HELSINKI 1952 400m GEORGE RHODEN (Amateur Footage)

OfficialReport Helsinki 1952 p 248 f

The 400 metres reached its hottest already in the semi-finals. In the first semi-final Cole was eliminated with a time of 46.8, and in the second Geister with 46.7. Of the 1948 medallists Wint, McKenley and Whitfield again made the final, but only McKenley achieved the same place, second, as four years earlier. The defender of the Gold Medal, Wint, had to content himself with a fifth position, and Whitfield with sixth. McKenley might be said to have had bad luck in Helsinki, for now too he clocked the same time as the victor G. Rhoden. Rhoden, however, was so clearly in front that a difference of 0.1 sec. would have been justified. Rhoden had the outer lane in the final and during the race was out of touch with the rest, who for their part could keep an eye on him. For the first time in the Olympic 400 metres the winner clocked under 46 seconds.
1 George Rhoden Jamaica 46.09 OR
2 Herb McKenley Jamaica 46.20
3 Ollie Matson United States 46.94
4 Karl-Friedrich Haas Germany 47.22
5 Arthur Wint Jamaica 47.24
6 Mal Whitfield United States 47.30

Vincent George Rhoden (born December 13, 1926 in Kingston) is a former Jamaican athlete, winner of two Olympic gold medals in 1952.
Rhoden, who lived in San Francisco, was one of the successful long sprinters from Jamaica in the late 1940s and early 1950s, along with Arthur Wint and Herb McKenley. He competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics, but did not win a medal, being eliminated in the heats of the 100 m and the semi-final of the 400 m. He was also a member of the heavily favoured Jamaican 4 x 400 m relay team, but when Wint pulled a muscle in the final, their chances at a medal were gone. On August 22, 1950 at Eskilstuna, Sweden, Rhoden set a new world record in 400 m of 45.8 s. He also won the AAU championships in 400 m from 1949 to 1951 and as a Morgan State University student, won the NCAA championships in 220 yd (200 m) in 1951 and in 440 yd (400 m) from 1950 to 1952.
At the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, George Rhoden was more successful. He was one of the pre-race favourites in the 400 m as a world record holder. He won a close battle with his compatriot McKenley, who had also been second in the 1948 Olympic 400 m.As the anchor runner of the Jamaican relay team, Rhoden added a second Olympic gold, edging the United States by a tenth of a second, and setting a new world record (3:03.9).

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