| | Event type

200 metres Freestyle, Men

Date	24 October 1968
Status	Olympic
Location	Alberca Olímpica Francisco Márquez, Ciudad de México
Participants	57 from 26 countries

Don Schollander had dominated 1964 Olympic swimming, winning four gold medals, but his best event, the 200 freestyle, was not even on the Olympic Program in 64. The event was added for Mexico City and since Tokyo, he had set five world records in the event, capped by 1:54.3 at the US Trials in late August in Long Beach, California, which gave him nine world records overall in this event. He was considered the clear favorite. Mike Wenden had already won the 100 freestyle in Mexico City but few thought he could defeat Schollander in this race. Wenden had not heard that, as he took the lead on the first lap, having half a body length on Schollander at 50 metres. He opened that to a full body length at 100 metres and then hung on. Schollander closed in the last 25 metres but couldn’t make up the gap as Wenden won the 100-200 sprint freestyle double, 1:55.2 to 1:55.8. One absentee in the final was America’s Steve Rerych, later a renowned heart surgeon, who was a victim of the tourista in Mexico City. Schollander retired after the Mexico City Olympics. Wenden continued to compete, returning to win four gold medals at the 1970 Commonwealth Games, and competing at the Munich Olympics, although he failed to medal there.

Pos	Swimmer	NOC	R1	Final
1	Mike Wenden	AUS	1:59.3 (1 h2)	1:55.2 (1)	Gold
2	Don Schollander	USA	2:00.0 (1 h4)	1:55.8 (2)	Silver
3	John Nelson	USA	1:59.5 (1 h1)	1:58.1 (3)	Bronze
4	Ralph Hutton	CAN	2:00.0 (1 h8)	1:58.6 (4)
5	Alain Mosconi	FRA	2:00.1 (1 h6)	1:59.1 (5)
6	Bob Windle	AUS	2:01.0 (2 h2)	2:00.9 (6)
7	Semyon Belits-Geyman	URS	2:01.2 (2 h5)	2:01.5 (7)
8	Steve Rerych	USA	2:00.6 (1 h5)	– (DNS)
=9	Leonid Ilyichov	URS	2:01.3 (2 h6)	–
=9	Juan Carlos Bello	PER	2:01.3 (1 h7)	–
11	Michel Rousseau	FRA	2:01.5 (1 h9)	–
12	Olaf, Baron von Schilling	FRG	2:01.7 (2 h8)	–
=13	Sandy Gilchrist	CAN	2:01.8 (1 h3)	–
=13	Luis Nicolao	ARG	2:01.8 (2 h4)	–
=15	Wolfgang Kremer	FRG	2:02.1 (2 h1)	–
=15	Lester Eriksson	SWE	2:02.1 (2 h3)	–
=15	Kunihiro Iwasaki	JPN	2:02.1 (2 h9)	–
18	Mark Anderson	AUS	2:02.2 (3 h1)	–
19	Gilles Moreau	FRA	2:02.7 (3 h3)	–
20	Julio Arango	COL	2:03.1 (2 h7)	–
21	George Smith	CAN	2:03.2 (3 h6)	–
22	Noboru Waseda	JPN	2:03.4 (4 h1)	–
23	Johan Schans	NED	2:04.1 (3 h4)	–
24	Roosevelt Abdulgafur	PHI	2:04.8 (4 h6)	–
=25	Gunnar Larsson	SWE	2:04.9 (4 h4)	–
=25	Pano Capéronis	SUI	2:04.9 (3 h5)	–
27	Ørjan Madsen	NOR	2:05.4 (4 h5)	–
28	Satoru Nakano	JPN	2:05.5 (4 h3)	–
29	Elt Drenth	NED	2:05.6 (5 h4)	–
30	Ricardo González	COL	2:05.8 (5 h5)	–
31	Władysław Wojtakajtis	POL	2:06.0 (3 h2)	–
32	Tony Asamali	PHI	2:06.2 (3 h8)	–
33	Zbigniew Pacelt	POL	2:06.3 (3 h7)	–
34	Mátyás Borlói	HUN	2:06.5 (4 h2)	–
=35	Gary Goodner	PUR	2:06.6 (5 h1)	–
=35	Aad Oudt	NED	2:06.6 (3 h9)	–
37	Fernando González	ECU	2:07.3 (5 h6)	–
38	Werner Krammel	FRG	2:07.9 (6 h6)	–
39	Georgijs Kuļikovs	URS	2:08.3 (6 h4)	–
40	Jorge González	PUR	2:09.1 (4 h7)	–
=41	Amnon Krauz	ISR	2:09.3 (5 h2)	–
=41	Tony Jarvis	GBR	2:09.3 (6 h5)	–
=43	Csaba Csatlós	HUN	2:10.0 (5 h7)	–
=43	Ingvar Eriksson	SWE	2:10.0 (4 h8)	–
45	Gregorio Fiallo	CUB	2:10.5 (6 h2)	–
46	Federico Sicard	COL	2:11.1 (5 h3)	–
47	Ramiro Benavides	GUA	2:11.7 (7 h6)	–
48	Luis Ayesa	PHI	2:12.2 (4 h9)	–
49	Gábor Kucsera	HUN	2:12.8 (6 h7)	–
50	Salvador Vilanova	ESA	2:14.6 (6 h1)	–
51	Ronnie Wong	HKG	2:15.0 (7 h4)	–
52	Andrew Loh	HKG	2:15.8 (5 h8)	–
53	José Martínez	CUB	2:16.1 (6 h3)	–
54	Bob Loh	HKG	2:16.2 (7 h5)	–
55	Angus Edghill	BAR	2:19.1 (8 h4)	–
56	José Alvarado	ESA	2:20.2 (8 h6)	–
57	Ernesto Durón	ESA	2:24.1 (5 h9)	–
DNS	Guillermo Echevarría	MEX	– (DNS h1)	–
DNS	Michele D'Oppido	ITA	– (DNS h2)	–
DNS	Mike Turner	GBR	– (DNS h3)	–
DNS	Edgar Miranda	CRC	– (DNS h5)	–
DNS	José Roberto Aranha	BRA	– (DNS h7)	–
DNS	Udo Poser	GDR	– (DNS h7)	–
DNS	John Thurley	GBR	– (DNS h8)	–
DNS	Salvador Ruiz	MEX	– (DNS h8)	–
DNS	José Ferraioli	PUR	– (DNS h8)	–
DNS	Carlos van der Maath	ARG	– (DNS h9)	–
DNS	Pietro Boscaini	ITA	– (DNS h9)	–

Round One (24 October 1968 — 10:00)

Fastest eight advanced to the final.

Heat One

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	2	John Nelson	USA	57.7 (1) 1:01.8 (1)	1:59.5	Q
2	5	Wolfgang Kremer	FRG	59.7 (3) 1:02.4 (2)	2:02.1
3	4	Mark Anderson	AUS	59.1 (2) 1:03.1 (3)	2:02.2
4	7	Noboru Waseda	JPN	59.8 (4) 1:03.6 (4)	2:03.4
5	6	Gary Goodner	PUR	1:01.0 (5) 1:05.6 (5)	2:06.6
6	3	Salvador Vilanova	ESA	1:03.9 (6) 1:10.7 (6)	2:14.6
DNS	–	Guillermo Echevarría	MEX	– (–) –	–

Heat Two

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	5	Mike Wenden	AUS	57.0 (1) 1:02.3 (2)	1:59.3	Q
2	3	Bob Windle	AUS	59.6 (2) 1:01.4 (1)	2:01.0	Q
3	4	Władysław Wojtakajtis	POL	1:01.6 (=3) 1:04.4 (3)	2:06.0
4	7	Mátyás Borlói	HUN	1:01.9 (5) 1:04.6 (4)	2:06.5
5	2	Amnon Krauz	ISR	1:01.6 (=3) 1:07.7 (=5)	2:09.3
6	6	Gregorio Fiallo	CUB	1:02.8 (6) 1:07.7 (=5)	2:10.5
DNS	–	Michele D'Oppido	ITA	– (–) –	–

Heat Three

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	2	Sandy Gilchrist	CAN	59.7 (2) 1:02.1 (2)	2:01.8
2	5	Lester Eriksson	SWE	1:01.1 (=3) 1:01.0 (1)	2:02.1
3	7	Gilles Moreau	FRA	59.5 (1) 1:03.2 (3)	2:02.7
4	4	Satoru Nakano	JPN	1:01.1 (=3) 1:04.4 (4)	2:05.5
5	3	Federico Sicard	COL	1:02.3 (5) 1:08.8 (5)	2:11.1
6	6	José Martínez	CUB	1:05.2 (6) 1:10.9 (6)	2:16.1
DNS	–	Mike Turner	GBR	– (–) –	–

Heat Four

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	7	Don Schollander	USA	59.8 (1) 1:00.2 (1)	2:00.0	Q
2	8	Luis Nicolao	ARG	1:00.1 (2) 1:01.7 (2)	2:01.8
3	3	Johan Schans	NED	1:01.0 (4) 1:03.1 (3)	2:04.1
4	5	Gunnar Larsson	SWE	1:00.9 (3) 1:04.0 (5)	2:04.9
5	2	Elt Drenth	NED	1:01.8 (5) 1:03.8 (4)	2:05.6
6	1	Georgijs Kuļikovs	URS	1:01.9 (6) 1:06.4 (6)	2:08.3
7	6	Ronnie Wong	HKG	1:03.7 (7) 1:11.3 (7)	2:15.0
8	4	Angus Edghill	BAR	1:06.0 (8) 1:13.1 (8)	2:19.1

Heat Five

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	7	Steve Rerych	USA	58.6 (2) 1:02.0 (1)	2:00.6	Q
2	3	Semyon Belits-Geyman	URS	58.5 (1) 1:02.7 (2)	2:01.2	Q
3	1	Pano Capéronis	SUI	1:01.7 (6) 1:03.2 (3)	2:04.9
4	6	Ørjan Madsen	NOR	1:00.8 (4) 1:04.6 (4)	2:05.4
5	2	Ricardo González	COL	1:00.9 (5) 1:04.9 (5)	2:05.8
6	4	Tony Jarvis	GBR	1:00.3 (3) 1:09.0 (6)	2:09.3
7	5	Bob Loh	HKG	1:06.7 (7) 1:09.5 (7)	2:16.2
DNS	–	Edgar Miranda	CRC	– (–) –	–

Heat Six

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	7	Alain Mosconi	FRA	56.9 (1) 1:03.2 (3)	2:00.1	Q
2	5	Leonid Ilyichov	URS	58.8 (2) 1:02.5 (1)	2:01.3
3	4	George Smith	CAN	1:00.5 (4) 1:02.7 (2)	2:03.2
4	3	Roosevelt Abdulgafur	PHI	1:00.4 (3) 1:04.4 (4)	2:04.8
5	2	Fernando González	ECU	1:02.4 (6) 1:04.9 (5)	2:07.3
6	1	Werner Krammel	FRG	1:01.2 (5) 1:06.7 (7)	2:07.9
7	8	Ramiro Benavides	GUA	1:06.0 (7) 1:05.7 (6)	2:11.7
8	6	José Alvarado	ESA	1:06.8 (8) 1:13.4 (8)	2:20.2

Heat Seven

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	6	Juan Carlos Bello	PER	58.5 (1) 1:02.8 (2)	2:01.3
2	3	Julio Arango	COL	1:00.4 (2) 1:02.7 (1)	2:03.1
3	4	Zbigniew Pacelt	POL	1:01.0 (=3) 1:05.3 (3)	2:06.3
4	5	Jorge González	PUR	1:03.0 (6) 1:06.1 (4)	2:09.1
5	7	Csaba Csatlós	HUN	1:02.9 (5) 1:07.1 (5)	2:10.0
6	2	Gábor Kucsera	HUN	1:01.0 (=3) 1:11.8 (6)	2:12.8
DNS	–	José Roberto Aranha	BRA	– (–) –	–
DNS	–	Udo Poser	GDR	– (–) –	–

Heat Eight

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	6	Ralph Hutton	CAN	58.9 (2) 1:01.1 (1)	2:00.0	Q
2	2	Olaf, Baron von Schilling	FRG	58.4 (1) 1:03.3 (2)	2:01.7
3	3	Tony Asamali	PHI	1:00.3 (3) 1:05.9 (3)	2:06.2
4	5	Ingvar Eriksson	SWE	1:01.2 (4) 1:08.8 (5)	2:10.0
5	4	Andrew Loh	HKG	1:07.3 (5) 1:08.5 (4)	2:15.8
DNS	–	John Thurley	GBR	– (–) –	–
DNS	–	Salvador Ruiz	MEX	– (–) –	–
DNS	–	José Ferraioli	PUR	– (–) –	–

Heat Nine

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	2	Michel Rousseau	FRA	58.9 (1) 1:02.6 (2)	2:01.5
2	5	Kunihiro Iwasaki	JPN	59.7 (2) 1:02.4 (1)	2:02.1
3	3	Aad Oudt	NED	1:00.9 (3) 1:05.7 (3)	2:06.6
4	6	Luis Ayesa	PHI	1:01.4 (4) 1:10.8 (4)	2:12.2
5	4	Ernesto Durón	ESA	1:09.7 (5) 1:14.4 (5)	2:24.1
DNS	–	Carlos van der Maath	ARG	– (–) –	–
DNS	–	Pietro Boscaini	ITA	– (–) –	–

Final (24 October 1968 — 17:00)

Pos	Lane	Swimmer	NOC	100 m	Time
1	4	Mike Wenden	AUS	56.4 (1) 58.8 (2)	1:55.2	OR
2	3	Don Schollander	USA	57.1 (2) 58.7 (1)	1:55.8
3	5	John Nelson	USA	57.4 (3) 1:00.7 (3)	1:58.1
4	6	Ralph Hutton	CAN	57.5 (4) 1:01.1 (5)	1:58.6
5	2	Alain Mosconi	FRA	58.2 (5) 1:00.9 (4)	1:59.1
6	1	Bob Windle	AUS	58.8 (6) 1:02.1 (6)	2:00.9
7	8	Semyon Belits-Geyman	URS	58.9 (7) 1:02.6 (7)	2:01.5
DNS	7	Steve Rerych	USA	– (–) –	–