Here we have -
Acceleration (a) = ?
Initial velocity (u) = 0 m/s (runner starts from rest)
Distance (s) = 12 m
Time (t) = 4 seconds
So, using the second equation of motion, we have-
[tex]s = ut + \frac{1}{2}at^{2} [/tex]
[tex]12 = 0*4 + \frac{1}{2}*a*4 ^{2} [/tex]
[tex]12 = 0+8a[/tex]
[tex] \frac{12}{8} = a[/tex]
[tex]1.5m/ s^{2} [/tex]
So, option (2) is correct.