Darren Clark

For those of a similar name, see Darren Clarke (disambiguation).

Darren Clark

Personal information
Nationality	Australian
Born	6 September 1965 Sydney, Australia
Height	179 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	76 kg (168 lb)
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event	400m
Club	Ryde-Hornsby/Randwick Botany
Medal record Men's athletics Representing   Australia Commonwealth Games 1986 Edinburgh 400 m 1986 Edinburgh 4 × 400 m relay 1990 Auckland 400 m

Darren Edward Clark (born 6 September 1965 in s) is an Australian retired sprinter who specialised in the 400 metres. He competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics and the 1988 Summer Olympics. ^[1]

Biography

His personal best time of 44.38 seconds, achieved at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, is the current Oceanian record. ^[2] This time would have placed Clark in second place in the 2008 Beijing Olympics 400 m final. Clark also co-holds the Oceanian record in 4 x 400 metres relay with 2:59.70 minutes, established with teammates Bruce Frayne, Gary Minihan and Rick Mitchell at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. ^[3]

Clark won the British AAA Championships title in the 400 metres event for four consecutive years, in 1983, 1984, 1985 and 1986. ^{[4] [5]}

Clark took a break from the track in 1991, playing a season in the New South Wales Rugby League for the Balmain Tigers. Playing mostly in reserve grade, he played on the Wing, scoring 11 tries, and also competed in the pre-season World Sevens Tournament. While playing for the Tigers, Clark was billed as the "Fastest white man alive".

He returned to the track in 1992 and was selected for the Barcelona Olympic team, but was forced to withdraw due to an Achilles tendon injury. ^[6]

Clark was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Athletics Australia Hall of Fame in 2014. ^{[6] [7]}

International competitions

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
1984	Olympic Games	Los Angeles, United States	4th	400 m
			4th	4 × 400 m relay	2:59.70 AR
1985	World Cup	Canberra, Australia	3rd	200 m [8]
1986	Commonwealth Games	Edinburgh, United Kingdom	2nd	400 m [9]
			2nd	4 × 400 m relay
1988	Olympic Games	Seoul, South Korea	4th	400 m	44.38 AR
			6th	4 × 400 m relay
1990	Commonwealth Games	Auckland, New Zealand	1st	400 m [9]
1993	World Indoor Championships	Toronto, Canada	3rd	400 m

References

1. "Biographical Information". Olympedia. Retrieved 14 June 2025.
2. Area Outdoor Records - Men - Oceania (IAAF)
3. Commonwealth All-Time Lists (Men) - GBR Athletics
4. "AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists". National Union of Track Statisticians. Retrieved 14 June 2025.
5. "AAA Championships (men)". GBR Athletics. Retrieved 14 June 2025.
6. "Darren Clark". Sport Australia Hall of Fame. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
7. "Quartet of stars inducted to Athletics Australia Hall of Fame". Australian Olympic Committee. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
8. IAAF World Cup in Athletics - GBR Athletics
9. Commonwealth Games Medallists - Athletics (Men) - GBR Athletics

External links

• Darren Clark at World Athletics
• Darren Clark at the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
• Darren Clark at the Australian Olympic Committee
• Darren Clark at the Commonwealth Games Federation (archived)
• Darren Clark at Olympics.com
• Darren Clark at Olympedia