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| Event type

400 metres Hurdles, Men

Date30 July – 3 August 2021
StatusOlympic
LocationJapan National Stadium, Kasumigaoka, Shinjuku, Tokyo
Participants36 from 26 countries

Many people thought this would be the best race of the 2020 athletics’ events, but we weren’t expecting this. In the end, some athletics’ historians would call this the greatest race ever run.

The favorite was Norwegian Karsten Warholm, the 2017 and 2019 World Champion, who had broken the world record earlier in July 2021, running 46.70 at the Bislett Meet in Oslo, to break the record set back in Seoul by Kevin Young, who won the 1988 Olympic gold medal with 46.78, which was the first sub-47 second time.

Warholm’s main challenger was considered to be American Rai Benjamin, who had just missed Young’s world record in winning the US Olympic Trials, recording 46.83. Benjamin had been the top American for several years now but had never beaten Warholm. There were two other top challengers in Qatari Abderrahman Samba and Brazilian Alison dos Santos, but the race was expected to come down to Warholm vs. Benjamin.

And so it did. Benjamin was in lane five, with Warholm in six, Samba in seven, and dos Santos outside them in lane eight. Warholm always starts fast and led to hurdle three, when Benjamin caught up to him. Over hurdle four Benjamin had to chop his stride to make his 13 steps between hurdles and it slowed him slightly, as Warholm opened a lead, which grew through hurdle seven. Then Benjamin started reeling Warholm back in and as they approached the final hurdle he was on his shoulder. Warholm had to shorten his strides to get to hurdle 10 in 15 steps and his favored lead leg, but he poured it on to the finish to win by a stride over Benjamin.

Rai Benjamin had shattered Karsten Warholm’s recent world record, finishing in 46.17 – and he had lost, as Warholm had finished in a Beamon-like 45.94, going past the 46-second barrier that was not considered possible before the Olympics. Warholm’s first thought, when he stared at the finish board in the stadium, was, “That’s sick.” In third dos Santos ran the fourth fastest time ever with 46.72, bettered before the Olympics only by Warholm’s world record. Finishing fourth was Kyron McMaster from the British Virgin Islands, who still moved to 7th on the all-time performer list. The race produced the fastest times-for-place for 1st through 8th.

When asked if it was the greatest race in history, Warholm said it was “up there.” Benjamin was more emphatic, saying, “That was the best race in Olympic history.” Nobody was arguing with him.

PosNumberCompetitorNOCR1SFFinal
13086Karsten WarholmNOR48.65 (1 h3)47.30 (1 h1)45.94 (1)Gold
23907Rai BenjaminUSA48.60 (1 h5)47.37 (2 h1)46.17 (2)Silver
31318Alison dos SantosBRA48.42 (2 h1)47.31 (1 h2)46.72 (3)Bronze
42456Kyron McMasterIVB48.79 (1 h4)48.26 (1 h3)47.08 (4)
53295Abderrahman SambaQAT48.38 (1 h1)47.47 (2 h2)47.12 (5)
63668Yasmani CopelloTUR49.00 (2 h4)47.88 (3 h1)47.81 (6)
71824Rasmus MägiEST48.73 (2 h5)48.36 (2 h3)48.11 (7)
82439Alessandro SibilioITA49.11 (3 h3)47.93 (3 h2)48.77 (8)
3 h3 r2/33939David KendzieraUSA49.23 (4 h4)48.67 (3 h3)
4 h1 r2/32341Thomas BarrIRL49.02 (2 h3)48.26 (4 h1)
4 h2 r2/33968Kenny SelmonUSA48.61 (2 h2)48.58 (4 h2)
4 h3 r2/32172Constantin PreisGER49.73 (4 h2)49.10 (4 h3)
5 h1 r2/32611Kemar MowattJAM49.06 (4 h1)48.95 (5 h1)
5 h2 r2/32154Luke CampbellGER49.19 (4 h3)48.62 (5 h2)
5 h3 r2/31008Abdelmalik LahoulouALG48.83 (3 h1)49.14 (5 h3)
6 h1 r2/33444Sokwakhana ZaziniRSA49.51 (3 h5)48.99 (6 h1)
6 h2 r2/32626Shawn RoweJAM49.18 (3 h4)48.83 (6 h2)
6 h3 r2/32724Hiromu YamauchiJPN49.21 (3 h2)49.35 (6 h3)
7 h1 r2/31979Ludvy VaillantFRA49.23 (5 h1)49.02 (7 h1)
7 h2 r2/33026Nick SmidtNED49.55 (4 h5)49.35 (7 h2)
7 h3 r2/31958Wilfried HappioFRA49.39 (5 h3)49.49 (7 h3)
8 h1 r2/32145Joshua AbuakuGER49.50 (5 h4)49.93 (8 h1)
8 h2 r2/31637Vít MüllerCZE49.59 (5 h5)49.69 (8 h2)
8 h3 r2/32592Jaheel HydeJAM48.54 (1 h2)1:27.38 (8 h3)
5 h2 r1/32962Creve MachavaMOZ50.37 (5 h2)
6 h1 r1/32274Máté KoroknaiHUN49.80 (6 h1)
6 h2 r1/33649Mohamed TouatiTUN50.58 (6 h2)
6 h3 r1/31333Márcio TelesBRA49.70 (6 h3)
6 h4 r1/32702Kazuki KurokawaJPN50.30 (6 h4)
6 h5 r1/32683Takatoshi AbeJPN49.98 (6 h5)
7 h1 r1/33602Chen ChiehTPE50.96 (7 h1)
7 h2 r1/31791Sergio FernándezESP51.51 (7 h2)
7 h3 r1/31564Gerald DrummondCRC49.92 (7 h3)
7 h4 r1/31562Jordin AndradeCPV50.64 (7 h4)
7 h5 r1/32299Jabir Madari PalliyalilIND50.77 (7 h5)
8 h2 r1/33457Ned AzemiaSEY51.67 (8 h2)

Round One

Date30 July 2021 — 11:25
FormatTop three in each heat and next six fastest advanced to the quarter-finals.

Heat #1

Time11:25
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
12Abderrahman SambaQAT48.380.200Q
26Alison dos SantosBRA48.420.152Q
38Abdelmalik LahoulouALG48.830.149Q
44Kemar MowattJAM49.060.139Q
55Ludvy VaillantFRA49.230.152q
67Máté KoroknaiHUN49.800.151
73Chen ChiehTPE50.960.158

Heat #2

Time11:33
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
14Jaheel HydeJAM48.540.184Q
27Kenny SelmonUSA48.610.185Q
38Hiromu YamauchiJPN49.210.184Q
49Constantin PreisGER49.730.215Q
56Creve MachavaMOZ50.370.159
62Mohamed TouatiTUN50.580.152
75Sergio FernándezESP51.510.152
83Ned AzemiaSEY51.670.151

Heat #3

Time11:41
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
18Karsten WarholmNOR48.650.157Q
27Thomas BarrIRL49.020.147Q
33Alessandro SibilioITA49.110.126Q
44Luke CampbellGER49.190.145Q
55Wilfried HappioFRA49.390.152q
66Márcio TelesBRA49.700.154
72Gerald DrummondCRC49.920.183

Heat #4

Time11:49
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
12Kyron McMasterIVB48.790.184Q
25Yasmani CopelloTUR49.000.188Q
34Shawn RoweJAM49.180.157Q
46David KendzieraUSA49.230.192Q
58Joshua AbuakuGER49.500.169q
63Kazuki KurokawaJPN50.300.154
77Jordin AndradeCPV50.640.202

Heat #5

Time11:57
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
16Rai BenjaminUSA48.600.209Q
24Rasmus MägiEST48.730.160Q
32Sokwakhana ZaziniRSA49.510.147Q
47Nick SmidtNED49.550.181Q
53Vít MüllerCZE49.590.143q
68Takatoshi AbeJPN49.980.166
75Jabir Madari PalliyalilIND50.770.167

Semi-Finals

Date1 August 2021 — 21:05
FormatTop two in each heat and next two fastest advanced to the final.

Heat #1

Time21:05
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
17Karsten WarholmNOR47.300.156Q
25Rai BenjaminUSA47.370.184Q
34Yasmani CopelloTUR47.880.183q
46Thomas BarrIRL48.260.151
59Kemar MowattJAM48.950.166
68Sokwakhana ZaziniRSA48.990.150
73Ludvy VaillantFRA49.020.162
82Joshua AbuakuGER49.930.179

Heat #2

Time21:15
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
17Alison dos SantosBRA47.310.171Q
25Abderrahman SambaQAT47.470.188Q
34Alessandro SibilioITA47.930.123q
46Kenny SelmonUSA48.580.225
58Luke CampbellGER48.620.153
69Shawn RoweJAM48.830.204
72Nick SmidtNED49.350.164
83Vít MüllerCZE49.690.145

Heat #3

Time21:25
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
17Kyron McMasterIVB48.260.179Q
26Rasmus MägiEST48.360.156Q
39David KendzieraUSA48.670.190
42Constantin PreisGER49.100.186
55Abdelmalik LahoulouALG49.140.125
68Hiromu YamauchiJPN49.350.192
73Wilfried HappioFRA49.490.130
84Jaheel HydeJAM1:27.380.159

Final

Date3 August 2021 — 12:20
PosLaneCompetitorNOCTime (Automatic)Reaction Time
16Karsten WarholmNOR45.940.145WR
25Rai BenjaminUSA46.170.168
37Alison dos SantosBRA46.720.156
44Kyron McMasterIVB47.080.157
58Abderrahman SambaQAT47.120.186
63Yasmani CopelloTUR47.810.166
79Rasmus MägiEST48.110.167
82Alessandro SibilioITA48.770.144