| | Event type
4 x 100 metres Relay, Women
| Date | 1 December 1956 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Participants | 36 from 9 countries |
Australia had the fastest woman sprinter in the world in Betty Cuthbert, who had won the 100 and 200. She would run the anchor and their team would be started off by Shirley Strickland-de la Hunty, who had defended her 80 metre hurdles gold medal. In the first round, Australia bettered the world record with 44.9. But in the final, the British team had very clean passes, and still held the lead as June Foulds-Paul passed off to Heather Armitage, with Cuthbert a metre in arrears. But Cuthbert, the “Golden Girl,” caught Armitage by 50 metres and won by half a metre.
Round One (1 December 1956 — 15:30)
Top three in each heat advanced to the final.
Heat One
| Pos | Nr | Team | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Australia |  AUS | 44.9 | 45.00 | ||||||||
| Shirley Strickland de la Hunty • Norma Croker • Fleur Mellor • Betty Cuthbert | |||||||||||||
| 2 | – | Unified Team of Germany |  GER | 44.9 | 45.07 | ||||||||
| Maria Sander • Christa Stubnick • Gisela Köhler • Bärbel Mayer | |||||||||||||
| 3 | – | Italy |  ITA | 45.9 | 45.91 | ||||||||
| Letizia Bertoni • Milena Greppi • Giuseppina Leone • Maria Musso | |||||||||||||
| 4 | – | France |  FRA | 46.3 | 46.39 | ||||||||
| Catherine Capdevielle • Micheline Fluchot • Simone Henry • Angèle Picado | |||||||||||||
| 5 | – | Canada |  CAN | 46.6 | 46.79 | ||||||||
| Eleanor Haslam • Dorothy Kozak • Diane Matheson • Maureen Rever | |||||||||||||
Heat Two
| Pos | Nr | Team | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Great Britain |  GBR | 45.3 | 45.38 | ||||||||
| Anne Pashley • Jean Scrivens • June Paul • Heather Armitage | |||||||||||||
| 2 | – | United States |  USA | 45.4 | 45.52 | ||||||||
| Mae Faggs • Margaret Matthews • Wilma Rudolph • Isabelle Daniels | |||||||||||||
| 3 | – | Soviet Union |  URS | 46.1 | 46.20 | ||||||||
| Vera Krepkina • Galina Rezchikova • Mariya Itkina • Irina Bochkaryova | |||||||||||||
| 4 | – | Poland |  POL | 46.5 | 46.58 | ||||||||
| Maria Kusion • Barbara Lerczak • Genowefa Minicka • Halina Richter | |||||||||||||
Final (1 December 1956 — 16:50)
| Pos | Nr | Team | NOC | Time (H) | Time (A) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Australia | AUS | 44.5 | 44.65 | ||||||||
| Shirley Strickland de la Hunty • Norma Croker • Fleur Mellor • Betty Cuthbert | |||||||||||||
| 2 | – | Great Britain | GBR | 44.7 | 44.70 | ||||||||
| Anne Pashley • Jean Scrivens • June Paul • Heather Armitage | |||||||||||||
| 3 | – | United States | USA | 44.9 | 45.04 | ||||||||
| Mae Faggs • Margaret Matthews • Wilma Rudolph • Isabelle Daniels | |||||||||||||
| 4 | – | Soviet Union | URS | 45.6 | 45.81 | ||||||||
| Vera Krepkina • Galina Rezchikova • Mariya Itkina • Irina Bochkaryova | |||||||||||||
| 5 | – | Italy | ITA | 45.7 | 45.90 | ||||||||
| Letizia Bertoni • Milena Greppi • Giuseppina Leone • Maria Musso | |||||||||||||
| 6 | – | Unified Team of Germany | GER | 47.2 | 47.29 | ||||||||
| Maria Sander • Christa Stubnick • Gisela Köhler • Bärbel Mayer | |||||||||||||