# Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's 100 metres

The men's 100 metres sprint event at the 2008 Olympic Games took place on 15 and 16 August at the Beijing National Stadium. 80 athletes from 64 nations competed. Each nation was limited to 3 athletes per rules in force since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was won by Jamaican Usain Bolt in a world record time of 9.69 seconds. It was Jamaica's first title in the event, and first medal in the event since 1976. Jamaica became the first country to join the men's 100 metre winners since Trinidad and Tobago, also in 1976; Richard Thompson won the country's fourth overall medal in the event with his silver.
Holding a considerable lead 70 metres (230 ft) into the race, Bolt opened his arms in celebration before slapping his chest. British athlete and television presenter Kriss Akabusi criticized this gesture as showboating, noting that it cost Bolt an even faster record time. IOC president Jacques Rogge also criticized Bolt's actions as disrespectful. Bolt denied that this was the purpose of his mid-race celebration, stating, "I wasn't bragging. When I saw I wasn't covered, I was just happy."

## Summary

Prior to the 2008 season, Usain Bolt was known as a 200-metre sprinter, having set the world youth best in the event four years earlier; he had only run in the 100 metres the year before, with a one-off race in Rethymno. While people were impressed with his time of 10.03 seconds, Bolt was not seen as a threat by other 100-metre sprinters who had previously hit times of 9.9 seconds.
In early May, Bolt persuaded his coach to let him try competing in the 100 metre sprint again. His resulting time of 9.76 seconds was the second-fastest in history, only .02 seconds behind fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell's world record. At the end of the month he entered another 100 metres at the Adidas Grand Prix in New York City. The result was a new world record of 9.72 seconds.
While Bolt's slow starts were seen as a liability, his speed once moving was difficult for other athletes to match. Bolt achieved the fastest times in both the quarterfinal and semi-final rounds, while injured Gay and Obikwelu were eliminated. The center lanes of the final, reserved for the fastest qualifiers, included Bolt, Powell, Dix and another collegiate phenom from LSU, Richard Thompson.
In the final, the third Jamaican in the race, Michael Frater, got the best start, along with Thompson and Darvis Patton. 30 m (98 ft) into the race, Bolt had reached his full running position and had pulled even with the leader, Thompson. By the next 20 m (66 ft), Bolt had pulled away, with Thompson breaking up a sweep of Frater and Powell.
20 metres before the finish, already with a 3-metre (9.8 ft) lead, Bolt held out his arms in celebration; behind him, Dix and Churandy Martina made a late rush to overtake Frater and Powell. Turning to look back at his fellow competitors, Bolt crossed the finish line sideways with his arms outstretched, finishing with a new world record of 9.69 seconds. Thompson later said that "I could see him slowing down ahead as I was still pumping away."

## Background

The 2008 Olympic Games was the 26th time the event was held, having appeared at every Olympics since the first in 1896. Four finalists from 2004 returned: silver medalist Francis Obikwelu of Portugal, fifth-place finisher Asafa Powell of Jamaica, sixth-place finisher Kim Collins of Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Aziz Zakari of Ghana, who had been unable to finish the final. Collins and Zakari had also been to the final in 2000. Defending gold medalist Justin Gatlin was banned at the time for failing a second drugs test, testing positive for testosterone.
In Gatlin's absence, the United States team was led by Tyson Gay, the reigning world champion, who had suffered a hamstring injury at the U.S. trials. An ascendant Jamaican team included Powell, who had held the world record from 2005 to 2008, and Usain Bolt, who had taken the world record in May 2008.
The Czech Republic, the Marshall Islands, and Tuvalu appeared in the event for the first time. The United States made its 25th appearance in the event, the most of any country, having missed only the boycotted 1980 Olympic Games.

## Qualification

Each National Olympic Committee (NOC) was able to enter up to three entrants providing they had met the A qualifying standard (10.21 seconds) in the qualifying period (1 January 2007 to 23 July 2008). NOCs were also permitted to enter one athlete providing he had met the B standard (10.28 seconds) in the same qualifying period.

## Competition format

The event retained the same basic four round format introduced in 1920: heats, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. The "fastest loser" system, introduced in 1968, was used again to ensure that the quarterfinals and subsequent rounds had exactly 8 runners per heat; this time, the system was used in both the heats and quarterfinals.
The first round consisted of 10 heats, each with 8 or 9 athletes. The top three runners in each heat advanced, along with the next ten fastest runners overall. This made 40 quarterfinalists, who were divided into 5 heats of 8 runners. The top three runners in each quarterfinal advanced, with one "fastest loser" place. The 16 semifinalists competed in two heats of 8, with the top four in each semifinal advancing to the eight-man final.

## Records

Prior to the competition, the existing world record, Olympic record, and world leading time were as follows:
| World record | Usain Bolt (JAM) | 9.72 seconds | New York City, United States | 31 May 2008 |
| Olympic record | Donovan Bailey (CAN) | 9.84 seconds | Atlanta, United States | 27 July 1996 |
| World leading | Usain Bolt (JAM) | 9.72 seconds | New York City, United States | 31 May 2008 |
The following new world and Olympic records were set during the competition:
| Date | Event | Athlete | Time | OR | WR |
| 16 August | Final | Usain Bolt (JAM) | 9.69 seconds | OR | WR |

## Schedule

All times are China Standard Time (UTC+8).
| Date | Time | Round |
| Friday, 15 August 2008 | 09:4519:45 | HeatsQuarterfinals |
| Saturday, 16 August 2008 | 20:0022:30 | SemifinalsFinal |

## Disqualification

Eight years after the event, the IOC reanalyzed doping samples and disqualified Samuel Francis for having stanozolol in his sample.

## Results
### Heats

The first round was held on 15 August. The first three runners of each heat plus the next ten overall fastest runners qualified for the second round.

#### Heat 1

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 3 | Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 0.186 | 10.20 | Q |
| 2 | 9 | Daniel Bailey | Antigua and Barbuda | 0.198 | 10.24 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Vicente de Lima | Brazil | 0.168 | 10.26 | Q, SB |
| 4 | 2 | Henry Vizcaíno | Cuba | 0.157 | 10.28 | q |
| 5 | 4 | Fabio Cerutti | Italy | 0.136 | 10.49 | |
| 6 | 5 | Jurgen Themen | Suriname | 0.179 | 10.61 | PB |
| 7 | 8 | Moses Kamut | Vanuatu | 0.181 | 10.81 | |
| 8 | 7 | Francis Manioru | Solomon Islands | 0.197 | 11.09 | |
| | | | | Wind: -0.2 m/s | Wind: -0.2 m/s | Wind: -0.2 m/s | Wind: -0.2 m/s |

#### Heat 2

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 5 | Asafa Powell | Jamaica | 0.142 | 10.16 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.162 | 10.17 | Q |
| 3 | 7 | Craig Pickering | Great Britain | 0.174 | 10.21 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Daniel Grueso | Colombia | 0.178 | 10.35 | q |
| 5 | 9 | Dariusz Kuć | Poland | 0.144 | 10.44 | q |
| 6 | 8 | Béranger Bosse | Central African Republic | 0.144 | 10.51 | SB |
| 7 | 6 | Aisea Tohi | Tonga | 0.159 | 11.17 | |
| 8 | 4 | Roman William Cress | Marshall Islands | 0.190 | 11.18 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s |

#### Heat 3

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 8 | Richard Thompson | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.188 | 10.24 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Martial Mbandjock | France | 0.162 | 10.26 | Q |
| 3 | 4 | Simone Collio | Italy | 0.140 | 10.32 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Aziz Zakari | Ghana | 0.177 | 10.34 | q |
| 5 | 6 | Andrew Hinds | Barbados | 0.140 | 10.35 | q |
| 6 | 3 | Suryo Agung Wibowo | Indonesia | 0.175 | 10.46 | |
| 7 | 7 | Jared Lewis | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 0.123 | 11.00 | |
| 8 | 9 | Rabangaki Nawai | Kiribati | 0.152 | 11.29 | SB |
| | | | | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s |

#### Heat 4

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 3 | Michael Frater | Jamaica | 0.156 | 10.15 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Pierre Browne | Canada | 0.141 | 10.22 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Darrel Brown | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.139 | 10.22 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Nobuharu Asahara | Japan | 0.160 | 10.25 | q |
| 5 | 9 | Holder da Silva | Guinea-Bissau | 0.184 | 10.58 | |
| 6 | 2 | Idrissa Sanou | Burkina Faso | 0.171 | 10.63 | |
| 7 | 8 | Ghyd-Kermeliss-Holly Olonghot | Republic of the Congo | 0.172 | 11.01 | |
| 8 | 5 | Massoud Azizi | Afghanistan | 0.160 | 11.45 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.2 m/s | Wind: 0.2 m/s | Wind: 0.2 m/s | Wind: 0.2 m/s |

#### Heat 5

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | Tyson Gay | United States | 0.148 | 10.22 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Olusoji A. Fasuba | Nigeria | 0.156 | 10.29 | Q |
| 3 | 4 | José Carlos Moreira | Brazil | 0.192 | 10.29 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Ángel David Rodríguez | Spain | 0.145 | 10.34 | q |
| 5 | 9 | Lukas Milo | Czech Republic | 0.145 | 10.52 | |
| 6 | 8 | Mhadjou Youssouf | Comoros | 0.170 | 10.62 | PB |
| 7 | 3 | Danny D'Souza | Seychelles | 0.180 | 11.00 | |
| 8 | 6 | Shanahan Sanitoa | American Samoa | 0.158 | 12.60 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.7 m/s | Wind: 0.7 m/s | Wind: 0.7 m/s | Wind: 0.7 m/s |

#### Heat 6

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 5 | Tyrone Edgar | Great Britain | 0.138 | 10.13 | Q |
| 2 | 6 | Darvis Patton | United States | 0.149 | 10.25 | Q |
| 3 | 7 | Ronald Pognon | France | 0.167 | 10.26 | Q |
| 4 | 2 | Hu Kai | China | 0.152 | 10.39 | q |
| 5 | 4 | Abdullah Al-Sooli | Oman | 0.153 | 10.53 | PB |
| 6 | 8 | Desislav Gunev | Bulgaria | 0.152 | 10.66 | |
| 7 | 3 | Ali Shareef | Maldives | 0.171 | 11.11 | NR |
| 8 | 9 | Souksavanh Tonsacktheva | Laos | 0.183 | 11.51 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.9 m/s | Wind: 0.9 m/s | Wind: 0.9 m/s | Wind: 0.9 m/s |

#### Heat 7

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Francis Obikwelu | Portugal | 0.190 | 10.25 | Q |
| 2 | 2 | Obinna Metu | Nigeria | 0.176 | 10.34 | Q |
| 3 | 5 | Walter Dix | United States | 0.167 | 10.35 | Q |
| 4 | 6 | Anson Henry | Canada | 0.138 | 10.37 | q |
| 5 | 8 | Dmytro Hlushchenko | Ukraine | 0.200 | 10.57 | |
| 6 | 3 | Calvin Kang Li Loong | Singapore | 0.140 | 10.73 | |
| 7 | 9 | Jesse Tamangrow | Palau | 0.146 | 11.38 | PB |
| 8 | 7 | Reginaldo Micha Ndong | Equatorial Guinea | 0.242 | 11.61 | |
| | | | | Wind: -1.4 m/s | Wind: -1.4 m/s | Wind: -1.4 m/s | Wind: -1.4 m/s |

#### Heat 8

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 3 | Derrick Atkins | Bahamas | 0.162 | 10.28 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Andrey Yepishin | Russia | 0.172 | 10.34 | Q |
| 3 | 9 | Jaysuma Saidy Ndure | Norway | 0.164 | 10.37 | Q |
| 4 | 6 | Uchenna Emedolu | Nigeria | 0.192 | 10.46 | |
| 5 | 2 | Suwaibou Sanneh | The Gambia | 0.157 | 10.52 | |
| 6 | 5 | Sandro Viana | Brazil | 0.160 | 10.60 | |
| 7 | 7 | Lai Chun Ho | Hong Kong | 0.199 | 10.63 | |
| 8 | 8 | Mohamed Abu Abdullah | Bangladesh | 0.174 | 11.07 | |
| | | | | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s |

#### Heat 9

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 6 | Samuel Francis | Qatar | 0.153 | 10.40 DSQ | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Marc Burns | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.160 | 10.46 | Q |
| 3 | 9 | Matic Osovnikar | Slovenia | 0.187 | 10.46 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Rolando Palacios | Honduras | 0.189 | 10.49 | |
| 5 | 2 | Ruslan Abbasov | Azerbaijan | 0.154 | 10.58 | |
| 6 | 4 | Sébastien Gattuso | Monaco | 0.164 | 10.70 | |
| 7 | 8 | Jack Howard | Federated States of Micronesia | 0.204 | 11.03 | |
| 8 | 3 | Gordon Heather | Cook Islands | 0.214 | 11.41 | PB |
| | | | | Wind: -1.7 m/s | Wind: -1.7 m/s | Wind: -1.7 m/s | Wind: -1.7 m/s |

#### Heat 10

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Churandy Martina | Netherlands Antilles | 0.164 | 10.35 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Naoki Tsukahara | Japan | 0.169 | 10.39 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Simeon Williamson | Great Britain | 0.183 | 10.42 | Q |
| 4 | 9 | Tobias Unger | Germany | 0.161 | 10.46 | q |
| 5 | 8 | Franklin Nazareno | Ecuador | 0.178 | 10.60 | |
| 6 | 7 | Wilfried Bingangoye | Gabon | 0.171 | 10.87 | |
| 7 | 2 | Moumi Sebergue | Chad | 0.210 | 11.14 | |
| 8 | 3 | Okilani Tinilau | Tuvalu | 0.174 | 11.48 | NR |
| | | | | Wind: -1.3 m/s | Wind: -1.3 m/s | Wind: -1.3 m/s | Wind: -1.3 m/s |

### Quarterfinals

The quarterfinals were held on 15 August. The first three runners of each heat plus the next overall fastest runner qualified for the semifinals.

#### Quarterfinal 1

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Churandy Martina | Netherlands Antilles | 0.142 | 9.99 | Q, NR |
| 2 | 7 | Michael Frater | Jamaica | 0.154 | 10.09 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Naoki Tsukahara | Japan | 0.156 | 10.23 | Q, SB |
| 4 | 9 | Simeon Williamson | Great Britain | 0.127 | 10.32 | |
| 5 | 3 | Henry Vizcaíno | Cuba | 0.167 | 10.33 | |
| 6 | 5 | Pierre Browne | Canada | 0.144 | 10.36 | |
| 7 | 2 | Dariusz Kuć | Poland | 0.176 | 10.46 | |
| 8 | 8 | Darrel Brown | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.119 | 10.93 | |
| | | | | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s |

#### Quarterfinal 2

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 6 | Richard Thompson | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.170 | 9.99 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Tyson Gay | United States | 0.146 | 10.09 | Q |
| 3 | 7 | Martial Mbandjock | France | 0.160 | 10.16 | Q |
| 4 | 5 | Olusoji A. Fasuba | Nigeria | 0.147 | 10.21 | |
| 5 | 2 | Andrew Hinds | Barbados | 0.148 | 10.25 | |
| 6 | 8 | José Carlos Moreira | Brazil | 0.193 | 10.32 | |
| 7 | 9 | Simone Collio | Italy | 0.138 | 10.33 | |
| 8 | 3 | Daniel Grueso | Colombia | 0.193 | 10.37 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s |

#### Quarterfinal 3

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 6 | Marc Burns | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.174 | 10.05 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.150 | 10.07 | Q, =SB |
| 3 | 5 | Tyrone Edgar | Great Britain | 0.130 | 10.10 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Samuel Francis | Qatar | 0.164 | 10.11 DSQ | Q |
| 5 | 9 | Ronald Pognon | France | 0.167 | 10.21 | |
| 6 | 8 | Matic Osovnikar | Slovenia | 0.171 | 10.24 | |
| 7 | 2 | Tobias Unger | Germany | 0.136 | 10.36 | |
| 8 | 3 | Nobuharu Asahara | Japan | 0.145 | 10.37 | |
| | | | | Wind: -0.2 m/s | Wind: -0.2 m/s | Wind: -0.2 m/s | Wind: -0.2 m/s |

#### Quarterfinal 4

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 7 | Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 0.165 | 9.92 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Darvis Patton | United States | 0.159 | 10.04 | Q |
| 3 | 4 | Francis Obikwelu | Portugal | 0.168 | 10.09 | Q |
| 4 | 8 | Jaysuma Saidy Ndure | Norway | 0.133 | 10.14 | |
| 5 | 9 | Craig Pickering | Great Britain | 0.144 | 10.18 | |
| 6 | 6 | Obinna Metu | Nigeria | 0.174 | 10.27 | |
| 7 | 3 | Anson Henry | Canada | 0.142 | 10.33 | |
| 8 | 2 | Ángel David Rodríguez | Spain | 0.154 | 10.35 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.1 m/s | Wind: 0.1 m/s | Wind: 0.1 m/s | Wind: 0.1 m/s |

#### Quarterfinal 5

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 7 | Asafa Powell | Jamaica | 0.149 | 10.02 | Q |
| 2 | 9 | Walter Dix | United States | 0.163 | 10.08 | Q |
| 3 | 5 | Derrick Atkins | Bahamas | 0.179 | 10.14 | Q |
| 4 | 4 | Daniel Bailey | Antigua and Barbuda | 0.149 | 10.23 | |
| 5 | 3 | Aziz Zakari | Ghana | 0.167 | 10.24 | |
| 6 | 6 | Andrey Yepishin | Russia | 0.158 | 10.25 | |
| 7 | 8 | Vicente de Lima | Brazil | 0.157 | 10.31 | |
| 8 | 2 | Hu Kai | China | 0.165 | 10.40 | |
| | | | | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s |

### Semifinals

The semifinals were held on 16 August. The first four runners from each semifinal qualified for the final.

#### Semifinal 1

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 7 | Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 0.161 | 9.85 | Q |
| 2 | 6 | Walter Dix | United States | 0.143 | 9.95 | Q, SB |
| 3 | 4 | Marc Burns | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.124 | 9.97 | Q, =SB |
| 4 | 9 | Michael Frater | Jamaica | 0.163 | 10.01 | Q |
| 5 | 5 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.163 | 10.05 | SB |
| 6 | 2 | Derrick Atkins | Bahamas | 0.159 | 10.13 | |
| 7 | 8 | Tyrone Edgar | Great Britain | 0.143 | 10.18 | |
| — | 3 | Samuel Francis | Qatar | 0.146 | 10.20 DSQ | |
| | | | | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s | Wind: -0.1 m/s |

#### Semifinal 2

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 6 | Asafa Powell | Jamaica | 0.161 | 9.91 | Q |
| 2 | 7 | Richard Thompson | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.175 | 9.93 | Q, =PB |
| 3 | 5 | Churandy Martina | Netherlands Antilles | 0.138 | 9.94 | Q, NR |
| 4 | 4 | Darvis Patton | United States | 0.149 | 10.03 | Q |
| 5 | 9 | Tyson Gay | United States | 0.145 | 10.05 | |
| 6 | 8 | Francis Obikwelu | Portugal | 0.157 | 10.10 | |
| 7 | 3 | Naoki Tsukahara | Japan | 0.143 | 10.16 | SB |
| 8 | 2 | Martial Mbandjock | France | 0.148 | 10.18 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.3 m/s | Wind: 0.3 m/s | Wind: 0.3 m/s | Wind: 0.3 m/s |

### Final

* Usain Bolt sets new world record in 100m sprint
The final was held on 16 August.
| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| | 4 | Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 0.165 | 9.69 | WR |
| | 5 | Richard Thompson | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.133 | 9.89 | PB |
| | 6 | Walter Dix | United States | 0.133 | 9.91 | PB |
| 4 | 9 | Churandy Martina | Netherlands Antilles | 0.169 | 9.93 | NR |
| 5 | 7 | Asafa Powell | Jamaica | 0.134 | 9.95 | |
| 6 | 2 | Michael Frater | Jamaica | 0.147 | 9.97 | PB |
| 7 | 8 | Marc Burns | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.145 | 10.01 | |
| 8 | 3 | Darvis Patton | United States | 0.142 | 10.03 | |
| | | | | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s | Wind: 0.0 m/s |