The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and race in separate lanes for the entire course. In many countries, athletes previously competed in the 440-yard dash (402.336 m)—which is a quarter of a mile and was referred to as the 'quarter-mile'—instead of the 400 m (437.445 yards), though this distance is now obsolete.
The 300 metres is an uncommon sprinting event in track and field competitions.
Jeshua Anderson is a retired American sprinter, who specializes in the 400 meter hurdles. He is a 3 time NCAA champion in the 400m hurdles and was the second freshman from Washington State University to ever win the NCAA title. In 2008 Anderson was 400 meter hurdles Junior World Champion and holds the second fastest high school time recorded in the 300m hurdles. He was born and raised in Woodland Hills, California and attended Taft High School. After winning the 2011 Outdoor Championships, Anderson had the competed for team USA at the world championships. He also participated in the 2016 Olympic trials in which he finished as a finalist.
Jereem Richards is a Trinidadian track and field sprinter who specializes in the 200 metres and 400 metres events. He won the bronze medal in the 200 m at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics and gold for the 400 m at the 2022 World Indoor Championships. Richards took 200m titles at both the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games. He was part of the Trinidad and Tobago team that won the bronze medal in the men's 4 × 400 m relay at the 2012 World Indoor Championships and a gold medal at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics.
David Verburg is an American track and field athlete who specializes in the 400 meters. He holds gold medals in the 4 × 400 m relay from the 2016 Olympics; the 2013 and 2015 World Championships; and the 2014 Indoor World Championships.
Steven Gardiner is a Bahamian track and field sprinter competing in the 400 metres and 200 metres. He is the 2020 Olympic and 2019 world champion in the 400 m, and also won the silver medal at the 2017 World Championships in that event. His winning time of 43.48 s from the 2019 World Championships is the Bahamian record and makes him the sixth-fastest man in the history of the event. Gardiner also owns the Bahamian records in the outdoor 300 m and 200 m, with times of 31.83 s and 19.75 s respectively, and the world best in the indoor 300 m at 31.56 s.
Kendall Baisden is an American track and field sprinter who specializes in the 400-meter dash. She holds a personal record of 50.46 seconds for the distance, set in 2014.
Omar McLeod is a Jamaican professional hurdler and sprinter competing in the 60 m hurdles and 110 m hurdles. In the latter event, he is the 2016 Olympic champion and 2017 World champion. He was NCAA indoor champion in the 60 m hurdles in 2014 and 2015 and outdoor champion in the 110 m hurdles in 2015; he turned professional after the 2015 collegiate season, forgoing his two remaining years of collegiate eligibility. His personal best in the 110 m hurdles ranks him equal 7th on the world all-time list.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is an American hurdler and sprinter who competes in the 400 meters hurdles. She is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic champion with the Games record, and 2022 World champion with a world record time of 50.68 seconds. Setting four world records during 13 months, she was the first woman to break the 52-second and 51-second barriers in the 400 m hurdles. She won the silver medal at the 2019 World Championships. At all three competitions, she also took gold as part of a women's 4 × 400 m relay team.
Rai Benjamin is an American professional hurdler and sprinter specializing in the 400 m and 400 m hurdles. He is the second fastest man in history in the 400 m hurdles with a personal best time of 46.17 s. Benjamin won silver medals at his first Olympic Games in 2021 and at the World Championships in 2019 and 2022 in the men's 400 m hurdles, and gold medals in the 4 × 400 m relay in 2019 and 2021.
Femke Bol is a Dutch track and field athlete who competes in hurdling and sprinting. She specialises in the 400 metres hurdles, where she is the 2023 World Champion, and in the 400 metres, where she is the indoor world record holder. In the 4 × 400 metres relay, she is the 2023 World Champion with the Dutch women's team.
Lieke Klaver is a Dutch track and field athlete who competes in sprinting. She specializes in the 200 metres and in the 400 metres. In the 4 × 400 metres relay, she is the 2023 world champion with the Dutch women's team.
Jacory Patterson is an American track and field athlete specializing in the sprints. A native of Columbia, South Carolina, he won a gold medal at the 2016 USATF Junior Olympics in the long jump before focusing on sprinting events. Patterson attended Dreher High School in Columbia, where he broke the state record in the 200 m and won a state title in the 400 m.
