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Athletics at the 1972 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metres

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Men's 100 metres
at the Games of the XX Olympiad
Valeriy Borzov and Robert Taylor
VenueOlympiastadion
Munich, West Germany
Dates31 August (heats, quarterfinals)
1 September 1972 (semifinals, final)
Competitors85 from 55 nations
Winning time10.14 seconds
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Valeriy Borzov
 Soviet Union
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Robert Taylor
 United States
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Lennox Miller
 Jamaica
← 1968
1976 →
Video on YouTube Official Video Highlights

The men's 100 metres sprint event at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, West Germany, was held at Olympiastadion on 31 August and 1 September.[1] Eighty-five athletes from 55 nations competed.[2] Each nation was limited to 3 athletes per rules in force since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Valeriy Borzov of the Soviet Union, the first medal in the men's 100 metres for that nation. Jamaican Lennox Miller, silver medalist four years earlier, became the second man to make the podium twice in the event by taking bronze (after Ralph Metcalfe in 1932 and 1936).

This event is notable for the absence of favourites and world record holders Eddie Hart and Rey Robinson from their quarterfinal heats due to American sprint coach Stan Wright being given the wrong starting time. The three qualified American athletes, Robinson, Hart and Robert Taylor, were at the ABC television headquarters watching what they believed were replays of their morning preliminary races before being informed they were watching live coverage of the races they were scheduled to run in. The athletes rushed to the stadium, but Hart and Robinson, scheduled in the first two races, missed their heats, while Robert Taylor hurried to take off his warm up uniform before running his heat. An appeal by American officials to have Robinson and Hart run in another heat was rejected.

Background

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This was the seventeenth time the event was held, having appeared at every Olympics since the first in 1896. Two finalists from 1968 returned: Lennox Miller of Jamaica and Jean-Louis Ravelomanantsoa of Madagascar. The favourite was Soviet Valeriy Borzov, the European champion. The American team was missing John Carlos, who had turned to professional football, but still had strong runners in Eddie Hart and Rey Robinson, who had matched the world record of 9.9 seconds in the U.S. Olympic trials, and Robert Taylor.[2]

Thirteen nations appeared in the event for the first time: Bolivia, Cambodia (then Khmer Republic), Chad, Kuwait, Lesotho, Malawi, Mongolia, Paraguay, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Upper Volta, the Virgin Islands, and Zambia (though Northern Rhodesia had competed previously). The United States was the only nation to have appeared at each of the first seventeen Olympic men's 100 metres events.

Competition format

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The event retained the same basic four round format introduced in 1920: heats, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. It also expanded the "fastest loser" system, introduced in 1968, to include the quarterfinals as well as the preliminary heats.

The first round consisted of 12 heats, each with 6–8 athletes. The top three runners in each heat advanced, along with the next four fastest runners overall. This made 40 quarterfinalists, who were divided into five heats of 8 runners. The top three runners in each quarterfinal advanced, along with the single fastest fourth-place finisher. The 16 semifinalists competed in two heats of 8, with the top four in each semifinal advancing to the eight-man final.[2][3]

Records

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Prior to the competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.

World record 9.9 United States Jim Hines Sacramento, United States 20 June 1968
9.9 United States Ronnie Ray Smith Sacramento, United States 20 June 1968
9.9 United States Charles Greene Sacramento, United States 20 June 1968
9.9 United States Jim Hines Mexico City, Mexico 14 October 1968
9.9 United States Eddie Hart Eugene, United States 1 July 1972
9.9 United States Rey Robinson Eugene, United States 1 July 1972
Olympic record 9.9 United States Jim Hines Mexico City, Mexico 14 October 1968

No records were set in the event at the 1972 Games.

Results

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Heats

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The top three runners in each of the twelve heats, and the next fastest four, advanced to the quarterfinal round.

Heat 1

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Lennox Miller  Jamaica 10.45 Q
2 Amadou Meïté  Ivory Coast 10.51 Q
3 Hans-Jürgen Bombach  East Germany 10.66 Q
4 Rudy Reid  Trinidad and Tobago 10.74
5 Dan Amuke  Kenya 10.76
6 Byambajavyn Enkhbaatar  Mongolia 10.93
7 Samphon Mao  Khmer Republic 10.95
8 Luis Alers  Puerto Rico 11.09

Heat 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Valeriy Borzov  Soviet Union 10.47 Q
2 Mike Sands  Bahamas 10.67 Q
3 Luděk Bohman  Czechoslovakia 10.72 Q
4 Gerhard Wucherer  West Germany 10.82
5 Tadeusz Cuch  Poland 10.89
6 Yeo Kian Chye  Singapore 10.92
7 Alphonse Yanghat  Republic of the Congo 10.95
8 Andrew Sartee  Liberia 11.09

Heat 3

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Manfred Kokot  East Germany 10.49 Q
2 Sandy Osei-Agyemang  Ghana 10.52 Q
3 Les Piggot  Great Britain 10.54 Q
4 John Mwebi  Kenya 10.60
5 Luís da Silva  Brazil 10.63
6 Kevin Johnson  Bahamas 10.91
7 Mansour Al-Juaid  Saudi Arabia 11.23
Robert Arega  Togo DNS

Heat 4

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The tailwind of 2.3 m/s made this heat ineligible for records purposes.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Jaroslav Matoušek  Czechoslovakia 10.37 Q
2 Brian Green  Great Britain 10.41 Q
3 Kouakou Komenan  Ivory Coast 10.50 Q
4 Walter Callander  Bahamas 10.78
5 George Calhern  Virgin Islands 10.90
6 Farhad Navab  Iran 11.02
7 Angel Guerreros  Paraguay 11.12
Anat Ratanapol  Thailand DNS

Heat 5

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Aleksandr Kornelyuk  Soviet Union 10.38 Q
2 Kola Abdulai  Nigeria 10.57 Q
3 Stanisław Wagner  Poland 10.62 Q
4 Juraj Demeč  Czechoslovakia 10.66
5 Félix Mata  Venezuela 10.73
6 Bjarni Stefánsson  Iceland 10.99
7 Younis Abdallah  Kuwait 11.20
Gaoussou Kone  Ivory Coast DNS

Heat 6

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Rey Robinson  United States 10.56 Q
2 Philippe Clerc  Switzerland 10.58 Q
3 Sammy Monsels  Suriname 10.61 Q
4 George Daniels  Ghana 10.65
5 André Bicaba  Upper Volta 10.71
6 Motsapi Moorosi  Lesotho 10.74
7 William Dralu  Uganda 10.92

Heat 7

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Hasely Crawford  Trinidad and Tobago 10.50 Q
2 Don Halliday  Great Britain 10.58 Q
3 Erik Gustafsson  Finland 10.68 Q
4 Guillermo González  Puerto Rico 10.73
5 Norman Chihota  Tanzania 10.79
6 Egzi Gebre-Gebre  Ethiopia 10.89
7 Pierre-Richard Gaetjens  Haiti 11.50
Pablo Montes  Cuba DNS

Heat 8

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The tailwind of 2.10 m/s made this heat ineligible for records purposes.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Barka Sy  Senegal 10.30 Q
2 Bernd Borth  East Germany 10.48 Q
3 Audun Garshol  Norway 10.49 Q
4 Su Wen-Ho  Republic of China 10.59 q
5 Gana Abba Kimet  Chad 10.89
6 Raimo Vilén  Finland 11.00
7 Lionel Caero  Bolivia 11.19

Heat 9

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Alain Sarteur  France 10.42 Q
2 Saleh Alah-Djaba  Chad 10.65 Q
3 Charlie Francis  Canada 10.68 Q
4 Andrés Calonge  Argentina 10.73
5 Laurie D'Arcy  New Zealand 10.77
6 Larmeck Mukonde  Zambia 11.16
Hermes Ramirez  Cuba DNS

Heat 10

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Vasilios Papageorgopoulos  Greece 10.24 Q
2 Jean-Louis Ravelomanantsoa  Madagascar 10.29 Q
3 Michael Fray  Jamaica 10.47 Q
4 Antti Rajamäki  Finland 10.52 q
5 Ainsley Armstrong  Trinidad and Tobago 10.56 q
6 Jorge Vizcarrondo  Puerto Rico 10.79
7 Zain-ud-Din bin Abdul Wahab  Malaysia 10.80

Heat 11

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Eddie Hart  United States 10.47 Q
2 Dominique Chauvelot  France 10.66 Q
3 Klaus Ehl  West Germany 10.67 Q
4 Benedict Majekodunmi  Nigeria 10.70
5 Gaston Malam  Cameroon 10.88
6 Sunil Gunawardene  Ceylon 11.00
7 Tukal Mokalam  Philippines 11.02

Heat 12

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Robert Taylor  United States 10.32 Q
2 Jobst Hirscht  West Germany 10.36 Q
3 Zenon Nowosz  Poland 10.36 Q
4 Volodymyr Atamas  Soviet Union 10.51 q
5 Axel Nepraunik  Austria 10.61
6 André Byrame  France 10.64
7 Moustafa Matola  Malawi 11.31

Quarterfinals

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The top three runners in each of the five heats and the next fastest one, advanced to the semifinal round.

Quarterfinal 1

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Hart failed to appear due to a scheduling change and coaching error.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Jobst Hirscht  West Germany 10.25 Q
2 Jaroslav Matoušek  Czechoslovakia 10.35 Q
3 Bernd Borth  East Germany 10.44 Q
4 Philippe Clerc  Switzerland 10.45
5 Ainsley Armstrong  Trinidad and Tobago 10.47
6 Mike Sands  Bahamas 10.50
7 Audun Garshol  Norway 10.55
- Eddie Hart  United States DNS

Quarterfinal 2

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Robinson failed to appear due to a scheduling change and coaching error.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Jean-Louis Ravelomanantsoa  Madagascar 10.47 Q
2 Brian Green  Great Britain 10.58 Q
3 Kouakou Komenan  Ivory Coast 10.60 Q
4 Stanisław Wagner  Poland 10.61
5 Sandy Osei-Agyemang  Ghana 10.66
6 Erik Gustafsson  Finland 10.78
7 Su Wen-Ho  Republic of China 10.82
- Rey Robinson  United States DNS

Quarterfinal 3

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Valeriy Borzov  Soviet Union 10.07 Q, ER
2 Robert Taylor  United States 10.16 Q
3 Hasely Crawford  Trinidad and Tobago 10.18 Q
4 Zenon Nowosz  Poland 10.40 q
5 Klaus Ehl  West Germany 10.44
6 Les Piggot  Great Britain 10.53
7 Dominique Chauvelot  France 10.54
8 Hans-Jürgen Bombach  East Germany 10.64

Quarterfinal 4

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The tailwind of 3.40 m/s made this heat ineligible for records purposes.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Aleksandr Kornelyuk  Soviet Union 10.23 Q
2 Barka Sy  Senegal 10.27 Q
3 Michael Fray  Jamaica 10.28 Q
4 Kola Abdulai  Nigeria 10.41
5 Antti Rajamäki  Finland 10.43
6 Manfred Kokot  East Germany 10.44
7 Saleh Alah-Djaba  Chad 10.51
8 Charlie Francis  Canada 10.51

Quarterfinal 5

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Lennox Miller  Jamaica 10.33 Q
2 Alain Sarteur  France 10.40 Q
3 Vasilios Papageorgopoulos  Greece 10.45 Q
4 Amadou Meïté  Ivory Coast 10.52
5 Luděk Bohman  Czechoslovakia 10.52
6 Don Halliday  Great Britain 10.60
7 Sammy Monsels  Suriname 10.64
8 Vladimir Atamas  Soviet Union 10.83

Semifinals

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The top four runners in each of the two heats advanced to the final round.

Semifinal 1

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Papageorgopoulos was forced to scratch after he pulled a groin muscle in the quarter-finals.

Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Valeriy Borzov  Soviet Union 10.21 Q
2 Hasely Crawford  Trinidad and Tobago 10.36 Q
3 Jobst Hirscht  West Germany 10.36 Q
4 Michael Fray  Jamaica 10.48 Q
5 Alain Sarteur  France 10.51
6 Kouakou Komenan  Ivory Coast 10.57
7 Bernd Borth  East Germany 10.60
- Vasilios Papageorgopoulos  Greece DNS

Semifinal 2

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Rank Athlete Nation Time Notes
1 Robert Taylor  United States 10.30 Q
2 Lennox Miller  Jamaica 10.31 Q
3 Aleksandr Kornelyuk  Soviet Union 10.35 Q
4 Zenon Nowosz  Poland 10.42 Q
5 Barka Sy  Senegal 10.42
6 Jean-Louis Ravelomanantsoa  Madagascar 10.46
7 Jaroslav Matoušek  Czechoslovakia 10.40
8 Brian Green  Great Britain 10.40

Final

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Borzov "won fairly easily."[2]

Rank Lane Athlete Nation Time
1st place, gold medalist(s) 2 Valeriy Borzov  Soviet Union 10.14
2nd place, silver medalist(s) 4 Robert Taylor  United States 10.24
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 5 Lennox Miller  Jamaica 10.33
4 6 Aleksandr Kornelyuk  Soviet Union 10.36
5 8 Michael Fray  Jamaica 10.40
6 7 Jobst Hirscht  West Germany 10.40
7 1 Zenon Nowosz  Poland 10.46
3 Hasely Crawford  Trinidad and Tobago DNF
  • Wind speed = 0.3 m/s (0.67 mph)

References

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  1. ^ "Athletics at the 1972 Munich Summer Games: Men's 100 metres". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d "100 metres, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
  3. ^ Official Report, vol. 3, p. 48.

3. Die Spiele, The official report of the Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXth Olympiad Munich 1972, Volume 3 The competitions, page 49. [1]