This was the tenth time the event was held, having appeared at every Olympics since the first in 1896. Two finalists from 1932 returned: silver medalist Ralph Metcalfe and 6th-place finisher Takayoshi Yoshioka. The favorite, however, was Jesse Owens, particularly with compatriot Eulace Peacock injured and unable to make the team. Afghanistan, Colombia, Liechtenstein, Malta, Peru, and Yugoslavia were represented in the event for the first time. The United States was the only nation to have appeared at each of the first ten Olympic men's 100 metres events.
Competition format
The event retained the four round format from 1920–1932: heats, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final. There were 12 heats, of 4–6 athletes each, with the top 2 in each heat advancing to the quarterfinals. The 24 quarterfinalists were placed into 4 heats of 6 athletes. The top 3 in each quarterfinal advanced to the semifinals. There were 2 heats of 6 semifinalists, once again with the top 3 advancing to the 6-man final.
Jesse Owens equalled the standing Olympic record with 10.3 seconds in the final heat of the first round. He matched his own world record of 10.2 seconds, set two months earlier, in the quarterfinals but this result was not counted for records purposes due to wind assistance. His final run, also disqualified from record consideration due to wind, again matched the Olympic record of 10.3 seconds.
Results
Heats
The fastest two runners in each of the twelve heats advanced to the quarterfinal round.
The fastest three runners in each of the four heats advanced to the semifinal round.
Quarterfinal one
Rank
Athlete
Nation
Time
Notes
1
Lennart Strandberg
10.5
2
Tinus Osendarp
10.6
3
Frank Wykoff
10.6
4
Gerd Hornberger
10.7
5
Gyula Gyenes
6
Cyril Holmes
Quarterfinal two
The wind assistance in this quarterfinal was too great for Owens's 10.2 seconds to count to match the world record or better the Olympic record.
Rank
Athlete
Nation
Time
Notes
1
Jesse Owens
10.2
2
Paul Hänni
10.6
3
József Sir
10.7
4
Takayoshi Yoshioka
10.8
5
Eric Grimbeek
10.9
6
Lennart Lindgren
11.0
Quarterfinal three
Rank
Athlete
Nation
Time
Notes
1
Ralph Metcalfe
10.5
2
Alan Pennington
10.6
3
Wil van Beveren
10.7
4
Marthinus Theunissen
5
Bruce Humber
6
Kichizo Sasaki
Quarterfinal four
Rank
Athlete
Nation
Time
Notes
1
Erich Borchmeyer
10.5
2
Arthur Sweeney
10.6
3
Howard McPhee
10.6
4
Monta Suzuki
10.8
5
Chris Berger
11.0
6
Pat Dannaher
Semifinals
The fastest three runners in each of the two heats advanced to the final round.
Semifinal one
Rank
Athlete
Nation
Time
Notes
1
Jesse Owens
10.4
2
Frank Wykoff
10.5
3
Lennart Strandberg
10.5
4
Paul Hänni
10.7
5
Wil van Beveren
10.8
6
Alan Pennington
Semifinal two
Rank
Athlete
Nation
Time
Notes
1
Ralph Metcalfe
10.5
2
Tinus Osendarp
10.6
3
Erich Borchmeyer
10.7
4
Howard McPhee
10.7
5
Arthur Sweeney
10.7
6
József Sir
10.9
Final
Wind: +2.7 m/s After 30 metres, Owens "had already decided the race in his favour." Metcalfe broke free for silver at 70 metres. Strandberg strained a ligament at the halfway mark.
Jesse Owens