Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 400 metres relay
| Men's 4×400 metres relay at the Games of the V Olympiad | |
 The winning American relay team. | |
| Venue | Stockholm Olympic Stadium |
|---|---|
| Dates | July 14 (semifinals) July 15 (final) |
| Competitors | 28 from 7 nations |
| Medalists | |
| Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics  | ||
|---|---|---|
| Track events | ||
| 100 m | men | |
| 200 m | men | |
| 400 m | men | |
| 800 m | men | |
| 1500 m | men | |
| 5000 m | men | |
| 10,000 m | men | |
| 110 m hurdles | men | |
| 4×100 m relay | men | |
| 4×400 m relay | men | |
| 3000 m team race | men | |
| 10 km walk | men | |
| Road events | ||
| Marathon | men | |
| Field events | ||
| Long jump | men | |
| Triple jump | men | |
| High jump | men | |
| Pole vault | men | |
| Standing long jump | men | |
| Standing high jump | men | |
| Shot put | men | |
| Discus throw | men | |
| Hammer throw | men | |
| Javelin throw | men | |
| 2-hand shot put | men | |
| 2-hand discus | men | |
| 2-hand javelin | men | |
| Combined events | ||
| Pentathlon | men | |
| Decathlon | men | |
| Cross-country events | ||
| Individual | men | |
| Team | men | |
The men's 4 × 400 metres relay was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the debut of the event, which along with the 4x100 metre relay marked the first relays of equal legs in the athletics programme (a medley relay had been held in 1908). The competition was held on Sunday, July 14, 1912, and on Monday, July 15, 1912.
Twenty-eight runners from seven nations competed.
Records
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in minutes) prior to the 1912 Summer Olympics.
| World Record | 3:18.2 |  Harry Schaaf Harry Gissing James Rosenberger Mel Sheppard |
New York (USA) | September 4, 1911 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olympic Record | – | none | – | – |
The British squad, running in the first semifinal, set the best time of the semifinal round with 3:19.0 minutes. It was bettered by the Americans in the final, as they took the gold medal and set a new world record in 3:16.6 minutes.
Results
Semifinals
All semifinals were held on Sunday, July 14, 1912.
Semifinal 1
| Place | Athletes | Time | Qual. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  George Nicol, Ernest Henley, James Soutter, Cyril Seedhouse (GBR) | 3:19.0 OR | QF |
| 2 |  Mel Brock, John Howard, Thomas Gallon, John Tait (CAN) | 3:22.2 |
Semifinal 2
| Place | Athletes | Time | Qual. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Mel Sheppard, Edward Lindberg, Ted Meredith, Charles Reidpath (USA) | 3:23.3 | QF |
| 2 |  Hanns Braun, Max Herrmann, Heinrich Burkowitz, Erich Lehmann (GER) | 3:28.5 |
Semifinal 3
| Place | Athletes | Time | Qual. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Charles Lelong, Robert Schurrer, Pierre Failliot, Charles Poulenard (FRA) | 3:22.5 | QF |
| 2 |  Paul Zerling, John Dahlin, Eric Lindholm, Knut Stenborg (SWE) | 3:25.0 | |
| 3. | .svg.png){kind=small} Ervin Szerelemhegyi, Ödön Bodor, István Déván, Frigyes Wiesner (HUN) | 3:29.4 |
Final
The final was held on Monday, July 15, 1912.
| Place | Athletes | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mel Sheppard, Edward Lindberg, Ted Meredith, Charles Reidpath (USA) | 3:16.6 WR |
| 2 | Charles Lelong, Robert Schurrer, Pierre Failliot, Charles Poulenard (FRA) | 3:20.7 |
| 3 | George Nicol, Ernest Henley, James Soutter, Cyril Seedhouse (GBR) | 3:23.2 |
References
- Bergvall, Erik (ed.) (1913). Adams-Ray, Edward (trans.)., ed. The Official Report of the Olympic Games of Stockholm 1912. Stockholm: Wahlström & Widstrand.
- Wudarski, Pawel (1999). "Wyniki Igrzysk Olimpijskich" (in Polish). Retrieved 1 January 2007.