| | Event type
400 metres, Women
| Date | 1 – 5 August 1992 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Estadio Olímpico de Montjuïc, Barcelona |
| Participants | 41 from 29 countries |
The defending champion, Olga Bryzgina, now of the Unified Team and Ukraine, was back, but the favorite was the 1991 World Champion, Marie-José Pérec. Pérec was French but had been born in Guadeloupe. Both Bryzgina and Pérec qualified easily for the final. The leader around the bend was Phylis Smith of Great Britain. But Bryzgina had taken over by 200 metres. Pérec closed slightly around the final curve but pulled even with 60 metres to go and crept ahead for the gold medal, Bryzgina coming in second. The bronze medal went to Ximena Restrepo, who won the first medal ever for Colombia in athletics and the first by a woman from that country.
| Pos | Nr | Athlete | NOC | R1 | QF | SF | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 651 | Marie-José Pérec |  FRA | 53.64 (2 h5) | 50.89 (3 h4) | 49.48 (1 h1) | 48.83 (1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | 488 | Olga Bryzgina |  EUN | 52.44 (2 h3) | 50.68 (2 h1) | 49.76 (3 h1) | 49.05 (2) | Silver | ||
| 3 | 324 | Ximena Restrepo |  COL | 52.34 (2 h1) | 50.63 (1 h1) | 49.76 (2 h1) | 49.64 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 536 | Olga Nazarova | EUN | 52.09 (2 h4) | 51.30 (3 h2) | 50.31 (2 h2) | 49.69 (4) | |||
| 5 | 243 | Jill Richardson-Briscoe |  CAN | 51.99 (1 h4) | 50.95 (1 h2) | 50.02 (1 h2) | 49.93 (5) | |||
| 6 | 1767 | Rochelle Stevens |  USA | 52.42 (1 h6) | 50.70 (1 h4) | 50.37 (4 h2) | 50.11 (6) | |||
| 7 | 1060 | Sandie Richards |  JAM | 52.56 (1 h2) | 50.76 (2 h4) | 50.35 (3 h2) | 50.19 (7) | |||
| 8 | 759 | Phylis Smith |  GBR | 53.59 (1 h5) | 51.32 (1 h3) | 50.40 (4 h1) | 50.87 (8) | |||
| 5 h1 r3/4 | 1737 | Jearl Miles | USA | 52.79 (2 h2) | 51.27 (2 h2) | 50.57 (5 h1) | – | |||
| 5 h2 r3/4 | 321 | Norfalia Carabalí | COL | 52.18 (3 h4) | 51.65 (4 h4) | 51.75 (5 h2) | – | |||
| 6 h1 r3/4 | 1723 | Natasha Kaiser-Brown | USA | 51.41 (1 h1) | 50.71 (3 h1) | 50.60 (6 h1) | – | |||
| 6 h2 r3/4 | 700 | Sandra Douglas | GBR | 52.91 (3 h2) | 51.41 (4 h1) | 51.96 (6 h2) | – | |||
| 7 h1 r3/4 | 54 | Michelle Lock |  AUS | 52.49 (3 h3) | 51.71 (4 h2) | 50.78 (7 h1) | – | |||
| 7 h2 r3/4 | 61 | Renée Poetschka | AUS | 52.85 (2 h6) | 52.05 (3 h3) | 52.09 (7 h2) | – | |||
| 8 h1 r3/4 | 555 | Yelena Ruzina | EUN | 52.94 (3 h6) | 52.23 (4 h3) | 51.30 (8 h1) | – | |||
| 8 h2 r3/4 | 625 | Elsa Devassoigne | FRA | 52.07 (1 h3) | 51.75 (2 h3) | 52.85 (8 h2) | – | |||
| 5 h1 r2/4 | 45 | Cathy Freeman | AUS | 53.70 (3 h5) | 51.52 (5 h1) | – | – | |||
| 5 h2 r2/4 | 846 | Anja Rücker |  GER | 52.24 (4 h4) | 52.05 (5 h2) | – | – | |||
| 5 h3 r2/4 | 435 | Julia Merino |  ESP | 52.90 (3 h1) | 52.43 (5 h3) | – | – | |||
| 5 h4 r2/4 | 1430 | Myra Mayberry-Wilkinson |  PUR | 53.75 (4 h5) | 53.37 (5 h4) | – | – | |||
| 6 h1 r2/4 | 1504 | Aïssatou N'Diaye |  SEN | 52.29 (5 h4) | 52.39 (6 h1) | – | – | |||
| 6 h2 r2/4 | 1040 | Juliet Campbell | JAM | 53.69 (4 h1) | 52.12 (6 h2) | – | – | |||
| 6 h3 r2/4 | 1068 | Claudine Williams | JAM | 52.97 (4 h6) | 52.84 (6 h3) | – | – | |||
| 6 h4 r2/4 | 718 | Lorraine Hanson | GBR | 52.66 (4 h3) | 53.60 (6 h4) | – | – | |||
| 7 h1 r2/4 | 1537 | Jayamini Illeperuma |  SRI | 54.14 (4 h2) | 53.55 (7 h1) | – | – | |||
| 7 h2 r2/4 | 1259 | Tina Paulino |  MOZ | 52.93 (5 h3) | 52.34 (7 h2) | – | – | |||
| 7 h3 r2/4 | 318 | Susie Tanéfo |  CMR | 53.37 (6 h4) | 53.78 (7 h3) | – | – | |||
| 7 h4 r2/4 | 332 | Zoila Stewart |  CRC | 53.72 (6 h3) | 53.60 (7 h4) | – | – | |||
| 8 h1 r2/4 | 918 | Judit Forgács |  HUN | 54.87 (5 h5) | 54.24 (8 h1) | – | – | |||
| 8 h2 r2/4 | 979 | Ruth Morris |  ISV | 54.37 (5 h1) | 54.92 (8 h2) | – | – | |||
| 8 h3 r2/4 | 1623 | Noodang Pimpol |  THA | 54.28 (6 h6) | 54.90 (8 h3) | – | – | |||
| 8 h4 r2/4 | 304 | Alimata Koné |  CIV | 53.76 (5 h6) | 53.80 (8 h4) | – | – | |||
| 5 h2 r1/4 | 21 | Charmaine Gilgeous |  ANT | 55.48 (5 h2) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h1 r1/4 | 102 | Prisca Philip |  BAR | 55.09 (6 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h2 r1/4 | 890 | Shermaine Ross |  GRN | 55.49 (6 h2) | – | – | – | |||
| 6 h5 r1/4 | 1816 | Ngozi Mwanamwambwa |  ZAM | 54.88 (6 h5) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h1 r1/4 | 1252 | Fanta Dao |  MLI | 1:01.97 (7 h1) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h3 r1/4 | 1788 | Mary-Estelle Kapalu |  VAN | 55.75 (7 h3) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h4 r1/4 | 130 | Jacqueline Soliz |  BOL | 56.78 (7 h4) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h5 r1/4 | 1516 | Melrose Mansaray |  SLE | 55.67 (7 h5) | – | – | – | |||
| 7 h6 r1/4 | 777 | Ruth Mangue |  GEQ | 1:03.32 (7 h6) | – | – | – |
Round One (1 August 1992 — 11:00)
Top four in each heat and next eight fastest advanced to the quarter-finals.
Heat One
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Natasha Kaiser-Brown | USA | 51.41 | |||
| 2 | 1 | Ximena Restrepo | COL | 52.34 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Julia Merino | ESP | 52.90 | |||
| 4 | 3 | Juliet Campbell | JAM | 53.69 | |||
| 5 | 7 | Ruth Morris | ISV | 54.37 | |||
| 6 | 2 | Prisca Philip | BAR | 55.09 | |||
| 7 | 4 | Fanta Dao | MLI | 1:01.97 |
Heat Two
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Sandie Richards | JAM | 52.56 | |||
| 2 | 6 | Jearl Miles | USA | 52.79 | |||
| 3 | 1 | Sandra Douglas | GBR | 52.91 | |||
| 4 | 5 | Jayamini Illeperuma | SRI | 54.14 | |||
| 5 | 2 | Charmaine Gilgeous | ANT | 55.48 | |||
| 6 | 3 | Shermaine Ross | GRN | 55.49 |
Heat Three
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Elsa Devassoigne | FRA | 52.07 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Olga Bryzgina | EUN | 52.44 | |||
| 3 | 2 | Michelle Lock | AUS | 52.49 | |||
| 4 | 5 | Lorraine Hanson | GBR | 52.66 | |||
| 5 | 4 | Tina Paulino | MOZ | 52.93 | |||
| 6 | 1 | Zoila Stewart | CRC | 53.72 | |||
| 7 | 7 | Mary-Estelle Kapalu | VAN | 55.75 |
Heat Four
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Jill Richardson-Briscoe | CAN | 51.99 | 1 | ||
| 2 | 4 | Olga Nazarova | EUN | 52.09 | |||
| 3 | 5 | Norfalia Carabalí | COL | 52.18 | 2 | ||
| 4 | 2 | Anja Rücker | GER | 52.24 | |||
| 5 | 1 | Aïssatou N'Diaye | SEN | 52.29 | |||
| 6 | 3 | Susie Tanéfo | CMR | 53.37 | |||
| 7 | 7 | Jacqueline Soliz | BOL | 56.78 |
Heat Five
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Phylis Smith | GBR | 53.59 | |||
| 2 | 5 | Marie-José Pérec | FRA | 53.64 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Cathy Freeman | AUS | 53.70 | |||
| 4 | 1 | Myra Mayberry-Wilkinson | PUR | 53.75 | |||
| 5 | 7 | Judit Forgács | HUN | 54.87 | |||
| 6 | 3 | Ngozi Mwanamwambwa | ZAM | 54.88 | |||
| 7 | 4 | Melrose Mansaray | SLE | 55.67 |
Heat Six
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Rochelle Stevens | USA | 52.42 | |||
| 2 | 4 | Renée Poetschka | AUS | 52.85 | |||
| 3 | 7 | Yelena Ruzina | EUN | 52.94 | |||
| 4 | 3 | Claudine Williams | JAM | 52.97 | |||
| 5 | 1 | Alimata Koné | CIV | 53.76 | |||
| 6 | 2 | Noodang Pimpol | THA | 54.28 | |||
| 7 | 5 | Ruth Mangue | GEQ | 1:03.32 |
Quarter-Finals (2 August 1992 — 19:55)
Top four in each heat advanced to the semi-finals.
Heat One
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Ximena Restrepo | COL | 50.63 | |||
| 2 | 6 | Olga Bryzgina | EUN | 50.68 | |||
| 3 | 5 | Natasha Kaiser-Brown | USA | 50.71 | |||
| 4 | 7 | Sandra Douglas | GBR | 51.41 | |||
| 5 | 2 | Cathy Freeman | AUS | 51.52 | |||
| 6 | 4 | Aïssatou N'Diaye | SEN | 52.39 | |||
| 7 | 1 | Jayamini Illeperuma | SRI | 53.55 | |||
| 8 | 8 | Judit Forgács | HUN | 54.24 |
Heat Two
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Jill Richardson-Briscoe | CAN | 50.95 | |||
| 2 | 1 | Jearl Miles | USA | 51.27 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Olga Nazarova | EUN | 51.30 | |||
| 4 | 4 | Michelle Lock | AUS | 51.71 | |||
| 5 | 5 | Anja Rücker | GER | 52.05 | |||
| 6 | 7 | Juliet Campbell | JAM | 52.12 | |||
| 7 | 2 | Tina Paulino | MOZ | 52.34 | |||
| 8 | 8 | Ruth Morris | ISV | 54.92 |
Heat Three
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Phylis Smith | GBR | 51.32 | |||
| 2 | 4 | Elsa Devassoigne | FRA | 51.75 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Renée Poetschka | AUS | 52.05 | |||
| 4 | 3 | Yelena Ruzina | EUN | 52.23 | |||
| 5 | 5 | Julia Merino | ESP | 52.43 | |||
| 6 | 2 | Claudine Williams | JAM | 52.84 | |||
| 7 | 1 | Susie Tanéfo | CMR | 53.78 | |||
| 8 | 7 | Noodang Pimpol | THA | 54.90 |
Heat Four
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Rochelle Stevens | USA | 50.70 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Sandie Richards | JAM | 50.76 | |||
| 3 | 8 | Marie-José Pérec | FRA | 50.89 | |||
| 4 | 6 | Norfalia Carabalí | COL | 51.65 | |||
| 5 | 1 | Myra Mayberry-Wilkinson | PUR | 53.37 | |||
| 6 | 5 | Lorraine Hanson | GBR | 53.60 | |||
| 7 | 2 | Zoila Stewart | CRC | 53.60 | |||
| 8 | 7 | Alimata Koné | CIV | 53.80 |
Semi-Finals (3 August 1992 — 19:10)
Top four in each heat advanced to the final.
Heat One
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Marie-José Pérec | FRA | 49.48 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Ximena Restrepo | COL | 49.76 | |||
| 3 | 5 | Olga Bryzgina | EUN | 49.76 | |||
| 4 | 2 | Phylis Smith | GBR | 50.40 | |||
| 5 | 7 | Jearl Miles | USA | 50.57 | |||
| 6 | 6 | Natasha Kaiser-Brown | USA | 50.60 | |||
| 7 | 1 | Michelle Lock | AUS | 50.78 | |||
| 8 | 8 | Yelena Ruzina | EUN | 51.30 |
Heat Two
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Jill Richardson-Briscoe | CAN | 50.02 | |||
| 2 | 4 | Olga Nazarova | EUN | 50.31 | |||
| 3 | 5 | Sandie Richards | JAM | 50.35 | |||
| 4 | 3 | Rochelle Stevens | USA | 50.37 | |||
| 5 | 8 | Norfalia Carabalí | COL | 51.75 | |||
| 6 | 7 | Sandra Douglas | GBR | 51.96 | |||
| 7 | 2 | Renée Poetschka | AUS | 52.09 | |||
| 8 | 1 | Elsa Devassoigne | FRA | 52.85 |
Final (5 August 1992 — 20:50)
| Pos | Lane | Athlete | NOC | Time (A) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Marie-José Pérec | FRA | 48.83 | |||
| 2 | 3 | Olga Bryzgina | EUN | 49.05 | |||
| 3 | 6 | Ximena Restrepo | COL | 49.64 | |||
| 4 | 8 | Olga Nazarova | EUN | 49.69 | |||
| 5 | 4 | Jill Richardson-Briscoe | CAN | 49.93 | |||
| 6 | 1 | Rochelle Stevens | USA | 50.11 | |||
| 7 | 2 | Sandie Richards | JAM | 50.19 | |||
| 8 | 7 | Phylis Smith | GBR | 50.87 |