# Athletics at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Men's 200 metres

The men's 200 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics, as part of the athletics programme, was held at Stadium Australia on Wednesday 27 September and Thursday 28 September 2000. There were 67 competitors from 50 nations. The event was won by Konstantinos Kenteris of Greece, the nation's first medal in the event. Darren Campbell's silver was Great Britain's first men's 200 metres medal since 1980 and matched the nation's best result in the event (third silver with no golds). Ato Boldon of Trinidad and Tobago repeated as bronze medalist, the ninth man to earn multiple medals in the 200 metres.

## Background

This was the 23rd appearance of the event, which was not held at the first Olympics in 1896 but has been on the program ever since. Two of the eight finalists from the 1996 Games returned: bronze medalist Ato Boldon of Trinidad and Tobago and fourth-place finisher Obadele Thompson of Barbados. Boldon had won the 1997 World Championship; Maurice Greene of the United States won in 1999. Neither Greene nor reigning Olympic champion and world record holder Michael Johnson, both suffering from minor injuries, made the U.S. team in the 200 metres (though they did in other events).
Dominica, Kazakhstan, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Slovakia each made their debut in the event. The United States made its 22nd appearance, most of any nation, having missed only the boycotted 1980 Games.

## Qualification

The qualification period for athletics took place between 1 January 1999 to 11 September 2000. For the men's 200 metres, each National Olympic Committee was permitted to enter up to three athletes that had run the race in 20.70 seconds or faster during the qualification period. If an NOC had no athletes that qualified under that standard, one athlete that had run the race in 20.90 seconds or faster could be entered.
The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress.

## Competition format

The competition used the four round format introduced in 1920: heats, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. The "fastest loser" system introduced in 1960 was used in the heats.
There were 9 heats of 7 or 8 runners each, with the top 3 men in each advancing to the quarterfinals along with the next 5 fastest overall. The quarterfinals consisted of 4 heats of 8 athletes each; the 4 fastest men in each heat advanced to the semifinals. There were 2 semifinals, each with 8 runners. The top 4 athletes in each semifinal advanced. The final had 8 runners. The races were run on a 400-metre track.

## Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the Olympics.
| World record | Michael Johnson (USA) | 19.32 | Atlanta, United States | 1 August 1996 |
| Olympic record | Michael Johnson (USA) | 19.32 | Atlanta, United States | 1 August 1996 |
No new world or Olympic records were set during the competition.

## Schedule

All times are Australian Eastern Standard Time (UTC+10)
| Date | Time | Round |
| Wednesday, 27 September 2000 | 10:05 19:30 | Heats Quarterfinals |
| Thursday, 28 September 2000 | 18:20 20:20 | Semifinals Final |

## Results

All times shown are in seconds.

### Heats
#### Heat 1

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 1 | Francis Obikwelu | Nigeria | 0.201 | 20.76 | Q |
| 2 | 8 | Stéphan Buckland | Mauritius | 0.269 | 20.81 | Q |
| 3 | 5 | Renward Wells | Bahamas | 0.147 | 20.95 | Q |
| 4 | 6 | John Ertzgaard | Norway | 0.154 | 21.00 | |
| 5 | 3 | Sayon Cooper | Liberia | 0.261 | 21.10 | |
| 6 | 4 | Albert Agyemang | Ghana | 0.240 | 21.22 | |
| 7 | 7 | Jayson Jones | Belize | 0.163 | 22.20 | |
| — | 2 | Mohamed Mahbub Alam | Bangladesh | 0.240 | DNF | |
| | | | | Wind: −0.3 m/s | Wind: −0.3 m/s | Wind: −0.3 m/s |

#### Heat 2

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 7 | Floyd Heard | United States | 0.167 | 20.68 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Koji Ito | Japan | 0.191 | 20.75 | Q, SB |
| 3 | 8 | Tommi Hartonen | Finland | 0.187 | 20.82 | Q |
| 4 | 5 | Petko Yankov | Bulgaria | 0.152 | 20.91 | q |
| 5 | 2 | Darryl Wohlsen | Australia | 0.161 | 20.98 | |
| 6 | 6 | Pierre Browne | Canada | 0.258 | 21.28 | |
| – | 3 | Tanko Braimah | Ghana | 0.192 | DSQ | R163.3 |
| | | | | Wind: −0.2 m/s | Wind: −0.2 m/s | Wind: −0.2 m/s |

#### Heat 3

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | Ato Boldon | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.157 | 20.52 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.175 | 20.52 | Q |
| 3 | 4 | Marcin Urbaś | Poland | 0.152 | 20.62 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Geir Moen | Norway | 0.160 | 20.76 | q |
| 5 | 8 | Gidon Jablonka | Israel | 0.185 | 20.92 | |
| 6 | 3 | Gennadiy Chernovol | Kazakhstan | 0.190 | 20.95 | SB |
| — | 6 | Alexios Alexopoulos | Greece | — | DNS | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.5 m/s | Wind: +0.5 m/s | Wind: +0.5 m/s |

#### Heat 4

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 6 | Coby Miller | United States | 0.182 | 20.49 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Darren Campbell | Great Britain | 0.194 | 20.71 | Q |
| 3 | 5 | Uchenna Emedolu | Nigeria | 0.179 | 20.87 | Q |
| 4 | 7 | Ahmed Douhou | Ivory Coast | 0.169 | 20.98 | |
| 5 | 2 | Ricardo Williams | Jamaica | 0.289 | 21.09 | |
| 6 | 8 | Julieon Raeburn | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.326 | 21.21 | |
| 7 | 3 | Keita Cline | British Virgin Islands | 0.199 | 21.42 | |
| | | | | 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 | 6 | Konstantinos Kenteris | Greece | 0.179 | 20.57 | Q |
| 2 | 5 | Anninos Marcoullides | Cyprus | 0.190 | 20.83 | Q |
| 3 | 2 | Marlon Devonish | Great Britain | 0.178 | 20.89 | Q |
| 4 | 3 | André da Silva | Brazil | 0.237 | 20.95 | |
| 5 | 8 | Aleksandr Ryabov | Russia | 0.216 | 21.02 | |
| 6 | 7 | Marián Vanderka | Slovakia | 0.254 | 21.28 | |
| 7 | 4 | Ali Khamis Rashid Al-Neyadi | United Arab Emirates | 0.280 | 21.93 | |
| 8 | 1 | Christie van Wyk | Namibia | 0.147 | 46.57 | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.3 m/s | Wind: +0.3 m/s | Wind: +0.3 m/s |

#### Heat 6

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 5 | Christopher Williams | Jamaica | 0.189 | 20.45 | Q |
| 2 | 1 | Shingo Suetsugu | Japan | 0.184 | 20.60 | Q |
| 3 | 7 | Venancio José | Spain | 0.179 | 20.95 | Q |
| 4 | 3 | Martin Lachkovics | Austria | 0.163 | 21.00 | |
| 5 | 4 | Andrew Tynes | Bahamas | 0.169 | 21.00 | |
| 6 | 6 | Jimmy Pino | Colombia | 0.179 | 21.42 | |
| 7 | 8 | Pascal Dangbo | Benin | 0.158 | 21.54 | |
| 8 | 2 | Maqsood Ahmad | Pakistan | 0.181 | 21.70 | |
| | | | | Wind: −0.4 m/s | Wind: −0.4 m/s | Wind: −0.4 m/s |

#### Heat 7

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Obadele Thompson | Barbados | 0.192 | 20.69 | Q |
| 2 | 8 | Joseph Batangdon | Cameroon | 0.176 | 20.70 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Antoine Boussombo | Gabon | 0.161 | 20.78 | Q |
| 4 | 3 | Matt Shirvington | Australia | 0.168 | 20.91 | q |
| 5 | 1 | Carlos Gats | Argentina | 0.181 | 21.15 | |
| 6 | 5 | Ricardo Roach | Chad | 0.154 | 21.20 | |
| 7 | 7 | Ezra Kenyoke Sambu | Kenya | 0.377 | 21.23 | |
| 8 | 2 | Sherwin James | Dominica | 0.195 | 22.40 | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.5 m/s | Wind: +0.5 m/s | Wind: +0.5 m/s |

#### Heat 8

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | John Capel | United States | 0.216 | 20.49 | Q |
| 2 | 6 | Christian Malcolm | Great Britain | 0.272 | 20.52 | Q |
| 3 | 5 | Alessandro Cavallaro | Italy | 0.192 | 20.58 | Q |
| 4 | 8 | Héber Viera | Uruguay | 0.180 | 20.82 | q, SB |
| 5 | 2 | Patrick Johnson | Australia | 0.225 | 20.88 | q |
| 6 | 7 | Anastasios Gousis | Greece | 0.325 | 21.10 | |
| 7 | 3 | Salem M. M. Al Yami | Saudi Arabia | 0.261 | 21.18 | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.4 m/s | Wind: +0.4 m/s | Wind: +0.4 m/s |

#### Heat 9

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 5 | Claudinei da Silva | Brazil | 0.176 | 20.70 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Dwight Thomas | Jamaica | 0.192 | 20.85 | Q |
| 3 | 7 | Oumar Loum | Senegal | 0.201 | 20.87 | Q |
| 4 | 6 | Paul Brizzell | Ireland | 0.178 | 20.98 | |
| 5 | 1 | Mohamed Al Hooti | Oman | 0.226 | 21.19 | |
| 6 | 4 | Dominic Demeritte | Bahamas | 0.167 | 21.47 | |
| 7 | 2 | Joseph Loua | Guinea | 0.244 | 21.60 | |
| 8 | 8 | N'Kosie Barnes | Antigua and Barbuda | 0.205 | 21.82 | |
| | | | | Wind: −1.0 m/s | Wind: −1.0 m/s | Wind: −1.0 m/s |

#### Heats overall results

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Heat | Lane | Place | Wind | Time | Qual. | Record |
| 1 | Christopher Williams | Jamaica | 6 | 5 | 1 | -0.4 | 20.45 | Q | |
| 2 | John Capel | United States | 8 | 4 | 1 | +0.4 | 20.49 | Q | |
| 2 | Coby Miller | United States | 4 | 6 | 1 | +0.2 | 20.49 | Q | |
| 4 | Ato Boldon | Trinidad and Tobago | 3 | 2 | 1 | +0.5 | 20.52 | Q | |
| 4 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 3 | 5 | 2 | +0.5 | 20.52 | Q | |
| 4 | Christian Malcolm | Great Britain | 8 | 6 | 2 | +0.4 | 20.52 | Q | |
| 7 | Konstantinos Kenteris | Greece | 5 | 6 | 1 | +0.3 | 20.57 | Q | |
| 8 | Alessandro Cavallaro | Italy | 8 | 5 | 3 | +0.4 | 20.58 | Q | |
| 9 | Shingo Suetsugu | Japan | 6 | 1 | 2 | -0.4 | 20.60 | Q | |
| 10 | Marcin Urbaś | Poland | 3 | 4 | 3 | +0.5 | 20.62 | Q | |
| 11 | Floyd Heard | United States | 2 | 7 | 1 | -0.2 | 20.68 | Q | |
| 12 | Obadele Thompson | Barbados | 7 | 4 | 1 | +0.5 | 20.69 | Q | |
| 13 | Joseph Batangdon | Cameroon | 7 | 8 | 2 | +0.5 | 20.70 | Q | |
| 13 | Claudinei da Silva | Brazil | 9 | 5 | 1 | -0.1 | 20.70 | Q | |
| 15 | Darren Campbell | Great Britain | 4 | 4 | 2 | +0.2 | 20.71 | Q | |
| 16 | Koji Ito | Japan | 2 | 4 | 2 | -0.2 | 20.75 | Q | SB |
| 17 | Francis Obikwelu | Nigeria | 1 | 1 | 1 | -0.3 | 20.76 | Q | |
| 17 | Geir Moen | Norway | 3 | 7 | 4 | +0.5 | 20.76 | q | |
| 19 | Antoine Boussombo | Gabon | 7 | 6 | 3 | +0.5 | 20.78 | Q | |
| 20 | Stéphan Buckland | Mauritius | 1 | 8 | 2 | -0.3 | 20.81 | Q | |
| 21 | Tommi Hartonen | Finland | 2 | 8 | 3 | -0.2 | 20.82 | Q | |
| 21 | Héber Viera | Uruguay | 8 | 8 | 4 | +0.4 | 20.82 | q | SB |
| 23 | Anninos Marcoullides | Cyprus | 5 | 5 | 2 | +0.3 | 20.83 | Q | |
| 24 | Dwight Thomas | Jamaica | 9 | 3 | 2 | -0.1 | 20.85 | Q | |
| 25 | Uchenna Emedolu | Nigeria | 4 | 5 | 3 | +0.2 | 20.87 | Q | |
| 25 | Oumar Loum | Senegal | 9 | 7 | 3 | -0.1 | 20.87 | Q | |
| 27 | Patrick Johnson | Australia | 8 | 2 | 5 | +0.4 | 20.88 | q | |
| 28 | Marlon Devonish | Great Britain | 5 | 2 | 3 | +0.3 | 20.89 | Q | |
| 29 | Matt Shirvington | Australia | 7 | 3 | 4 | +0.5 | 20.91 | q | |
| 29 | Petko Yankov | Bulgaria | 2 | 5 | 4 | -0.2 | 20.91 | q | |
| 31 | Gidon Jablonka | Israel | 3 | 8 | 5 | +0.5 | 20.92 | | |
| 32 | Venancio José | Spain | 6 | 7 | 3 | -0.4 | 20.95 | Q | |
| 32 | Renward Wells | Bahamas | 1 | 5 | 3 | -0.3 | 20.95 | Q | |
| 32 | Gennadiy Chernovol | Kazakhstan | 3 | 3 | 6 | +0.5 | 20.95 | | |
| 32 | André da Silva | Brazil | 5 | 3 | 4 | +0.3 | 20.95 | | |
| 36 | Paul Brizzell | Ireland | 9 | 6 | 4 | -0.1 | 20.98 | | |
| 36 | Ahmed Yves Douhou | Ivory Coast | 4 | 7 | 4 | +0.2 | 20.98 | | |
| 36 | Darryl Wohlsen | Australia | 2 | 2 | 5 | -0.2 | 20.98 | | |
| 39 | John Ertzgaard | Norway | 1 | 6 | 4 | -0.3 | 21.00 | | |
| 39 | Martin Lachkovics | Austria | 6 | 3 | 4 | -0.4 | 21.00 | | |
| 39 | Andrew Tynes | Bahamas | 6 | 4 | 5 | -0.4 | 21.00 s | | |
| 42 | Aleksandr Ryabov | Russia | 5 | 8 | 5 | +0.3 | 21.02 | | |
| 43 | Ricardo Williams | Jamaica | 4 | 2 | 5 | +0.2 | 21.09 | | |
| 44 | Sayon Cooper | Liberia | 1 | 3 | 5 | -0.3 | 21.10 | | |
| 44 | Anastasios Gousis | Greece | 8 | 7 | 6 | +0.4 | 21.10 s | | |
| 46 | Carlos Gats | Argentina | 7 | 1 | 5 | +0.5 | 21.15 | | |
| 47 | Salem M. M. Al Yami | Saudi Arabia | 8 | 3 | 7 | +0.4 | 21.18 | | |
| 48 | Mohamed Al Hooti | Oman | 9 | 1 | 5 | -0.1 | 21.19 | | |
| 49 | Ricardo Roach | Chad | 7 | 5 | 6 | +0.5 | 21.20 | | |
| 50 | Julieon Raeburn | Trinidad and Tobago | 4 | 8 | 6 | +0.2 | 21.21 | | |
| 51 | Albert Agyemang | Ghana | 1 | 4 | 6 | -0.3 | 21.22 | | |
| 52 | Ezra Kenyoke Sambu | Kenya | 7 | 7 | 7 | +0.5 | 21.23 | | |
| 53 | Pierre Browne | Canada | 2 | 6 | 6 | -0.2 | 21.28 | | |
| 53 | Marián Vanderka | Slovakia | 5 | 7 | 6 | +0.3 | 21.28 | | |
| 55 | Keita Cline | British Virgin Islands | 4 | 3 | 7 | +0.2 | 21.42 | | |
| 55 | Jimmy Pino | Colombia | 6 | 6 | 6 | -0.4 | 21.42 | | |
| 57 | Dominic Demeritte | Bahamas | 9 | 4 | 6 | -0.1 | 21.47 | | |
| 58 | Pascal Dangbo | Benin | 6 | 8 | 7 | -0.4 | 21.54 | | |
| 59 | Joseph Loua | Guinea | 9 | 2 | 7 | -0.1 | 21.60 | | |
| 60 | Maqsood Ahmad | Pakistan | 6 | 2 | 8 | -0.4 | 21.70 s | | |
| 61 | N'Kosie Barnes | Antigua and Barbuda | 9 | 8 | 8 | -0.1 | 21.82 | | |
| 62 | Ali K. R. A. Al Neyadi | United Arab Emirates | 5 | 4 | 7 | +0.3 | 21.93 | | |
| 63 | Jayson Jones | Belize | 1 | 7 | 7 | -0.3 | 22.20 | | |
| 64 | Sherwin James | Dominica | 7 | 2 | 8 | +0.5 | 22.40 s | | |
| 65 | Christie van Wyk | Namibia | 5 | 1 | 8 | +0.3 | 46.57 | | |
| — | Tanko Braimah | Ghana | 2 | 3 | - | -0.2 | DSQ | | |
| — | Mohammad Mahabub Alam | Bangladesh | 1 | 2 | - | -0.3 | DNF | | |
| — | Alexios Alexopoulos | Greece | 3 | 6 | - | +0.5 | DNS | | |

### Quarterfinals
#### Quarterfinal 1

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 3 | Darren Campbell | Great Britain | 0.175 | 20.13 | Q, PB |
| 2 | 6 | Konstantinos Kenteris | Greece | 0.203 | 20.14 | Q, NR |
| 3 | 4 | Ato Boldon | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.160 | 20.28 | Q |
| 4 | 5 | Shingo Suetsugu | Japan | 0.182 | 20.37 | Q |
| 5 | 8 | Marcin Urbaś | Poland | 0.159 | 20.43 | SB |
| 6 | 7 | Geir Moen | Norway | 0.165 | 20.65 | |
| 7 | 2 | Antoine Boussombo | Gabon | 0.163 | 20.71 | |
| 8 | 1 | Héber Viera | Uruguay | 0.196 | 20.97 | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.3 m/s | Wind: +0.3 m/s | Wind: +0.3 m/s |

#### Quarterfinal 2

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 6 | Obadele Thompson | Barbados | 0.195 | 20.16 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Coby Miller | United States | 0.239 | 20.37 | Q |
| 3 | 4 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.171 | 20.47 | Q |
| 4 | 5 | Koji Ito | Japan | 0.208 | 20.56 | Q, SB |
| 5 | 8 | Dwight Thomas | Jamaica | 0.206 | 20.58 | PB |
| 6 | 2 | Petko Yankov | Bulgaria | 0.169 | 20.75 | |
| 7 | 7 | Venancio José | Spain | 0.182 | 20.79 | |
| 8 | 1 | Uchenna Emedolu | Nigeria | 0.195 | 20.93 | |
| | | | | 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 | 5 | John Capel | United States | 0.169 | 20.13 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Christian Malcolm | Great Britain | 0.196 | 20.19 | Q, PB |
| 3 | 4 | Claudinei da Silva | Brazil | 0.139 | 20.24 | Q |
| 4 | 8 | Tommi Hartonen | Finland | 0.179 | 20.47 | Q, NR |
| 5 | 6 | Joseph Batangdon | Cameroon | 0.247 | 20.55 | |
| 6 | 3 | Alessandro Cavallaro | Italy | 0.190 | 20.95 | SB |
| 7 | 7 | Patrick Johnson | Australia | 0.252 | 20.87 | |
| 8 | 2 | Renward Wells | Bahamas | 0.162 | 21.26 | |
| | | | | 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 | 5 | Floyd Heard | United States | 0.173 | 20.24 | Q |
| 2 | 4 | Christopher Williams | Jamaica | 0.187 | 20.25 | Q |
| 3 | 6 | Francis Obikwelu | Nigeria | 0.195 | 20.33 | Q |
| 4 | 3 | Stéphan Buckland | Mauritius | 0.237 | 20.53 | Q |
| 5 | 1 | Oumar Loum | Senegal | 0.186 | 20.60 | |
| 6 | 8 | Anninos Marcoullides | Cyprus | 0.196 | 20.71 | SB |
| 7 | 7 | Marlon Devonish | Great Britain | 0.163 | 20.82 | |
| — | 2 | Matt Shirvington | Australia | – | DNS | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.4 m/s | Wind: +0.4 m/s | Wind: +0.4 m/s |

#### Quarterfinals overall results

| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Heat | Lane | Place | Wind | Time | Qual. | Record |
| 1 | Darren Campbell | Great Britain | 1 | 3 | 1 | +0.3 | 20.13 | Q | PB |
| 1 | John Capel | United States | 3 | 5 | 1 | -0.2 | 20.13 | Q | |
| 3 | Konstantinos Kenteris | Greece | 1 | 6 | 2 | +0.3 | 20.14 | Q | NR |
| 4 | Obadele Thompson | Barbados | 2 | 6 | 1 | +0.0 | 20.16 | Q | |
| 5 | Christian Malcolm | Great Britain | 3 | 3 | 2 | -0.2 | 20.19 | Q | PB |
| 6 | Floyd Heard | United States | 4 | 5 | 1 | +0.4 | 20.24 | Q | |
| 6 | Claudinei da Silva | Brazil | 3 | 4 | 3 | -0.2 | 20.24 | Q | |
| 8 | Christopher Williams | Jamaica | 4 | 4 | 2 | +0.4 | 20.25 | Q | |
| 9 | Ato Boldon | Trinidad and Tobago | 1 | 4 | 3 | +0.3 | 20.28 | Q | |
| 10 | Francis Obikwelu | Nigeria | 3 | 4 | 3 | +0.5 | 20.33 | Q | |
| 11 | Coby Miller | United States | 2 | 3 | 2 | +0.0 | 20.37 | Q | |
| 11 | Shingo Suetsugu | Japan | 1 | 5 | 4 | +0.3 | 20.37 | Q | |
| 13 | Marcin Urbaś | Poland | 1 | 8 | 5 | +0.3 | 20.43 | | SB |
| 14 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 2 | 4 | 3 | +0.0 | 20.47 | Q | |
| 14 | Tommi Hartonen | Finland | 3 | 8 | 4 | -0.2 | 20.47 | Q | NR |
| 16 | Stéphan Buckland | Mauritius | 4 | 3 | 4 | +0.4 | 20.53 | Q | |
| 17 | Joseph Batangdon | Cameroon | 3 | 6 | 5 | -0.2 | 20.55 | | |
| 18 | Koji Ito | Japan | 2 | 5 | 4 | +0.0 | 20.56 | Q | SB |
| 19 | Dwight Thomas | Jamaica | 2 | 8 | 5 | +0.0 | 20.58 | | PB |
| 20 | Oumar Loum | Senegal | 4 | 1 | 5 | +0.4 | 20.60 | | |
| 21 | Geir Moen | Norway | 1 | 7 | 6 | +0.3 | 20.65 | | |
| 22 | Alessandro Cavallaro | Italy | 3 | 1 | 6 | -0.2 | 20.69 | | |
| 23 | Antoine Boussombo | Gabon | 1 | 2 | 7 | +0.3 | 20.71 | | |
| 23 | Anninos Marcoullides | Cyprus | 4 | 8 | 6 | +0.4 | 20.71 | | |
| 25 | Petko Yankov | Bulgaria | 2 | 2 | 6 | +0.0 | 20.75 | | |
| 26 | Venancio José | Spain | 2 | 7 | 7 | -0.0 | 20.79 | | |
| 27 | Marlon Devonish | Great Britain | 4 | 7 | 7 | +0.4 | 20.82 | | |
| 28 | Patrick Johnson | Australia | 3 | 7 | 7 | -0.2 | 20.87 | | |
| 29 | Uchenna Emedolu | Nigeria | 2 | 1 | 8 | +0.0 | 20.93 | | |
| 30 | Héber Viera | Uruguay | 1 | 1 | 8 | +0.3 | 20.97 | | |
| 31 | Renward Wells | Bahamas | 3 | 2 | 8 | -0.2 | 21.26 | | |
| — | Matt Shirvington | Australia | 4 | 2 | | +0.4 | DNS | | |

### Semifinals
#### Semifinal 1

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 3 | John Capel | United States | 0.177 | 20.10 | Q |
| 2 | 6 | Christian Malcolm | Great Britain | 0.161 | 20.19 | Q |
| 3 | 8 | Ato Boldon | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.147 | 20.20 | Q |
| 4 | 5 | Obadele Thompson | Barbados | 0.199 | 20.21 | Q |
| 5 | 4 | Christopher Williams | Jamaica | 0.197 | 20.47 | |
| 6 | 4 | Stéphan Buckland | Mauritius | 0.197 | 20.56 | |
| 7 | 7 | Francis Obikwelu | Nigeria | 0.241 | 20.71 | |
| 8 | 2 | Tommi Hartonen | Finland | 0.170 | 20.88 | |
| | | | | Wind: −1.1 m/s | Wind: −1.1 m/s | Wind: −1.1 m/s |

#### Semifinal 2

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 5 | Konstantinos Kenteris | Greece | 0.200 | 20.20 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Darren Campbell | Great Britain | 0.234 | 20.23 | Q |
| 3 | 7 | Claudinei da Silva | Brazil | 0.196 | 20.30 | Q |
| 4 | 4 | Coby Miller | United States | 0.174 | 20.45 | Q |
| 5 | 1 | Kim Collins | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.177 | 20.57 | |
| 6 | 6 | Floyd Heard | United States | 0.169 | 20.63 | |
| 7 | 8 | Koji Ito | Japan | 0.212 | 20.67 | |
| 8 | 2 | Shingo Suetsugu | Japan | 0.177 | 20.69 | |
| | | | | Wind: +0.3 m/s | Wind: +0.3 m/s | Wind: +0.3 m/s |

### Final

| Rank | Lane | Athlete | Nation | Reaction | Time | Notes |
| | 5 | Konstantinos Kenteris | Greece | 0.163 | 20.09 | NR |
| | 6 | Darren Campbell | Great Britain | 0.174 | 20.14 | |
| | 8 | Ato Boldon | Trinidad and Tobago | 0.163 | 20.20 | |
| 4 | 7 | Obadele Thompson | Barbados | 0.205 | 20.20 | |
| 5 | 3 | Christian Malcolm | Great Britain | 0.202 | 20.23 | |
| 6 | 1 | Claudinei da Silva | Brazil | 0.192 | 20.28 | |
| 7 | 2 | Coby Miller | United States | 0.185 | 20.35 | |
| 8 | 4 | John Capel | United States | 0.348 | 20.49 | |
| | | | | Wind: −0.6 m/s | Wind: −0.6 m/s | Wind: −0.6 m/s |