Debut
1500 meter sprint for men made its debut since the beginning of the modern Olympics in 1896. Thereafter, it has been a regular feature in the Olympics.
Rules
1500 meter race for men in Olympics is governed in accordance with the rules of the International Association of Athletes Federations or IAAF.
- Length and width of the tracks and lanes must be in accordance with the specifications of the IAAF.
- Runners are prohibited from running on the inner line of the track.
- Any sprinter who commits two consecutive false starts is barred from taking part in the race.
- Any runner found guilty of obstructing the race is disqualified.
- Any sprinter who steps out of the track faces instant disqualification.
- If the participants are too many, preliminary heats are organized. Top twelve winners of the preliminaries participate in the final round. All the athletes have to participate in the preliminaries.
- Automatic timing devices approved by IAAF are used for measuring time in the tournament.
- Any athlete who is unable to touch the finish line for whatever reason is not considered no matter what has been his performance in the middle.
For a long time, the event has been dominated by the British and US runners. However, African sprinters broke their domination. Currently, athletes from the three places give tough competition to one another.
Great Athletes
Top performers of the event have been Steve Cram, Herb Elliott, Hicham El Guerrouj, Bernard Lagat, John Landy, Mehdi Baala, Said Aouita, Fermin Cacho, Sebastian Coe, Vénuste Niyongabo, Daniel Komen, Noureddine Morceli, Steve Ovett, Jim Ryun, Peter Snell, John Walker, Noah Ngeny, and John Walker.
