Date October 13–15 Winning time 48.1 WR | Competitors 30 from 24 nations | |
Venue Estadio Olímpico Universitario |
The Men's 400 metres hurdles competition at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico took place on October 13–15 at the Estadio Olímpico Universitario.
Contents
In the final, David Hemery took the race out hard. By the final straightaway he had an ever growing lead over the world record holder Geoff Vanderstock. Hemery continued to pour it on, taking seven tenths of a second out of the world record, a huge improvement. Vanderstock struggled between the final barrier and the finish line, his 2 metre advantage over field evaporated. Gerhard Hennige, then John Sherwood edged past him at the line.
Competition format
The men's 400m hurdles competition started with four heats, where the four fastest runners from each race qualified to one of the two semifinals groups. The top four competitors from each semifinals group advanced to the final.
Records
Prior to the competition, the existing World and Olympic records were as follows.
Heats
Heat 1
Heat 2
Heat 3
Heat 4
Semifinals
Heat 1
Heat 2