- Heats Heat one Heat two Heat three Heat four Heat five
- Semifinals Heat one Heat two
- Final
- References
- External links
{{Infobox Olympic event |event = Women's 800 metres |games = 1972 Summer |image = |caption = |venue = Olympic Stadium, Munich, West Germany |date =31 August 1972 & 3 September 1972 |competitors = 38 |nations = 28 |win_value = 1:58.55 {{OlyR|athletics}} |gold = Hildegard Falck |goldNOC = FRG |silver = Nijolė Sabaitė |silverNOC = URS |bronze = Gunhild Hoffmeister |bronzeNOC = GDR |prev = 1968 |next = 1976 }}{{AthleticsAt1972SummerOlympics}}These are the official results of the Women's 800 metres event at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. The competition was held on 31 of August and 3 of September.[1] The favorite coming into the Olympics was West German champion and world record holder Hildegard Falck. In the 1971 West German Championships she became the first woman to officially better two minutes. She was the pre Olympic favorite to win the gold on home soil, the rest of the field was wide open to claim the other podium spots.[1] In the final, like the men's race, the favorite was the slowest starter, though Falck quickly moved into sixth place. By the end of the first lap the field was tightly packed, Ileana Silai, Vera Nikolić and Svetla Zlateva and three abreast for the lead at 58.31. At 500 metres, Falck decided to move and slightly accelerated away from Nijolė Sabaitė and Gunhild Hoffmeister but found herself blocked behind the wall. The wall began to break up during the final turn, Silai the first to start fading allowing Falck some running room, coming off the turn she accelerated into the lead. Pulling away from the field Falck relaxed to cruise across the finish line. Sabaitė made a late run at her from a huge deficit, as she came into view, Falck had to accelerate a little to hold her off for a narrow win. Hoffmeister followed Sabaitė in passing the pack for bronze, but was too far behind to be competitive for higher medals. While the 2 minute barrier had been broken barely a year before this race, five women finished under 2 minutes here, with the remainder of the field bunched within .17 of a second of 2 minutes. While the world record was 1:58.5 (hand timed at the time), this electronically timed 1:58.55 was intrinsically faster, but that conversion was not included in record keeping. Zlateva would improve the world record the following year. HeatsThe top three runners in each heat (blue) and the next fastest (pink), advanced to the semifinal round. Heat one Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time |
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1 | Hildegard Falck | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 2:01.52 | 2 | Madeline Manning | {{flagIOC|USA|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:02.63 | 3 | Cheryl Peasley | {{flagIOC|AUS|1972 Summer}} | 8 | 2:03.11 | 4 | Mary Tracey-Purcell | {{flagIOC|IRL|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:04.18 | 5 | Martine Duvivier | {{flagIOC|FRA|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:04.87 | 6 | Donata Govoni | {{flagIOC|ITA|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:05.24 | 7 | Elisabeth Neuenschwander | {{flagIOC|SUI|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:06.89 | - | Arda Kalpakian | {{flagIOC|LIB|1972 Summer}} | 5 | DNS | |
Heat two Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time | Notes |
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1 | Svetla Zlateva | {{flagIOC|BUL|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 1:58.93 | OR | 2 | Vera Nikolić | {{flagIOC|YUG|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 1:59.62 | 3 | Sylvia Schenk | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:02.22 | 4 | Elżbieta Skowrońska | {{flagIOC|POL|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:03.26 | 5 | Jenny Orr | {{flagIOC|AUS|1972 Summer}} | 8 | 2:04.46 | 6 | Cheryl Toussaint | {{flagIOC|USA|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:08.90 | 7 | Claire Walsh | {{flagIOC|IRL|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:08.98 | 8 | Heather Gooding | {{flagIOC|BAR|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 2:19.69 | |
Heat three Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time |
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1 | Nijolė Sabaitė | {{flagIOC|URS|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:01.50 | 2 | Abby Hoffman | {{flagIOC|CAN|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 2:01.57 | 3 | Maria Sykora | {{flagIOC|AUT|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:01.82 | 4 | Gisela Ellenberger | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:01.92 | 5 | Maritta Politz | {{flagIOC|GDR|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:02.40 | 6 | Margaret Coomber | {{flagIOC|GBR|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:02.99 | 7 | Emesia Chizunga | {{flagIOC|MAW|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 2:19.22 | - | Malak El-Nasser | {{flagIOC|SYR|1972 Summer}} | 8 | DNF | |
Heat four Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time |
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1 | Ileana Silai | {{flagIOC|ROU|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 2:01.42 | 2 | Annelise Damm Olesen | {{flagIOC|DEN|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:01.77 | 3 | Magdolna Kulcsár | {{flagIOC|HUN|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:02.35 | 4 | Patricia Cropper | {{flagIOC|GBR|1972 Summer}} | 8 | 2:03.55 | 5 | Vasilena Amzina | {{flagIOC|BUL|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:05.92 | 6 | Marleen Verheuen | {{flagIOC|BEL|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:09.13 | 7 | Raissa Ruus | {{flagIOC|URS|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:11.18 | 8 | Lee Chiu-hsia | {{flagIOC|ROC|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 2:11.81 | |
Heat five Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time |
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1 | Nina Morhunova | {{flagIOC|URS|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 2:02.64 | 2 | Gunhild Hoffmeister | {{flagIOC|GDR|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:03.15 | 3 | Rosemary Stirling | {{flagIOC|GBR|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:03.64 | 4 | Sue Haden | {{flagIOC|NZL|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:04.86 | 5 | Chereno Maiyo | {{flagIOC|KEN|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 2:04.86 | 6 | Wendy Koenig | {{flagIOC|USA|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:08.71 | 7 | Malika Hadky | {{flagIOC|MAR|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:12.46 | |
SemifinalsTop four in each heat advanced to the final round. Heat one Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time |
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1 | Nijolė Sabaitė | {{flagIOC|URS|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:00.90 | 2 | Gunhild Hoffmeister | {{flagIOC|GDR|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:01.21 | 3 | Abby Hoffman | {{flagIOC|CAN|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:01.37 | 4 | Vera Nikolić | {{flagIOC|YUG|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:01.49 | 5 | Sylvia Schenk | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:01.50 | 6 | Annelisa Damm Olesen | {{flagIOC|DEN|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 2:04.19 | 7 | Cheryl Peasley | {{flagIOC|AUS|1972 Summer}} | 8 | 2:04.56 | - | Magdolna Kulcsár | {{flagIOC|HUN|1972 Summer}} | 6 | DNS | |
Heat two Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time |
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1 | Hildegard Falck | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 2:01.41 | 2 | Svetla Zlateva | {{flagIOC|BUL|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:01.66 | 3 | Ileana Silai | {{flagIOC|ROU|1972 Summer}} | 8 | 2:01.85 | 4 | Rosemary Stirling | {{flagIOC|GBR|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 2:02.36 | 5 | Madeline Manning | {{flagIOC|USA|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 2:02.39 | 6 | Maria Sykora | {{flagIOC|AUT|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:02.44 | 7 | Gisela Ellenberger | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:02.97 | 8 | Nina Morhunova | {{flagIOC|URS|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 2:04.93 | |
Final Rank | Name | Nationality | Lane | Time | Notes |
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{{Gold1}} | Hildegard Falck | {{flagIOC|FRG|1972 Summer}} | 1 | 1:58.55 | OR | {{Silver2}} | Nijolė Sabaitė | {{flagIOC|URS|1972 Summer}} | 5 | 1:58.65 | {{Bronze3}} | Gunhild Hoffmeister | {{flagIOC|GDR|1972 Summer}} | 6 | 1:59.16 | 4 | Svetla Zlateva | {{flagIOC|BUL|1972 Summer}} | 2 | 1:59.72 | 5 | Vera Nikolić | {{flagIOC|YUG|1972 Summer}} | 8 | 1:59.98 | 6 | Ileana Silai | {{flagIOC|ROU|1972 Summer}} | 3 | 2:00.04 | 7 | Rosemary Stirling | {{flagIOC|GBR|1972 Summer}} | 4 | 2:00.15 | 8 | Abby Hoffman | {{flagIOC|CAN|1972 Summer}} | 7 | 2:00.17 | |
Key: OR = Olympic record; DNS = did not start; DNF = did not finish References1. ^1 {{cite web |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1972/ATH/womens-800-metres.html |title=Athletics at the 1972 Munich Summer Games: Women's 800 metres |accessdate=20 October 2017 |work=sports-reference.com}}
External links- [https://web.archive.org/web/20120318234804/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1968/1968v3pt2.pdf Official report]
{{Olympics800metres}}{{DEFAULTSORT:Athletics at the 1972 Summer Olympics - Women's 800 metres}} 4 : Athletics at the 1972 Summer Olympics|800 metres at the Olympics|1972 in women's athletics|Women's events at the 1972 Summer Olympics |