Athletics at the 1948 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 400 metres relay
The men's 4 × 400 metres relay event at the 1948 Olympic Games took place on 6 and 7 August. The United States team won the final with a time of 3:10.4.
Records
Prior to the competition, the existing World and Olympic records were as follows.| World record Olympic record | 3:08.2 | Los Angeles, United States | 7 August 1932 |
Schedule
All times are British Summer Time| Date | Time | Round |
| Friday 6 August 1948 | 17:30 | Round 1 |
| Saturday 7 August 1948 | 16:50 | Final |
Results
Round 1
The first two teams in each heat qualified for the Final.Heat 1
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Cliff Bourland, Roy Cochran, Arthur Harnden, Mal Whitfield | 3:12.6 | Q | |
| 2 | Ottavio Missoni, Luigi Paterlini, Gianni Rocca, Antonio Siddi | 3:14.0 | Q | |
| 3 | Leslie Lewis, Martin Pike, Derek Pugh, Bill Roberts | 3:14.2 | ||
| 4 | Oskar Hardmeier, Walter Keller, Max Trepp, Karl Volkmer | 3:23.0 | ||
| - | Charles Denroche, Paul Dolan, Reggie Myles, Jimmy Reardon | DSQ |
Heat 2
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Leslie Laing, Herb McKenley, George Rhoden, Arthur Wint | 3:14.0 | Q | |
| 2 | Robert Chef d'Hôtel, Jean Kerebel, Jacques Lunis, Francis Schewetta | 3:17.0 | Q | |
| 3 | Bill LaRochelle, Ernie McCullough, Bob McFarlane, Don McFarlane | 3:19.0 | ||
| 4 | Gustavo Ehlers, Sergio Guzmán, Jaime Hitelman, Carlos Silva | 3:23.8 | ||
| 5 | Doğan Acarbay, Seydi Dinçtürk, Kemal Horulu, Rıza Maksut İşman | 3:35.0 |
Heat 3
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| 1 | Runar Holmberg, Bebbe Storskrubb, Tauno Suvanto, Olavi Talja | 3:20.6 | Q | |
| 2 | Folke Alnevik, Rune Larsson, Kurt Lundquist, Lars-Erik Wolfbrandt | 3:21.0 | Q | |
| 3 | Hermelindo Alberti, Guillermo Avalos, Guillermo Evans, Antonio Pocovi | 3:21.2 | ||
| 4 | Jerko Bulić, Aleksandar Ćosić, Marko Račič, Zvonko Sabolović | 3:25.4 | ||
| 5 | Vasilios Mavroidis, Stefanos Petrakis, Lazaros Petropoulakis, Stylianos Stratakos | 3:33.0 |
Final
| Rank | Nation | Competitors | Time | Notes |
| Cliff Bourland, Roy Cochran, Arthur Harnden, Mal Whitfield | 3:10.4 | |||
| Robert Chef d'Hôtel, Jean Kerebel, Jacques Lunis, Francis Schewetta | 3:14.8 | |||
| Folke Alnevik, Rune Larsson, Kurt Lundquist, Lars-Erik Wolfbrandt | 3:16.0 | |||
| 4 | Runar Holmberg, Bebbe Storskrubb, Tauno Suvanto, Olavi Talja | 3:24.8 | ||
| Leslie Laing, Herb McKenley, George Rhoden, Arthur Wint | DNF | |||
| Ottavio Missoni, Luigi Paterlini, Gianni Rocca, Antonio Siddi | DNF |
Key: DNF = Did not finish