Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Women's 400 metres

Women's 400 metres at the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad
Medalists
Tonique Williams-Darling   Bahamas   Ana Guevara   Mexico   Natalya Antyukh   Russia
«2000	2008»

Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Track events
100 m		men		women
200 m		men		women
400 m		men		women
800 m		men		women
1500 m		men		women
5000 m		men		women
10,000 m		men		women
100 m hurdles				women
110 m hurdles		men
400 m hurdles		men		women
3000 m steeplechase		men
4×100 m relay		men		women
4×400 m relay		men		women
Road events
Marathon		men		women
20 km walk		men		women
50 km walk		men
Field events
Long jump		men		women
Triple jump		men		women
High jump		men		women
Pole vault		men		women
Shot put		men		women
Discus throw		men		women
Javelin throw		men		women
Hammer throw		men		women
Combined events
Heptathlon				women
Decathlon		men

The women's 400 m. at the 2004 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium.

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records prior to the 2004 Summer Olympics.

World record	Marita Koch (GDR)	47.60 s	Canberra, Australia	6 October 1985
Olympic record	Marie-José Pérec (FRA)	48.25 s	Atlanta, USA	29 July 1996

Heats

All times shown are in seconds.
Q denotes automatic qualification.
q denotes fastest losers.
DNS denotes did not start.
DNF denotes did not finish.
NR denotes national record.
PB denotes personal best.
SB denotes seasons best.

In the initial six heats the first three from each plus the six fastest losers progressed through to the three semi-finals. Here the first two from each went to the final along with the two fastest losers.

Round 1

Qualification: First 3 in each heat (Q) and the next 6 fastest (q) advance to the Semifinals.

Rank	Heat	Athlete	Country	Time	Notes
1	6	Sanya Richards	United States	50.11	Q
2	6	Christine Amertil	Bahamas	50.23	Q, PB
3	6	Christine Ohurougu	Great Britain	50.50	Q, PB
4	4	Natalya Antyukh	Russia	50.54	Q
5	4	DeeDee Trotter	United States	50.56	Q
6	4	Novlene Williams	Jamaica	50.59	Q, PB
7	3	Natalya Nazarova	Russia	50.82	Q
8	1	Ana Guevara	Mexico	50.93	Q
9	2	Monique Hennagan	United States	51.02	Q
10	6	Tiandra Ponteen	Saint Kitts and Nevis	51.17	q
11	1	Lee McConnell	Great Britain	51.19	Q
11	3	Donna Fraser	Great Britain	51.19	Q
13	5	Tonique Williams-Darling	Bahamas	51.20	Q
14	1	Grażyna Prokopek	Poland	51.29	Q, PB
14	2	Mariyana Dimitrova	Bulgaria	51.29	Q
16	4	Aliann Pompey	Guyana	51.33	q
17	5	Svetlana Usovich	Belarus	51.37	Q
18	2	Kaltouma Nadjina	Chad	51.50	Q
19	5	Antonina Yefremova	Ukraine	51.53	Q
20	3	Hazel-Ann Regis	Grenada	51.66	Q
21	1	Fatou Bintou Fall	Senegal	51.87	q
22	3	Estie Wittstock	South Africa	51.89	q
23	5	Mireille Nguimgo	Cameroon	51.90	q
24	4	Egle Uljas	Estonia	51.91	q, NR
25	2	Nadia Davy	Jamaica	52.04
26	2	Maria Laura Almirao	Brazil	52.10
27	1	Hortense Bewouda	Cameroon	52.11
28	6	Geisa Aparecida Coutinho	Brazil	52.18
29	3	Amy Mbacke Thiam	Senegal	52.44
30	2	Kirsi Mykkanen	Finland	52.53
31	5	Allison Beckford	Jamaica	52.85
32	5	Sandrine Thiebaud-Kangni	Togo	52.87
33	1	Oksana Luneva	Kyrgyzstan	52.94
34	4	Svetlana Bodritskaya	Kazakhstan	53.35
35	6	Makelesi Bulikiobo	Fiji	53.58
36	3	Amantle Montsho	Botswana	53.77	NR
37	3	Zamira Amirova	Uzbekistan	54.43
38	5	K V Damayanthi Dharsha	Sri Lanka	54.58
39	2	Fanfang Bo	China	56.01
40	4	Shifana Ali	Maldives	1:00.92	NR
41	6	Salamtou Hassane	Niger	1:03.28	NR
42	1	Ruwida El Hubti	Libya	1:03.57	NR

Semifinals

Semifinal 1

Rank	Athlete	Country	Time	Notes
1	Ana Guevara	Mexico	50.15	Q
2	Christine Amertil	Bahamas	50.17	Q, PB
3	Sanya Richards	United States	50.54	q
4	Christine Ohurougu	Great Britain	51.00
5	Tiandra Ponteen	Saint Kitts and Nevis	51.33
6	Svetlana Usovich	Belarus	51.42
7	Hazel-Ann Regis	Grenada	51.47
8	Egle Uljas	Estonia	53.13

Richards was fastest away but was caught by Guevara at the 300 m. mark who was then joined by Amertil who improved her personal best for the second time in two days. Guevara eased comfortably through the last fifty, just doing enough to ensure Amertil didn't cross the line first. Richards held on to third from Ohurougu who could not reproduce her personal best of round one and cost herself a fastest losers place in the final by easing off considerably with 20 metres to go.

Semifinal 2

Rank	Athlete	Country	Time	Notes
1	Tonique Williams-Darling	Bahamas	50.00	Q
2	DeeDee Trotter	United States	50.14	Q, PB
3	Natalya Nazarova	Russia	50.63	q
4	Fatou Bintou Fall	Senegal	51.21
5	Kaltouma Nadjina	Chad	51.57
6	Estie Wittstock	South Africa	51.77
7	Donna Fraser	Great Britain	51.94
8	Grażyna Prokopek	Poland	51.96

The Bahamian, Williams-Darling, was always in control and easily kept in front of the below par Nazarova who was fighting hard to run her down. The Russian claimed a fastest losers place as she was overtaken in the home straight by a fast finishing DeeDee Trotter.

Semifinal 3

Rank	Athlete	Country	Time	Notes
1	Monique Hennagan	United States	49.88	Q
2	Natalya Antyukh	Russia	50.04	Q
3	Novlene Williams	Jamaica	50.85
4	Mariyana Dimitrova	Bulgaria	51.20	PB
5	Aliann Pompey	Guyana	51.61
6	Antonina Yefremova	Ukraine	51.90
7	Mireille Nguimgo	Cameroon	52.21
8	Lee McConnell	Great Britain	52.63

The easiest of the semis for Hennagan and Antyukh who were in a different class from the rest though the Jamaican, Williams, might have got closer to them if she had not left all her running until the last hundred metres.

Semifinals summary

Rank	Heat	Athlete	Country	Time	Notes
1	3	Monique Hennagan	United States	49.88	Q
2	2	Tonique Williams-Darling	Bahamas	50.00	Q
3	3	Natalya Antyukh	Russia	50.04	Q
4	2	DeeDee Trotter	United States	50.14	Q, PB
5	1	Ana Guevara	Mexico	50.15	Q
6	1	Christine Amertil	Bahamas	50.17	Q, PB
7	1	Sanya Richards	United States	50.54	q
8	2	Natalya Nazarova	Russia	50.63	q
9	3	Novlene Williams	Jamaica	50.85
10	1	Christine Ohurougu	Great Britain	51.00
11	3	Mariyana Dimitrova	Bulgaria	51.20	PB
12	2	Fatou Bintou Fall	Senegal	51.21
13	1	Tiandra Ponteen	Saint Kitts and Nevis	51.33
14	1	Svetlana Usovich	Belarus	51.42
15	1	Hazel-Ann Regis	Grenada	51.47
16	2	Kaltouma Nadjina	Chad	51.57
17	3	Aliann Pompey	Guyana	51.61
18	2	Estie Wittstock	South Africa	51.77
19	3	Antonina Yefremova	Ukraine	51.90
20	2	Donna Fraser	Great Britain	51.94
21	2	Grażyna Prokopek	Poland	51.96
22	3	Mireille Nguimgo	Cameroon	52.21
23	3	Lee McConnell	Great Britain	52.63
24	1	Egle Uljas	Estonia	53.13

Final

Rank	Athlete	Country	Time	Notes
1 !	Tonique Williams-Darling	Bahamas	49.42
2 !	Ana Guevara	Mexico	49.56	SB
3 !	Natalya Antyukh	Russia	49.89
4	Monique Hennagan	United States	49.97
5	DeeDee Trotter	United States	50.00	PB
6	Sanya Richards	United States	50.19
7	Christine Amertil	Bahamas	50.37
8	Natalya Nazarova	Russia	50.65

WR world record | AR area record | CR championship record | GR games record | NR national record | OR Olympic record | PB personal best | SB season best | WL world leading (in a given season)

References

• Official Olympic Report
• 2004 Olympic Results