| | Event type
400 metres, Men
| Date | 2 – 3 August 1928 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Olympisch Stadion, Amsterdam |
| Participants | 50 from 20 countries |
The world record had been set in May 1928 by American Emerson “Bud” Spencer with 47.0, but he did not make the US team for the open 400 when he only finished fifth at the 1928 AAU/Olympic Trial 400. The US Olympic Trials had been won by Ray Barbuti.
The two semi-finals in Amsterdam were won by Jimmy Ball (CAN) and Jochen Büchner (GER). In the final, Barbuti was out the fastest, leading by five metres off the final curve. He hung on to win, though barely, with Ball getting the silver medal, and Büchner the bronze.
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | R1 | QF | SF | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 499 | Ray Barbuti |  USA | 49.8 (1 h6) | 48.8 (1 h2) | 48.8 (2 h1) | 47.8 (1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | 646 | Jimmy Ball |  CAN | 55.8 (1 h8) | 49.2 (1 h3) | 48.6 (1 h1) | 48.0 (2) | Silver | ||
| 3 | 702 | Jochen Büchner |  GER | 50.2 (1 h5) | 48.6 (1 h6) | 48.6 (1 h2) | 48.2 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 483 | John Rinkel |  GBR | 50.2 (1 h4) | – (2 h4) | 49.1 (3 h2) | 48.4 (4) | |||
| 5 | 742 | Harry Storz | GER | 50.6 (1 h7) | 49.4 (1 h4) | 49.0 (3 h1) | 48.8 (5) | |||
| 6 | 554 | Hermon Phillips | USA | 49.4 (1 h1) | 49.6 (1 h1) | 49.1 (2 h2) | 49.0 (6) | |||
| 4 h1 r3/4 | 4 | László Barsi |  HUN | 55.6 (1 h10) | – (2 h6) | 49.2 (4 h1) | – | |||
| 4 h2 r3/4 | 669 | Alex Wilson | CAN | 49.9 (2 h11) | – (2 h2) | 49.2 (4 h2) | – | |||
| 5 h1 r3/4 | 298 | Harry Broos |  NED | – (2 h7) | – (2 h5) | 49.9 (5 h1) | – | |||
| 5 h2 r3/4 | 72 | René Féger |  FRA | 51.4 (1 h12) | – (2 h3) | 49.6 (5 h2) | – | |||
| 6 h1 r3/4 | 77 | Georges Krotoff | FRA | 50.5 (2 h3) | – (2 h1) | – (6 h1) | – | |||
| 6 h2 r3/4 | 650 | Phil Edwards | CAN | 49.8 (1 h3) | 49.2 (1 h5) | 50.2 (6 h2) | – | |||
| 3 h1 r2/4 | 458 | Billy Green | GBR | – (2 h12) | – (3 h1) | – | – | |||
| 3 h2 r2/4 | 732 | Otto Neumann | GER | 50.6 (1 h14) | – (3 h2) | – | – | |||
| 3 h3 r2/4 | 561 | Euil Snider | USA | 50.4 (1 h2) | – (3 h3) | – | – | |||
| 3 h4 r2/4 | 76 | Joseph Jackson | FRA | 50.6 (2 h15) | – (3 h4) | – | – | |||
| 3 h5 r2/4 | 379 | Johann Bartl |  TCH | – (2 h4) | – (3 h5) | – | – | |||
| 3 h6 r2/4 | 466 | Roger Leigh-Wood | GBR | – (2 h8) | – (3 h6) | – | – | |||
| 4 h1 r2/4 | 743 | Reinhold Schmidt | GER | 50.0 (1 h15) | – (4 h1) | – | – | |||
| 4 h2 r2/4 | 65 | Georges Dupont | FRA | – (2 h1) | – (4 h2) | – | – | |||
| 4 h3 r2/4 | 307 | Andries Hoogerwerf | NED | – (2 h5) | – (4 h3) | – | – | |||
| 4 h4 r2/4 | 624 | Frans Prinsen |  BEL | – (2 h2) | – (4 h4) | – | – | |||
| 4 h5 r2/4 | 875 | Joe Tierney | USA | 49.8 (1 h11) | – (4 h5) | – | – | |||
| 4 h6 r2/4 | 322 | Adje Paulen | NED | – (2 h13) | – (4 h6) | – | – | |||
| 5 h1 r2/4 | 206 | James Hall |  IND | – (2 h9) | – (5 h1) | – | – | |||
| 5 h2 r2/4 | 174 | Jesús Moraila |  MEX | 1:00.0 (1 h9) | – (5 h2) | – | – | |||
| 5 h3 r2/4 | 407 | Hermann Geißler |  AUT | 50.2 (1 h13) | – (5 h3) | – | – | |||
| 5 h4 r2/4 | 173 | José Lucilo Iturbe | MEX | – (2 h10) | – (5 h4) | – | – | |||
| 5 h5 r2/4 | 216 | Sean Lavan |  IRL | – (2 h6) | – (5 h5) | – | – | |||
| 5 h6 r2/4 | 659 | Fred Macbeth | CAN | – (2 h14) | – (5 h6) | – | – | |||
| 3 h1 r1/4 | 425 | Zygmunt Weiss |  POL | 50.8 (3 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h3 r1/4 | 393 | Jaroslav Vykoupil | TCH | – (3 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h4 r1/4 | 618 | Eugène Langenraedt | BEL | – (3 h4) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h6 r1/4 | 692 | Louis Lundgren |  DEN | – (3 h6) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h7 r1/4 | 373 | Joaquín Miquel |  ESP | – (3 h7) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h11 r1/4 | 417 | Klemens Biniakowski | POL | 50.8 (3 h11) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h12 r1/4 | 687 | José Vicente Salinas |  CHI | – (3 h12) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h13 r1/4 | 29 | László Magdics | HUN | – (3 h13) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h14 r1/4 | 600 | Charles Stuart |  AUS | – (3 h14) | – | – | – | |||
| 3 h15 r1/4 | 460 | John Hanlon | GBR | – (3 h15) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h1 r1/4 | 293 | Rinus van den Berge | NED | – (4 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h3 r1/4 | 421 | Stefan Kostrzewski | POL | 52.2 (4 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h4 r1/4 | 426 | Feliks Żuber | POL | 52.6 (4 h4) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h6 r1/4 | 41 | Jenő Szalay | HUN | – (4 h6) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h13 r1/4 | 143 | Vasilios Stavrinos |  GRE | – (4 h13) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h14 r1/4 | 17 | Mór Gerő | HUN | – (4 h14) | – | – | – | |||
| 4 h15 r1/4 | 170 | Alfonso García | MEX | – (4 h15) | – | – | – | |||
| 5 h1 r1/4 | 177 | Víctor Villaseñor | MEX | – (5 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 5 h6 r1/4 | 683 | Alex Hannig | CHI | – (5 h6) | – | – | – | |||
| 5 h13 r1/4 | 163 | Fritz Eyschen |  LUX | – (5 h13) | – | – | – | |||
| 382 | E. Herdani | TCH | – (DNS h2) | – | – | – | ||||
| 286 | Howard Kinsman |  RSA | – (DNS h2) | – | – | – | ||||
| 207 | S. Abdul Hamid | IND | – (DNS h2) | – | – | – | ||||
| 138 | Antonios Mangos | GRE | – (DNS h3) | – | – | – | ||||
| 848 | Björn Kugelberg |  SWE | – (DNS h4) | – | – | – | ||||
| 287 | Billie Legg | RSA | – (DNS h5) | – | – | – | ||||
| 810 | Erkka Wilén |  FIN | – (DNS h5) | – | – | – | ||||
| 226 | Guido Cominotto |  ITA | – (DNS h5) | – | – | – | ||||
| 140 | Nikolaos Papanikolaou | GRE | – (DNS h7) | – | – | – | ||||
| 787 | Arvo Lindroos | FIN | – (DNS h7) | – | – | – | ||||
| 249 | Iwao Aizawa |  JPN | – (DNS h8) | – | – | – | ||||
| 188 | Hjalle Johannesen |  NOR | – (DNS h8) | – | – | – | ||||
| 396 | Ömer Besim Koşalay |  TUR | – (DNS h8) | – | – | – | ||||
| 193 | Fritz Krogh Nielsen | NOR | – (DNS h9) | – | – | – | ||||
| 434 | António Dias |  POR | – (DNS h9) | – | – | – | ||||
| 283 | Aubrey Burton-Durham | RSA | – (DNS h9) | – | – | – | ||||
| 380 | Ladislav Dostál | TCH | – (DNS h10) | – | – | – | ||||
| 628 | Emile Vercken | BEL | – (DNS h10) | – | – | – | ||||
| 272 | Paul Martin |  SUI | – (DNS h10) | – | – | – | ||||
| 161 | Gabriel Arnoldy | LUX | – (DNS h11) | – | – | – | ||||
| 865 | Bertil von Wachenfeldt | SWE | – (DNS h11) | – | – | – | ||||
| 795 | Jukka Matilainen | FIN | – (DNS h12) | – | – | – | ||||
| 828 | Marijan Krajačić |  YUG | – (DNS h12) | – | – | – | ||||
| 137 | Vangelis Moiropoulos | GRE | – (DNS h14) | – | – | – | ||||
| 225 | Giacomo Carlini | ITA | – (DNS h15) | – | – | – |
Round One
| Date | 2 August 1928 — 14:00 |
|---|---|
| Format | Top two in each heat advanced to the quarter-finals. |
Heat #1
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 554 | Hermon Phillips | USA | 49.4 | ||
| 2 | 65 | Georges Dupont | FRA | – | ||
| 3 | 425 | Zygmunt Weiss | POL | 50.8 | ||
| 4 | 293 | Rinus van den Berge | NED | – | ||
| 5 | 177 | Víctor Villaseñor | MEX | – |
Heat #2
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 561 | Euil Snider | USA | 50.4 | ||
| 2 | 624 | Frans Prinsen | BEL | – | ||
| 382 | E. Herdani | TCH | – | |||
| 286 | Howard Kinsman | RSA | – | |||
| 207 | S. Abdul Hamid | IND | – |
Heat #3
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 650 | Phil Edwards | CAN | 49.8 | ||
| 2 | 77 | Georges Krotoff | FRA | 50.5 | ||
| 3 | 393 | Jaroslav Vykoupil | TCH | – | ||
| 4 | 421 | Stefan Kostrzewski | POL | 52.2 | ||
| 138 | Antonios Mangos | GRE | – |
Heat #4
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 483 | John Rinkel | GBR | 50.2 | ||
| 2 | 379 | Johann Bartl | TCH | – | ||
| 3 | 618 | Eugène Langenraedt | BEL | – | ||
| 4 | 426 | Feliks Żuber | POL | 52.6 | ||
| 848 | Björn Kugelberg | SWE | – |
Heat #5
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 702 | Jochen Büchner | GER | 50.2 | ||
| 2 | 307 | Andries Hoogerwerf | NED | – | ||
| 287 | Billie Legg | RSA | – | |||
| 810 | Erkka Wilén | FIN | – | |||
| 226 | Guido Cominotto | ITA | – |
Heat #6
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 499 | Ray Barbuti | USA | 49.8 | ||
| 2 | 216 | Sean Lavan | IRL | – | ||
| 3 | 692 | Louis Lundgren | DEN | – | ||
| 4 | 41 | Jenő Szalay | HUN | – | ||
| 5 | 683 | Alex Hannig | CHI | – |
Heat #7
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 742 | Harry Storz | GER | 50.6 | ||
| 2 | 298 | Harry Broos | NED | – | ||
| 3 | 373 | Joaquín Miquel | ESP | – | ||
| 140 | Nikolaos Papanikolaou | GRE | – | |||
| 787 | Arvo Lindroos | FIN | – |
Heat #8
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 646 | Jimmy Ball | CAN | 55.8 | ||
| 2 | 466 | Roger Leigh-Wood | GBR | – | ||
| 249 | Iwao Aizawa | JPN | – | |||
| 188 | Hjalle Johannesen | NOR | – | |||
| 396 | Ömer Besim Koşalay | TUR | – |
Heat #9
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 174 | Jesús Moraila | MEX | 1:00.0 | ||
| 2 | 206 | James Hall | IND | – | ||
| 193 | Fritz Krogh Nielsen | NOR | – | |||
| 434 | António Dias | POR | – | |||
| 283 | Aubrey Burton-Durham | RSA | – |
Heat #10
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | László Barsi | HUN | 55.6 | ||
| 2 | 173 | José Lucilo Iturbe | MEX | – | ||
| 380 | Ladislav Dostál | TCH | – | |||
| 628 | Emile Vercken | BEL | – | |||
| 272 | Paul Martin | SUI | – |
Heat #11
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 875 | Joe Tierney | USA | 49.8 | ||
| 2 | 669 | Alex Wilson | CAN | 49.9 | ||
| 3 | 417 | Klemens Biniakowski | POL | 50.8 | ||
| 161 | Gabriel Arnoldy | LUX | – | |||
| 865 | Bertil von Wachenfeldt | SWE | – |
Heat #12
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 72 | René Féger | FRA | 51.4 | ||
| 2 | 458 | Billy Green | GBR | – | ||
| 3 | 687 | José Vicente Salinas | CHI | – | ||
| 795 | Jukka Matilainen | FIN | – | |||
| 828 | Marijan Krajačić | YUG | – |
Heat #13
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 407 | Hermann Geißler | AUT | 50.2 | ||
| 2 | 322 | Adje Paulen | NED | – | ||
| 3 | 29 | László Magdics | HUN | – | ||
| 4 | 143 | Vasilios Stavrinos | GRE | – | ||
| 5 | 163 | Fritz Eyschen | LUX | – |
Heat #14
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 732 | Otto Neumann | GER | 50.6 | ||
| 2 | 659 | Fred Macbeth | CAN | – | ||
| 3 | 600 | Charles Stuart | AUS | – | ||
| 4 | 17 | Mór Gerő | HUN | – | ||
| 137 | Vangelis Moiropoulos | GRE | – |
Heat #15
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 743 | Reinhold Schmidt | GER | 50.0 | ||
| 2 | 76 | Joseph Jackson | FRA | 50.6 | ||
| 3 | 460 | John Hanlon | GBR | – | ||
| 4 | 170 | Alfonso García | MEX | – | ||
| 225 | Giacomo Carlini | ITA | – |
Quarter-Finals
| Date | 2 August 1928 — 16:00 |
|---|---|
| Format | Top two in each heat advanced to the semi-finals. |
Heat #1
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 554 | Hermon Phillips | USA | 49.6 | ||
| 2 | 77 | Georges Krotoff | FRA | – | ||
| 3 | 458 | Billy Green | GBR | – | ||
| 4 | 743 | Reinhold Schmidt | GER | – | ||
| 5 | 206 | James Hall | IND | – |
Heat #2
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 499 | Ray Barbuti | USA | 48.8 | ||
| 2 | 669 | Alex Wilson | CAN | – | ||
| 3 | 732 | Otto Neumann | GER | – | ||
| 4 | 65 | Georges Dupont | FRA | – | ||
| 5 | 174 | Jesús Moraila | MEX | – |
Heat #3
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 646 | Jimmy Ball | CAN | 49.2 | ||
| 2 | 72 | René Féger | FRA | – | ||
| 3 | 561 | Euil Snider | USA | – | ||
| 4 | 307 | Andries Hoogerwerf | NED | – | ||
| 5 | 407 | Hermann Geißler | AUT | – |
Heat #4
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 742 | Harry Storz | GER | 49.4 | ||
| 2 | 483 | John Rinkel | GBR | – | ||
| 3 | 76 | Joseph Jackson | FRA | – | ||
| 4 | 624 | Frans Prinsen | BEL | – | ||
| 5 | 173 | José Lucilo Iturbe | MEX | – |
Heat #5
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 650 | Phil Edwards | CAN | 49.2 | ||
| 2 | 298 | Harry Broos | NED | – | ||
| 3 | 379 | Johann Bartl | TCH | – | ||
| 4 | 875 | Joe Tierney | USA | – | ||
| 5 | 216 | Sean Lavan | IRL | – |
Heat #6
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 702 | Jochen Büchner | GER | 48.6 | ||
| 2 | 4 | László Barsi | HUN | – | ||
| 3 | 466 | Roger Leigh-Wood | GBR | – | ||
| 4 | 322 | Adje Paulen | NED | – | ||
| 5 | 659 | Fred Macbeth | CAN | – |
Semi-Finals
| Date | 3 August 1928 — 14:00 |
|---|---|
| Format | Top three in each heat advanced to the final. |
Heat #1
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 646 | Jimmy Ball | CAN | 48.6 | ||
| 2 | 499 | Ray Barbuti | USA | 48.8 | ||
| 3 | 742 | Harry Storz | GER | 49.0 | ||
| 4 | 4 | László Barsi | HUN | 49.2 | ||
| 5 | 298 | Harry Broos | NED | 49.9 | ||
| 6 | 77 | Georges Krotoff | FRA | – |
Heat #2
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 702 | Jochen Büchner | GER | 48.6 | ||
| 2 | 554 | Hermon Phillips | USA | 49.1 | ||
| 3 | 483 | John Rinkel | GBR | 49.1 | ||
| 4 | 669 | Alex Wilson | CAN | 49.2 | ||
| 5 | 72 | René Féger | FRA | 49.6 | ||
| 6 | 650 | Phil Edwards | CAN | 50.2 |
Final Round
| Date | 3 August 1928 — 16:00 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 499 | Ray Barbuti | USA | 47.8 | ||
| 2 | 646 | Jimmy Ball | CAN | 48.0 | ||
| 3 | 702 | Jochen Büchner | GER | 48.2 | ||
| 4 | 483 | John Rinkel | GBR | 48.4 | ||
| 5 | 742 | Harry Storz | GER | 48.8 | ||
| 6 | 554 | Hermon Phillips | USA | 49.0 |