Men's 400 Meter Finals Were HISTORIC! __ 2024 Paris Olympic Games
Men's 400 Meter Finals Were HISTORIC! __ 2024 Paris Olympic Games
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00:00It is finally time for one of the most anticipated and intense finals that we will see in 2024.
00:10It's the men's 400 meter finals featuring some of the fastest athletes in recent memory.
00:15In this final, we have so many historic names set to compete.
00:19We have Karani James from Grenada, a three-time Olympic medalist looking to make it four.
00:24We have the 2022 world champion, Michael Norman.
00:27We have the world's fastest athlete this season in Matthew Hudson-Smith from Great
00:30Britain.
00:31And we have many other incredible athletes such as Doreem Richards, Musala Samukonga,
00:37and Christopher Bailey from the US.
00:39Also a big shout out to Samuel Ogazi from Nigeria, who ran a time of 44.41 in the qualifying
00:45rounds.
00:46And speaking of that semis, we saw something that we have never seen before, because this
00:51was the fastest 400 meter semis in history.
00:54Here's a crazy fact for you, in 2023, the 400 meter world champion was Antonio Watson
01:00from Jamaica, who achieved a time of 44.22 seconds.
01:05And unbelievably, we had not one, not two, not even three, but four athletes running
01:10faster than that world championship gold medal in this year's semifinals.
01:15For these semis, these athletes went absolutely crazy, with Karani James leading the way at
01:1943.78 seconds.
01:23To get under 44 is already an all time achievement, as only 24 athletes in the history of the
01:29men's 400 have gone under 44.
01:31And yet, we saw three in the semifinals getting under 44.
01:36There is a reason why many announcers, commentators, and fans are saying that this could be one
01:40of the fastest 400 meter races of all time.
01:44Because with a semifinals like this, which demanded a time of 44.41 seconds just to qualify
01:50into the finals, we are certainly set to see something incredible come this year's finals.
01:55Now right now, the fastest man in the world still stands with Matthew Hudson-Smith from
01:59Great Britain, who holds a season's best of 43.74 seconds.
02:04This time was achieved on home soil for Hudson-Smith, as he achieved this world number one ranking
02:08at this year's Diamond League meeting in London.
02:11This world leading mark puts him as one of the clear favorites for this Olympic final.
02:15And what's also at stake is some intense history for Great Britain, because Great Britain has
02:20not won a men's 400 title in the Olympics since 1924, exactly 100 years ago at the Paris
02:27Olympics.
02:28So if Hudson-Smith does achieve such a gold, it would be one of the greatest moments not
02:32just for Hudson-Smith, but for Great Britain as well.
02:35Now as we mentioned, Karani James had the fastest qualifying time with a run of 43.78.
02:41And since 2012, when he won the Olympic gold in this event, he has won every single medal
02:46in the 400.
02:47In 2016, he won the silver, and then in the 2020 Olympics, he won the bronze medal in
02:51the 400.
02:52But given this insane qualifying time, he is also looking to be one of the clear favorites
02:57for a medal.
02:58Now the current world record stands at 43.03 seconds, set by Wade Van Niekerk back in 2016.
03:05And this record has stood strong against any other competition by more than three-tenths
03:09of a second since it was set now eight years ago.
03:12But some people are actually calling for these athletes to challenge that mark of Wade
03:16Van Niekerk.
03:17And even though this world record is considered as one of the greatest all-time records in
03:21track history, perhaps these athletes can challenge a 43.03.
03:26So now, without further ado, let's head down to the track and see how this men's
03:30400 final unfolded.
03:33After a fair start, these athletes got off to a burning opening 100.
03:37And through the opening 100 meters, the athlete that was leading was Jereme Richards in 10.69
03:42seconds, followed by Karani James in 10.75, followed by Matthew Hudson-Smith in 10.81.
03:48This is a very quick opening 100, and through the 200 meter mark, Jereme Richards was a
03:53man on a mission, splitting a time of 20.46, with Hudson-Smith close in 20.62, and Karani
04:00James was right behind in 20.63.
04:03This is pretty much world record tempo at this point, and it's almost a guarantee
04:07that the first half will be faster than the second half.
04:10Because if this race ended up being an even split, that would put Jereme Richards under
04:1441 seconds, which was not going to happen.
04:17Now through the 300 meter mark, things officially started to change, with Hudson-Smith making
04:22his move, dropping a split time of 31.35.
04:25At this point in the race, he was already moving past Jereme Richards, and beyond that,
04:29he was pretty much gapping everyone else in the field.
04:32However, over the final 50 meters, Quincy Hall from the United States turned on the
04:38smoke, and he ended up taking this win with a time of 43.40 seconds.
04:44This is now the 4th fastest time ever run in the Open 400, now only falling behind Wade
04:49Van Niekerk, Butch Reynolds, and Michael Johnson, and this was the perfect race at the perfect
04:54time for Quincy Hall.
04:56Now finishing in 2nd was Matthew Hudson-Smith in 43.44 seconds, which now makes him the
05:015th fastest athlete of all time, and this destroyed his own European record by 3 full
05:07tenths of a second.
05:08And speaking of his previous European record, Musala Samakonga from Zambia ended up bringing
05:13home the bronze medal in 43.74 seconds.
05:17Now rounding out these top 8 were Jereme Richards in 4th, who ran a splendid time of 43.78 to
05:24again break a national record, and finishing in 5th was Karani James, followed by Christopher
05:28Bailey, Samuel Ogazi, and finishing in 8th was Michael Norman in 45.62.
05:34I'm not exactly sure if something happened with Michael Norman, but he did not run the
05:38race that he clearly wanted.
05:40Thanks for watching everyone, and as always, until next time.