A Look Back at 2015: The 400 Hurdles
2015 was a strange year in the long hurdles, as it was hard to predict who would rise to the top from race to race, and my own predictions for medal winners at the World Championships were horrifically wrong. In the men’s race in particular, new stars emerged from all over the world, while in the women’s race things did go a bit more predictably. Let’s take a look at both events and how things shook out.
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Men’s 400 Meter Hurdles
In the early part of the outdoor season, it was looking like things were moving toward an American sweep at the World Championships. In the early Diamond League meets, training partners Bershawn Jackson and Johnny Dutch were finishing 1-2, running in the 48-low range consistently, and looking like they would both be running under 48 by season’s end. At the USA Championships, Kerron Clement proved that he still has a lot left in his legs, as he finished third, only .01 behind Dutch. With those three and defending world champion Michael Tinsley all in the mix, there was even the potential that the Americans could go 1-2-3-4 at the World Champs.
Jackson and Dutch finish 1-2 at USA’s
Obviously, it didn’t shake out that way. Jackson and Dutch both seemed to run out of gas at the WC’s, as Jackson didn’t make it out of the qualifying round, and Dutch didn’t make it past the semis. Both faded badly at the end of their races. In the final, Clement fought valiantly and almost claimed the bronze, finishing a close fourth. Tinsley, like Jackson and Dutch before him, just seemed out of it. It’s hard to explain how such a huge letdown occurred, with no Americans earning a medal in an event in which the potential for dominance had seemed quite apparent.
With the fall of the Americans came the rise of several hurdlers from different parts of the globe. The most outstanding of this group was gold medalist Nicholas Bett of Kenya, who looked sharp all through the rounds and powered through the final, winning in 47.79 – the first and only sub-48 race run by anyone all season. Behind Bett came Russian Denis Kudryavtsev in 48.05, who sprinted down the final straight-away to earn the silver in a new national record. Third was Jeffrey Gibson of the Bahamas, whose 48.17 was also a national record. I had none of these guys on my list of potential medalists heading into the meet.
Bett on his way to bringing home the gold for Kenya.
The Americans weren’t the only big names to have a disappointing meet. Puerto Rico’s Javier Culson didn’t make it out of his semi-final round; nor did South Africa’s L.J. Van Zyl. Trinidad’s Jehue Gordon, like Jackson, did not make it out of the prelims. Meanwhile, Kenya’s Boniface Tumuti finished fifth in the final in 48.33, and he also looked sharp through the rounds. Suddenly, Kenya, a country not known for its 400 hurdlers since the days of John Akii Bua, has two of the world’s best.
It’ll be interesting to see how things play out in Brazil in 2016. Will the Americans rise again? Will Culson and Gordon return to battle for medals? Will the Kenyans – both of whom have 800m experience – continue the process of taking over the 400 hurdles? With all the controversy surrounding the Russian athletics program, will Kudryavtsev be back to contend? And the big question that many of us are asking is, regardless of who it is and what country he comes from, when will we see a consistent sub-48 400 hurdler again?
Women’s 400 Meter Hurdles
The women’s race was much less unpredictable than the men’s in 2015, as Zuzana Hejnova of the Czech Republic proved to be a dominant force once again. At no point in the season was there any serious doubt that Hejnova was the woman to beat in this event, and her dominant performance at the World Championships proved her supremacy. Heading into the final, it was looking like the best athlete with a chance to beat her was American Shamier Little, who had earlier in the year won an NCAA championship and a national championship, and had looked dominant in both races, as her monstrous finishing kick had proved too much for her competitors. At NCAA’s, Kentucky’s Kendra Harrison had gotten out in front of her and taken control of the race until Little just swallowed up ground over the last 80 meters, proving to be too much for Harrison – who had just won the 100 meter hurdles an hour earlier – to hold off.
Little on her way to NCAA victory.
With both Hejnova and Little having such strong finishes, it was going to be interesting to see which one would come up big in the WC final. Sometimes youth wins out, sometimes experience does. In this case, it was experience, as Hejnova cleared the last two hurdles in perfect rhythm and powered through the line.
Hejnova proved unbeatable at Worlds.
Cassandra Tate of the United States ran a great race to seize the bronze in 54.02. Right behind her, in 54.20, was Sara Petersen of Denmark. Both Tate and Petersen had been looking good in Diamond League meets leading up to the World Championships, and both seem primed to make a big push next year. Meanwhile, Kaliese Spencer of Jamaica, who was one of the favorites heading into the meet, and who looked strong while finishing second behind Petersen in her semi-final round, faded to last place in the final, as she was the only real big name to disappoint. Fellow Jamaican Janieve Russell finished fifth in the final in 54.64 – personal best that indicates she’ll definitely be someone to look out for next year.
Heading into Rio in 2016, it looks like Hejnova would definitely be the early favorite. Little would be next in line, although she’ll be in her first post-collegiate year, and that often proves to be a difficult year for many athletes, as first-year pros have to adapt to the fewer amount of races in the early part of the season. For the Americans, with Little and Tate leading the charge, things are looking up. I wouldn’t count Spencer out either, which means that she and Russell comprise a good 1-2 punch for Jamaica.
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