2009 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 200 metres

The men's 200 metres at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium, Berlin, Germany on August 18 and August 20. The winning margin was 0.62 seconds which as of 2024 is the only time the men's 200 metres has been won by more than half a second at these championships.

Men's 200 metres
at the 2009 World Championships
VenueOlympiastadion (Berlin)
Dates18 August (heats and quarter-finals)
19 August (semi-finals)
20 August (final)
Competitors59
Winning time19.19 WR
Medalists
gold medal    Jamaica
silver medal    Panama
bronze medal    United States
← 2007
2011 →
Official Video

The race favourites were Tyson Gay and Usain Bolt. Gay entered the competition as the reigning world champion, championship record holder, and 200 m world leader with 19.58 seconds. Bolt, the current Olympic champion and world record holder, had a season's best of 19.59 seconds. The last time the two athletes raced was at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, where Gay beat Bolt by a margin of 0.15 seconds. Osaka bronze medallist Wallace Spearmon was the only other athlete to run under twenty seconds that season and former Olympic champion Shawn Crawford was also competing. Up-and-coming athletes Alonso Edward, Steve Mullings and Ramil Guliyev were among the season's fastest sprinters prior to the championships.[1]

After hurting his groin during his American record run in the 100 metres two days earlier, Gay withdrew from the race, effectively rescinding his second world title. The withdrawal of Dwain Chambers, Churandy Martina and Jaysuma Saidy Ndure also reduced the quality of the field. There were no surprise eliminations in the heats, where Crawford, Mullings, Robert Hering, and Martial Mbandjock were the fastest qualifiers,[2] and Mullings had the fastest time of the quarter-finals round, with all the favourite athletes progressing.[3] On the second day of competition, German number one Hering was eliminated. Bolt and Spearmon were the two semi-final winners, while the third-fastest, 19-year-old Alonso Edward, demonstrated medal winning form.[4]

In the final race, Usain Bolt, the clear favourite, had another world record-breaking run following his 9.58 second record in the 100 metres four days earlier. After having the fastest reaction time of the race, Bolt came out of the bend in first place and extended his lead further in the home straight, beating his previous mark of 19.30 seconds set at the Olympics by 0.11 seconds to take the gold medal and Championship record.[5] Crawford, second fastest at the bend, was overtaken by Edward and Spearmon and eventually finished fourth. Edward vastly improved his previous best to set a South American record of 19.81, while Spearmon was third with 19.85 seconds.[6] At 19 years, 255 days old, silver medallist Edward became the youngest ever world medallist for the men's 200 m.[7]

Although the race between Gay and Bolt had not materialised, Bolt's world record of 19.19 seconds was a highlight of the championships. The overall quality of the event was also high: Edward had improved from 20.62 to 19.81 seconds over the course of one year. Also, with Crawford running 19.89 seconds, it was the first ever 200 m race to see four athletes run under 19.9 seconds. Bolt's winning margin of 0.62 seconds over second-placed Edward was the biggest in World Championship history. He received a $100,000 bonus for his performance, which was 0.13 seconds faster than Michael Johnson's former world record, a mark that had been regarded as one of the best records in the history of athletics.[6][8]

Medalists

edit
Gold Silver Bronze
Usain Bolt
  Jamaica (JAM)
Alonso Edward
  Panama (PAN)
Wallace Spearmon
  United States (USA)

Records

edit

Prior to the competition, the following records were as follows.

World record   Usain Bolt (JAM) 19.30 Beijing, China 20 August 2008
Championship record   Tyson Gay (USA) 19.76 Osaka, Japan 30 August 2007
World leading   Tyson Gay (USA) 19.58 New York, United States 30 May 2009
African record   Frankie Fredericks (NAM) 19.68 Atlanta, United States 1 August 1996
Asian Record   Shingo Suetsugu (JPN) 20.03 Yokohama, Japan 7 June 2003
North American record   Usain Bolt (JAM) 19.30 Beijing, China 20 August 2008
South American record   Claudinei da Silva (BRA) 19.89 Munich, Germany 11 September 1999
European record   Pietro Mennea (ITA) 19.72 Mexico, Mexico 12 September 1979
Oceanian record   Peter Norman (AUS) 20.06 Mexico, Mexico 16 October 1968

Qualification standards

edit
 
Shawn Crawford finished in fourth place
A time B time
20.59 20.75

Schedule

edit
Date Time Round
August 18, 2009 10:05 Heats
August 18, 2009 18:55 Quarterfinals
August 19, 2009 19:25 Semifinals
August 20, 2009 20:35 Final

Results

edit
KEY: q Fastest non-qualifiers Q Qualified WR World record AR Area record NR National record PB Personal best SB Seasonal best

Heats

edit

Qualification: First 3 in each heat(Q) and the next 5 fastest(q) advance to the quarterfinals.

Rank Heat Name Nationality Time Notes
1 1 Shawn Crawford   United States (USA) 20.60 Q
2 3 Steve Mullings   Jamaica (JAM) 20.62 Q
3 9 Robert Hering   Germany (GER) 20.64 Q
4 7 Martial Mbandjock   France (FRA) 20.65 Q
5 3 Paul Hession   Ireland (IRL) 20.66 Q
5 9 Wallace Spearmon   United States (USA) 20.66 Q
7 3 Kenji Fujimitsu   Japan (JPN) 20.69 Q
8 5 Usain Bolt   Jamaica (JAM) 20.70 Q
9 6 Alonso Edward   Panama (PAN) 20.71 Q
9 9 Gavin Smellie   Canada (CAN) 20.71 Q
11 3 David Alerte   France (FRA) 20.72 q
12 5 Rondel Sorrillo   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 20.74 Q
13 6 Marc Schneeberger   Switzerland (SUI) 20.76 Q
14 7 Marco Cribari   Switzerland (SUI) 20.80 Q
14 5 Sam Effah   Canada (CAN) 20.80 Q
16 2 Brendan Christian   Antigua and Barbuda (ANT) 20.81 Q
16 6 Emmanuel Callander   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 20.81 Q
18 8 Jared Connaughton   Canada (CAN) 20.82 Q
19 7 Rolando Palacios   Honduras (HON) 20.83 Q
19 7 Kim Collins   Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKN) 20.83 q
21 2 Aleixo-Platini Menga   Germany (GER) 20.84 Q
22 1 Roman Smirnov   Russia (RUS) 20.85 Q
23 8 Shinji Takahira   Japan (JPN) 20.86 Q
24 2 Charles Clark   United States (USA) 20.87 Q
25 9 Thuso Mpuang   South Africa (RSA) 20.91 q
26 4 Marlon Devonish   Great Britain & N.I. (GBR) 20.92 Q
27 2 Ben Youssef Meité   Ivory Coast (CIV) 20.93 q
28 2 Omar Jouma Bilal Al-Salfa   United Arab Emirates (UAE) 20.94 q
29 1 Brian Dzingai   Zimbabwe (ZIM) 20.97 Q
29 9 Ramone McKenzie   Jamaica (JAM) 20.97
31 7 Alexander Kosenkow   Germany (GER) 20.99
32 8 Stéphan Buckland   Mauritius (MRI) 21.00 Q
32 6 Ihor Bodrov   Ukraine (UKR) 21.00
32 6 Hamed Hamadan Al-Bishi   Saudi Arabia (KSA) 21.00
35 9 Seth Amoo   Ghana (GHA) 21.04
36 8 Patrick van Luijk   Netherlands (NED) 21.05
37 4 Ramil Guliyev   Azerbaijan (AZE) 21.12 Q
38 5 Sandro Viana   Brazil (BRA) 21.18
39 4 Marek Niit   Estonia (EST) 21.21 Q
40 5 Eddy De Lépine   France (FRA) 21.23
41 3 Khalid Idrissi Zougari   Morocco (MAR) 21.24
42 4 Nathaniel McKinney   Bahamas (BAH) 21.26
43 1 Adam Harris   Guyana (GUY) 21.28
44 6 Ramon Gittens   Barbados (BAR) 21.33
45 4 Joel Redhead   Grenada (GRN) 21.37
45 7 Ángel David Rodríguez   Spain (ESP) 21.37
47 1 Aaron Armstrong   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 21.38 SB
47 4 Ronalds Arājs   Latvia (LAT) 21.38
47 5 Hitoshi Saito   Japan (JPN) 21.38
50 2 Niko Verekauta   Fiji (FIJ) 21.43 SB
51 2 Amr Ibrahim Mostafa Seoud   Egypt (EGY) 21.44
52 6 Vyacheslav Muravyev   Kazakhstan (KAZ) 21.48
53 8 Fanuel Kenosi   Botswana (BOT) 21.75 SB
54 3 Franklin Nazareno   Ecuador (ECU) 21.84
55 4 Sibusiso Matsenjwa   Swaziland (SWZ) 21.93 PB
56 1 Khalil Al Hanahneh   Jordan (JOR) 21.98
57 8 Nikolai Portelli   Malta (MLT) 22.11
58 4 Andrew Hinds   Barbados (BAR) 22.60
59 8 Gabriel Mvumvure   Zimbabwe (ZIM) 22.67
2 Desislav Gunev   Bulgaria (BUL) DNF
8 Arnaldo Abrantes   Portugal (POR) DNS
1 Dwain Chambers   Great Britain & N.I. (GBR) DNS
7 Tyson Gay   United States (USA) DNS
9 Churandy Martina   Netherlands Antilles (AHO) DNS
5 Obinna Metu   Nigeria (NGR) DNS
3 Gerald Phiri   Zambia (ZAM) DNS
1 Jaysuma Saidy Ndure   Norway (NOR) DNS

Quarterfinals

edit

Qualification: First 3 in each heat(Q) and the next 4 fastest(q) advance to the semifinals.

Rank Heat Name Nationality Time Notes
1 3 Steve Mullings   Jamaica (JAM) 20.23 Q
2 4 Alonso Edward   Panama (PAN) 20.33 Q
3 2 Shawn Crawford   United States (USA) 20.37 Q
4 3 Ramil Guliyev   Azerbaijan (AZE) 20.40 Q
5 1 Usain Bolt   Jamaica (JAM) 20.41 Q
6 4 Wallace Spearmon   United States (USA) 20.44 Q
7 3 Paul Hession   Ireland (IRL) 20.48 Q
8 1 David Alerte   France (FRA) 20.51 Q, SB
9 1 Martial Mbandjock   France (FRA) 20.55 Q, PB
9 1 Charles Clark   United States (USA) 20.55 q
11 4 Robert Hering   Germany (GER) 20.58 Q
11 3 Brendan Christian   Antigua and Barbuda (ANT) 20.58 q
11 1 Rondel Sorrillo   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 20.58 q
14 3 Emmanuel Callander   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 20.62 q
15 2 Marlon Devonish   Great Britain & N.I. (GBR) 20.66 Q
16 3 Aleixo-Platini Menga   Germany (GER) 20.68
17 2 Rolando Palacios   Honduras (HON) 20.69 Q, SB
17 2 Shinji Takahira   Japan (JPN) 20.69
19 2 Roman Smirnov   Russia (RUS) 20.72 SB
20 3 Ben Youssef Meité   Ivory Coast (CIV) 20.78
21 4 Marco Cribari   Switzerland (SUI) 20.81
22 1 Kim Collins   Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKN) 20.84
23 4 Thuso Mpuang   South Africa (RSA) 20.87
24 1 Marc Schneeberger   Switzerland (SUI) 20.91
25 2 Omar Jouma Bilal Al-Salfa   United Arab Emirates (UAE) 20.97
25 4 Kenji Fujimitsu   Japan (JPN) 20.97
25 4 Sam Effah   Canada (CAN) 20.97
28 1 Gavin Smellie   Canada (CAN) 21.27
29 3 Stéphan Buckland   Mauritius (MRI) 21.33
2 Jared Connaughton   Canada (CAN) DSQ
2 Brian Dzingai   Zimbabwe (ZIM) DNF
4 Marek Niit   Estonia (EST) DNS

Semifinals

edit

First 4 of each Semifinal will be directly qualified (Q) for the Finals.

Semifinal 1

edit
Rank Lane Name Nationality React Time Notes
1 3 Usain Bolt   Jamaica (JAM) 0.177 20.08 Q
2 5 Alonso Edward   Panama (PAN) 0.164 20.22 Q
3 6 Shawn Crawford   United States (USA) 0.140 20.35 Q
4 4 David Alerte   France (FRA) 0.147 20.45 Q, SB
5 7 Robert Hering   Germany (GER) 0.157 20.52
6 2 Rondel Sorrillo   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 0.128 20.63
7 8 Rolando Palacios   Honduras (HON) 0.191 20.67 SB
8 1 Brendan Christian   Antigua and Barbuda (ANT) 0.138 20.79

Semifinal 2

edit
 
Steve Mullings prepares for the second semi-final
Rank Lane Name Nationality React Time Notes
1 5 Wallace Spearmon   United States (USA) 0.164 20.14 Q
2 3 Steve Mullings   Jamaica (JAM) 0.156 20.26 Q
3 2 Charles Clark   United States (USA) 0.163 20.27 Q, SB
4 4 Ramil Guliyev   Azerbaijan (AZE) 0.154 20.28 Q
5 7 Martial Mbandjock   France (FRA) 0.155 20.43 PB
6 8 Paul Hession   Ireland (IRL) 0.166 20.48
7 6 Marlon Devonish   Great Britain & N.I. (GBR) 0.154 20.62
8 1 Emmanuel Callander   Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) 0.145 20.70

Final

edit
 
Usain Bolt led the race from start to finish
Rank Lane Name Nationality React Time Notes
  5 Usain Bolt   Jamaica (JAM) 0.133 19.19 WR
  6 Alonso Edward   Panama (PAN) 0.179 19.81 AR
  4 Wallace Spearmon   United States (USA) 0.152 19.85 SB
4 8 Shawn Crawford   United States (USA) 0.148 19.89 SB
5 3 Steve Mullings   Jamaica (JAM) 0.146 19.98 PB
6 7 Charles Clark   United States (USA) 0.158 20.39
7 1 Ramil Guliyev   Azerbaijan (AZE) 0.165 20.61
8 2 David Alerte   France (FRA) 0.161 20.68

References

edit
General
Specific
  1. ^ Mulkeen, Jon (2009-08-09).Men's 200m - PREVIEW. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-08-09. Archived 2009-09-08.
  2. ^ Mulkeen, Jon (2009-08-18).Event Report - Men's 200m - Heats Archived 2009-08-21 at the Wayback Machine. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-08-09.
  3. ^ Mulkeen, Jon (2009-08-18). Event Report - Men's 200m - Quarter-Final Archived 2009-08-22 at the Wayback Machine. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-08-21.
  4. ^ Mulkeen, Jon (2009-08-19). Event Report - Men's 200m - Semi-Final Archived 2009-08-22 at the Wayback Machine. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-08-21.
  5. ^ New World Record for Usain Bolt - from Universal Sports on YouTube
  6. ^ a b Mulkeen, Jon (2009-08-20). Event Report - Men's 200m - Final Archived 2009-08-22 at the Wayback Machine. IAAF. Retrieved on 2009-08-21.
  7. ^ "World Championship Statistics Handbook" (Press release). IAAF. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
  8. ^ Hart, Simon (2009-08-20). World Athletics: Usain Bolt breaks 200 metres world record in 19.19 seconds. The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved on 2009-08-21.