| | Event type

4 × 200 metres Freestyle Relay, Men

Date	29 August – 1 September 1960
Status	Olympic
Location	Stadio Olimpico del Nuoto, Roma
Participants	67 from 15 countries

The United States had by far the best team, based on the times of the individual swimmers, and they were bolstered by the addition of Jeff Farrell, probably the fastest swimmer in the world, but who had not qualified for the 100 free at the US Trials, as he was recovering from the effects of an appendicitis. The Americans biggest competition was expected to come from Australia, who had won in 1956, and Japan, winners of this event in 1932 and 1936. In fact, Australia held the world record of 8:16.6, having set it at a meeting down under just before the Rome Olympics. Japan qualified fastest, winning the first heat, with the USA winning the second over Australia. But the United States obliterated the world record in the final, winning in 8:10.2 with Japan second, three seconds back, and Australia close for third. Farrell swam the anchor for the United States.

Pos	Competitors	NOC	R1	Final
1	United States	USA	8:18.0 (1 h2)	8:10.2 (1)	Gold
	George Harrison		–	–
	Dick Blick		–	–
	Mike Troy		–	–
	Jeff Farrell		–	–
	Bill Darnton		–	–
	Tom Winters		–	–
	Steve Clark		–	–
2	Japan	JPN	8:17.1 (1 h1)	8:13.2 (2)	Silver
	Makoto Fukui		–	–
	Hiroshi Ishii		–	–
	Tsuyoshi Yamanaka		–	–
	Tatsuo Fujimoto		–	–
3	Australia	AUS	8:24.2 (2 h2)	8:13.8 (3)	Bronze
	David Dickson		–	–
	John Devitt		–	–
	Murray Rose		–	–
	John Konrads		–	–
	John Rigby		–	–
	Allan Wood		–	–
4	Great Britain	GBR	8:26.9 (2 h1)	8:28.1 (4)
	Tony Milton		–	–
	John Martin-Dye		–	–
	Dick Campion		–	–
	Ian Black		–	–
5	Finland	FIN	8:29.7 (4 h2)	8:29.7 (5)
	Ilkka Suvanto		–	–
	Kari Haavisto		–	–
	Stig-Olof Grenner		–	–
	Karri Käyhkö		–	–
6	Sweden	SWE	8:30.6 (4 h1)	8:31.0 (6)
	Sven-Göran Johansson		–	–
	Lars-Erik Bengtsson		–	–
	Bengt Nordwall		–	–
	Per-Ola Lindberg		–	–
	Bengt-Olov Almstedt		–	–
7	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:29.4 (3 h2)	8:31.8 (7)
	Frank Wiegand		–	–
	Gerhard Hetz		–	–
	Hans Zierold		–	–
	Hans-Joachim Klein		–	–
8	Soviet Union	URS	8:30.6 (3 h1)	8:32.2 (8)
	Igor Luzhkovsky		–	–
	Gennady Nikolayev		–	–
	Vitaly Sorokin		–	–
	Boris Nikitin		–	–
	Sergey Tovstoplet		–	–
9	Poland	POL	8:32.0 (5 h1)	–
	Andrzej Salamon		–	–
	Bernard Aluchna		–	–
	Jerzy Tracz		–	–
	Jan Lutomski		–	–
10	Hungary	HUN	8:32.6 (5 h2)	–
	György Müller		–	–
	László Lantos		–	–
	Gyula Dobay		–	–
	József Katona		–	–
11	Italy	ITA	8:38.1 (6 h2)	–
	Fritz Dennerlein		–	–
	Bruno Bianchi		–	–
	Angelo Romani		–	–
	Paolo Galletti		–	–
12	France	FRA	8:41.2 (6 h1)	–
	Jean-Pascal Curtillet		–	–
	Gérard Gropaiz		–	–
	Marc Kamoun		–	–
	Jean Boiteux		–	–
13	Yugoslavia	YUG	8:49.8 (7 h2)	–
	Milan Jeger		–	–
	Slobodan Kićović		–	–
	Vlado Brinovec		–	–
	Veljko Rogošić		–	–
14	Mexico	MEX	8:50.4 (8 h2)	–
	Raúl Guzmán		–	–
	Alfredo Guzmán		–	–
	Jorge Escalante		–	–
	Mauricio Ocampo		–	–
15	Switzerland	SUI	9:18.1 (7 h1)	–
	Peter Bärtschi		–	–
	Rainer Goltzsche		–	–
	Karl Fridlin		–	–
	Hans-Ulrich Dürst		–	–

Round One

Date	29 August 1960 — 21:30
Format	Fastest 8 advanced to the final round.

Pos	Lane	Team	NOC	Time
1	4	Japan	JPN	8:17.1	QOR
2	4	United States	USA	8:18.0	Q
3	5	Australia	AUS	8:24.2	Q
4	6	Great Britain	GBR	8:26.9	Q
5	3	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:29.4	Q
6	8	Finland	FIN	8:29.7	Q
=7	5	Soviet Union	URS	8:30.6	Q
=7	3	Sweden	SWE	8:30.6	Q
9	2	Poland	POL	8:32.0
10	2	Hungary	HUN	8:32.6
11	6	Italy	ITA	8:38.1
12	1	France	FRA	8:41.2
13	7	Yugoslavia	YUG	8:49.8
14	1	Mexico	MEX	8:50.4
15	7	Switzerland	SUI	9:18.1

Heat #1

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	Time	Split	Exchange
1	4	Japan	JPN	8:17.1	– (–)	– (–)	QOR
Lead-off	–	Tsuyoshi Yamanaka		–	2:01.8 (1)	– (–)	IOR
2nd Leg	–	Makoto Fukui		–	2:03.5 (1)	4:05.3 (1)
3rd Leg	–	Hiroshi Ishii		–	2:07.2 (2)	6:12.5 (1)
Anchor	–	Tatsuo Fujimoto		–	2:04.6 (2)	– (–)
2	6	Great Britain	GBR	8:26.9	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Tony Milton		–	2:09.5 (5)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	John Martin-Dye		–	2:06.5 (2)	4:16.0 (3)
3rd Leg	–	Dick Campion		–	2:07.7 (3)	6:23.7 (2)
Anchor	–	Ian Black		–	2:03.2 (1)	– (–)
3	5	Soviet Union	URS	8:30.6	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Vitaly Sorokin		–	2:07.7 (3)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gennady Nikolayev		–	2:08.0 (5)	4:15.7 (2)
3rd Leg	–	Sergey Tovstoplet		–	2:08.1 (5)	6:23.8 (3)
Anchor	–	Boris Nikitin		–	2:06.8 (4)	– (–)
4	3	Sweden	SWE	8:30.6	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Bengt-Olov Almstedt		–	2:10.1 (6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Lars-Erik Bengtsson		–	2:07.0 (3)	4:17.1 (5)
3rd Leg	–	Bengt Nordwall		–	2:06.9 (1)	6:24.0 (4)
Anchor	–	Per-Ola Lindberg		–	2:06.6 (3)	– (–)
5	2	Poland	POL	8:32.0	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Andrzej Salamon		–	2:08.3 (4)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Bernard Aluchna		–	2:07.8 (4)	4:16.1 (4)
3rd Leg	–	Jerzy Tracz		–	2:08.0 (4)	6:24.1 (5)
Anchor	–	Jan Lutomski		–	2:07.9 (5)	– (–)
6	1	France	FRA	8:41.2	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Jean-Pascal Curtillet		–	2:07.4 (2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gérard Gropaiz		–	2:10.8 (6)	4:18.2 (6)
3rd Leg	–	Marc Kamoun		–	2:09.7 (6)	6:27.9 (6)
Anchor	–	Jean Boiteux		–	2:13.3 (6)	– (–)
7	7	Switzerland	SUI	9:18.1	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Peter Bärtschi		–	2:18.3 (7)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Rainer Goltzsche		–	2:20.4 (7)	4:38.7 (7)
3rd Leg	–	Karl Fridlin		–	2:20.9 (7)	6:59.6 (7)
Anchor	–	Hans-Ulrich Dürst		–	2:18.5 (7)	– (–)

Heat #2

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	Time	Split	Exchange
1	4	United States	USA	8:18.0	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Bill Darnton		–	2:06.8 (=2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Tom Winters		–	2:04.0 (1)	4:10.8 (1)
3rd Leg	–	Steve Clark		–	2:04.0 (1)	6:14.8 (1)
Anchor	–	George Harrison		–	2:03.2 (1)	– (–)
2	5	Australia	AUS	8:24.2	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	David Dickson		–	2:04.6 (1)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	John Rigby		–	2:06.6 (2)	4:11.2 (2)
3rd Leg	–	Allan Wood		–	2:06.7 (3)	6:17.9 (2)
Anchor	–	John Devitt		–	2:06.3 (4)	– (–)
3	3	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:29.4	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Frank Wiegand		–	2:06.8 (=2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gerhard Hetz		–	2:08.3 (5)	4:15.1 (3)
3rd Leg	–	Hans Zierold		–	2:08.5 (5)	6:23.6 (3)
Anchor	–	Hans-Joachim Klein		–	2:05.8 (3)	– (–)
4	8	Finland	FIN	8:29.7	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Ilkka Suvanto		–	2:10.0 (5)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Kari Haavisto		–	2:07.5 (3)	4:17.5 (4)
3rd Leg	–	Stig-Olof Grenner		–	2:08.0 (4)	6:25.5 (5)
Anchor	–	Karri Käyhkö		–	2:04.2 (2)	– (–)
5	2	Hungary	HUN	8:32.6	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	György Müller		–	2:11.8 (7)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	László Lantos		–	2:07.7 (4)	4:19.5 (5)
3rd Leg	–	Gyula Dobay		–	2:05.5 (2)	6:25.0 (4)
Anchor	–	József Katona		–	2:07.6 (6)	– (–)
6	6	Italy	ITA	8:38.1	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Fritz Dennerlein		–	2:11.6 (6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Bruno Bianchi		–	2:08.5 (6)	4:20.1 (6)
3rd Leg	–	Angelo Romani		–	2:10.9 (6)	6:31.0 (6)
Anchor	–	Paolo Galletti		–	2:07.1 (5)	– (–)
7	7	Yugoslavia	YUG	8:49.8	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Milan Jeger		–	2:09.6 (4)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Slobodan Kićović		–	2:12.9 (7)	4:22.5 (7)
3rd Leg	–	Vlado Brinovec		–	2:15.4 (=7)	6:37.9 (7)
Anchor	–	Veljko Rogošić		–	2:11.9 (8)	– (–)
8	1	Mexico	MEX	8:50.4	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Raúl Guzmán		–	2:12.8 (8)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Alfredo Guzmán		–	2:13.7 (8)	4:26.5 (8)
3rd Leg	–	Jorge Escalante		–	2:15.4 (=7)	6:41.9 (8)
Anchor	–	Mauricio Ocampo		–	2:08.4 (7)	– (–)

Final Round

Date	1 September 1960 — 21:50

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	Time	Split	Exchange
1	5	United States	USA	8:10.2	– (–)	– (–)	WR
Lead-off	–	George Harrison		–	2:03.4 (1)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Dick Blick		–	2:01.9 (1)	4:05.3 (1)
3rd Leg	–	Mike Troy		–	2:02.9 (3)	6:08.2 (1)
Anchor	–	Jeff Farrell		–	2:02.0 (2)	– (–)
2	4	Japan	JPN	8:13.2	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Makoto Fukui		–	2:04.8 (2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Hiroshi Ishii		–	2:04.8 (3)	4:09.6 (2)
3rd Leg	–	Tsuyoshi Yamanaka		–	2:00.6 (1)	6:10.2 (2)
Anchor	–	Tatsuo Fujimoto		–	2:03.0 (3)	– (–)
3	3	Australia	AUS	8:13.8	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	David Dickson		–	2:06.6 (4)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	John Devitt		–	2:03.2 (2)	4:09.8 (3)
3rd Leg	–	Murray Rose		–	2:02.7 (2)	6:12.5 (3)
Anchor	–	John Konrads		–	2:01.3 (1)	– (–)
4	6	Great Britain	GBR	8:28.1	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Tony Milton		–	2:08.7 (5)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	John Martin-Dye		–	2:05.2 (4)	4:13.9 (4)
3rd Leg	–	Dick Campion		–	2:08.4 (=7)	6:22.3 (4)
Anchor	–	Ian Black		–	2:05.8 (5)	– (–)
5	7	Finland	FIN	8:29.7	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Ilkka Suvanto		–	2:09.0 (6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Kari Haavisto		–	2:08.1 (6)	4:17.1 (6)
3rd Leg	–	Stig-Olof Grenner		–	2:07.3 (6)	6:24.4 (7)
Anchor	–	Karri Käyhkö		–	2:05.3 (4)	– (–)
6	8	Sweden	SWE	8:31.0	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Sven-Göran Johansson		–	2:09.1 (7)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Lars-Erik Bengtsson		–	2:08.2 (7)	4:17.3 (7)
3rd Leg	–	Bengt Nordwall		–	2:06.5 (4)	6:23.8 (6)
Anchor	–	Per-Ola Lindberg		–	2:07.2 (7)	– (–)
7	2	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:31.8	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Frank Wiegand		–	2:06.3 (3)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gerhard Hetz		–	2:09.0 (8)	4:15.3 (5)
3rd Leg	–	Hans Zierold		–	2:08.4 (=7)	6:23.7 (5)
Anchor	–	Hans-Joachim Klein		–	2:08.1 (8)	– (–)
8	1	Soviet Union	URS	8:32.2	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Igor Luzhkovsky		–	2:10.3 (8)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gennady Nikolayev		–	2:08.0 (5)	4:18.3 (8)
3rd Leg	–	Vitaly Sorokin		–	2:07.0 (5)	6:25.3 (8)
Anchor	–	Boris Nikitin		–	2:06.9 (6)	– (–)