Running in lane eight, Van Niekerk crossed the finish line in 45.14 seconds to go crashing out of the Olympics.

Steven Gardiner of the Bahamas clocked the fastest time in the semi-final in exactly a second faster than Van Niekerk.

Van Niekerk started exceptionally well and over the first 300m he looked like he would comfortably take the race in a good time.

However, over the last 80m he struggled and his pace dropped significantly.  With 60m to go it was visible that the world record holder knew his fate and it was a matter of finishing strongly.

Van Niekerk expressed his disappointment in his performance.

“I'm obviously very disappointed with the run. I expected way more from myself, but it didn't work out as I wanted it to. It is what it is, and we move forward.”

The 2012 Olympic champion, Kirani James, of Grenada was the fastest sprinter in the semi-finals by recording a time of 43.88.

The final of the men’s 400m will take place at 14:00 on Thursday afternoon.

In 2016, Van Niekerk won the 400m at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in the world record time of 43.03 seconds.

@MorganPiek OFM Sport