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Athletics at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metres

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Women's 200 metres
at the Games of the XXXII Olympiad
Olympic Athletics
VenueJapan National Stadium
Dates2 August 2021
(heats & semifinals)
3 August 2021
(final)[1]
Competitors41 from 31 nations
Winning time21.53
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Elaine Thompson-Herah  Jamaica
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Christine Mboma  Namibia
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Gabrielle Thomas  United States
← 2016
2024 →

The women's 200 metres event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 2 and 3 August 2021 at the Japan National Stadium.[1] 41 athletes from 31 nations competed.[2] In successfully defending her title, Elaine Thompson-Herah became the first woman in history to win both the 100 and 200 metres titles at successive games. Her winning time of 21.53 secs, moved her to second on the world all-time list behind Florence Griffith Joyner, and broke Merlene Ottey's 30-year-old Jamaican record. The winning margin was 0.28 seconds. Surprisingly, Thompson-Herah had the slowest reaction time in the final.

Summary

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The field included six of the top 25 women in history, three of whom set their personal bests earlier in the season. The defending champion Elaine Thompson-Herah was rounding into form having defended her 100m title three days earlier. The world leader coming into the Olympics was Gabrielle Thomas, who ran the #2 time in history to win the US Trials. Two unknown commodities were Namibian teenagers Beatrice Masilingi and Christine Mboma, who had run exceptional 400m times earlier in the season, but less than a month before the Olympics, they were blocked from running in that event due to their having excess natural testosterone. The 200 metres was their back up event because it is exempted from the rule's limited range of events.

In the second heat, Masilingi set the National Record. In the fourth heat, Mboma broke it, in the process surprising Thomas. What was particularly shocking was the terrible start of Mboma, with Thomas making up the stagger in the first few steps of the race, and the awkward but blazing speed she had in the last half of the race. Returning silver medalist Dafne Schippers failed to qualify in the first semi-final, where Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Masilingi did. In the second semi, Thompson-Herah equalled her personal best, but behind her with superior top end speed was Mboma, again beating Thomas while setting the world junior record at 21.97.

In the final, Fraser-Pryce had a rocket start as would be predictable considering her history, three lanes outside of her in a matching Jamaican uniform, Thompson-Herah was keeping pace. In stark contrast, Mboma trailed the field with Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Masilingi. Coming off the turn, Thomas was barely behind Fraser-Pryce and Thompson-Herah. From there, Thompson-Herah pulled away as Thomas slowly chipped away at Fraser-Pryce's slight advantage. Miller-Uibo's closing speed was not present, but Mboma's was, rocketing past four of the top sprinters in the world in a different gear. Mboma passed Fraser-Pryce and Thomas ten metres out, beating Thomas for the third time to take silver. Thomas beat Fraser-Pryce for bronze.[3]

Background

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This was the 19th time the event was held, having appeared at every Olympics since 1948.

Qualification

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A National Olympic Committee (NOC) could enter up to 3 qualified athletes in the women's 200 metres event if all athletes meet the entry standard or qualify by ranking during the qualifying period. (The limit of 3 has been in place since the 1930 Olympic Congress.) The qualifying standard is 22.80 seconds. This standard was "set for the sole purpose of qualifying athletes with exceptional performances unable to qualify through the IAAF World Rankings pathway." The world rankings, based on the average of the best five results for the athlete over the qualifying period and weighted by the importance of the meet, will then be used to qualify athletes until the cap of 56 is reached.[2][4]

The qualifying period was originally from 1 May 2019 to 29 June 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the period was suspended from 6 April 2020 to 30 November 2020, with the end date extended to 29 June 2021. The world rankings period start date was also changed from 1 May 2019 to 30 June 2020; athletes who had met the qualifying standard during that time were still qualified, but those using world rankings would not be able to count performances during that time. The qualifying time standards could be obtained in various meets during the given period that have the approval of the IAAF. Both indoor and outdoor meets were eligible for qualification. The most recent Area Championships may be counted in the ranking, even if not during the qualifying period.[2][5]

NOCs can also use their universality place—each NOC can enter one female athlete regardless of time if they had no female athletes meeting the entry standard for an athletics event—in the 200 metres.[2]

Competition format

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The event continued to use the three-round format introduced in 2012.[6]

Records

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Prior to this competition, the existing global and area records were as follows.

World record  Florence Griffith Joyner (USA) 21.34 s Seoul, South Korea 29 September 1988
Olympic record  Florence Griffith Joyner (USA) 21.34 s Seoul, South Korea 29 September 1988
World Leading  Gabrielle Thomas (USA) 21.61 s Eugene, Oregon, United States 26 June 2021
Area Time (s) Wind Athlete Nation
Africa (records) 22.04 +0.5 Blessing Okagbare  Nigeria
Asia (records) 22.01 +0.0 Li Xuemei  China
Europe (records) 21.63 +0.3 Dafne Schippers  Netherlands
North, Central America
and Caribbean
(records)
21.34 WR +1.3 Florence Griffith Joyner  United States
Oceania (records) 22.23 +0.8 Melinda Gainsford-Taylor  Australia
South America (records) 22.48 +1.0 Ana Cláudia Lemos  Brazil

The following national records were established during the competition:

Country Athlete Round Time Notes
Namibia Beatrice Masilingi Round 1 22.63
Christine Mboma Round 1 22.11
Semifinals 21.97 WU20R, AR
Final 21.81 WU20R, AR
Switzerland Mujinga Kambundji Round 1 22.26
Semifinals 22.26
Niger Aminatou Seyni Semifinals 22.54
Jamaica Elaine Thompson-Herah Final 21.53

Schedule

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All times are Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)

The women's 200 metres took place over two consecutive days.[1]

Date Time Round
Monday, 2 August 2021 9:00
19:00
Round 1
Semifinals
Tuesday, 3 August 2021 19:00 Final

Results

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Round 1

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Qualification rule: first three finishers of each heat (Q) plus the next three fastest times (q) qualify to the semifinals.

Heat 1

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 6 Marie-Josée Ta Lou  Ivory Coast 0.170 22.30 Q
2 3 Shaunae Miller-Uibo  Bahamas 0.137 22.40 Q
3 8 Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha  Nigeria 0.156 22.47 Q, PB
4 4 Gloria Hooper  Italy 0.191 23.16 q, SB
5 2 Ana Azevedo  Brazil 0.192 23.20 SB
6 5 Olga Safronova  Kazakhstan 0.162 23.64
Wind: +0.3 m/s

Heat 2

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 6 Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce  Jamaica 0.140 22.22 Q
2 3 Beatrice Masilingi  Namibia 0.185 22.63 Q, NR
3 2 Dafne Schippers  Netherlands 0.151 23.13 Q
4 8 Lisa-Marie Kwayie  Germany 0.169 23.14 q
5 7 Rafaéla Spanoudaki-Hatziriga  Greece 0.131 23.16 q
6 4 Lucia Moris  South Sudan 0.149 25.24
7 5 Najma Parveen  Pakistan 0.173 28.12 SB
Wind: +0.4 m/s

Heat 3

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 8 Mujinga Kambundji  Switzerland 0.129 22.26 Q, =NR
2 5 Anavia Battle  United States 0.129 22.54 Q
3 4 Gémima Joseph  France 0.153 22.94 Q
4 7 Jaël Bestué  Spain 0.171 23.19 PB
5 6 Inna Eftimova  Bulgaria 0.141 23.42
Wind: -0.2 m/s

Heat 4

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 3 Christine Mboma  Namibia 0.275 22.11 Q, WU20R, NR
2 2 Gabrielle Thomas  United States 0.172 22.20 Q
3 5 Aminatou Seyni  Niger 0.144 22.72 Q, SB
4 8 Rhoda Njobvu  Zambia 0.145 23.33
5 6 Jessica-Bianca Wessolly  Germany 0.176 23.41
6 4 Vitória Cristina Rosa  Brazil 0.187 23.59
7 7 Dutee Chand  India 0.140 23.85 SB
Wind: +0.7 m/s

Heat 5

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 4 Anthonique Strachan  Bahamas 0.155 22.76 Q, =SB
2 6 Lorène Bazolo  Portugal 0.130 23.21 Q
3 7 Dalia Kaddari  Italy 0.144 23.26 (23.251) Q
4 2 Shericka Jackson  Jamaica 0.167 23.26 (23.255)
5 3 Ivet Lalova-Collio  Bulgaria 0.158 23.39 SB
6 5 Shanti Pereira  Singapore 0.164 23.96 SB
Wind: -0.3 m/s

Heat 6

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 6 Crystal Emmanuel  Canada 0.157 22.74 Q, SB
2 8 Beth Dobbin  Great Britain 0.136 22.78 Q, =SB
3 5 Elaine Thompson-Herah  Jamaica 0.165 22.86 Q
4 4 Imke Vervaet  Belgium 0.138 23.05 q, PB
5 7 Phil Healy  Ireland 0.140 23.21 SB
Wind: +0.4 m/s

Heat 7

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 2 Jenna Prandini  United States 0.163 22.56 Q
2 6 Gina Bass  The Gambia 0.158 22.74 Q
3 7 Riley Day  Australia 0.155 22.94 Q
4 5 Maja Mihalinec Zidar  Slovenia 0.145 23.62 SB
5 4 Kristina Knott  Philippines 0.133 23.80
8 Jamile Samuel  Netherlands DNS
Wind: +0.9 m/s

Semifinals

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Qualification rule: first 2 of each heat (Q) plus the 2 fastest times (q) qualified.

Semifinal 1

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 6 Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce  Jamaica 0.143 22.13 Q
2 4 Beatrice Masilingi  Namibia 0.181 22.40 Q, PB
3 5 Anthonique Strachan  Bahamas 0.153 22.56 (22.551) SB
4 9 Riley Day  Australia 0.147 22.56 (22.557) PB
5 7 Jenna Prandini  United States 0.142 22.57
6 2 Dafne Schippers  Netherlands 0.151 23.03
7 8 Lorène Bazolo  Portugal 0.138 23.20
8 3 Lisa Marie Kwayie  Germany 0.169 23.42
Wind: +0.3 m/s

Semifinal 2

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 9 Elaine Thompson-Herah  Jamaica 0.165 21.66 Q, =PB
2 4 Christine Mboma  Namibia 0.212 21.97 Q, WU20R, AR
3 6 Gabrielle Thomas  United States 0.156 22.01 q
4 5 Gina Bass  The Gambia 0.144 22.67
5 8 Beth Dobbin  Great Britain 0.145 22.85
6 7 Crystal Emmanuel  Canada 0.166 23.05
7 2 Gemima Joseph  France 0.168 23.19
8 1 Gloria Hooper  Italy 0.197 23.28
9 3 Rafaéla Spanoudaki-Hatziriga  Greece 0.117 23.38
Wind: +0.3 m/s

Semifinal 3

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1 6 Marie-Josée Ta Lou  Ivory Coast 0.178 22.11 Q, SB
2 5 Shaunae Miller-Uibo  Bahamas 0.154 22.14 Q
3 7 Mujinga Kambundji  Switzerland 0.139 22.26 q, =NR
4 9 Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha  Nigeria 0.172 22.47 =PB
5 8 Aminatou Seyni  Niger 0.156 22.54 NR
6 4 Anavia Battle  United States 0.167 23.02
7 2 Imke Vervaet  Belgium 0.139 23.31
8 3 Dalia Kaddari  Italy 0.134 23.41
Wind: +0.1 m/s

Final

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Rank Lane Athlete Nation Reaction Time Notes
1st place, gold medalist(s) 7 Elaine Thompson-Herah  Jamaica 0.173 21.53 NR
2nd place, silver medalist(s) 5 Christine Mboma  Namibia 0.169 21.81 WU20R, AR
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 3 Gabrielle Thomas  United States 0.159 21.87
4 4 Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce  Jamaica 0.141 21.94
5 6 Marie-Josée Ta Lou  Ivory Coast 0.150 22.27
6 8 Beatrice Masilingi  Namibia 0.166 22.28 PB
7 2 Mujinga Kambundji  Switzerland 0.147 22.30
8 9 Shaunae Miller-Uibo  Bahamas 0.145 24.00
Wind: +0.8 m/s

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Athletics Competition Schedule". Tokyo 2020. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d "Qualification System – Games of the XXXI Olympiad – Athletics" (PDF). IAAF. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  3. ^ Gleeson, Michael (3 August 2021). "Jamaican sprinter defends DSD athletes after Mboma takes silver". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  4. ^ "IAAF to follow other sports with world ranking system for athletes". BBC Sport. 7 March 2018. Archived from the original on 15 March 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  5. ^ "Olympic qualification period suspended until 1 December 2020". World Athletics. 6 April 2020. Archived from the original on 9 April 2020. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  6. ^ "Athletics Explanatory Guide". Tokyo 2020. August 2019.