The men's 200 metres was a track and field athletics

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

 event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics

Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics

These are the results of athletics competition at the 1912 Summer Olympics. 30 events were contested, all for men only.The athletics programme grew by 4 events since the 1908 Summer Olympics. The 5000 and 10000 metre races were introduced for the first time, as the 5 mile event was eliminated...

 programme. It was the fourth appearance of the event, which has appeared at every edition of the Summer Olympics since the 1900 Summer Olympics

1900 Summer Olympics

The 1900 Summer Olympics, today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1900 in Paris, France. No opening or closing ceremonies were held; competitions began on May 14 and ended on October 28. The Games were held as part of...

. The competition was held on July 10, 1912 and on July 11, 1912.

61 runners from 19 nations competed.

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in seconds) prior to the 1912 Summer Olympics.

World Record	21.3(*)	Jack Donaldson Jack Donaldson (athlete) John Donaldson, Jnr, , better known as Jack, was a professional sprinter in the early part of the 1900s. He held various world sprinting records ranging from 100 yards to 400 yards, some of which stood for many years.-Early life:...	Glasgow Glasgow Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...  (GBR Great Britain Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles... )	July 26, 1911
Olympic Record	21.6(**)	Archie Hahn Archie Hahn Charles Archibald "Archie" Hahn was a German-American athlete, and one of the best sprinters in the early 20th century....	St. Louis St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...  (USA United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... )	August 31, 1904

(*) unofficial 220 yards (= 201.17 m)

(**) straight course

Ralph Craig

Ralph Craig

Ralph Cook Craig was an American athlete, winner of the sprint double at the 1912 Summer Olympics.Craig was born in Detroit, Michigan. Initially a hurdler, he developed into a sprinter at the University of Michigan...

's 21.7 second performance was of a second off the Olympic record of 21.6 seconds, set in 1904.

Heats

All heats were held on Wednesday, July 10, 1912.

Heat 1

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.6	QS
2		22.7	QS
3
4

Heat 2

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.8	QS
2		23.0	QS
3
4

Heat 3

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1.		22.7	QS
2			QS
3
4
—		Did not finish

Heat 4

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		23.6	QS
2			QS

Heat 5

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		24.7	QS
2		(24.7)	QS

Heat 6

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.5	QS
2			QS
3

Heat 7

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.5	QS
2			QS
3
4
5

Heat 8

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		25.0	QS
2		(25.0)	QS

Heat 9

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		23.1	QS
2			QS
3

Heat 10

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.9	QS
2		22.9	QS
3

Heat 11

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.8	QS
2			QS
3
4
5

Heat 12

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		24.1	QS
2			QS

Heat 13

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.8	QS
2			QS
3
4
5

Heat 14

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.3	QS
2			QS
3
4
5

Heat 15

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.9	QS
2			QS
3
4

Heat 16

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		26.0	QS
2			QS

Heat 17

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		23.2	QS
2		(23.2)	QS

Heat 18

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		23.2	QS
2			QS
3

Semifinals

All semi-finals were held on Wednesday, July 10, 1912.

Semifinal 1

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		21.9	QF
2
3
4
5
—		Did not finish

Semifinal 2

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		21.9 seconds	QF
2
3
4
5
—		Did not finish

Semifinal 3

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		21.9	QF
2
3
4
—		Did not finish
		Did not finish

Semifinal 4

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		21.8	QF
2
3
4		22.4
5
6

Semifinal 5

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.1	QF
2
3		22.3
4
5
—		Did not finish

Semifinal 6

Place	Athlete	Time	Qual.
1		22.1	QF
2
3		22.5
4
5
—		Did not finish

Final

The final was held on Thursday, July 11, 1912.

Place	Athlete	Time
1		21.7
2		21.8
3		22.0
4		22.2
5		22.3
6		22.3