| | Event type
400 metres, Men
| Date | 17 – 19 October 1964 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Kokuritsu Kyogijo, Shinjuku, Tokyo |
| Participants | 50 from 33 countries |
The best 400 runner in 1964 was probably Henry Carr, but he chose to run only the 200, in which he won the gold medal. Ulis Williams had won the AAU title in 1962-63 and was likely the favorite until the Olympic Trials. There, he finished second to Mike Larrabee, who won the event in a world-record equaling 44.9. Britain’s Robbie Brightwell was also a challenger, having won the 1962 European Championship, as was Trinidad’s Wendell Mottley. In the final, Mottley led thru 200 metres over Poland’s Andrzej Badeński. Larrabee was almost in last place but pulled up to fifth at 300 metres, and then closed quickly to catch Mottley 10 metres from the line, Badeński holding on for the bronze medal. Brightwell was disappointed to be out of the medals, but his fiancé, Ann Packer, would win gold for the family in the women’s 800. Williams was never a factor in the final.
| Pos | Nr | Athlete | NOC | R1 | QF | SF | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 709 | Mike Larrabee |  USA | 46.8 (1 h6) | 46.5 (1 h3) | 46.0 (1 h2) | 45.1 (1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | 613 | Wendell Mottley |  TTO | 45.9 (1 h1) | 45.8 (1 h1) | 45.9 (2 h1) | 45.2 (2) | Silver | ||
| 3 | 495 | Andrzej Badeński |  POL | 46.4 (1 h3) | 46.5 (1 h2) | 46.2 (2 h2) | 45.6 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 153 | Robbie Brightwell |  GBR | 46.1 (2 h1) | 47.1 (3 h3) | 45.7 (1 h1) | 45.7 (4) | |||
| 5 | 710 | Ulis Williams | USA | 46.2 (1 h4) | 46.9 (2 h4) | 46.2 (3 h1) | 46.0 (5) | |||
| 6 | 154 | Tim Graham | GBR | 48.4 (4 h2) | 46.8 (3 h2) | 46.5 (4 h2) | 46.0 (6) | |||
| 7 | 9 | Peter Vassella |  AUS | 46.7 (4 h4) | 46.5 (4 h1) | 46.5 (4 h1) | 46.3 (7) | |||
| 8 | 614 | Edwin Skinner | TTO | 46.5 (2 h4) | 46.9 (1 h4) | 46.5 (3 h2) | 46.8 (8) | |||
| 5 h1 r3/4 | 199 | Jörg Jüttner |  GER | 47.0 (3 h3) | 47.2 (4 h3) | 46.7 (5 h1) | – | |||
| 5 h2 r3/4 | 708 | Ollan Cassell | USA | 46.8 (1 h5) | 46.2 (2 h1) | 46.6 (5 h2) | – | |||
| 6 h1 r3/4 | 376 | Laurie Khan |  JAM | 47.2 (3 h7) | 46.9 (4 h2) | 47.0 (6 h1) | – | |||
| 6 h2 r3/4 | 57 | Bill Crothers |  CAN | 46.8 (2 h5) | 46.7 (2 h2) | 46.9 (6 h2) | – | |||
| 7 h1 r3/4 | 96 | Tegegne Bezabeh |  ETH | 46.7 (3 h4) | 47.2 (3 h4) | 47.1 (7 h1) | – | |||
| 7 h2 r3/4 | 612 | Kent Bernard | TTO | 46.8 (1 h2) | 46.7 (2 h3) | 47.1 (7 h2) | – | |||
| 8 h1 r3/4 | 121 | Jean-Pierre Boccardo |  FRA | 46.6 (3 h1) | 46.3 (3 h1) | 47.1 (8 h1) | – | |||
| 8 h2 r3/4 | 269 | James Addy |  GHA | 47.2 (3 h5) | 47.3 (4 h4) | 47.6 (8 h2) | – | |||
| 5 h1 r2/4 | 581 | Peter Laeng |  SUI | 47.1 (3 h6) | 46.7 (5 h1) | – | – | |||
| 5 h2 r2/4 | 83 | Josef Trousil |  TCH | 47.0 (1 h7) | 47.2 (5 h2) | – | – | |||
| 5 h3 r2/4 | 377 | Rupert Hoilett | JAM | 47.5 (4 h3) | 47.6 (5 h3) | – | – | |||
| 5 h4 r2/4 | 155 | Adrian Metcalfe | GBR | 46.7 (2 h3) | 47.8 (5 h4) | – | – | |||
| 6 h1 r2/4 | 346 | Sergio Bello |  ITA | 47.5 (2 h2) | 46.9 (6 h1) | – | – | |||
| 6 h2 r2/4 | 201 | Johannes Schmitt | GER | 46.9 (5 h4) | 47.2 (6 h2) | – | – | |||
| 6 h3 r2/4 | 7 | Gary Eddy | AUS | 46.9 (4 h1) | 47.6 (6 h3) | – | – | |||
| 6 h4 r2/4 | 77 | Pedro Grajales |  COL | 47.2 (4 h5) | 47.8 (6 h4) | – | – | |||
| 7 h1 r2/4 | 268 | Ebenezer Quartey | GHA | 47.1 (2 h6) | 47.0 (7 h1) | – | – | |||
| 7 h2 r2/4 | 8 | Ken Roche | AUS | 47.4 (5 h6) | 48.0 (7 h2) | – | – | |||
| 7 h3 r2/4 | 386 | Wilson Kiprugut |  KEN | 47.1 (2 h7) | 47.7 (7 h3) | – | – | |||
| 7 h4 r2/4 | 644 | Viktor Bychkov |  URS | 47.3 (5 h5) | 47.9 (7 h4) | – | – | |||
| 8 h1 r2/4 | 477 | Muhammad Sadiq |  PAK | 47.3 (6 h4) | 48.0 (8 h1) | – | – | |||
| 8 h2 r2/4 | 645 | Grigory Sverbetov | URS | 47.3 (4 h6) | 48.0 (8 h2) | – | – | |||
| 8 h3 r2/4 | 643 | Vadim Arkhipchuk | URS | 47.7 (3 h2) | 47.9 (8 h3) | – | – | |||
| 4 h7 r1/4 | 498 | Ireneusz Kluczek | POL | 47.3 (4 h7) | – (DNS h4) | – | – | |||
| 5 h1 r1/4 | 497 | Stanisław Swatowski | POL | 47.6 (5 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 5 h2 r1/4 | 488 | Arsenio Jazmin |  PHI | 49.9 (5 h2) | – | – | – | |||
| 5 h3 r1/4 | 633 | Amos Omolo |  UGA | 47.6 (5 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 5 h7 r1/4 | 772 | Hortensio Fucil |  VEN | 47.9 (5 h7) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h1 r1/4 | 289 | István Gyulai |  HUN | 48.0 (6 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h3 r1/4 | 1 | Juan Carlos Dyrzka |  ARG | 48.3 (6 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h5 r1/4 | 200 | Jürgen Kalfelder | GER | 47.7 (6 h5) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h6 r1/4 | 597 | Somsak Thongsuk |  THA | 48.9 (6 h6) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h7 r1/4 | 789 | Hirotada Hayase |  JPN | 48.5 (6 h7) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h1 r1/4 | 427 | Didier Mejía |  MEX | 48.1 (7 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h3 r1/4 | 547 | Amadou Gakou |  SEN | 50.1 (7 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h4 r1/4 | 773 | Víctor Maldonado | VEN | 47.7 (7 h4) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h5 r1/4 | 367 | Coulibaly Yoyaga |  CIV | 47.8 (7 h5) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h6 r1/4 | 333 | Jassim Karim |  IRQ | 49.5 (7 h6) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h7 r1/4 | 282 | William Hill |  HKG | 48.7 (7 h7) | – | – | – | |||
| 8 h3 r1/4 | 592 | Daniel Thomas |  TAN | 50.4 (8 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 8 h4 r1/4 | 35 | Jacques Pennewaert |  BEL | 47.7 (8 h4) | – | – | – | |||
| 8 h7 r1/4 | 329 | Hossein Ghafourizadeh |  IRI | 50.8 (8 h7) | – | – | – | |||
| 395 | Chang Jong-Kil |  KOR | – (DNS h1) | – | – | – | ||||
| 274 | Brobbey Mensah | GHA | – (DNS h2) | – | – | – | ||||
| 375 | George Kerr | JAM | – (DNS h5) | – | – | – | ||||
| 405 | Wesley Johnson |  LBR | – (DNS h2) | – | – | – | ||||
| 430 | Dulamyn Amarsanaa |  MGL | – (DNS h2) | – | – | – |
Round One (17 October 1964 — 10:00)
Top four in each heat and next four fastest advanced to the quarter-finals.
Heat One
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Wendell Mottley | TTO | 45.9 | 45.94 | |||
| 2 | 2 | Robbie Brightwell | GBR | 46.1 | 46.13 | |||
| 3 | 3 | Jean-Pierre Boccardo | FRA | 46.6 | 46.63 | |||
| 4 | 8 | Gary Eddy | AUS | 46.9 | 46.92 | |||
| 5 | 5 | Stanisław Swatowski | POL | 47.6 | – | |||
| 6 | 7 | István Gyulai | HUN | 48.0 | – | |||
| 7 | 4 | Didier Mejía | MEX | 48.1 | – | |||
| 1 | Chang Jong-Kil | KOR | – | – |
Heat Two
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Kent Bernard | TTO | 46.8 | 46.80 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Sergio Bello | ITA | 47.5 | 47.54 | |||
| 3 | 4 | Vadim Arkhipchuk | URS | 47.7 | 47.70 | |||
| 4 | 5 | Tim Graham | GBR | 48.4 | – | |||
| 5 | 8 | Arsenio Jazmin | PHI | 49.9 | – | |||
| 6 | Brobbey Mensah | GHA | – | – | ||||
| 7 | Wesley Johnson | LBR | – | – | ||||
| 2 | Dulamyn Amarsanaa | MGL | – | – |
Heat Three
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Andrzej Badeński | POL | 46.4 | 46.46 | |||
| 2 | 4 | Adrian Metcalfe | GBR | 46.7 | 46.79 | |||
| 3 | 2 | Jörg Jüttner | GER | 47.0 | 47.06 | |||
| 4 | 1 | Rupert Hoilett | JAM | 47.5 | 47.50 | |||
| 5 | 3 | Amos Omolo | UGA | 47.6 | 47.65 | |||
| 6 | 6 | Juan Carlos Dyrzka | ARG | 48.3 | – | |||
| 7 | 8 | Amadou Gakou | SEN | 50.1 | – | |||
| 8 | 7 | Daniel Thomas | TAN | 50.4 | – |
Heat Four
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Ulis Williams | USA | 46.2 | 46.20 | |||
| 2 | 2 | Edwin Skinner | TTO | 46.5 | 46.50 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Tegegne Bezabeh | ETH | 46.7 | 46.73 | |||
| 4 | 7 | Peter Vassella | AUS | 46.7 | 46.77 | |||
| 5 | 8 | Johannes Schmitt | GER | 46.9 | 46.90 | |||
| 6 | 5 | Muhammad Sadiq | PAK | 47.3 | – | |||
| 7 | 1 | Víctor Maldonado | VEN | 47.7 | – | |||
| 8 | 3 | Jacques Pennewaert | BEL | 47.7 | – |
Heat Five
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Ollan Cassell | USA | 46.8 | 46.81 | |||
| 2 | 6 | Bill Crothers | CAN | 46.8 | 46.86 | |||
| 3 | 5 | James Addy | GHA | 47.2 | 47.27 | |||
| 4 | 4 | Pedro Grajales | COL | 47.2 | 47.28 | |||
| 5 | 8 | Viktor Bychkov | URS | 47.3 | 47.32 | |||
| 6 | 1 | Jürgen Kalfelder | GER | 47.7 | 47.77 | |||
| 7 | 7 | Coulibaly Yoyaga | CIV | 47.8 | – | |||
| 2 | George Kerr | JAM | – | – |
Heat Six
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Mike Larrabee | USA | 46.8 | 46.88 | |||
| 2 | 4 | Ebenezer Quartey | GHA | 47.1 | 47.12 | |||
| 3 | 1 | Peter Laeng | SUI | 47.1 | 47.12 | |||
| 4 | 5 | Grigory Sverbetov | URS | 47.3 | 47.37 | |||
| 5 | 2 | Ken Roche | AUS | 47.4 | 47.43 | |||
| 6 | 6 | Somsak Thongsuk | THA | 48.9 | – | |||
| 7 | 7 | Jassim Karim | IRQ | 49.5 | – |
Heat Seven
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Josef Trousil | TCH | 47.0 | 47.04 | |||
| 2 | 2 | Wilson Kiprugut | KEN | 47.1 | 47.04 | |||
| 3 | 3 | Laurie Khan | JAM | 47.2 | 47.25 | |||
| 4 | 8 | Ireneusz Kluczek | POL | 47.3 | 47.35 | |||
| 5 | 6 | Hortensio Fucil | VEN | 47.9 | 47.95 | |||
| 6 | 7 | Hirotada Hayase | JPN | 48.5 | – | |||
| 7 | 1 | William Hill | HKG | 48.7 | – | |||
| 8 | 5 | Hossein Ghafourizadeh | IRI | 50.8 | – |
Quarter-Finals (17 October 1964 — 15:00)
Top four in each heat advanced to the semi-finals.
Heat One
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Wendell Mottley | TTO | 45.8 | 45.88 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Ollan Cassell | USA | 46.2 | 46.24 | |||
| 3 | 4 | Jean-Pierre Boccardo | FRA | 46.3 | 46.34 | |||
| 4 | 2 | Peter Vassella | AUS | 46.5 | 46.55 | |||
| 5 | 1 | Peter Laeng | SUI | 46.7 | 46.72 | |||
| 6 | 5 | Sergio Bello | ITA | 46.9 | 46.93 | |||
| 7 | 8 | Ebenezer Quartey | GHA | 47.0 | 47.06 | |||
| 8 | 7 | Muhammad Sadiq | PAK | 48.0 | – |
Heat Two
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Andrzej Badeński | POL | 46.5 | 46.51 | |||
| 2 | 6 | Bill Crothers | CAN | 46.7 | 46.73 | |||
| 3 | 5 | Tim Graham | GBR | 46.8 | 46.83 | |||
| 4 | 4 | Laurie Khan | JAM | 46.9 | 46.97 | |||
| 5 | 8 | Josef Trousil | TCH | 47.2 | 47.22 | |||
| 6 | 7 | Johannes Schmitt | GER | 47.2 | 47.24 | |||
| 7 | 3 | Ken Roche | AUS | 48.0 | – | |||
| 8 | 2 | Grigory Sverbetov | URS | 48.0 | – |
Heat Three
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Mike Larrabee | USA | 46.5 | 46.57 | |||
| 2 | 5 | Kent Bernard | TTO | 46.7 | 46.73 | |||
| 3 | 4 | Robbie Brightwell | GBR | 47.1 | 47.15 | |||
| 4 | 3 | Jörg Jüttner | GER | 47.2 | 47.22 | |||
| 5 | 7 | Rupert Hoilett | JAM | 47.6 | 47.60 | |||
| 6 | 6 | Gary Eddy | AUS | 47.6 | 47.65 | |||
| 7 | 1 | Wilson Kiprugut | KEN | 47.7 | – | |||
| 8 | 2 | Vadim Arkhipchuk | URS | 47.9 | – |
Heat Four
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Edwin Skinner | TTO | 46.9 | 46.90 | |||
| 2 | 2 | Ulis Williams | USA | 46.9 | 46.96 | |||
| 3 | 7 | Tegegne Bezabeh | ETH | 47.2 | 47.23 | |||
| 4 | 6 | James Addy | GHA | 47.3 | 47.37 | |||
| 5 | 1 | Adrian Metcalfe | GBR | 47.8 | 47.81 | |||
| 6 | 5 | Pedro Grajales | COL | 47.8 | 47.86 | |||
| 7 | 4 | Viktor Bychkov | URS | 47.9 | 47.91 | |||
| 8 | Ireneusz Kluczek | POL | – | – |
Semi-Finals (18 October 1964 — 15:20)
Top four in each heat advanced to the final.
Heat One
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Robbie Brightwell | GBR | 45.7 | 45.79 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Wendell Mottley | TTO | 45.9 | 45.96 | |||
| 3 | 4 | Ulis Williams | USA | 46.2 | 46.29 | |||
| 4 | 6 | Peter Vassella | AUS | 46.5 | 46.52 | |||
| 5 | 8 | Jörg Jüttner | GER | 46.7 | 46.78 | |||
| 6 | 1 | Laurie Khan | JAM | 47.0 | – | |||
| 7 | 7 | Tegegne Bezabeh | ETH | 47.1 | – | |||
| 8 | 5 | Jean-Pierre Boccardo | FRA | 47.1 | – |
Heat Two
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Mike Larrabee | USA | 46.0 | 46.02 | |||
| 2 | 8 | Andrzej Badeński | POL | 46.2 | 46.21 | |||
| 3 | 3 | Edwin Skinner | TTO | 46.5 | 46.50 | |||
| 4 | 1 | Tim Graham | GBR | 46.5 | 46.53 | |||
| 5 | 7 | Ollan Cassell | USA | 46.6 | 46.69 | |||
| 6 | 6 | Bill Crothers | CAN | 46.9 | 46.96 | |||
| 7 | 4 | Kent Bernard | TTO | 47.1 | 47.08 | |||
| 8 | 2 | James Addy | GHA | 47.6 | 47.67 |
Final (19 October 1964 — 13:00)
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Mike Larrabee | USA | 45.1 | 45.15 | |||
| 2 | 7 | Wendell Mottley | TTO | 45.2 | 45.24 | |||
| 3 | 2 | Andrzej Badeński | POL | 45.6 | 45.64 | |||
| 4 | 6 | Robbie Brightwell | GBR | 45.7 | 45.75 | |||
| 5 | 8 | Ulis Williams | USA | 46.0 | 46.01 | |||
| 6 | 1 | Tim Graham | GBR | 46.0 | 46.08 | |||
| 7 | 3 | Peter Vassella | AUS | 46.3 | 46.32 | |||
| 8 | 4 | Edwin Skinner | TTO | 46.8 | – |