Dhama clocked a time of four minutes and 37.61 seconds in Heat 1, a couple of seconds ahead of Raxon Oscar (4:57.22) of Guatemala. But his timing was not good enough to ensure a spot in the semi-finals as according to the rules, only the group winners and the three best losers from the first round could progress.
Deniz Semih of Turkey clocked a time of 4:11.75 to advance from Heat 1.
Kimani Mushai of Kenya registered his season's best time of 4:04.50 to win Heat 2. Second placed Santos Odair (4:05.34) of Brazil also recorded his best performance this season but could not make the cut for the semis.
Bill Wilson clocked a personal best of 4:13.20 to win Heat 3 and become the second Kenyan to advance to the next stage.
