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FastestThings

Men's 400 Meters

Wayde van Niekerk

South African athlete. men's 400 m mark of 43.03 seconds at Rio de Janeiro on August 14, 2016, the personal best on the World Athletics all-time list.

Wayde van Niekerk's race time is 43.03 s, an official figure.

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Race time

43.03s

men's 400 m, Rio de Janeiro. One personal best per athlete.

OfficialWorld Athletics (opens source in a new tab)

Quick answers

People also ask

What is Wayde van Niekerk's race time?

Wayde van Niekerk's race time is 43.03 s, an official figure.

Is that figure claimed or verified?

Wayde van Niekerk is labeled Official. Ratified by a governing body such as the FIA, World Athletics or Guinness World Records.

What is the source?

The figure cites World Athletics, “400 metres men, senior, outdoor all-time list.”

Where does Wayde van Niekerk rank?

Wayde van Niekerk is 1st of 9 on Fastest Men's 400 m.

Mechanism

Why it's so fast

Wayde van Niekerk's mark is a men's 400 meters of 43.03 seconds at Rio de Janeiro on August 14, 2016. That is one lap. Dividing 400 meters by the official time is about 20.8 mph. No 200-meter split is given, so the pace inside the lap is not described here.

Time
43.03 s
Average
about 20.8 mph
Place
Rio de Janeiro
Date
August 14, 2016

  1. One lap, one clock

    Wayde van Niekerk's 43.03 is the time from the gun to the finish of a full lap at Rio de Janeiro on August 14, 2016. A 400 is long enough that how the effort is divided matters, and this entry does not keep the split that would show it. What counts is the official time only.

  2. 20.8 mph across the lap

    400 meters in 43.03 seconds is about 20.8 mph for the whole lap. That is much slower than a 100-meter average because the distance is four times as long. Wayde van Niekerk's figure is the personal best on the all-time list, not a radar peak on the back straight.

Provenance

Every measurement

Claimed, measured and official figures side by side, each with its source. The ranked figure is marked.

  1. 43.03sRanked figure

    men's 400 m, Rio de Janeiro. One personal best per athlete.

    Official
    World Athletics (opens source in a new tab)

Reference

Specs

Country
South Africa
Event
men's 400 m
Mark
43.03 s
Venue
Rio de Janeiro

Context

Background

Wayde van Niekerk's ranked men's 400 m time is 43.03 seconds at Rio de Janeiro on August 14, 2016. World Athletics, Athletic Stats (refreshed October 5, 2026) and Track & Field News say that time and date.

The list is one event. A mark from another distance is a different page, with its own slug. Wind above +4.5 mph (+2.0 m/s) is not legal. Lower is faster.

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Every report is read by a person, and corrections are dated on the page.