Steven Gardiner (born 12 September 1995) is a Bahamian track and field sprinter competing in the 400 metres and 200 metres. He is the 2020 Olympic and 2019 world champion in the 400 m, and also won the silver medal at the 2017 World Championships in that event. His winning time of 43.48 s from the 2019 World Championships is the Bahamian record and makes him the eighthfastest man in the history of the event. Gardiner also owns the Bahamian records in the outdoor 300 m and 200 m, with times of 31.83 s and 19.75 s respectively, and the world best in the indoor 300 m at 31.56 s.
Early life Gardiner was born in Murphy Town, Central Abaco, in the Bahamas.Stubbs, Brent (20 April 2015). Steven Gardiner Clocks Personal Best In 400m To Qualify For Iaaf Worlds . Tribune 242. Retrieved on 14 June 2015. During his teenage years Gardiner was a competitive volleyball player, but also ran track and field. Gardiner wanted to transition to track and field in the shorter sprints, but his high school coach said he was too tall, so he became a 400 m runner."Getting to Know Steven Gardiner." Youtube, IAAF Diamond League, 11 May 2018, Getting to know Steven Gardiner . He went to Moores Island All-Age School, where he was a part of the Exterminators Track and Field Club, Coached by Pastor Anthony Williams. Moore's Island is a small island off the coast of mainland Abaco Islands.
Career Gardiner competed in the sport in his teenage years and ran in the 400 m at the national championships in 2013. He entered three events at the 2014 CARIFTA Games: he only managed fourth in the individual 200 m but claimed a silver in the relay and a bronze in the relay.Steven Gardiner . Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 14 June 2015. He marked himself as one of the Bahamas' top young athletes with a win at the Bahamian junior championships in June of that year.Moss, Cheroyln (2 July 2014). Steven Gardiner – From Junior to Pro . Bahamas Athletics. Retrieved on 14 June 2015. An appearance at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Athletics resulted in a semi-final run in the 200 m and a sixth-place finish in the 4 × 400 m.Steven Gardiner Honours . IAAF. Retrieved on 14 June 2015.
His first senior medal came at the 2015 IAAF World Relays, held on home turf, where he gave American competitor Jeremy Wariner a close run in the relay, helping the Bahamas to the silver medal alongside Ramon Miller, Michael Mathieu and Chris Brown.Minshull, Phil (4 May 2015). Men's 4x400m – IAAF/BTC World Relays, Bahamas 2015 . IAAF. Retrieved on 14 June 2015. He began to focus on the 400 m in the 2015 season, which proved a successful transition. He rapidly improved to become the youngest Bahamian ever, at 19 years old, to run the distance in under 45 seconds and moved up to fourth on the Bahamian all-time list with a best of 44.64 seconds. He set the time at the Bislett Games, which brought him victory on his debut on the IAAF Diamond League circuit, finishing ahead of Matthew Hudson-Smith and Pavel Maslák.Stubbs, Brent (12 June 2015). Gardiner 'Boy Wonder' . Tribune 242. Retrieved on 14 June 2015.Rowbottom, Mike (11 June 2015). Zhang upsets the high jump favourites in Oslo – IAAF Diamond League . IAAF. Retrieved on 14 June 2015.
In 2019, he won the 400 m at the 2019 World Athletics Championships, finishing ahead of American favorite Fred Kerley in a national record of 43.48 s, which also made him the sixth fastest man in history after the race.
He won the 400 m at the 2020 Olympic Games in a time of 43.85. This was the joint fastest time in the world for the 2021 season.
In January 2022, he ran the fastest indoor 300 m of all time with a time of 31.56. He was unable to defend his World Championship 400 m title due to injury.
In April 2025, he signed as a racer in the Long Sprints event category for the 2025 Grand Slam Track season, replacing Quincy Hall.
Statistics All information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.
Personal bests EventTimeVenueDateNotes 200 m 19.75 Coral Gables, Florida, U.S. 7 April 2018 (+0.3 m/s wind) 300 m 31.56 Columbia, South Carolina, U.S. 28 January 2022 400 m 43.48 Doha, Qatar 4 October 2019 4 × 400 m relay 2:57.72 Gainesville, Florida, U.S. 16 April 2022
International competitions The two highlighted times are track records. Gardiner also holds the track record for Székesfehérvár in Hungary where he ran 43.74 seconds in July 2023. Representing the 2014CARIFTA Games (U20)Fort-de-France, Martinique4th200 m20.87 (+1.3 m/s wind)2nd4 × 100 m relay40.353rd4 × 400 m relay3:11.32World Junior ChampionshipsEugene, United States12th (sf)200 m20.89 (+1.8 m/s wind)6th4 × 400 m relay3:08.082015World RelaysNassau, Bahamas2nd4 × 400 m relay2:58.91World ChampionshipsBeijing, China16th (sf)400 m44.984 × 400 m relayLane violation2016Olympic GamesRio de Janeiro, Brazil11th (sf)400 m44.723rd4 × 400 m relay2:58.492017World RelaysNassau, Bahamas9th (sf)4 × 400 m relay3:05.371st4 × 400 m relay mixed3:14.42World ChampionshipsLondon, United Kingdom2nd400 m44.412019World ChampionshipsDoha, Qatar1st400 m43.48 2021Olympic GamesTokyo, Japan1st400 m43.852023World ChampionshipsBudapest, Hungary3rd (h)400 m44.6512026Commonwealth GamesGlasgow, United Kingdom19th (h)200 m20.85 1Did not finish in the semifinals
Circuit performances
Wins and titles Diamond League Oslo: 2015 Doha: 2017, 2018, 2024 Stockholm: 2017 Shanghai: 2018 Monaco: 2019 Paris: 2022 Rabat: 2023
References
External links
Gold for Gardiner in the 400m | World Athletics Championships 2019 | Doha Moments by IAAF Athletics via YouTube