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| Event type

800 metres, Women

Date31 August – 3 September 1972
StatusOlympic
LocationOlympiastadion, Olympiapark, München
Participants38 from 26 countries

In 1971 at the West German Championships, Hildegard Falck ran 1:58.5 to break the world record and become the first woman to officially better two minutes. (North Korea’s Dan Shin-Geum had run under two minutes twice in 1963-64, but since North Korea was not a member of the IAAF, the records were never ratified.) The 1971 European Champion had been Vera Nikolić, who had inexplicably stepped off the track in her 1968 Olympic semi-final. In round one, Bulgaria’s Svetla Zlateva ran 1:58.93 to break the Olympic record. In the final, Zlateva led for the first 600 metres, when Falck saw a small opening and went thru as the runners entered the turn. She moved into third place and overtook Zlateva and Nikolić on the curve. But Falck barely hung on, as Soviet Lithuanian Nijolė Sabaitė had the fastest finish and was less a metre down at the line.

PosNrAthleteNOCR1SFFinal
1159Hildegard FalckFRG2:01.52 (1 h1)2:01.41 (1 h2)1:58.55 (1)GoldOR
2358Nijolė SabaitėURS2:01.50 (1 h3)2:00.90 (1 h1)1:58.65 (2)Silver
3132Gunhild HoffmeisterGDR2:03.15 (2 h5)2:01.21 (2 h1)1:59.19 (3)Bronze
448Svetla ZlatevaBUL1:58.93 (1 h2)2:01.66 (2 h2)1:59.72 (4)
5404Vera NikolićYUG1:59.62 (2 h2)2:01.49 (4 h1)1:59.98 (5)
6298Ileana SilaiROU2:01.42 (1 h4)2:01.85 (3 h2)2:00.04 (6)
7116Rosemary StirlingGBR2:03.64 (3 h5)2:02.36 (4 h2)2:00.15 (7)
852Abby HoffmanCAN2:01.57 (2 h3)2:01.37 (3 h1)2:00.17 (8)
5 h1 r2/3175Sylvia SchenkFRG2:02.22 (3 h2)2:01.50 (5 h1)
5 h2 r2/3386Madeline ManningUSA2:02.63 (2 h1)2:02.39 (5 h2)
6 h1 r2/376Annelise Damm OlesenDEN2:01.77 (2 h4)2:04.19 (6 h1)
6 h2 r2/321Maria SykoraAUT2:01.82 (3 h3)2:02.44 (6 h2)
7 h1 r2/38Cheryl PeasleyAUS2:03.11 (3 h1)2:04.56 (7 h1)
7 h2 r2/3157Gisela EllenbergerFRG2:01.92 (4 h3)2:02.97 (7 h2)
8 h2 r2/3353Nina MorgunovaURS2:02.64 (1 h5)2:04.93 (8 h2)
3 h4 r1/3198Magdolna KulcsárHUN2:02.35 (3 h4)– (DNS h1)
4 h1 r1/3208Mary TraceyIRL2:04.18 (4 h1)
4 h2 r1/3283Elżbieta SkowrońskaPOL2:03.26 (4 h2)
4 h4 r1/3100Pat CropperGBR2:03.55 (4 h4)
4 h5 r1/3257Sue HadenNZL2:04.86 (4 h5)
5 h1 r1/390Martine DuvivierFRA2:04.87 (5 h1)
5 h2 r1/37Jenny OrrAUS2:04.46 (5 h2)
5 h3 r1/3142Maritta PolitzGDR2:02.40 (5 h3)
5 h4 r1/330Vasilena AmzinaBUL2:05.95 (5 h4)
5 h5 r1/3236Chereno MaiyoKEN2:04.86 (5 h5)
6 h1 r1/3213Donata GovoniITA2:05.24 (6 h1)
6 h2 r1/3395Cheryl ToussaintUSA2:08.90 (6 h2)
6 h3 r1/398Margaret CoomberGBR2:02.99 (6 h3)
6 h4 r1/328Marleen VerheuenBEL2:09.13 (6 h4)
6 h5 r1/3383Wendy KoenigUSA2:08.71 (6 h5)
7 h1 r1/3310Elisabeth NeuenschwanderSUI2:06.89 (7 h1)
7 h2 r1/3209Claire WalshIRL2:08.98 (7 h2)
7 h3 r1/3243Emesia ChizungaMAW2:19.22 (7 h3)
7 h4 r1/3357Raissa RuusURS2:11.18 (7 h4)
7 h5 r1/3242Malika HadkyMAR2:12.46 (7 h5)
8 h2 r1/325Heather GoodingBAR2:19.69 (8 h2)
8 h4 r1/3288Lee Chiu-HsiaTPE2:11.81 (8 h4)
AC h3 r1/3322Malak El-NasserSYR– (DNF h3)
DNS238Arda KalpakianLBN– (DNS h1)

Round One (31 August 1972 — 16:45)

Top three in each heat and next fastest advanced to the final.

Heat One

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
16Hildegard FalckFRG2:01.52Q
27Madeline ManningUSA2:02.63Q
38Cheryl PeasleyAUS2:03.11Q
43Mary TraceyIRL2:04.18
52Martine DuvivierFRA2:04.87
61Donata GovoniITA2:05.24
74Elisabeth NeuenschwanderSUI2:06.89
DNS5Arda KalpakianLBN

Splits

400 m59.2

Heat Two

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
17Svetla ZlatevaBUL1:58.93QOR
26Vera NikolićYUG1:59.62Q
31Sylvia SchenkFRG2:02.22Q
42Elżbieta SkowrońskaPOL2:03.26
58Jenny OrrAUS2:04.46
64Cheryl ToussaintUSA2:08.90
73Claire WalshIRL2:08.98
85Heather GoodingBAR2:19.69

Splits

400 m56.6

Heat Three

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
14Nijolė SabaitėURS2:01.50Q
25Abby HoffmanCAN2:01.57Q
37Maria SykoraAUT2:01.82Q
41Gisela EllenbergerFRG2:01.92q
53Maritta PolitzGDR2:02.40
62Margaret CoomberGBR2:02.99
76Emesia ChizungaMAW2:19.22
DNF8Malak El-NasserSYR

Splits

400 m58.8

Heat Four

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
15Ileana SilaiROU2:01.42Q
23Annelise Damm OlesenDEN2:01.77Q
34Magdolna KulcsárHUN2:02.35Q
48Pat CropperGBR2:03.55
52Vasilena AmzinaBUL2:05.95
67Marleen VerheuenBEL2:09.13
71Raissa RuusURS2:11.18
86Lee Chiu-HsiaTPE2:11.81

Splits

400 m59.3

Heat Five

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
16Nina MorgunovaURS2:02.64Q
27Gunhild HoffmeisterGDR2:03.15Q
31Rosemary StirlingGBR2:03.64Q
44Sue HadenNZL2:04.86
55Chereno MaiyoKEN2:04.86
63Wendy KoenigUSA2:08.71
72Malika HadkyMAR2:12.46

Splits

400 m58.4

Semi-Finals (1 September 1972 — 17:40)

Top four in each heat advanced to the final.

Heat One

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
13Nijolė SabaitėURS2:00.90Q
27Gunhild HoffmeisterGDR2:01.21Q
34Abby HoffmanCAN2:01.37Q
41Vera NikolićYUG2:01.49Q
52Sylvia SchenkFRG2:01.50
65Annelise Damm OlesenDEN2:04.19
78Cheryl PeasleyAUS2:04.56
DNS6Magdolna KulcsárHUN

Splits

400 m59.2

Heat Two

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
13Hildegard FalckFRG2:01.41Q
22Svetla ZlatevaBUL2:01.66Q
35Ileana SilaiROU2:01.85Q
48Rosemary StirlingGBR2:02.36Q
54Madeline ManningUSA2:02.39
61Maria SykoraAUT2:02.44
76Gisela EllenbergerFRG2:02.97
87Nina MorgunovaURS2:04.93

Splits

400 m59.6

Final (3 September 1972 — 18:00)

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (A)
11Hildegard FalckFRG1:58.55OR
25Nijolė SabaitėURS1:58.65
36Gunhild HoffmeisterGDR1:59.19
42Svetla ZlatevaBUL1:59.72
58Vera NikolićYUG1:59.98
63Ileana SilaiROU2:00.04
74Rosemary StirlingGBR2:00.15
87Abby HoffmanCAN2:00.17

Splits

400 m58.3