1996 Summer Olympics / Athletics - 400 m (women)
![]() |
|||||||||
sport | athletics | ||||||||
discipline | 400 meter run | ||||||||
gender | Women | ||||||||
Attendees | 49 athletes from 35 countries | ||||||||
Competition location | Centennial Olympic Stadium | ||||||||
Competition phase | July 26, 1996 (preliminary round) July 27, 1996 (quarter-finals) July 28, 1996 (semi-finals) July 29, 1996 (final) |
||||||||
|
The women's 400-meter run at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta was held on July 26, 27, 28 and 29, 1996 at the Centennial Olympic Stadium . 49 athletes took part.
The Olympic champion was Marie-José Pérec from France . She won ahead of the Australian Cathy Freeman and the Nigerian Falilat Ogunkoya .
Grit Breuer started for Germany and reached the final and finished eighth there.
The Swiss Corinne Simasotchi failed in the preliminary round.
Athletes from Austria and Liechtenstein did not take part.
Current titleholders
Olympic champion in 1992 |
Marie-José Pérec ( France )
![]() |
48.83 s | Barcelona 1992 |
World Champion 1995 | 49.28 s | Gothenburg 1995 | |
European champion in 1994 | 50.33 s | Helsinki 1994 | |
Pan American Champion 1995 |
Julia Duporty ( Cuba )
![]() |
50.77 s | Mar del Plata 1995 |
Central America and Caribbean champion 1995 |
Idalmis Bonne ( Cuba )
![]() |
50.95 s | Guatemala City 1995 |
South America Champion 1995 |
Ximena Restrepo ( Colombia )
![]() |
51.93 s | Manaus 1995 |
Asian champion 1995 | Zhang Hengyun ( People's Republic of China )
![]() |
52.06 s | Jakarta 1995 |
African champion 1996 | Saidat Onanuga ( Nigeria )
![]() |
52.85 s | Yaoundé 1996 |
Oceania champion 1994 | Mary Estelle Kapalu ( Vanuatu )
![]() |
55.72 s | Auckland 1994 |
Existing records
World record | 47.80 s |
Marita Koch ( GDR )
![]() |
Canberra , Australia | October 6, 1985 |
Olympic record | 48.65 s |
Olha Bryshina ( Soviet Union )
![]() |
Final from Seoul , South Korea | September 26, 1988 |
Preliminary round
Date: July 26, 1996
The athletes competed in a total of seven preliminary runs. The first four athletes per run qualified for the quarter-finals. In addition, the four fastest times, the so-called lucky losers , made it through. The directly qualified runners are highlighted in light blue, the lucky losers in light green.
Forward 1
Ahamada Haoulata, along with her teammates Hassan Abdou and Mohamed Bakar, was one of the first Comoros to take part in the Olympic Games.
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Pauline Davis |
![]() |
51.00 s | |
2 | Svetlana Goncharenko |
![]() |
51.07 s | |
3 | Phylis Smith |
![]() |
51.29 s | |
4th | Renée Poetschka |
![]() |
51.55 s | |
5 | Theodora Kyriakou |
![]() |
52.09 s | |
6th | Grace Birungi |
![]() |
53.12 s | |
7th | Ahamada Haoulata |
![]() |
1: 03.44 min |
Forward 2
Jana Manujlowa was one of the first athletes from Ukraine who competed for Ukraine at the Olympic Games.
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Maicel Malone |
![]() |
51.28 s | |
2 | Juliet Campbell |
![]() |
51.57 s | |
3 | Grace-Ann Dinkins |
![]() |
51.83 s | |
4th | Olga Kotlyarova |
![]() |
51.90 s | |
5 | Hana Benešová |
![]() |
52.28 s | |
6th | Jana Manujlowa |
![]() |
52.51 s | |
7th | Ameerah Bello |
![]() |
53.40 s |
Forward 3
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Kim Graham |
![]() |
51.70 s | |
2 | Helena Fuchsová |
![]() |
51.71 s | |
3 | Fatima Yusuf |
![]() |
52.25 s | |
4th | Lee Naylor |
![]() |
52.53 s | |
5 | Olena Rurak |
![]() |
52.92 s | |
6th | Marina Živković |
![]() |
53.10 s | |
7th | Melrose Mansaray |
![]() |
54.37 s |
Forward 4
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Virna De Angeli |
![]() |
51.68 s | |
2 | Sandie Richards |
![]() |
51.79 s | |
3 | Marie-José Pérec |
![]() |
51.82 s | |
4th | LaDonna Antoine |
![]() |
51.99 s | |
5 | Ngozi Mwanamwambwa |
![]() |
54.12 s | |
6th | Mercy Addy |
![]() |
54.92 s | |
DNF | Ximena Restrepo |
![]() |
Forward 5
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jearl Miles |
![]() |
51.96 s | |
2 | Grit Breuer |
![]() |
52.20 s | |
3 | Merlene Frazer |
![]() |
52.20 s | |
4th | Maria Magnólia Figueiredo |
![]() |
52.41 s | |
5 | Diane Francis |
![]() |
52.48 s | |
6th | Melissa Straker |
![]() |
52.92 s | |
7th | Guilhermina da Cruz |
![]() |
55.42 s |
Forward 6
Svetlana Bodritskaja was one of the first athletes from Kazakhstan to take part in the Olympic Games for Kazakhstan.
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sandra Myers |
![]() |
52.54 s | |
2 | Falilat Ogunkoya |
![]() |
52.65 s | |
3 | Donna Fraser |
![]() |
52.78 s | |
4th | Naděžda Koštovalová |
![]() |
53.03 s | |
5 | Svetlana Bodritskaya |
![]() |
53.24 s | |
6th | You Xiujie |
![]() |
53.95 s | |
7th | Arely Franco |
![]() |
1: 01.38 min |
Forward 7
Hanna Kosak was one of the first athletes from Belarus to take part in the Olympic Games for Belarus.
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Olabisi Afolabi |
![]() |
51.80 s | |
2 | Cathy Freeman |
![]() |
51.99 s | |
3 | Hanna Kosak |
![]() |
52.39 s | |
4th | Patrizia Spuri |
![]() |
52.45 s | |
5 | Zoila Stewart |
![]() |
52.66 s | |
6th | Corinne Simasotchi |
![]() |
53.69 s | |
7th | Denise Ouabangui |
![]() |
55.74 s |
Quarter finals
Date: July 27, 1996
From the four quarter-finals, the first four athletes in each run qualified for the semi-finals (highlighted in light blue).
Run 1
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Cathy Freeman |
![]() |
50.43 s | |
2 | Grit Breuer |
![]() |
50.57 s | |
3 | Kim Graham |
![]() |
50.96 s | |
4th | Olabisi Afolabi |
![]() |
51.07 s | |
5 | Hana Benešová |
![]() |
51.30 s | |
6th | Olga Kotlyarova |
![]() |
51.36 s | |
7th | Donna Fraser |
![]() |
51.58 s | |
8th | Theodora Kyriakou |
![]() |
52.26 s |
Run 2
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Marie-José Pérec |
![]() |
51.00 s | |
2 | Pauline Davis |
![]() |
51.08 s | |
3 | Juliet Campbell |
![]() |
51.17 s | |
4th | Svetlana Goncharenko |
![]() |
51.35 s | |
5 | Maria Magnólia Figueiredo |
![]() |
51.98 s | |
6th | LaDonna Antoine |
![]() |
52.03 s | |
7th | Grace-Ann Dinkins |
![]() |
52.53 s | |
8th | Jana Manujlowa |
![]() |
52.82 s |
Run 3
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Falilat Ogunkoya |
![]() |
50.65 s | |
2 | Jearl Miles |
![]() |
50.84 s | |
3 | Sandie Richards |
![]() |
51.22 s | |
4th | Renée Poetschka |
![]() |
51.33 s | |
5 | Virna De Angeli |
![]() |
51.77 s | |
6th | Hanna Kosak |
![]() |
52.14 s | |
7th | Diane Francis |
![]() |
52.24 s | |
8th | Naděžda Koštovalová |
![]() |
53.21 s |
Run 4
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Maicel Malone |
![]() |
51.16 s | |
2 | Fatima Yusuf |
![]() |
51.27 s | |
3 | Sandra Myers |
![]() |
51.53 s | |
4th | Merlene Frazer |
![]() |
51.57 s | |
5 | Helena Fuchsová |
![]() |
51.70 s | |
6th | Phylis Smith |
![]() |
52.16 s | |
7th | Patrizia Spuri |
![]() |
52.78 s | |
8th | Lee Naylor |
![]() |
53.75 s |
Semifinals
Date: July 28, 1996
From the two semi-finals, the first four runners qualified for the final (highlighted in light blue).
Run 1
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Cathy Freeman |
![]() |
50.32 s | |
2 | Fatima Yusuf |
![]() |
50.36 s | |
3 | Sandie Richards |
![]() |
50.74 s | |
4th | Grit Breuer |
![]() |
50.75 s | |
5 | Kim Graham |
![]() |
51.13 s | |
6th | Maicel Malone |
![]() |
51.16 s | |
7th | Merlene Frazer |
![]() |
51.18 s | |
8th | Olabisi Afolabi |
![]() |
51.40 s |
Run 2
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Marie-José Pérec |
![]() |
49.19 s | |
2 | Falilat Ogunkoya |
![]() |
49.57 s | |
3 | Pauline Davis |
![]() |
49.85 s | |
4th | Jearl Miles |
![]() |
50.21 s | |
5 | Svetlana Goncharenko |
![]() |
50.84 s | |
6th | Sandra Myers |
![]() |
51.42 s | |
7th | Renée Poetschka |
![]() |
51.49 s | |
8th | Juliet Campbell |
![]() |
51.65 s |
final
space | Surname | nation | time | annotation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Marie-José Pérec |
![]() |
48.25 s | OR |
2 | Cathy Freeman |
![]() |
48.63 s | |
3 | Falilat Ogunkoya |
![]() |
49.10 s | |
4th | Pauline Davis |
![]() |
49.28 s | |
5 | Jearl Miles |
![]() |
49.55 s | |
6th | Fatima Yusuf |
![]() |
49.77 s | |
7th | Sandie Richards |
![]() |
50.45 s | |
8th | Grit Breuer |
![]() |
50.71 s |
Date: July 29, 1996
Two Nigerians and one starter each from Australia, the Bahamas, Germany, France, Jamaica and the USA qualified for the final.
The favorite for the gold medal was the 1992 Olympic champion and reigning world champion Marie-José Pérec from France. She intended to start over 200 meters and win gold there as well, an endeavor that only the US athlete Valerie Brisco-Hooks had succeeded in the 1984 Olympic Games before her . Other medal candidates were vice world champion Pauline Davis from the Bahamas, the US World Cup third Jearl Miles and the World Cup fourth Cathy Freeman, Australia.
The final race was determined on the first half by Pérec, Freeman and Davis. Leading Pérec was put under heavy pressure by Freeman in the corner, while Davis lost more and more ground. When it hit the home stretch, Pérec was still in the lead, just ahead of Freeman. Davis was still third, but two Nigerians, Falilat Ogunkoya and Fatima Yusuf, were hot on her heels. In the end, Marie-José Pérec had more reserves and with the better stamina she was Olympic champion ahead of Cathy Freeman. The French improved Olha Bryshina's Olympic record by four tenths of a second. Freeman also beat the old record in second. Falilat Ogunkoya came in third ahead of Pauline Davis. Jearl Miles finished fifth ahead of Fatima Yusuf with a strong final straight.
Three days later, Marie-José Pérec also won the 200 meter competition, succeeding Valerie Brisco-Hooks as a double winner. The US athlete Michael Johnson was also Olympic champion on both long sprint courses in Atlanta .
Falilat Ogunkoya was the first Nigerian medalist.
literature
- Gerd Rubenbauer (Ed.), Olympic Summer Games Atlanta 1996 with reports by Britta Kruse, Johannes Ebert, Andreas Schmidt and Ernst Christian Schütt, comments: Gerd Rubenbauer and Hans Schwarz, Chronik Verlag im Bertelsmann Verlag, Gütersloh / Munich 1996, p. 45– 47
Web links
- SportsReference 400m , accessed March 6, 2018
- Official Report, Part III on the Olympic Games in Atlanta , p. 73f, English / French (PDF, 13,520 MB), accessed on March 6, 2018
Video
- Women's 400m Final Atlanta Olympics 1996 , published June 20, 2016 on youtube.com, accessed March 6, 2018
Individual evidence
- ↑ IAAF Statistics Handbook, Beijing 2015, page 794 , accessed on March 6, 2018
- ↑ Official Report, Part III on the Olympic Games in Atlanta ( Memento of the original from October 7, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , P. 73f, English / French (PDF, 13,520 MB), accessed on March 6, 2018
- ↑ a b c Official Report, Part III on the Olympic Games in Atlanta ( Memento of the original from October 7, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , P. 74, English / French (PDF, 13,520 MB), accessed on March 6, 2018