Athletics at the 1924 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metres hurdles

The men's 400 metres hurdles event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Sunday, July 6, 1924, and on Monday, July 7, 1924.[1] Twenty-three hurdlers from 13 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation was 4. The event was won by Morgan Taylor of the United States, the fifth consecutive victory by an American in the event. Erik Wilén received silver (following the disqualification of Charles Brookins), Finland's first medal in the men's 400 metres hurdles. Another American, Ivan Riley, took bronze.

Men's 400 metres hurdles
at the Games of the VIII Olympiad
Morgan Taylor
VenueStade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir
DatesJuly 6 (quarterfinals and semifinals)
July 7 (final)
Competitors23 from 13 nations
Winning time52.6
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Morgan Taylor
 United States
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Erik Wilén
 Finland
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Ivan Riley
 United States
← 1920
1928 →
Official Video

Background

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This was the fifth time the event was held. It had been introduced along with the men's 200 metres hurdles in 1900, with the 200 being dropped after 1904 and the 400 being held through 1908 before being left off the 1912 programme. However, when the Olympics returned in 1920 after World War I, the men's 400 metres hurdles was back and would continue to be contested at every Games thereafter.

One of the six finalists from the 1920 Games returned: fourth-place finisher Géo André of France. The event, a very unusual one before 1920, was becoming more common; the AAU had added it to its programme. Morgan Taylor was the AAU champion and U.S. trials winner.[2]

Argentina, Chile, Denmark, Greece, and Italy each made their debut in the event. The United States made its fifth appearance, the only nation to have competed at every edition of the event to that point.

Competition format

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The competition featured the three-round format introduced in 1908: quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. Ten sets of hurdles were set on the course. The hurdles were 3 feet (91.5 centimetres) tall and were placed 35 metres apart beginning 45 metres from the starting line, resulting in a 40 metres home stretch after the last hurdle.

There were 6 quarterfinal heats, with between 3 and 5 athletes each. The top 2 men in each quarterfinal advanced to the semifinals. The 12 semifinalists were divided into 2 semifinals of 6 athletes each, with the top 3 in each semifinal advancing to the 6-man final.[2]

As with all other races the track was 500 metres in circumference.

Records

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These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1924 Summer Olympics.

World record   Frank Loomis (USA) 54.0 Antwerp, Belgium 16 August 1920
Olympic record   Frank Loomis (USA) 54.0 Antwerp, Belgium 16 August 1920

Morgan Taylor won the U.S. trials in a time of 52.6 but he also knocked over a hurdle, which was against the rules in force at that time. He did the same in the final of this competition so the time he set, again 52.6, was also not ratified as world record. As the second placed Erik Wilén used a similar style his 53.8 were also not accepted as world record but tolerated as Olympic record.

Schedule

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Date Time Round
Sunday, 6 July 1924 14:00
16:30
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Monday, 7 July 1924 15:00 Final

Results

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Quarterfinals

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All heats were held on Sunday, July 6, 1924.

The best two finishers of every heat qualified for the semifinals.

Quarterfinal 1

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Charles Brookins   United States 54.8 Q
2 Humberto Lara   Chile 56.5 Q
3 Philip MacDonald   Canada 56.8

Quarterfinal 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Chan Coulter   United States 55.0 Q
2 Erik Wilén   Finland 55.3 Q
3 Louis Lundgren   Denmark 56.0
Pierre Arnaudin   France DNF

Quarterfinal 3

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Géo André   France 56.0 Q
2 Henri Thorsen   Denmark 57.2 Q
3 Ioannis Talianos   Greece 58.0

Quarterfinal 4

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Roger Viel   France 57.2 Q
2 Martti Jukola   Finland 57.7 Q
3 Wilfrid Tatham   Great Britain 58.5

Quarterfinal 5

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Morgan Taylor   United States 55.8 Q
2 Frederick Blackett   Great Britain 56.9 Q
3 Enrique Thompson   Argentina 57.0
4 Richard Honner   Australia 58.5
5 André Fouache   France 60.0

Quarterfinal 6

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Ivan Riley   United States 55.4 Q
2 Luigi Facelli   Italy 56.4 Q
3 Jules Migeot   Belgium 56.7
4 Warren Montabone   Canada Unknown
5 Oscar van Rappard   Netherlands Unknown

Semifinals

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All semifinals were held on Sunday, July 6, 1924.

The best three finishers of each heat qualified for the final.

Semifinal 1

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Charles Brookins   United States 54.6 Q
2 Morgan Taylor   United States 54.9 Q
3 Erik Wilén   Finland 55.4 Q
4 Luigi Facelli   Italy 55.6
5 Roger Viel   France 56.7
6 Henri Thorsen   Denmark 57.3

Semifinal 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Ivan Riley   United States 56.6 Q
2 Géo André   France 56.7 Q
3 Frederick Blackett   Great Britain 58.4 Q
4 Chan Coulter   United States 58.6
5 Martti Jukola   Finland 58.6
6 Humberto Lara   Chile 59.0

Final

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The final was held on Monday, July 7, 1924.

Frederick Blackett was disqualified for two false starts. After the race, Morgan Taylor's time was rejected as a world record because he knocked over a hurdle, which was against the rules in force at that time, while Charles Brookins, who had crossed the finish line in second, was disqualified for running out of his lane. As such, Erik Wilén was credited with an Olympic record, but his time was not ratified as world record.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
  Morgan Taylor   United States 52.6 OR
  Erik Wilén   Finland 53.8
  Ivan Riley   United States 54.2
4 Géo André   France 56.2
Charles Brookins   United States DSQ
Frederick Blackett   Great Britain DSQ

Results summary

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Rank Athlete Nation Quarterfinals Semifinals Final Notes
  Morgan Taylor   United States 55.8 54.9 52.6 OR
  Erik Wilén   Finland 55.3 55.4 53.8
  Ivan Riley   United States 55.4 56.6 54.2
4 Géo André   France 56.0 56.7 56.2
5 Charles Brookins   United States 54.8 54.6 DSQ
Frederick Blackett   Great Britain 56.9 58.4 DSQ
7 Luigi Facelli   Italy 56.4 55.6 Did not advance
8 Roger Viel   France 57.2 56.7
9 Henri Thorsen   Denmark 57.2 57.3
10 Chan Coulter   United States 55.0 58.6
11 Martti Jukola   Finland 57.7 58.6
12 Humberto Lara   Chile 56.5 59.0
13 Louis Lundgren   Denmark 56.0 Did not advance
14 Jules Migeot   Belgium 56.7
15 Philip MacDonald   Canada 56.8
16 Enrique Thompson   Argentina 57.0
17 Ioannis Talianos   Greece 58.0
18 Richard Honner   Australia 58.5
Wilfrid Tatham   Great Britain 58.5
20 André Fouache   France 1:00.0
21 Warren Montabone   Canada Unknown
22 Oscar van Rappard   Netherlands Unknown
23 Pierre Arnaudin   France DNF

References

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  1. ^ "Athletics at the 1924 Paris Summer Games: Men's 400 metres Hurdles". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  2. ^ a b "400 metres Hurdles, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
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