| | Event type

4 × 200 metres Freestyle Relay, Men

Date	17 – 18 October 1964
Status	Olympic
Location	Kokuritsu Yoyogi Kyogijo, Shibuya, Tokyo
Participants	67 from 15 countries

The only question in this event was how big the United States’ margin would be, not if they would win. In the heats, the Americans rested all their best swimmers, sending in the B squad, which still posted the fastest qualifying time. In the final, lead-off Steve Clark opened a bodylength lead over Japan’s Makoto Fukui and Roy Saari doubled that on the second leg. Gary Ilman pulled well ahead on the third leg, and Germany moved up to pass the Japanese for second. Don Schollander swam two seconds faster than the posted 200 freestyle world record on the anchor leg as the American recorded a world record of 7:52.1 for a huge world record, and the first time ever under eight minutes, Germany a full 7.2 seconds behind in second place, as they also bettered eight minutes. Japan held onto third place, their bronze medal in this event their only swimming medal of the Tokyo Olympics. Schollander finished his Olympics with four gold medals, the first swimmer ever to win that many at a single Olympics.

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	R1	Final
1	–	United States	USA	8:09.0 (1 h2)	7:52.1 (1)	Gold
	–	Steve Clark		–	–
	–	Roy Saari		–	–
	–	Gary Ilman		–	–
	–	Don Schollander		–	–
	–	Bill Mettler		–	–
	–	Dave Lyons		–	–
	–	Mike Wall		–	–
	–	Ed Townsend		–	–
2	–	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:09.7 (1 h1)	7:59.3 (2)	Silver
	–	Horst-Günter Gregor		–	–
	–	Gerhard Hetz		–	–
	–	Frank Wiegand		–	–
	–	Hans-Joachim Klein		–	–
3	–	Japan	JPN	8:10.4 (2 h1)	8:03.8 (3)	Bronze
	–	Tsuyoshi Yamanaka		–	–
	–	Makoto Fukui		–	–
	–	Kunihiro Iwasaki		–	–
	–	Toshio Shoji		–	–
	–	Yukiaki Okabe		–	–
4	–	Australia	AUS	8:18.3 (4 h2)	8:05.7 (4)
	–	David Dickson		–	–
	–	Allan Wood		–	–
	–	Peter Doak		–	–
	–	Bob Windle		–	–
	–	John Konrads		–	–
	–	John Ryan		–	–
5	–	Sweden	SWE	8:10.3 (2 h2)	8:08.0 (5)
	–	Mats Svensson		–	–
	–	Lester Eriksson		–	–
	–	Hans Rosendahl		–	–
	–	Jan Lundin		–	–
6	–	France	FRA	8:17.0 (3 h2)	8:08.7 (6)
	–	Jean-Pascal Curtillet		–	–
	–	Pierre Canavèse		–	–
	–	Francis Luyce		–	–
	–	Alain Gottvallès		–	–
7	–	Soviet Union	URS	8:14.5 (3 h1)	8:15.1 (7)
	–	Semyon Belits-Geyman		–	–
	–	Vladimir Berezin		–	–
	–	Aleksandr Paramonov		–	–
	–	Yevgeny Novikov		–	–
8	–	Italy	ITA	8:17.8 (4 h1)	8:18.1 (8)
	–	Sergio De Gregorio		–	–
	–	Bruno Bianchi		–	–
	–	Giovanni Orlando		–	–
	–	Pietro Boscaini		–	–
9	5	Canada	CAN	8:22.2 (5 h1)	–
	–	Ron Jacks		–	–
	–	Ralph Hutton		–	–
	–	Dan Sherry		–	–
	–	Sandy Gilchrist		–	–
10	2	Finland	FIN	8:23.3 (5 h2)	–
	–	Ilkka Suvanto		–	–
	–	Hannu Vaahtoranta		–	–
	–	Tuomo Hämäläinen		–	–
	–	Matti Kasvio		–	–
11	1	Hungary	HUN	8:24.4 (6 h2)	–
	–	Gyula Dobay		–	–
	–	Csaba Ali		–	–
	–	György Kosztolánczy		–	–
	–	József Katona		–	–
12	8	Netherlands	NED	8:27.7 (6 h1)	–
	–	Johan Bontekoe		–	–
	–	Jan Jiskoot		–	–
	–	Ron Kroon		–	–
	–	Bert Sitters		–	–
13	5	Great Britain	GBR	8:30.9 (7 h2)	–
	–	John Martin-Dye		–	–
	–	John Thurley		–	–
	–	Bob Lord		–	–
	–	Bobby McGregor		–	–
14	7	Spain	ESP	8:32.6 (8 h2)	–
	–	Juan Fortuny		–	–
	–	Miguel Torres		–	–
	–	Antonio Pérez		–	–
	–	Antonio Codina		–	–
15	6	Mexico	MEX	8:50.3 (7 h1)	–
	–	Rafael Hernández		–	–
	–	Guillermo Echevarría		–	–
	–	Alfredo Guzmán		–	–
	–	Salvador Ruiz		–	–

Round One

Date	17 October 1964 — 12:55
Format	Fastest 8 advanced to the final round.

Pos	Lane	Team	NOC	Time
1	3	United States	USA	8:09.0	QOR
2	2	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:09.7	QOR
3	6	Sweden	SWE	8:10.3	Q
4	7	Japan	JPN	8:10.4	Q
5	3	Soviet Union	URS	8:14.5	Q
6	8	France	FRA	8:17.0	Q
7	1	Italy	ITA	8:17.8	Q
8	4	Australia	AUS	8:18.3	Q
9	5	Canada	CAN	8:22.2
10	2	Finland	FIN	8:23.3
11	1	Hungary	HUN	8:24.4
12	8	Netherlands	NED	8:27.7
13	5	Great Britain	GBR	8:30.9
14	7	Spain	ESP	8:32.6
15	6	Mexico	MEX	8:50.3

Heat #1

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	Time	Split	Exchange
1	2	Unified Team of Germany	GER	8:09.7	– (–)	– (–)	QOR
Lead-off	–	Horst-Günter Gregor		–	2:03.1 (4)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gerhard Hetz		–	2:02.9 (2)	4:06.0 (2)
3rd Leg	–	Frank Wiegand		–	2:01.8 (1)	6:07.8 (2)
Anchor	–	Hans-Joachim Klein		–	2:01.9 (1)	– (–)
2	7	Japan	JPN	8:10.4	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Makoto Fukui		–	2:02.6 (3)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Kunihiro Iwasaki		–	2:02.7 (1)	4:05.3 (1)
3rd Leg	–	Toshio Shoji		–	2:01.9 (2)	6:07.2 (1)
Anchor	–	Tsuyoshi Yamanaka		–	2:03.2 (3)	– (–)
3	3	Soviet Union	URS	8:14.5	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Semyon Belits-Geyman		–	2:02.3 (2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Vladimir Berezin		–	2:04.1 (3)	4:06.4 (3)
3rd Leg	–	Aleksandr Paramonov		–	2:04.1 (3)	6:10.5 (3)
Anchor	–	Yevgeny Novikov		–	2:04.0 (4)	– (–)
4	1	Italy	ITA	8:17.8	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Bruno Bianchi		–	2:04.2 (5)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Giovanni Orlando		–	2:05.9 (5)	4:10.1 (5)
3rd Leg	–	Pietro Boscaini		–	2:05.4 (5)	6:15.5 (4)
Anchor	–	Sergio De Gregorio		–	2:02.3 (2)	– (–)
5	5	Canada	CAN	8:22.2	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Ron Jacks		–	2:06.3 (6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Ralph Hutton		–	2:05.3 (4)	4:11.6 (6)
3rd Leg	–	Dan Sherry		–	2:05.2 (4)	6:16.8 (5)
Anchor	–	Sandy Gilchrist		–	2:05.4 (5)	– (–)
6	8	Netherlands	NED	8:27.7	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Johan Bontekoe		–	2:02.2 (1)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Jan Jiskoot		–	2:07.8 (6)	4:10.0 (4)
3rd Leg	–	Ron Kroon		–	2:07.2 (6)	6:17.2 (6)
Anchor	–	Bert Sitters		–	2:10.5 (7)	– (–)
7	6	Mexico	MEX	8:50.3	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Rafael Hernández		–	2:12.5 (7)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Guillermo Echevarría		–	2:10.5 (7)	4:23.0 (7)
3rd Leg	–	Alfredo Guzmán		–	2:17.0 (7)	6:40.0 (7)
Anchor	–	Salvador Ruiz		–	2:10.3 (6)	– (–)

Heat #2

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	Time	Split	Exchange
1	3	United States	USA	8:09.0	– (–)	– (–)	QOR
Lead-off	–	Bill Mettler		–	2:02.6 (2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Dave Lyons		–	2:02.8 (=1)	4:05.4 (1)
3rd Leg	–	Mike Wall		–	2:01.8 (1)	6:07.2 (1)
Anchor	–	Ed Townsend		–	2:01.8 (1)	– (–)
2	6	Sweden	SWE	8:10.3	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Jan Lundin		–	2:01.9 (1)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Lester Eriksson		–	2:03.8 (4)	4:05.7 (2)
3rd Leg	–	Hans Rosendahl		–	2:02.5 (2)	6:08.2 (2)
Anchor	–	Mats Svensson		–	2:02.1 (2)	– (–)
3	8	France	FRA	8:17.0	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Pierre Canavèse		–	2:04.1 (5)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Jean-Pascal Curtillet		–	2:03.2 (3)	4:07.3 (4)
3rd Leg	–	Francis Luyce		–	2:04.5 (3)	6:11.8 (3)
Anchor	–	Alain Gottvallès		–	2:05.2 (5)	– (–)
4	4	Australia	AUS	8:18.3	– (–)	– (–)	Q
Lead-off	–	Peter Doak		–	2:03.7 (4)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	John Konrads		–	2:02.8 (=1)	4:06.5 (3)
3rd Leg	–	John Ryan		–	2:07.4 (6)	6:13.9 (4)
Anchor	–	David Dickson		–	2:04.4 (4)	– (–)
5	2	Finland	FIN	8:23.3	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Ilkka Suvanto		–	2:05.6 (7)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Hannu Vaahtoranta		–	2:07.6 (5)	4:13.2 (6)
3rd Leg	–	Tuomo Hämäläinen		–	2:06.3 (=4)	6:19.5 (6)
Anchor	–	Matti Kasvio		–	2:03.8 (3)	– (–)
6	1	Hungary	HUN	8:24.4	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Gyula Dobay		–	2:02.8 (3)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Csaba Ali		–	2:08.1 (6)	4:10.9 (5)
3rd Leg	–	György Kosztolánczy		–	2:08.0 (7)	6:18.9 (5)
Anchor	–	József Katona		–	2:05.5 (6)	– (–)
7	5	Great Britain	GBR	8:30.9	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	John Martin-Dye		–	2:05.5 (6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	John Thurley		–	2:09.7 (8)	4:15.2 (7)
3rd Leg	–	Bob Lord		–	2:06.3 (=4)	6:21.5 (7)
Anchor	–	Bobby McGregor		–	2:09.4 (8)	– (–)
8	7	Spain	ESP	8:32.6	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Juan Fortuny		–	2:06.7 (8)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Miguel Torres		–	2:09.0 (7)	4:15.7 (8)
3rd Leg	–	Antonio Pérez		–	2:08.7 (8)	6:24.4 (8)
Anchor	–	Antonio Codina		–	2:08.2 (7)	– (–)

Final Round

Date	18 October 1964 — 18:05

Pos	Lane	Competitors	NOC	Time	Split	Exchange
1	4	United States	USA	7:52.1	– (–)	– (–)	WR
Lead-off	–	Steve Clark		–	2:00.0 (1)	– (–)	IOR
2nd Leg	–	Roy Saari		–	1:58.1 (1)	3:58.1 (1)
3rd Leg	–	Gary Ilman		–	1:58.4 (2)	5:56.5 (1)
Anchor	–	Don Schollander		–	1:55.6 (1)	– (–)
2	5	Unified Team of Germany	GER	7:59.3	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Horst-Günter Gregor		–	2:02.0 (4)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Gerhard Hetz		–	2:01.8 (4)	4:03.8 (3)
3rd Leg	–	Frank Wiegand		–	1:57.6 (1)	6:01.4 (2)
Anchor	–	Hans-Joachim Klein		–	1:57.9 (2)	– (–)
3	6	Japan	JPN	8:03.8	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Makoto Fukui		–	2:00.5 (2)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Kunihiro Iwasaki		–	2:01.1 (2)	4:01.6 (2)
3rd Leg	–	Toshio Shoji		–	2:01.7 (3)	6:03.3 (3)
Anchor	–	Yukiaki Okabe		–	2:00.5 (5)	– (–)
4	8	Australia	AUS	8:05.7	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	David Dickson		–	2:02.2 (5)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Allan Wood		–	2:01.7 (3)	4:03.9 (4)
3rd Leg	–	Peter Doak		–	2:03.1 (5)	6:07.0 (4)
Anchor	–	Bob Windle		–	1:58.7 (3)	– (–)
5	3	Sweden	SWE	8:08.0	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Mats Svensson		–	2:01.8 (3)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Lester Eriksson		–	2:03.2 (6)	4:05.0 (5)
3rd Leg	–	Hans Rosendahl		–	2:03.3 (6)	6:08.3 (6)
Anchor	–	Jan Lundin		–	1:59.7 (4)	– (–)
6	7	France	FRA	8:08.7	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Jean-Pascal Curtillet		–	2:02.7 (=6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Pierre Canavèse		–	2:02.8 (5)	4:05.5 (6)
3rd Leg	–	Francis Luyce		–	2:02.0 (4)	6:07.5 (5)
Anchor	–	Alain Gottvallès		–	2:01.2 (6)	– (–)
7	2	Soviet Union	URS	8:15.1	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Semyon Belits-Geyman		–	2:02.7 (=6)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Vladimir Berezin		–	2:03.6 (8)	4:06.3 (7)
3rd Leg	–	Aleksandr Paramonov		–	2:04.8 (7)	6:11.1 (7)
Anchor	–	Yevgeny Novikov		–	2:04.0 (7)	– (–)
8	1	Italy	ITA	8:18.1	– (–)	– (–)
Lead-off	–	Sergio De Gregorio		–	2:03.3 (8)	– (–)
2nd Leg	–	Bruno Bianchi		–	2:03.4 (7)	4:06.7 (8)
3rd Leg	–	Giovanni Orlando		–	2:06.4 (8)	6:13.1 (8)
Anchor	–	Pietro Boscaini		–	2:05.0 (8)	– (–)