# Athletics at the 1997 Summer Universiade – Men's 400 metres

The men's 400 metres event at the 1997 Summer Universiade was held at the Stadio Cibali in Catania, Italy on 29 and 30 August.

## Medalists

| Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| Clement Chukwu Nigeria | Jerome Davis United States | Linval Laird Jamaica |

## Results
### Heats

| Rank | Heat | Athlete | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | Linval Laird | Jamaica | 46.47 | Q |
| 2 | 7 | Samir Louahla | Algeria | 46.86 | Q |
| 3 | 2 | Udeme Ekpeyong | Nigeria | 47.05 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Sean Baldock | Great Britain | 47.05 | Q |
| 5 | 2 | Julien Hagen | Netherlands | 47.18 | Q |
| 6 | 7 | Adriaan Botha | South Africa | 47.21 | Q |
| 7 | 1 | Rampa Mosweu | Botswana | 47.31 | Q |
| 8 | 3 | Arnaud Malherbe | South Africa | 47.33 | Q |
| 9 | 7 | Ingūns Svikliņš | Latvia | 47.34 | Q |
| 10 | 2 | Dmitriy Golovastov | Russia | 47.41 | Q |
| 10 | 3 | Edoardo Vallet | Italy | 47.41 | Q |
| 12 | 3 | Andreas Rechbauer | Austria | 47.43 | Q |
| 13 | 3 | Brad Jamieson | Australia | 47.44 | Q |
| 13 | 7 | Darko Juričić | Croatia | 47.44 | q |
| 15 | 5 | Mathias Rusterholz | Switzerland | 47.46 | Q |
| 16 | 3 | Piotr Długosielski | Poland | 47.57 | q |
| 17 | 3 | Frano Bakarić | Croatia | 47.61 | q |
| 18 | 6 | Garth Robinson | Jamaica | 47.63 | Q |
| 19 | 6 | Rafik Elouardi | Austria | 47.68 | Q |
| 20 | 5 | Zsolt Szeglet | Hungary | 47.71 | Q |
| 21 | 5 | Jared Deacon | Great Britain | 47.74 | Q |
| 22 | 5 | Brian Forbes | Ireland | 47.81 | Q |
| 23 | 2 | Urmet Uusorg | Estonia | 47.84 | q |
| 24 | 5 | Kenden Maynard | United States Virgin Islands | 47.85 | |
| 25 | 4 | Boštjan Horvat | Slovenia | 48.07 | Q |
| 26 | 4 | Clement Chukwu | Nigeria | 48.18 | Q |
| 27 | 6 | Jerome Davis | United States | 48.21 | Q |
| 28 | 4 | Jens Dautzenberg | Germany | 48.25 | Q |
| 29 | 6 | Alexander Müller | Germany | 48.28 | Q |
| 30 | 1 | Nick Cowan | New Zealand | 48.32 | Q |
| 31 | 1 | Declan Stack | Australia | 48.38 | Q |
| 32 | 4 | Kjell Provost | Belgium | 48.40 | Q |
| 33 | 6 | Henry Semiti | Fiji | 48.50 | |
| 34 | 2 | Ercan Sunu | Turkey | 48.53 | |
| 35 | 4 | Moses Asonya | Uganda | 48.77 | |
| 36 | 6 | Yang Teng-kai | Chinese Taipei | 49.00 | |
| 37 | 5 | Emmanuel Rubayiza | Rwanda | 49.10 | |
| 38 | 7 | Erwin Naimhwaka | Namibia | 49.24 | |
| 39 | 5 | Javier Verme | Peru | 49.35 | |
| 40 | 1 | Danny McCray | United States | 49.45 | Q |
| 41 | 4 | Niclas Rudin | Sweden | 49.47 | |
| 42 | 6 | Immanuel Kharigub | Namibia | 49.54 | |
| 43 | 3 | Niclas Nygren-Johansson | Sweden | 49.65 | |
| 44 | 7 | Noah Ssengendo | Uganda | 50.20 | |
| 45 | 1 | Philip Rotich | Kenya | 50.58 | |
| 46 | 2 | Luis Romero | Peru | 50.71 | |
| 47 | 2 | Ahmed Faquieh | Jordan | 50.89 | |
| 48 | 6 | Nidal Shelbaya | Jordan | 51.11 | |
| 49 | 1 | Carlos Sequeira | Nicaragua | 51.76 | |
| 50 | 4 | Saakarea Babalone | Botswana | 53.41 | |
| 51 | 7 | Fabio Canini | San Marino | 55.19 | |
| | 5 | Roman Galkin | Ukraine | DNF | |

### Quarterfinals

| Rank | Heat | Athlete | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Linval Laird | Jamaica | 45.77 | Q |
| 2 | 2 | Clement Chukwu | Nigeria | 46.06 | Q |
| 3 | 2 | Arnaud Malherbe | South Africa | 46.11 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Danny McCray | United States | 46.23 | Q |
| 5 | 2 | Mathias Rusterholz | Switzerland | 46.25 | Q |
| 6 | 2 | Declan Stack | Australia | 46.31 | |
| 7 | 2 | Jens Dautzenberg | Germany | 46.33 | |
| 8 | 1 | Garth Robinson | Jamaica | 46.36 | Q |
| 9 | 3 | Dmitriy Golovastov | Russia | 46.50 | Q |
| 10 | 1 | Jerome Davis | United States | 46.53 | Q |
| 11 | 4 | Sean Baldock | Great Britain | 46.55 | Q |
| 12 | 4 | Andreas Rechbauer | Austria | 46.57 | Q |
| 13 | 3 | Samir Louahla | Algeria | 46.58 | Q |
| 14 | 4 | Udeme Ekpeyong | Nigeria | 46.64 | Q |
| 15 | 1 | Rafik Elouardi | Austria | 46.81 | Q |
| 15 | 3 | Jared Deacon | Great Britain | 46.81 | Q |
| 17 | 3 | Boštjan Horvat | Slovenia | 46.96 | Q |
| 18 | 4 | Adriaan Botha | South Africa | 47.01 | |
| 19 | 1 | Ingūns Svikliņš | Latvia | 47.04 | Q |
| 20 | 1 | Kjell Provost | Belgium | 47.04 | |
| 21 | 2 | Darko Juričić | Croatia | 47.05 | |
| 22 | 3 | Edoardo Vallet | Italy | 47.06 | |
| 23 | 1 | Nick Cowan | New Zealand | 47.10 | |
| 24 | 3 | Julien Hagen | Netherlands | 47.12 | |
| 25 | 2 | Zsolt Szeglet | Hungary | 47.32 | |
| 26 | 1 | Rampa Mosweu | Botswana | 47.46 | |
| 27 | 4 | Brad Jamieson | Australia | 47.52 | |
| 28 | 3 | Frano Bakarić | Croatia | 47.53 | |
| 29 | 1 | Piotr Długosielski | Poland | 47.56 | |
| 30 | 4 | Urmet Uusorg | Estonia | 47.57 | |
| 31 | 4 | Brian Forbes | Ireland | 47.64 | |
| 32 | 3 | Alexander Müller | Germany | 48.47 | |

### Semifinals

| Rank | Heat | Athlete | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | Linval Laird | Jamaica | 46.12 | Q |
| 2 | 2 | Danny McCray | United States | 46.58 | Q |
| 3 | 2 | Arnaud Malherbe | South Africa | 46.75 | Q |
| 4 | 1 | Garth Robinson | Jamaica | 47.01 | Q |
| 5 | 2 | Udeme Ekpeyong | Nigeria | 47.02 | Q |
| 6 | 2 | Samir Louahla | Algeria | 47.10 | |
| 7 | 1 | Jerome Davis | United States | 47.24 | Q |
| 8 | 1 | Clement Chukwu | Nigeria | 47.49 | Q |
| 9 | 2 | Dmitriy Golovastov | Russia | 47.54 | |
| 10 | 2 | Jared Deacon | Great Britain | 47.73 | |
| 11 | 1 | Andreas Rechbauer | Austria | 48.10 | Q |
| 12 | 1 | Ingūns Svikliņš | Latvia | 48.38 | |
| 13 | 2 | Rafik Elouardi | Austria | 48.50 | |
| 14 | 1 | Sean Baldock | Great Britain | 48.93 | |
| 15 | 1 | Boštjan Horvat | Slovenia | 49.22 | |
| | 1 | Mathias Rusterholz | Switzerland | DNS | |

### Final

| Rank | Athlete | Nationality | Time |
| | Clement Chukwu | Nigeria | 44.81 |
| | Jerome Davis | United States | 45.30 |
| | Linval Laird | Jamaica | 45.54 |
| 4 | Garth Robinson | Jamaica | 45.85 |
| 5 | Arnaud Malherbe | South Africa | 46.23 |
| 6 | Udeme Ekpeyong | Nigeria | 47.39 |
| 7 | Andreas Rechbauer | Austria | 48.34 |
| | Danny McCray | United States | DNF |