| Date | 21 October 1968 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Alberca Olímpica Francisco Márquez, Ciudad de México |
| Participants | 68 from 16 countries |
Let’s see – the United States would swim Mark Spitz on the third leg, the man who would soon become known as the greatest swimmer ever (at least until Michael Phelps), and then would anchor with Don Schollander, possibly the greatest ever 200 metre freestyler, based on multiple world record performances. That didn’t seem to give anyone else too much chance. In the heats the USA put out their junior varsity and still qualified first for the final. Frank Wiegand of East Germany actually led the first leg over John Nelson of the USA, 1:58.4 to 1:58.6, but on the second leg Steve Rerych put the Americans ahead and gave the lead to Spitz. But Spitz was tired from the effects of the altitude in Mexico City and swam a lackluster 2:00.5, almost being caught by Australia’s Bob Windle. The anchor leg matched Schollander against Mike Wenden, who had already won the 100 freestyle in Mexico City, and would add to that the 200 free in three days. Wenden gained a small amount on Schollander but not nearly enough as the USA won gold in a much closer race than was expected, with Australia second and the Soviet Union well back in third. The United States’ world and Olympic record of 7:52.1 survived this race, likely due to the effects of altitude.
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | R1 | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | United States |  USA | 8:05.1 (1 h2) | 7:52.3 (1) | Gold | ||
| 15360 | John Nelson | – | – | |||||
| 15362 | Steve Rerych | – | – | |||||
| 15367 | Mark Spitz | – | – | |||||
| 15366 | Don Schollander | – | – | |||||
| 15354 | William Johnson | – | – | |||||
| 15353 | David Johnson | – | – | |||||
| – | Andy Strenk | – | – | |||||
| 15370 | Mike Wall | – | – | |||||
| 2 | – | Australia |  AUS | 8:04.8 (1 h1) | 7:53.7 (2) | Silver | ||
| 13050 | Greg Rogers | – | – | |||||
| 13053 | Graham White | – | – | |||||
| 13054 | Bob Windle | – | – | |||||
| 13052 | Mike Wenden | – | – | |||||
| 3 | – | Soviet Union |  URS | 8:07.6 (1 h3) | 8:01.6 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 21031 | Vladimir Bure | – | – | |||||
| 21209 | Semyon Belits-Geyman | – | – | |||||
| 21028 | Georgijs Kuļikovs | – | – | |||||
| 21027 | Leonid Ilyichov | – | – | |||||
| 4 | – | Canada |  CAN | 8:10.5 (2 h1) | 8:03.2 (4) | |||
| 13937 | George Smith | – | – | |||||
| 13935 | Ron Jacks | – | – | |||||
| – | Sandy Gilchrist | – | – | |||||
| 13938 | Ralph Hutton | – | – | |||||
| 5 | – | France |  FRA | 8:06.3 (2 h2) | 8:03.7 (5) | |||
| 16242 | Michel Rousseau | – | – | |||||
| 16237 | Gérard Letast | – | – | |||||
| 16239 | Francis Luyce | – | – | |||||
| 16241 | Alain Mosconi | – | – | |||||
| 6 | – | West Germany |  FRG | 8:07.1 (3 h2) | 8:04.3 (6) | |||
| 12238 | Hans Faßnacht | – | – | |||||
| 12251 | Olaf, Baron von Schilling | – | – | |||||
| 12246 | Folkert Meeuw | – | – | |||||
| 12245 | Wolfgang Kremer | – | – | |||||
| 7 | – | East Germany |  GDR | 8:11.2 (2 h3) | 8:06.0 (7) | |||
| 23079 | Frank Wiegand | – | – | |||||
| 23046 | Horst-Günter Gregor | – | – | |||||
| 23064 | Alfred Müller | – | – | |||||
| 23052 | Jochen Herbst | – | – | |||||
| 8 | – | Sweden |  SWE | 8:10.9 (3 h1) | 8:12.1 (8) | |||
| 20408 | Hans Ljungberg | – | – | |||||
| 20404 | Olle Ferm | – | – | |||||
| 20407 | Gunnar Larsson | – | – | |||||
| 20401 | Lester Eriksson | – | – | |||||
| 9 | – | Japan |  JPN | 8:14.1 (3 h3) | – | |||
| – | Kunihiro Iwasaki | – | – | |||||
| 18144 | Teruhiko Kitani | – | – | |||||
| 18147 | Noboru Waseda | – | – | |||||
| 18145 | Satoru Nakano | – | – | |||||
| 10 | – | Great Britain |  GBR | 8:16.3 (4 h1) | – | |||
| 16682 | John Thurley | – | – | |||||
| 16686 | Raymond Terrell | – | – | |||||
| – | Bobby McGregor | – | – | |||||
| 16681 | Tony Jarvis | – | – | |||||
| 11 | – | Netherlands |  NED | 8:17.0 (4 h2) | – | |||
| 17080 | Dick Langerhorst | – | – | |||||
| – | Johan Schans | – | – | |||||
| 17109 | Aad Oudt | – | – | |||||
| 17108 | Elt Drenth | – | – | |||||
| 12 | – | Spain |  ESP | 8:23.6 (4 h3) | – | |||
| 15079 | Juan Fortuny | – | – | |||||
| 15082 | Santiago Esteva | – | – | |||||
| 15078 | José Antonio Chicoy | – | – | |||||
| 15087 | Juan Martínez | – | – | |||||
| 13 | – | Colombia |  COL | 8:26.7 (5 h1) | – | |||
| 13968 | Tomás Becerra | – | – | |||||
| 13970 | Federico Sicard | – | – | |||||
| 13969 | Ricardo González | – | – | |||||
| 13967 | Julio Arango | – | – | |||||
| 14 | – | Puerto Rico |  PUR | 8:40.2 (6 h1) | – | |||
| 19844 | José Ferraioli | – | – | |||||
| 19845 | Michael Goodner | – | – | |||||
| – | Gary Goodner | – | – | |||||
| 19850 | Jorge González | – | – | |||||
| 15 | – | Philippines |  PHI | 8:41.0 (5 h2) | – | |||
| – | Roosevelt Abdulgafur | – | – | |||||
| 15865 | Tony Asamli | – | – | |||||
| 15887 | Leroy Goff | – | – | |||||
| 15888 | Luis Ayesa | – | – | |||||
| – | Mexico |  MEX | – (DQ h3) | – | ||||
| 18761 | Juan Alanís | – | – | |||||
| 18760 | Jorge Urreta | – | – | |||||
| 18757 | Rafaél Cal | – | – | |||||
| 18759 | Eduardo Alanís | – | – |
| Date | 21 October 1968 — 10:00 |
|---|---|
| Format | Fastest eight advanced to the final. |
| Pos | Lane | Team | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Australia | AUS | 8:04.8 | ||
| 2 | – | United States | USA | 8:05.1 | ||
| 3 | – | France | FRA | 8:06.3 | ||
| 4 | – | West Germany | FRG | 8:07.1 | ||
| 5 | – | Soviet Union | URS | 8:07.6 | ||
| 6 | – | Canada | CAN | 8:10.5 | ||
| 7 | – | Sweden | SWE | 8:10.9 | ||
| 8 | – | East Germany | GDR | 8:11.2 | ||
| 9 | – | Japan | JPN | 8:14.1 | ||
| 10 | – | Great Britain | GBR | 8:16.3 | ||
| 11 | – | Netherlands | NED | 8:17.0 | ||
| 12 | – | Spain | ESP | 8:23.6 | ||
| 13 | – | Colombia | COL | 8:26.7 | ||
| 14 | – | Puerto Rico | PUR | 8:40.2 | ||
| 15 | – | Philippines | PHI | 8:41.0 | ||
| – | Mexico | MEX | – |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Australia | AUS | 8:04.8 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Greg Rogers | – | 2:00.7 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Graham White | – | 2:01.2 (1) | 4:01.9 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Bob Windle | – | 2:03.5 (3) | 6:05.4 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Mike Wenden | – | 1:59.4 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | – | Canada | CAN | 8:10.5 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | George Smith | – | 2:03.6 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Ron Jacks | – | 2:04.5 (2) | 4:08.1 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Sandy Gilchrist | – | 2:01.6 (1) | 6:09.7 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Ralph Hutton | – | 2:00.8 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | – | Sweden | SWE | 8:10.9 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Hans Ljungberg | – | 2:02.4 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Olle Ferm | – | 2:04.9 (4) | 4:07.3 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Gunnar Larsson | – | 2:02.2 (2) | 6:09.5 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Lester Eriksson | – | 2:01.4 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | – | Great Britain | GBR | 8:16.3 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | John Thurley | – | 2:03.3 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Raymond Terrell | – | 2:04.6 (3) | 4:07.9 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Bobby McGregor | – | 2:03.6 (4) | 6:11.5 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Tony Jarvis | – | 2:04.8 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | – | Colombia | COL | 8:26.7 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Tomás Becerra | – | 2:07.0 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Federico Sicard | – | 2:10.1 (5) | 4:17.1 (5) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Ricardo González | – | 2:07.9 (6) | 6:25.0 (5) | |||
| Anchor | – | Julio Arango | – | 2:01.7 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | – | Puerto Rico | PUR | 8:40.2 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | José Ferraioli | – | 2:08.2 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Michael Goodner | – | 2:12.3 (6) | 4:20.5 (6) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Gary Goodner | – | 2:07.8 (5) | 6:28.3 (6) | |||
| Anchor | – | Jorge González | – | 2:11.9 (6) | – (–) |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | United States | USA | 8:05.1 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | William Johnson | – | 2:00.2 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | David Johnson | – | 2:02.9 (=2) | 4:03.1 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Andy Strenk | – | 2:01.4 (1) | 6:04.5 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Mike Wall | – | 2:00.6 (=2) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | – | France | FRA | 8:06.3 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Michel Rousseau | – | 2:01.0 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Gérard Letast | – | 2:02.9 (=2) | 4:03.9 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Francis Luyce | – | 2:03.4 (2) | 6:07.3 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Alain Mosconi | – | 1:59.0 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | – | West Germany | FRG | 8:07.1 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Hans Faßnacht | – | 2:00.9 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Wolfgang Kremer | – | 2:01.5 (1) | 4:02.4 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Folkert Meeuw | – | 2:04.1 (3) | 6:06.5 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Olaf, Baron von Schilling | – | 2:00.6 (=2) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | – | Netherlands | NED | 8:17.0 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Dick Langerhorst | – | 2:02.8 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Johan Schans | – | 2:04.2 (4) | 4:07.0 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Aad Oudt | – | 2:05.0 (4) | 6:12.0 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Elt Drenth | – | 2:05.0 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | – | Philippines | PHI | 8:41.0 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Roosevelt Abdulgafur | – | 2:04.1 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Tony Asamli | – | 2:05.0 (5) | 4:09.1 (5) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Leroy Goff | – | 2:19.1 (5) | 6:28.2 (5) | |||
| Anchor | – | Luis Ayesa | – | 2:12.8 (5) | – (–) |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Soviet Union | URS | 8:07.6 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Vladimir Bure | – | 2:02.8 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Semyon Belits-Geyman | – | 2:02.2 (1) | 4:05.0 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Georgijs Kuļikovs | – | 2:01.7 (1) | 6:06.7 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Leonid Ilyichov | – | 2:00.9 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | – | East Germany | GDR | 8:11.2 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Frank Wiegand | – | 2:02.4 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Horst-Günter Gregor | – | 2:02.7 (2) | 4:05.1 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Alfred Müller | – | 2:03.0 (2) | 6:08.1 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Jochen Herbst | – | 2:03.1 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | – | Japan | JPN | 8:14.1 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Kunihiro Iwasaki | – | 2:02.2 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Teruhiko Kitani | – | 2:03.4 (3) | 4:05.6 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Noboru Waseda | – | 2:04.2 (3) | 6:09.8 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Satoru Nakano | – | 2:04.3 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | – | Spain | ESP | 8:23.6 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Juan Fortuny | – | 2:06.3 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Santiago Esteva | – | 2:05.3 (4) | 4:11.6 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | José Antonio Chicoy | – | 2:06.1 (5) | 6:17.7 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Juan Martínez | – | 2:05.9 (5) | – (–) | |||
| – | Mexico | MEX | – | – (–) | – (–) | |||
| Lead-off | – | Juan Alanís | – | [2:05.7] ([4]) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Jorge Urreta | – | [2:08.1] ([5]) | [4:13.8] ([−]) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Rafaél Cal | – | [2:05.1] ([4]) | [6:18.9] ([−]) | |||
| Anchor | – | Eduardo Alanís | – | [2:05.7] ([4]) | – (–) |
| Date | 21 October 1968 — 17:00 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | United States | USA | 7:52.3 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | John Nelson | – | 1:58.6 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Steve Rerych | – | 1:58.6 (1) | 3:57.2 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Mark Spitz | – | 2:00.5 (=2) | 5:57.7 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Don Schollander | – | 1:54.6 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | – | Australia | AUS | 7:53.7 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Greg Rogers | – | 1:59.8 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Graham White | – | 1:59.9 (2) | 3:59.7 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Bob Windle | – | 1:59.7 (1) | 5:59.4 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Mike Wenden | – | 1:54.3 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | – | Soviet Union | URS | 8:01.6 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Vladimir Bure | – | 2:02.3 (8) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Semyon Belits-Geyman | – | 2:01.2 (3) | 4:03.5 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Georgijs Kuļikovs | – | 2:00.5 (=2) | 6:04.0 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Leonid Ilyichov | – | 1:57.6 (=3) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | – | Canada | CAN | 8:03.2 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | George Smith | – | 2:01.6 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Ron Jacks | – | 2:02.5 (6) | 4:04.1 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Sandy Gilchrist | – | 2:01.5 (5) | 6:05.6 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Ralph Hutton | – | 1:57.6 (=3) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | – | France | FRA | 8:03.7 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Michel Rousseau | – | 1:59.5 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Gérard Letast | – | 2:02.8 (8) | 4:02.3 (5) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Francis Luyce | – | 2:03.6 (7) | 6:05.9 (5) | |||
| Anchor | – | Alain Mosconi | – | 1:57.8 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | – | West Germany | FRG | 8:04.3 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Hans Faßnacht | – | 2:00.5 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Olaf, Baron von Schilling | – | 2:01.3 (4) | 4:01.8 (6) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Folkert Meeuw | – | 2:01.9 (6) | 6:03.7 (6) | |||
| Anchor | – | Wolfgang Kremer | – | 2:00.6 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | – | East Germany | GDR | 8:06.0 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Frank Wiegand | – | 1:58.4 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Horst-Günter Gregor | – | 2:02.6 (7) | 4:01.0 (7) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Alfred Müller | – | 2:01.3 (4) | 6:02.3 (7) | |||
| Anchor | – | Jochen Herbst | – | 2:03.7 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 8 | – | Sweden | SWE | 8:12.1 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Hans Ljungberg | – | 2:01.9 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Olle Ferm | – | 2:01.4 (5) | 4:03.3 (8) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Gunnar Larsson | – | 2:04.7 (8) | 6:08.0 (8) | |||
| Anchor | – | Lester Eriksson | – | 2:04.1 (8) | – (–) |
