Has anyone ever made an olympic, or world record in a qualifying round of the olympics without winning the gold medal in the final?

August 4, 2012 11:44 AM

Has anyone ever broken an olympic, or world record in a qualifying round of the olympics without winning the gold medal in the final?

For example in the semi-final of the 400 meter dash, breaking a world record, then making it into the final, and getting a bronze, or maybe DNF, injury, or foul, or whatever.

If this has never happened, then has anyone ever broken a world or olympic record in a qualifying round? Doesn't have to be just athletics, could be swimming, or biking or any other olympic sport.

posted by crawltopslow to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (12 answers total)

To the second question, Yes, yesterday. I'm sure that happens fairly frequently.
posted by true at 11:49 AM on August 4, 2012

Melbourne, 1956. Swimming, women's 100-meter freestyle is another example -- Lorraine Crapp broke the Olympic record in her heat and won silver in the final.
posted by JanetLand at 12:20 PM on August 4, 2012

I think the link above went awry. (And it's to Fox and they can get lost). Rowsell, Trott and King won today. Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish broke the world record then were disqualified in the final for a technical breach. Pendleton went on to win gold in the keirin. Varnish has to wait until 2016.
posted by finisterre at 12:23 PM on August 4, 2012

Another swimming one: Beijing, 2008, women's 200-meter freestyle. Pang Jiaying and Sara Isakovic broke the Olympic record in their heats, but lost in the final to Federica Pellegrini.
posted by JanetLand at 12:27 PM on August 4, 2012

I am finding these, by the way, by browsing through this book.
posted by JanetLand at 12:28 PM on August 4, 2012

It actually isn't a particular surprise - having competed in a racing sport (swimming) there's some not-totally-intuitive logic there. If you are not so totally dominant in your arena that you don't need to sweat qualifying, you leave everything on the field in the qualifying round, because if you don't qualify, there's no point in having "saved up." So semifinals are often where records are made. (In fields that are narrow enough that the top couple of competitors are guaranteed a spot, this isn't true, of course. That's where you get things like Michael Phelps almost not qualifying, because he doesn't have to blow it out but everyone else does.)
posted by restless_nomad at 12:55 PM on August 4, 2012

A few Olympics ago someone did this with the backstroke. I should remember his name because we were almost roommates when he graduated from college, but it's escaping me at the moment.
posted by alms at 1:14 PM on August 4, 2012

David Berkoff?
posted by JanetLand at 1:23 PM on August 4, 2012

Dong Hyun Im broke the individual world record in archery in the ranking round and didn't even make it to the quarter finals. His team also broke the world record in the ranking rounds and only got a bronze in the team competition.
posted by missmagenta at 1:43 PM on August 4, 2012

If you go here (for starters) there are a number of records broken in the semi-finals. And I know that at least one of the US women's team swimmers broke records in the semis or the qualifiers. But I think they then broke their own record again in the finals.
posted by gjc at 6:03 PM on August 4, 2012

Not exactly the same thing, but my recollection is that whomever lost to Eric Heiden (men's speedskating) broke all previous speed records while taking second and thus not getting listed as a record holder. I imagine that bites.
posted by Michele in California at 6:52 PM on August 4, 2012

It wasn't in a qualifying round, but Mack Robinson beat the world record for the 200 meter dash in the final round at the 1936 Olympics but still came in second after Jesse Owens.
posted by ActingTheGoat at 10:18 PM on August 4, 2012