Olympics: Washington State Alum CJ Allen Through To Semi-Finals in 400m Hurdles

Joe Londergan | Aug 5, 2024

Aug 5, 2024; Paris Saint-Denis, France; Cj Allen (USA) in the 400-meter hurdles preliminary heats during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Stade de France. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-USA TODAY Sports / James Lang-USA TODAY Sports

Former Washington State Cougars' track star CJ Allens' dreams of an Olympic medal are still alive after a strong performance in Paris on Monday.

Allen, competing in the 400-meter hurdles, finished second in the third heat of the preliminary round with a time of 48.64 seconds. He finished 0.02 seconds behind the first-place finisher Rasmus Mägi of Estonia.

Heat 3 of the Men's 400m Hurdles

1️⃣ 🇪🇪 Rasmus Mägi - 48.62 (Q)
2️⃣ 🇺🇸 CJ Allen - 48.64 (Q)
3️⃣ 🇧🇷 Alison dos Santos - 48.75 (Q)

Rasmus Mägi takes the win from CJ Allen. #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/WtTG4Xcb87
— larry eder (@LarryEder) August 5, 2024

The first three runners to finish in each heat and the next three fastest times advance to Semi-Final. All others advanced to the repechage round.

The semi-final is scheduled for August 7 at 10:35 AM PT/1:35 PM ET on Peacock. Those that qalify will advance to the final on August 9.

Allen graduated from Washington State in 2017 where he was a two-time Pac-12 champion in the 400-meter hurdles. He finished second in that event at U.S. Olympic trials in Eugene earlier this summer with a time of 47.81, helping him qualify for his first U.S. Olympic team.

Allen also holds the American record for the 400-meter hurdles indoors at 48.88.

Published Aug 5, 2024

JOE LONDERGAN

Joe Londergan joined the SI brand in 2023 with G5 Football Daily. With over 15 years of experience in covering and working directly in college and pro sports, Joe's expertise has been featured in Front Office Sports, SB Nation, and XRAY.FM. He is a member of both the Football Writers' Association of America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association. Joe holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Louisville and a master's degree in sports administration from Seattle University. Outside of his writing career, Joe enjoys golfing, although he admits that while he hits driver decently, his short game is a liability.