Athletics at the 1920 Summer Olympics – Men's 200 metres

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The men's 200 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Thursday, August 19, 1920, and on Friday, August 20, 1920. Forty-eight sprinters from 22 nations competed.[1] Nations were limited to 4 athletes each, down from the 12 allowed in previous Games. The event was won by Allen Woodring of the United States, the nation's second consecutive victory in the event and fourth in five Games. Fellow American Charley Paddock took silver. Great Britain reached the podium for a second consecutive Games with Harry Edward's bronze.

DatesAugust 19, 1920 (round 1 & quarterfinals)
August 20, 1920 (semifinals & final)
Competitors48 from 22 nations
Winning time22.0
Quick facts Men's 200 metres at the Games of the VII Olympiad, Venue ...
Men's 200 metres
at the Games of the VII Olympiad
The finish of the final, with Allen Woodring beating Charley Paddock
VenueOlympisch Stadion
DatesAugust 19, 1920 (round 1 & quarterfinals)
August 20, 1920 (semifinals & final)
Competitors48 from 22 nations
Winning time22.0
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Allen Woodring  United States
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Charley Paddock  United States
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Harry Edward  Great Britain
 1912
1924 
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Background

This was the fifth appearance of the event, which was not held at the first Olympics in 1896 but has been on the program ever since. None of the finalists from the pre-war 1912 Games returned. The favorite was Charley Paddock, winner of the U.S. trials and the 1919 Inter-Allied Championships. The strongest non-American competitor was Harry Edward of Great Britain, the 1920 AAA champion.[2]

Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Luxembourg, Monaco, New Zealand, Spain, and Switzerland each made their debut in the event. The United States made its fifth appearance, the only nation to have competed at each edition of the 200 metres to date.

Competition format

The competition expanded to four rounds: heats, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. There were 12 heats of between 3 and 5 runners each, with the top 2 men in each advancing to the quarterfinals. The quarterfinals consisted of 5 heats of between 4 and 5 athletes each; the two fastest men in each heat advanced to the semifinals. There were 2 semifinals, each with 5 runners. In that round, the top three athletes advanced. The final had 6 runners.[2]

The race was run on a 390-metre track that was wet and soft.[2]

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1920 Summer Olympics.

More information World record, Olympic record ...
World record  Willie Applegarth (GBR)*21.2 London, United Kingdom4 July 1914
Olympic record  Archie Hahn (USA)**21.6 St. Louis, United States31 August 1904[3]
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* unofficial 220 yards (= 201.17 m)

** straight course

No new world or Olympic records were set during the competition.

Schedule

More information Date, Time ...
Date Time Round
Thursday, 19 August 192014:00
16:00
Round 1
Quarterfinals
Friday, 20 August 192014:45
16:00
Semifinals
Final
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Results

Times were generally only published for the winners of each heat. Some of the times listed below are estimates based on contemporary reports of the races.[4]

Round 1

Heat 1

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Heat 2

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Heat 3

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RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1Vojtěch Plzák Czechoslovakia23.4Q
2William Hill Great Britain23.8Q
3Marcel Gustin Belgium24.3
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Heat 4

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Heat 5

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RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1Robert Caste France23.0Q
2Harold Abrahams Great Britain23.3Q
3Willie Bukes South Africa23.4
4Rolf Stenersen Norway23.8
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Heat 6

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Heat 7

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RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1Sven Krokström Sweden23.8Q
2Max Houben Belgium24.2Q
3Dimitrios Karambatis Greece24.2
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Heat 8

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Heat 9

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Heat 10

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Heat 11

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RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1René Lorain France25.0Q
2Albert Heijnneman Netherlands25.4Q
3Cyril Coaffee Canada
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Heat 12

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RankAthleteNationTimeNotes
1Morris Kirksey United States23.4Q
2Josef Imbach Switzerland23.5Q
3Jean-René Seurin France23.6
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Quarterfinals

Quarterfinal 1

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Quarterfinal 2

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Quarterfinal 3

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Quarterfinal 4

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Quarterfinal 5

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Semifinals

Semifinal 1

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Semifinal 2

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Final

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References

Further reading

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