men's 800 metres event at the 1952 Olympics took place between July 20 and July 22. Fifty athletes from 32 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was won by the American Mal Whitfield.

Athletics at the 1952 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres event at the 1952 Olympics took place between July 24 and July 26. Fifty-two athletes from 26 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Josy Barthel of Luxemburg; to date, this is the only Olympic gold medal won by a Luxembourger, though Luxembourg-born Michel Théato is credited for winning the 1900 Marathon for France. Germany won its first medal in the 1500 metres with Werner Lueg's bronze.

Athletics at the 1968 Summer Olympics – Mens 1500 metres

The men's 1500 metres event at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City was held on 18 to the 20 of October. Fifty-four athletes from 37 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Kenyan Kip Keino, who beat World record holder Jim Ryun, who struggled to adapt to the altitude of Mexico City. It was the first medal for Kenya in the 1500 metres. Ryun's silver was the United States's first medal in the event since 1952. Bodo Tümmler took bronze, the first medal for West Germany as a separate nation.

The men's 400 metres was an event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. The competition was held on 28 & 29 of November. Times are listed as both hand timing and automatic timing. Hand timing was the official time used in the 1956 Olympics. Forty-two athletes from 23 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress.

Athletics at the 1956 Summer Olympics – Mens 400 metres hurdles Olympic athletics event

The men's 400 metres hurdles competition at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia took place on November 23–24 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. There were 28 competitors from 18 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Glenn Davis of the United States, the nation's fourth consecutive and ninth overall victory in the men's 400 metres hurdles. Eddie Southern (silver) and Josh Culbreath (bronze) completed the American sweep, the third time that the United States had swept the medals in the event.

Jim Bailey (athlete) Australian middle-distance runner

James John Bailey was an Australian middle-distance runner. He reached semifinals of the 800 metres event at the 1956 Summer Olympics. While running for the University of Oregon under Bill Bowerman, he was the 1955 NCAA Champion in the mile. He would become the first of a string of sub-4 minute milers under Bowerman.

References

  1. "Athletics at the 1956 Melbourne Games: Men's 1500 metres". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  2. 1 2 "1500 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  3. Official Report, p. 294.