| | Event type

100 metres Freestyle, Men

Date	24 – 25 July 1976
Status	Olympic
Location	Piscine olympique, Montréal, Québec
Participants	41 from 27 countries

American Jim Montgomery had broken the world record in this event in August 1975 in Kansas City, finishing in 50.59. However, he bettered that in the semi-finals in Montréal, with 50.39, and entered the final as a clear favorite. He went out fast in the finishing, hitting the wall in 24.14, 6/10ths ahead of teammate Jack Babashoff. But he did not slow, winning the gold medal in 49.99 for another world record and becoming the first man to swim 100 metres in under 50 seconds. Babashoff trailed behind in 50.81 for the silver, with West German Peter Nocke getting bronze.

One man who might have challenged Montgomery in Montréal was not there. That was Jonty Skinner of South Africa, who could not compete because his nation was banned by the IOC because of their apartheid policies. A few weeks after Montréal, Skinner lowered Montgomery’s world record to 49.44.

Pos	Number	Competitor	NOC	R1	SF	Final
1	427	Jim Montgomery	USA	52.13 (1 h6)	50.39 (1 h1)	49.99 (1)	Gold
2	405	Jack Babashoff	USA	51.53 (2 h3)	51.46 (1 h2)	50.81 (2)	Silver
3	172	Peter Nocke	FRG	51.59 (2 h5)	51.83 (2 h2)	51.31 (3)	Bronze
4	177	Klaus Steinbach	FRG	51.47 (1 h3)	51.62 (3 h1)	51.68 (4)
5	258	Marcello Guarducci	ITA	51.57 (1 h2)	51.35 (2 h1)	51.70 (5)
6	407	Joe Bottom	USA	51.47 (1 h5)	51.92 (3 h2)	51.79 (6)
7	371	Vladimir Bure	URS	51.81 (1 h4)	51.93 (4 h1)	52.03 (7)
8	384	Andrey Krylov	URS	52.02 (2 h4)	52.32 (4 h2)	52.15 (8)
9	118	Michel Rousseau	FRA	52.43 (2 h6)	52.36 (5 h2)	–
10	262	Roberto Pangaro	ITA	53.05 (3 h6)	52.68 (5 h1)	–
11	69	Steve Pickell	CAN	52.65 (2 h2)	52.89 (6 h1)	–
12	111	René Écuyer	FRA	53.20 (4 h2)	52.92 (7 h1)	–
13	63	Gary MacDonald	CAN	52.91 (3 h4)	52.96 (6 h2)	–
14	370	Andrey Bogdanov	URS	53.23 (1 h1)	53.05 (8 h1)	–
15	140	Martin Smith	GBR	53.17 (3 h2)	53.11 (7 h2)	–
16	361	Svante Rasmuson	SWE	53.20 (4 h4)	53.34 (8 h2)	–
17	123	Kevin Burns	GBR	53.23 (4 h6)	–	–
18	17	Glenn Patching	AUS	53.29 (5 h4)	–	–
19	73	Bruce Robertson	CAN	53.37 (3 h5)	–	–
20	–	Peter Coughlan	AUS	53.49 (4 h5)	–	–
21	442	Ramón Volcán	VEN	53.53 (5 h2)	–	–
22	309	Fritz Warncke	NOR	53.55 (5 h6)	–	–
23	358	Dan Larsson	SWE	53.81 (5 h5)	–	–
24	43	Stefan Georgiev	BUL	53.85 (2 h1)	–	–
25	–	Jorge Delgado	ECU	53.91 (3 h3)	–	–
26	150	Roger Pyttel	GDR	53.93 (3 h1)	–	–
27	18	Neil Rogers	AUS	53.96 (4 h3)	–	–
28	157	Dirk Braunleder	FRG	54.04 (4 h1)	–	–
29	100	Jorge Comas	ESP	54.05 (5 h1)	–	–
30	316	Gianni Versari	PAN	54.11 (6 h5)	–	–
31	184	Mark Crocker	HKG	54.14 (6 h1)	–	–
32	38	Paul Jouanneau	BRA	54.49 (5 h3)	–	–
33	83	Helmut Levy	COL	54.60 (6 h2)	–	–
34	268	Kozo Higuchi	JPN	54.67 (7 h1)	–	–
35	328	Fernando Canales	PUR	55.31 (6 h6)	–	–
36	243	Steven Newkirk	ISV	55.43 (7 h5)	–	–
37	325	José Gomes Pereira	POR	55.46 (7 h6)	–	–
38	225	Kris Sumono	INA	55.50 (7 h2)	–	–
39	319	Gerardo Rosario	PHI	56.00 (6 h4)	–	–
40	240	Sigurður Ólafsson	ISL	56.01 (8 h6)	–	–
41	302	Campari Knoepffler	NCA	58.48 (6 h3)	–	–
DNS	441	Gerardo Vera	VEN	– (DNS h3)	–	–
DNS	304	John Ebito	NGR	– (DNS h5)	–	–

Round One

Date	24 July 1976 — 11:00
Format	Fastest 16 advanced to the semi-finals.

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time
=1	5	Klaus Steinbach	FRG	51.47	Q
=1	4	Joe Bottom	USA	51.47	Q
3	4	Jack Babashoff	USA	51.53	Q
4	5	Marcello Guarducci	ITA	51.57	Q
5	5	Peter Nocke	FRG	51.59	Q
6	4	Vladimir Bure	URS	51.81	Q
7	5	Andrey Krylov	URS	52.02	Q
8	4	Jim Montgomery	USA	52.13	Q
9	5	Michel Rousseau	FRA	52.43	Q
10	4	Steve Pickell	CAN	52.65	Q
11	6	Gary MacDonald	CAN	52.91	Q
12	3	Roberto Pangaro	ITA	53.05	Q
13	6	Martin Smith	GBR	53.17	Q
=14	3	René Écuyer	FRA	53.20	Q
=14	2	Svante Rasmuson	SWE	53.20	Q
=16	5	Andrey Bogdanov	URS	53.23	q
=16	6	Kevin Burns	GBR	53.23	q
18	3	Glenn Patching	AUS	53.29
19	3	Bruce Robertson	CAN	53.37
20	6	Peter Coughlan	AUS	53.49
21	2	Ramón Volcán	VEN	53.53
22	2	Fritz Warncke	NOR	53.55
23	2	Dan Larsson	SWE	53.81
24	6	Stefan Georgiev	BUL	53.85
25	6	Jorge Delgado	ECU	53.91
26	4	Roger Pyttel	GDR	53.93
27	3	Neil Rogers	AUS	53.96
28	3	Dirk Braunleder	FRG	54.04
29	1	Jorge Comas	ESP	54.05
30	7	Gianni Versari	PAN	54.11
31	2	Mark Crocker	HKG	54.14
32	7	Paul Jouanneau	BRA	54.49
33	7	Helmut Levy	COL	54.60
34	7	Kozo Higuchi	JPN	54.67
35	1	Fernando Canales	PUR	55.31
36	1	Steven Newkirk	ISV	55.43
37	7	José Gomes Pereira	POR	55.46
38	1	Kris Sumono	INA	55.50
39	7	Gerardo Rosario	PHI	56.00
40	8	Sigurður Ólafsson	ISL	56.01
41	1	Campari Knoepffler	NCA	58.48
DNS	2	Gerardo Vera	VEN	–
DNS	8	John Ebito	NGR	–

Heat #1

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	5	Andrey Bogdanov	URS	53.23	25.93 (5)	27.30 (1)	q
2	6	Stefan Georgiev	BUL	53.85	25.69 (2)	28.16 (4)
3	4	Roger Pyttel	GDR	53.93	26.25 (6)	27.68 (2)
4	3	Dirk Braunleder	FRG	54.04	25.83 (3)	28.21 (5)
5	1	Jorge Comas	ESP	54.05	25.58 (1)	28.47 (7)
6	2	Mark Crocker	HKG	54.14	25.90 (4)	28.24 (6)
7	7	Kozo Higuchi	JPN	54.67	26.74 (7)	27.93 (3)

Heat #2

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	5	Marcello Guarducci	ITA	51.57	25.29 (1)	26.28 (1)	Q
2	4	Steve Pickell	CAN	52.65	25.83 (3)	26.82 (2)	Q
3	6	Martin Smith	GBR	53.17	25.80 (2)	27.37 (4)	Q
4	3	René Écuyer	FRA	53.20	25.87 (4)	27.33 (3)	Q
5	2	Ramón Volcán	VEN	53.53	25.99 (5)	27.54 (5)
6	7	Helmut Levy	COL	54.60	26.49 (6)	28.11 (6)
7	1	Kris Sumono	INA	55.50	26.62 (7)	28.88 (7)

Heat #3

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	5	Klaus Steinbach	FRG	51.47	25.22 (2)	26.25 (1)	Q
2	4	Jack Babashoff	USA	51.53	25.21 (1)	26.32 (2)	Q
3	6	Jorge Delgado	ECU	53.91	26.15 (5)	27.76 (3)
4	3	Neil Rogers	AUS	53.96	25.50 (3)	28.46 (5)
5	7	Paul Jouanneau	BRA	54.49	26.13 (4)	28.36 (4)
6	1	Campari Knoepffler	NCA	58.48	27.87 (6)	30.61 (6)
DNS	2	Gerardo Vera	VEN	–	– (–)	– (–)

Heat #4

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	4	Vladimir Bure	URS	51.81	25.03 (1)	26.78 (2)	Q
2	5	Andrey Krylov	URS	52.02	25.73 (=2)	26.29 (1)	Q
3	6	Gary MacDonald	CAN	52.91	25.77 (4)	27.14 (3)	Q
4	2	Svante Rasmuson	SWE	53.20	25.83 (5)	27.37 (4)	Q
5	3	Glenn Patching	AUS	53.29	25.73 (=2)	27.56 (5)
6	7	Gerardo Rosario	PHI	56.00	27.14 (6)	28.86 (6)

Heat #5

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	4	Joe Bottom	USA	51.47	24.79 (1)	26.68 (2)	Q
2	5	Peter Nocke	FRG	51.59	25.13 (2)	26.46 (1)	Q
3	3	Bruce Robertson	CAN	53.37	25.79 (5)	27.58 (3)
4	6	Peter Coughlan	AUS	53.49	25.62 (3)	27.87 (5)
5	2	Dan Larsson	SWE	53.81	25.66 (4)	28.15 (6)
6	7	Gianni Versari	PAN	54.11	26.39 (6)	27.72 (4)
7	1	Steven Newkirk	ISV	55.43	26.91 (7)	28.52 (7)
DNS	8	John Ebito	NGR	–	– (–)	– (–)

Heat #6

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	4	Jim Montgomery	USA	52.13	25.36 (2)	26.77 (1)	Q
2	5	Michel Rousseau	FRA	52.43	25.57 (3)	26.86 (2)	Q
3	3	Roberto Pangaro	ITA	53.05	25.20 (1)	27.85 (5)	Q
4	6	Kevin Burns	GBR	53.23	25.60 (4)	27.63 (4)	q
5	2	Fritz Warncke	NOR	53.55	25.98 (5)	27.57 (3)
6	1	Fernando Canales	PUR	55.31	26.74 (=6)	28.57 (6)
7	7	José Gomes Pereira	POR	55.46	26.74 (=6)	28.72 (7)
8	8	Sigurður Ólafsson	ISL	56.01	27.16 (8)	28.85 (8)

Swim-Off 16-17

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	4	Andrey Bogdanov	URS	52.82	25.77 (2)	27.05 (1)	Q
2	5	Kevin Burns	GBR	53.11	25.46 (1)	27.65 (2)

Semi-Finals

Date	24 July 1976 — 19:00
Format	Fastest eight advanced to the final.

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time
1	6	Jim Montgomery	USA	50.39	QWR
2	5	Marcello Guarducci	ITA	51.35	Q
3	5	Jack Babashoff	USA	51.46	Q
4	4	Klaus Steinbach	FRG	51.62	Q
5	3	Peter Nocke	FRG	51.83	Q
6	4	Joe Bottom	USA	51.92	Q
7	3	Vladimir Bure	URS	51.93	Q
8	6	Andrey Krylov	URS	52.32	Q
9	2	Michel Rousseau	FRA	52.36
10	7	Roberto Pangaro	ITA	52.68
11	2	Steve Pickell	CAN	52.89
12	1	René Écuyer	FRA	52.92
13	7	Gary MacDonald	CAN	52.96
14	8	Andrey Bogdanov	URS	53.05
15	1	Martin Smith	GBR	53.11
16	8	Svante Rasmuson	SWE	53.34

Heat #1

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	6	Jim Montgomery	USA	50.39	24.60 (1)	25.79 (1)	QWR
2	5	Marcello Guarducci	ITA	51.35	25.29 (4)	26.06 (2)	Q
3	4	Klaus Steinbach	FRG	51.62	25.09 (3)	26.53 (3)	Q
4	3	Vladimir Bure	URS	51.93	24.90 (2)	27.03 (5)	Q
5	7	Roberto Pangaro	ITA	52.68	25.86 (8)	26.82 (4)
6	2	Steve Pickell	CAN	52.89	25.57 (5)	27.32 (=7)
7	1	René Écuyer	FRA	52.92	25.77 (7)	27.15 (6)
8	8	Andrey Bogdanov	URS	53.05	25.73 (6)	27.32 (=7)

Heat #2

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	5	Jack Babashoff	USA	51.46	25.29 (2)	26.17 (1)	Q
2	3	Peter Nocke	FRG	51.83	25.41 (4)	26.42 (2)	Q
3	4	Joe Bottom	USA	51.92	25.34 (3)	26.58 (4)	Q
4	6	Andrey Krylov	URS	52.32	25.76 (7)	26.56 (3)	Q
5	2	Michel Rousseau	FRA	52.36	25.19 (1)	27.17 (5)
6	7	Gary MacDonald	CAN	52.96	25.74 (6)	27.22 (6)
7	1	Martin Smith	GBR	53.11	25.59 (5)	27.52 (8)
8	8	Svante Rasmuson	SWE	53.34	25.90 (8)	27.44 (7)

Final Round

Date	25 July 1976 — 20:15

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m
1	4	Jim Montgomery	USA	49.99	24.14 (1)	25.85 (1)	WR
2	3	Jack Babashoff	USA	50.81	24.73 (2)	26.08 (3)
3	2	Peter Nocke	FRG	51.31	25.01 (=4)	26.30 (4)
4	6	Klaus Steinbach	FRG	51.68	25.35 (6)	26.33 (5)
5	5	Marcello Guarducci	ITA	51.70	24.99 (3)	26.71 (7)
6	7	Joe Bottom	USA	51.79	25.76 (8)	26.03 (2)
7	1	Vladimir Bure	URS	52.03	25.01 (=4)	27.02 (8)
8	8	Andrey Krylov	URS	52.15	25.55 (7)	26.60 (6)