| Final Wind -1.0m/s | time | L | | 1. Michael Marsh |  United States | 20.01s | 4 | | 2. Frankie Fredericks |  Namibia | 20.13s | 5 | | 3. Michael Bates | United States | 20.38s | 1 | | 4. Robson da Silva |  Brazil | 20.45s | 6 | | 5. Olapade Adeniken |  Nigeria | 20.50s | 2 | | 6. John Regis |  Great Britain | 20.55s | 3 | | 7. Oluyemi Kayode | Nigeria | 20.67s | 7 | | 8. Marcus Adam | Great Britain | 20.80s | 8 |
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| | | Venue: Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 67,007. | | 79 competitors from 65 nations. |
| World Record: 19.72s Pietro Mennea, Italy, Mexico City, Mexico, September 12, 1979 | | Olympic Record: 19.75s Joe DeLoach, United States, Seoul, South Korea, September 28, 1988 |
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Semi-Finals - Wednesday, 5th August | | First 4 from each Semi advanced to Final. |
| Semi 1 | time | | 1. Michael Marsh | United States | 19.73s | | 2. John Regis | Great Britain | 20.09s | | 3. Robson da Silva | Brazil | 20.15s | | 4. Oluyemi Kayode | Nigeria | 20.23s | | 5. Linford Christie | Great Britain | 20.38s | | 6. Nikolay Antonov |  Bulgaria | 20.55s | | 7. Clive Wright |  Jamaica | 20.82s | | 8. Torbjörn Eriksson |  Sweden | 20.85s |
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| Semi 2 | time | | 1. Frankie Fredericks | Namibia | 20.14s | | 2. Michael Bates | United States | 20.39s | | 3. Olapade Adeniken | Nigeria | 20.39s | | 4. Marcus Adam | Great Britain | 20.63s | | 5. Emmanuel Tuffour |  Ghana | 20.78s | | 6. Michael Johnson | United States | 20.78s | | 7. Sidney Telles | Brazil | 20.88s | | -. Neil de Silva |  Trinidad Tobago | DSQ |
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The pre-meet favourite had been world champion Michael Johnson,
who had beaten Marsh 19.79 to 19.86 in the US Trials. Unfortunately,
poor Johnson contracted a stomach virus a month before the Games
while in Spain, and was a shadow of his normal self, finishing 6th in
his semi-final in a pedestrian 20.78. Meanwhile, Marsh had been estab-
lishing himself as the potential winner, running the fastest time in each
round: 20.38, 20.08 and an astonishing 19.73. That missed the world
record by 0.01, was the fastest ever legal time at low altitude, and was
nearly 0.4 quicker than the opposition.
Expectations were high that the Pietro Mennea’s 1979 world record
of 19.72 would be broken in the final, but the tension of the moment
and a headwind put paid to that. Marsh took the lead from Fredericks
at halfway, and cruised to victory more than a metre clear of the
Namibian. Bates, who would later forge a career in the NFL, went from
seventh at halfway to claim the bronze from the inside lane ahead of
the ’88 bronze medallist da Silva. Regis, who had run 20.09 behind
Marsh in the semi-final, was a disappointing sixth.
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| | | First 3 from each Quarter and Best time Emmanuel Tuffour (GHA) advanced to Semi-Finals. |
| Quarter 1 | time | | 1. Marcus Adam | Great Britain | 20.43s | | 2. Michael Johnson | United States | 20.55s | | 3. Neil de Silva | Trinidad Tobago | 20.66s | | 4. Atlee Mahorn |  Canada | 20.78s | | 5. Christoph Pöstinger |  Austria | 20.83s | | 6. Sergio de Menezes | Brazil | 21.00s | | 7. Horace Dove-Edwin |  Siera Leone | 21.80s | | -. Eduardo Guilbe Alomar |  Puerto Rico | DNS |
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| Quarter 2 | time | | 1. Robson da Silva | Brazil | 20.35s | | 2. Olapade Adeniken | Nigeria | 20.47s | | 3. Clive Wright | Jamaica | 20.70s | | 4. Edvin Ivanov |  United Team | 20.78s | | 5. Cameron Taylor |  New Zealand | 20.83s | | 6. Samuel Nelson Boateng | Ghana | 21.04s | | 7. Ouattara Lagazane |  Ivory Coast | 21.39s | | 8. Francis Ogola |  Uganda | 21.41s |
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| Quarter 3 | time | | 1. Michael Bates | United States | 20.22s | | 2. Oluyemi Kayode | Nigeria | 20.22s | | 3. Linford Christie | Great Britain | 20.52s | | 4. Dean Capobianco |  Australia | 20.61s | | 5. Peter Ogilvie | Canada | 20.77s | | 6. Andreas Berger | Austria | 21.02s | | 7. Seksarn Boon Rat |  Thailand | 21.30s | | -. Tshakile Nzimande |  South Africa | DNS |
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| Quarter 4 | time | | 1. Michael Marsh | United States | 20.08s | | 2. Sidney Telles | Brazil | 20.69s | | 3. Torbjörn Eriksson | Sweden | 20.81s | | 4. Kennedy Ondieki |  Kenya | 20.86s | | 5. Gilles Quénéhervé |  France | 20.96s | | 6. Daniel Cojocaru |  Romania | 20.96s | | 7. Ibrahim Tamba |  Senegal | 21.28s | | 8. Miguel Ángel Gómez |  Spain | 21.32s | | 9. Stefan Burkart |  Switzerland | 21.52s |
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| Quarter 5 | time | | 1. Frankie Fredericks | Namibia | 20.02s | | 2. John Regis | Great Britain | 20.16s | | 3. Nikolay Antonov | Bulgaria | 20.50s | | 4. Emmanuel Tuffour | Ghana | 20.58s | | 5. Patrick Stevens |  Belgium | 20.67s | | 6. Henrico Atkins |  Barbados | 21.19s | | 7. Anthony Wilson | Canada | 21.22s | | 8. Boevi Youlou Lawson |  Togo | 21.47s |
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| Heats 1 | time | | 1. Frankie Fredericks | Namibia | 20.74s | | 2. Andreas Berger | Austria | 21.02s | | 3. Edgardo Guilbe | Puerto Rico | 21.75s | | 4. Wyndell Dickinson |  US Virgin Islands | 21.78s | | 5. Bothloko Shebe |  Lesotho | 21.96s | | 6. Apisai Driu Baibai |  Fiji | 22.07s | | 7. Makanga Médard |  Congo | 22.18s |
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| Heats 2 | time | | 1. Michael Johnson | United States | 20.80s | | 2. Patrick Stevens | Belgium | 20.93s | | 3. Menezes Sérgio de | Brazil | 21.17s | | 4. Francis Ogola | Uganda | 21.29s | | 5. Miguel Ángel Gómez | Spain | 21.46s | | 6. Samuel Nchinda-Kaya |  Cameroon | 21.50s | | 7. Sriyantha Dissanayake |  SRI | 21.61s |
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| Heats 3 | time | | 1. Oluyemi Kayode | Nigeria | 20.42s | | 2. Atlee Mahorn | Canada | 21.01s | | 3. Boevi Lawson | Togo | 21.05s | | 4. Ouattara Lagazane | Ivory Coast | 21.13s | | 5. Simon Kipkemboi | Kenya | 21.57s | | 6. Dejan Jovković |  individual | 21.77s | | 7. Amadou Sy Savané |  Guinea | 21.86s | | 8. Jaime Zelaya |  Honduras | 22.05s |
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| Heats 4 | time | | 1. Michael Bates | United States | 20.91s | | 2. Gilles Quénéhervé | France | 20.99s | | 3. Kennedy Ondiek | Kenya | 21.04s | | 4. Seaksarn Boonrat | Thailand | 21.39s | | 5. Eswort Coombs |  St. Vincent Gren. | 22.07s | | 6. Bounhom Siliphone |  Laos | 23.64s |
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| Heats 5 | time | | 1. Daniel Cojocaru | Romania | 21.20s | | 2. Linford Christie | Great Britain | 21.23s | | 3. Stefan Burkart | Switzerland | 21.33s | | 4. Abel Tshaka Nzimande | South Africa | 21.43s | | 5. Mateaki Mafi |  Tonga | 22.05s | | 6. Lamin Marikong |  Gambia | 22.33s | | 7. Randolph Foster |  Costa Rica | 22.47s | | 8. Abdullah Salem Al-Khalidi |  Oman | 22.48s |
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| Heats 6 | time | | 1. Marcus Adam | Great Britain | 20.62s | | 2. Nikolay Antonov | Bulgaria | 20.94s | | 3. Nelson Boateng | Ghana | 21.03s | | 4. Henrico Atkins | Barbados | 21.28s | | 5. Ato Boldon | Trinidad Tobago | 21.65s | | 6. Shahanuddin Choudhury |  Bangladesh | 21.88s | | 7. Kaminiel Selot |  Papua New Guinea | 22.36s | | 8. Boureima Kimba |  Niger | 22.49s |
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| Heats 7 | time | | 1. Olapade Adeniken | Nigeria | 20.79s | | 2. Clive Wright | Jamaica | 20.98s | | 3. Edvin Ivanov | United Team | 21.10s | | 4. Giannis Zisimidis |  Cyprus | 21.51s | | 5. Aldo Canti |  San Marino | 21.69s | | 6. Gabriel Simeon |  Grenada | 22.09s | | 7. Kenmore Hughes |  Antigua Barbuda | 22.18s |
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| Heats 8 | time | | 1. Dean Capobianco | Australia | 20.86s | | 2. Torbjörn Eriksson | Sweden | 21.08s | | 3. Ibrahima Tamba | Senegal | 21.25s | | 4. Sayed Mubarak Al-Kuwari |  Qatar | 21.87s | | 5. Adam Hassan Sakak |  SUD | 21.96s | | 6. Robinson Stewart |  Swaziland | 21.97s | | -. Jean-Charles Trouabal | France | DNFs | | -. Juan Vicente Matala |  Equat. Quinea | Dqs |
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| Heats 9 | time | | 1. John Regis | Great Britain | 20.63s | | 2. Sidnei de Souza | Brazil | 20.72s | | 3. Emmanuel Tuffour | Ghana | 21.07s | | 4. Horace Dove-Edwin | Siera Leone | 21.38s | | 5. Khaled Ibrahim Jouma |  Bahrain | 21.55s | | 6. Harouna Pale |  Burundi | 21.65s | | 7. Boubout Dieng |  Mauritania | 22.75s |
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| Heats 10 | time | | 1. Mike Marsh | United States | 20.38s | | 2. Neil De Silva | Trinidad Tobago | 20.89s | | 3. Peter Ogilvie | Canada | 21.11s | | 4. Ousmane Diarra |  Mali | 21.73s | | 5. Hussain Arif |  Pakistan | 21.75s | | 6. Pat Kwok Wai |  Hong Kong | 22.45s | | 7. Ahmed Shageef |  MDV | 22.54s |
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| Heats 11 | time | | 1. Robson da Silva | Brazil | 20.62s | | 2. Cameron Taylor | New Zealand | 20.91s | | 3. Christoph Pöstinger | Austria | 21.02s | | 4. Anthony Wilson | Canada | 21.21s | | 5. Valentin Ngbogo |  Central Africa | 21.51s | | 6. Claude Roumain |  Haiti | 22.51s |
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