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| Event type

400 metres, Men

Date4 – 5 August 1948
StatusOlympic
LocationEmpire Stadium, Wembley, London
Participants53 from 28 countries

The heavy favorite in 1948 was Herb McKenley who had set three world records earlier in 1948 over 400 metres and 440 yards, winning the AAU (US) in 45.9 over 400 metres. He was expected to be challenged by America’s Mal Whitfield, who had already won the 800 in London, and his teammate, Arthur Wint. Whitfield won his semi-final in a PR 46.3, the first time he had run under 47 seconds. In the final, McKenley took off from the gun and led by 7 metres at the halfway point. But off the final curve, the effort got to him and he faltered, with Wint catching him 20 metres from the finish and pulling away. Whitfield hung on to third, but never challenged for the gold.

PosNrAthleteNOCR1QFSFFinal
1122Arthur WintJAM47.7 (1 h9)47.7 (1 h2)46.3 (1 h1)46.2 (1)Gold
290Herb McKenleyJAM48.4 (1 h2)48.0 (1 h3)47.3 (1 h2)46.4 (2)Silver
3136Mal WhitfieldUSA48.3 (1 h8)48.0 (1 h1)47.4 (3 h1)46.9 (3)Bronze
4134Dave BolenUSA50.1 (1 h6)48.0 (1 h4)47.9 (2 h2)47.2 (4)
55Morris CurottaAUS49.1 (1 h10)48.4 (2 h2)47.2 (2 h1)47.9 (5)
6135George GuidaUSA49.0 (1 h11)48.0 (2 h3)48.3 (3 h2)50.2 (6)
4 h1 r3/452George RhodenJAM48.4 (1 h4)48.6 (2 h1)47.7 (4 h1)
4 h2 r3/463Dennis ShoreRSA49.0 (2 h4)48.5 (3 h2)48.8 (4 h2)
5 h1 r3/4107Jimmy ReardonIRL48.4 (1 h1)48.3 (2 h4)47.8 (5 h1)
5 h2 r3/480Rosalvo RamosBRA49.2 (2 h10)48.7 (3 h1)49.1 (5 h2)
6 h2 r3/498Bob McFarlaneCAN50.6 (2 h12)48.4 (3 h4)51.7 (6 h2)
3 h3 r2/4128Rune LarssonSWE49.2 (2 h2)48.8 (3 h3)– (DNS h1)
4 h1 r2/4116Les LewisGBR48.9 (1 h7)49.2 (4 h1)
4 h2 r2/4118Bill RobertsGBR48.9 (2 h8)48.6 (4 h2)
4 h3 r2/44John BartramAUS50.8 (2 h6)49.9 (4 h3)
4 h4 r2/4127Kurt LundquistSWE50.0 (2 h3)48.4 (4 h4)
5 h1 r2/4139Zvonko SabolovićYUG49.9 (1 h3)49.5 (5 h1)
5 h2 r2/4125Bjørn VadeNOR49.6 (2 h7)49.7 (5 h2)
5 h3 r2/4113Francis SchewettaFRA48.9 (2 h9)49.9 (5 h3)
5 h4 r2/4117Derek PughGBR49.3 (2 h11)48.8 (5 h4)
6 h1 r2/4126Folke AlnevikSWE50.2 (2 h5)50.6 (6 h1)
6 h3 r2/4138Marko RačičYUG50.5 (2 h1)52.1 (6 h3)
6 h4 r2/4112Jacques LunisFRA49.3 (1 h5)48.9 (6 h4)
1 h12 r1/496Herman KunnenBEL50.0 (1 h12)– (DNS h3)
3 h1 r1/4102Chen YinglangCHN50.9 (3 h1)
3 h2 r1/4119Ferenc BánhalmiHUN49.6 (3 h2)
3 h3 r1/494Antonio PocovíARG50.7 (3 h3)
3 h4 r1/4129Oskar HardmeierSUI49.2 (3 h4)
3 h5 r1/4123Carlos MongesMEX50.9 (3 h5)
3 h6 r1/479Hazzard DillBER53.0 (3 h6)
3 h7 r1/497Ernie McCulloughCAN49.9 (3 h7)
3 h8 r1/499Don McFarlaneCAN49.5 (3 h8)
3 h9 r1/421John De SaramSRI51.2 (3 h9)
3 h10 r1/4111Raymond CrapetFRA49.4 (3 h10)
3 h11 r1/4100Gustavo EhlersCHI49.5 (3 h11)
3 h12 r1/4120Reynir SigurðssonISL51.4 (3 h12)
4 h1 r1/4115Georgios KarageorgosGRE54.5 (4 h1)
4 h2 r1/4103Jaime AparicioCOL50.8 (4 h2)
4 h3 r1/4104Mario RosasCOL51.4 (4 h3)
4 h4 r1/426Ángel GarcíaCUB50.2 (4 h4)
4 h7 r1/4130Walter KellerSUI50.3 (4 h7)
4 h8 r1/4109Olavi TaljaFIN50.4 (4 h8)
4 h9 r1/4110Tauno SuvantoFIN51.5 (4 h9)
4 h10 r1/4133Kemal HoruluTUR51.5 (4 h10)
4 h11 r1/438Stefanos PetrakisGRE54.5 (4 h11)
4 h12 r1/4101Jaime ItlmanCHI51.5 (4 h12)
5 h2 r1/493Guillermo EvansARG51.8 (5 h2)
5 h3 r1/4121Labib HassoIRQ56.8 (5 h3)
5 h4 r1/495Bill RamsayAUS50.3 (5 h4)
5 h7 r1/4108Runar HolmbergFIN50.6 (5 h7)
5 h8 r1/4131Max TreppSUI50.9 (5 h8)
5 h9 r1/4132Doğan AcarbayTUR53.0 (5 h9)
5 h12 r1/4114Stylianos StratakosGRE52.8 (5 h12)
DNS92Rodolfo CarreraARG– (DNS h1)
DNS105Herluf ChristensenDEN– (DNS h5)
DNS106Niels Holst-SørensenDEN– (DNS h1)
DNS124Doug HarrisNZL– (DNS h3)
DNS309Santiago FerrandoPER– (DNS h6)
DNS22Duncan WhiteSRI– (DNS h10)
DNS74Mario FayosURU– (DNS h11)
DNS137Jerko BulićYUG– (DNS h5)

Round One (4 August 1948 — 15:30)

Top two in each heat advanced to the quarter-finals.

Heat One

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
12Jimmy ReardonIRL48.448.4Q
26Marko RačičYUG50.5Q
34Chen YinglangCHN50.9
45Georgios KarageorgosGRE54.5
DNS3Rodolfo CarreraARG
DNS1Niels Holst-SørensenDEN

Heat Two

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Herb McKenleyJAM48.448.6Q
22Rune LarssonSWE49.2Q
35Ferenc BánhalmiHUN49.6
44Jaime AparicioCOL50.8
53Guillermo EvansARG51.8

Heat Three

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
16Zvonko SabolovićYUG49.949.9Q
22Kurt LundquistSWE50.0Q
33Antonio PocovíARG50.7
44Mario RosasCOL51.4
55Labib HassoIRQ56.8
DNS1Doug HarrisNZL

Heat Four

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
15George RhodenJAM48.448.7Q
21Dennis ShoreRSA49.0Q
32Oskar HardmeierSUI49.2
44Ángel GarcíaCUB50.2
53Bill RamsayAUS50.3

Heat Five

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Jacques LunisFRA49.349.3Q
22Folke AlnevikSWE50.2Q
35Carlos MongesMEX50.9
DNS4Herluf ChristensenDEN
DNS3Jerko BulićYUG

Heat Six

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Dave BolenUSA50.150.2Q
22John BartramAUS50.8Q
33Hazzard DillBER53.0
DNS4Santiago FerrandoPER

Heat Seven

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Les LewisGBR48.949.0Q
22Bjørn VadeNOR49.6Q
33Ernie McCulloughCAN49.9
45Walter KellerSUI50.3
54Runar HolmbergFIN50.6

Heat Eight

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Mal WhitfieldUSA48.3Q
22Bill RobertsGBR48.9Q
33Don McFarlaneCAN49.5
44Olavi TaljaFIN50.4
55Max TreppSUI50.9

Heat Nine

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Arthur WintJAM47.747.7Q
22Francis SchewettaFRA48.9Q
33John De SaramSRI51.2
44Tauno SuvantoFIN51.5
55Doğan AcarbayTUR53.0

Heat Ten

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Morris CurottaAUS49.149.2Q
22Rosalvo RamosBRA49.2Q
34Raymond CrapetFRA49.4
45Kemal HoruluTUR51.5
DNS3Duncan WhiteSRI

Heat Eleven

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11George GuidaUSA49.049.1Q
22Derek PughGBR49.3Q
33Gustavo EhlersCHI49.5
44Stefanos PetrakisGRE54.5
DNS5Mario FayosURU

Heat Twelve

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
15Herman KunnenBEL50.050.0Q
21Bob McFarlaneCAN50.6Q
32Reynir SigurðssonISL51.4
43Jaime ItlmanCHI51.5
54Stylianos StratakosGRE52.8

Quarter-Finals (4 August 1948 — 17:15)

Top three in each heat advanced to the semi-finals.

Heat One

PosNrAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
1136Mal WhitfieldUSA48.048.2Q
252George RhodenJAM48.6Q
380Rosalvo RamosBRA48.7Q
4116Les LewisGBR49.2
5139Zvonko SabolovićYUG49.5
6126Folke AlnevikSWE50.6

Heat Two

PosNrAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
1122Arthur WintJAM47.747.9Q
25Morris CurottaAUS48.4Q
363Dennis ShoreRSA48.5Q
4118Bill RobertsGBR48.6
5125Bjørn VadeNOR49.7

Heat Three

PosNrAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
190Herb McKenleyJAM48.048.0Q
2135George GuidaUSA48.048.06Q
3128Rune LarssonSWE48.8Q
44John BartramAUS49.9
5113Francis SchewettaFRA49.9
6138Marko RačičYUG52.1
DNS96Herman KunnenBEL

Heat Four

PosNrAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
1134Dave BolenUSA48.048.1Q
2107Jimmy ReardonIRL48.3Q
398Bob McFarlaneCAN48.4Q
4127Kurt LundquistSWE48.4
5117Derek PughGBR48.8
6112Jacques LunisFRA48.9

Semi-Finals (5 August 1948 — 15:00)

Top three in each heat advanced to the final.

Heat One

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
12Arthur WintJAM46.346.5Q
24Morris CurottaAUS47.247.28Q
31Mal WhitfieldUSA47.447.46Q
46George RhodenJAM47.747.76
53Jimmy ReardonIRL47.847.82
DNS5Rune LarssonSWE

Heat Two

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
11Herb McKenleyJAM47.347.3Q
22Dave BolenUSA47.947.97Q
33George GuidaUSA48.348.40Q
45Dennis ShoreRSA48.848.73
56Rosalvo RamosBRA49.149.23
64Bob McFarlaneCAN51.7

Final (5 August 1948 — 16:45)

PosLaneAthleteNOCTime (H)Time (A)
13Arthur WintJAM46.246.3=OR
22Herb McKenleyJAM46.446.53
34Mal WhitfieldUSA46.946.96
41Dave BolenUSA47.247.20
55Morris CurottaAUS47.948.07
66George GuidaUSA50.250.80