Athletics at the 1924 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metres

Men's 400 metres
at the Games of the VIII Olympiad
VenueStade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir
DatesJuly 10 (heats and quarterfinals)
July 11 (semifinals and final)
Competitors60 from 27 nations
Medalists
 Eric Liddell
Great Britain
 Horatio Fitch
United States
 Guy Butler
Great Britain
Official Video
Athletics at the
1924 Summer Olympics
Track events
100 m   men
200 m men
400 m men
800 m men
1500 m men
5000 m men
10,000 m men
110 m hurdles men
400 m hurdles men
3000 m steeplechase men
4×100 m relay men
4×400 m relay men
3000 m team race men
10 km walk men
Road events
Marathon men
Field events
Long jump men
Triple jump men
High jump men
Pole vault men
Shot put men
Discus throw men
Hammer throw men
Javelin throw men
Combined events
Pentathlon men
Decathlon men
Cross-country events
Individual men
Team men

The men's 400 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. This race was depicted in the film Chariots of Fire. The competition was held on Thursday, July 10, 1924 and on Friday, July 11, 1924.

As for all other races the track was 500 metres in circumference.

Sixty runners from 27 nations competed.

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1924 Summer Olympics.

World Record 47.4(*) United States Ted Meredith Cambridge, MA (USA) May 27, 1916
Olympic Record 48.2 United States Charles Reidpath Stockholm (SWE) July 13, 1912

(*) 440 yards (= 402.34 m)

In the quarter-finals, Josef Imbach set a new Olympic record with 48.0 seconds. In the semi-finals Horatio Fitch improved the Olympic record with 47.8 seconds. In the final, Eric Liddell set a new world record with 47.6 seconds; this time was ratified as a 400 metres world record as Ted Meredith ran his record over 440 yards.

Results

Round 1

All heats were held on Thursday, July 10, 1924 and started at 2 p.m.

The best two finishers of every heat qualified for the quarter-finals.

Heat 1

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Horace Aylwin (CAN) 54.0 Q
2  Erik Wilén (FIN) 54.8 Q

Heat 2

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Ray Robertson (USA) 50.2 Q
2  Kai Jensen (DEN) 50.9 Q
3  Jules Migeot (BEL) 51.0
4  Reinhold Kesküll (EST)
5  Christophe Mirgain (LUX)

Heat 3

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Gustaf Wejnarth (SWE) 50.2 Q
2  Lajos Kurunczy (HUN) 52.6 Q
3  Richard Honner (AUS) 53.1
4  Kiril Petrunov (BUL)

Heat 4

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Eric Wilson (USA) 49.6 Q
2  Roy Norman (AUS) 50.6 Q
3  William Fuller (CAN) 51.5
4  Édouard Armand (HAI)

Heat 5

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Josef Imbach (SUI) 51.8 Q

Heat 6

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  David Johnson (CAN) 51.8 Q
2  Charles Hoff (NOR) 53.0 Q

Heat 7

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  John Taylor (USA) 50.8 Q
2  Tokushige Noto (JPN) 51.7 Q
3  Wim Bolten (NED) 53.0

Heat 8

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Toby Betts (RSA) 49.8 Q
2  Sean Lavan (IRL) 51.2 Q
3  Wim Kat (NED) 51.8
4  Guillermo Amparan (MEX) 52.0

Heat 9

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Artur Svensson (SWE) 50.0 Q
2  Raymond Fritz (FRA) 51.0 Q
3  Charles Lane (AUS) 51.4
4  Menso Menso (NED)
5  Juan Escutia (MEX)

Heat 10

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Clarence Oldfield (RSA) 49.6 Q
2  Edward Toms (GBR) 49.9 Q
3  Carlos Garces (MEX) 51.0
4  Emilio Casanovas (ARG)

Heat 11

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Nils Engdahl (SWE) 49.2 Q
2  George Renwick (GBR) 50.3 Q
3  Francisco Dova (ARG) 51.0
4  José Martínez (MEX)

Heat 12

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Terence Pitt (IND) 49.8 Q
2  Alan Christie (CAN) 50.5 Q
3  Félix Escobar (ARG) 51.4
4  Raymond Jamois (FRA)
5  Karel Přibyl (TCH) 52.8

Heat 13

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Luigi Facelli (ITA) 51.0 Q
2  Federico Brewster (ARG) 51.8 Q
3  Stefan Ołdak (POL) 55.0

Heat 14

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Eric Liddell (GBR) 50.2 Q
2  Alfredo Gargiullo (ITA) 50.4 Q
3  Erik Byléhn (SWE) 50.6
4  Stanisław Świętochowski (POL) 55.4

Heat 15

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Horatio Fitch (USA) 52.0 Q
2  Erik Åström (FIN) 52.1 Q

Heat 16

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Guy Butler (GBR) 50.2 Q
2  Gaston Féry (FRA) 51.1 Q
3  Narciso Costa (BRA)
4  Ennio Maffiolini (ITA)
5  Christian Simmen (SUI)

Heat 17

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Barthélémy Favodon (FRA) 51.2 Q
2  Adriaan Paulen (NED) 52.0 Q
3  Paul Hammer (LUX) 53.1

Quarterfinals

All semi-finals were held on Thursday, July 10, 1924 and started at 4 p.m.

The best two finishers of every heat qualified for the semifinals.

Horace Aylwin, Lajos Kurunczy, George Renwick, and Erik Åström qualified for the quarterfinals but withdrew.

Quarterfinal 1

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Horatio Fitch (USA) 49.0 Q
2  Artur Svensson (SWE) 50.0 Q
3  Alan Christie (CAN) 50.8
4  Edward Toms (GBR)

Quarterfinal 2

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Toby Betts (RSA) 49.0 Q
2  Charles Hoff (NOR) 49.2 Q
3  Gustaf Wejnarth (SWE) 50.2
4  Gaston Féry (FRA) 50.7

Quarterfinal 3

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Guy Butler (GBR) 49.8 Q
2  John Taylor (USA) 50.4 Q
3  Barthélémy Favodon (FRA) 50.9
4  Terence Pitt (IND) 51.6
5  Kai Jensen (DEN)
6  Federico Brewster (ARG)

Quarterfinal 4

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Adriaan Paulen (NED) 49.0 Q
2  Eric Liddell (GBR) 49.3 Q
3  Ray Robertson (USA) 49.5
4  Luigi Facelli (ITA) 50.5
5  Raymond Fritz (FRA) 50.5

Quarterfinal 5

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Clarence Oldfield (RSA) 49.0 Q
2  David Johnson (CAN) 49.3 Q
3  Erik Wilén (FIN) 49.6
4  Roy Norman (AUS) 50.2
5  Alfredo Gargiullo (ITA)

Quarterfinal 6

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Josef Imbach (SUI) 48.0 Q OR
2  Nils Engdahl (SWE) 48.4 Q
3  Eric Wilson (USA) 48.8
4  Sean Lavan (IRL) 49.8
5  Tokushige Noto (JPN) 50.7

Semifinals

All semi-finals were held on Friday, July 11, 1924 and started at 2:45 p.m.

The best three finishers of each heat qualified for the final.

Semifinal 1

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Horatio Fitch (USA) 47.8 Q OR
2  Guy Butler (GBR) 47.9 Q
3  David Johnson (CAN) 48.0 Q
4  Adriaan Paulen (NED) 48.2
5  Toby Betts (RSA) 48.4
6  Nils Engdahl (SWE) 48.6

Semifinal 2

Place Athlete Time Qual.
1  Eric Liddell (GBR) 48.2 Q
2  Josef Imbach (SUI) 48.3 Q
3  John Taylor (USA) 48.7 Q
4  Charles Hoff (NOR)
5  Clarence Oldfield (RSA)
6  Artur Svensson (SWE)

Final

The final was held on Friday, July 11, 1924 and started at 5:30 p.m.

Place Athlete Time
1  Eric Liddell (GBR) 47.6 WR
2  Horatio Fitch (USA) 48.4
3  Guy Butler (GBR) 48.6
4  David Johnson (CAN) 48.8
5  John Taylor (USA) 1:07.0 est
—  Josef Imbach (SUI) DNF

References

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