| Date | 22 September 1988 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Su-yeong-jang, Ol-lim-pik Gong-won, Seoul |
| Participants | 69 from 15 countries |
The United States had easily won this at the 1987 Pan Pacs over China, but that was the B race since the GDR (East German) swimmers were not there. East Germany was not the defending Olympic champion, only because they joined the 1984 boycott, but they were the world record holders, had won the 1986 World Championships by a huge margin over the USA, and had won the last six European Championships. Kristin Otto opened for the GDR with a 55.11, leading American Mary Wayte by 0.77 seconds. Katrin Meißner then moved ahead by 1.72 seconds at the 200 metre mark and the race was over but the rout was on. On the third leg it was more of same for East Germany, but although well back, the Netherlands closed on the United States, as Conny van Bentum brought the margin for silver to only 8/100ths at the anchor exchange. On the final leg, Karin Brienesse swam the eighth fastest 100 relay split ever, 55.04, to bring the Netherlands home for the silver medal, with the United States trailing for third as China placed fourth. Van Bentum commented, “We thought we would be battling for third with China. We were really, really excited that we got second.” The East Germans missed their world record by 6/100ths.
| Date | 22 September 1988 — 9:00 |
|---|---|
| Format | Fastest 8 advanced to the final round. |
| Pos | Lane | Team | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | East Germany |  GDR | 3:43.13 | ||
| 2 | 6 | Netherlands |  NED | 3:44.12 | ||
| 3 | 4 | United States |  USA | 3:45.10 | ||
| 4 | 3 | Soviet Union |  URS | 3:46.28 | ||
| 5 | 5 | People's Republic of China |  CHN | 3:46.36 | ||
| 6 | 5 | West Germany |  FRG | 3:48.03 | ||
| 7 | 2 | Denmark |  DEN | 3:48.83 | ||
| 8 | 3 | Canada |  CAN | 3:49.20 | ||
| 9 | 6 | Sweden |  SWE | 3:50.50 | ||
| 10 | 2 | Great Britain |  GBR | 3:50.84 | ||
| 11 | 7 | Brazil |  BRA | 3:56.29 | ||
| 12 | 7 | Costa Rica |  CRC | 3:59.67 | ||
| 13 | 8 | Republic of Korea |  KOR | 4:03.18 | ||
| 14 | 1 | Hong Kong |  HKG | 4:08.58 | ||
| 15 | 1 | Chinese Taipei |  TPE | 4:09.84 |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | East Germany | GDR | 3:43.13 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Katrin Meißner | – | 55.30 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Sabina Schulze | – | 56.32 (1) | 1:51.62 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Heike Friedrich | – | 55.68 (1) | 2:47.30 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Daniela Hunger | – | 55.83 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 3 | Soviet Union | URS | 3:46.28 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Inna Abramova | – | 57.56 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Svetlana Isakova | – | 56.55 (2) | 1:54.11 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Yelena Dendeberova | – | 56.02 (2) | 2:50.13 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Svetlana Kopchikova | – | 56.15 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 5 | West Germany | FRG | 3:48.03 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Karin Seick | – | 57.54 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Christiane Pielke | – | 56.94 (3) | 1:54.48 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Katja Ziliox | – | 57.75 (4) | 2:52.23 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Marion Aizpors | – | 55.80 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 6 | Sweden | SWE | 3:50.50 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Agneta Eriksson | – | 58.31 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Karin Furuhed | – | 57.31 (4) | 1:55.62 (5) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Suzanne Nilsson | – | 57.59 (3) | 2:53.21 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Eva Nyberg | – | 57.29 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 2 | Great Britain | GBR | 3:50.84 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Annabelle Cripps | – | 57.87 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | June Croft | – | 57.70 (5) | 1:55.57 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Linda Donnelly | – | 58.01 (5) | 2:53.58 (5) | |||
| Anchor | – | Joanna Coull | – | 57.26 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 7 | Costa Rica | CRC | 3:59.67 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Natasha Aguilar | – | 1:01.45 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Marcela Cuesta | – | 1:00.07 (6) | 2:01.52 (6) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Carolina Mauri | – | 1:00.25 (6) | 3:01.77 (6) | |||
| Anchor | – | Sylvia Poll | – | 57.90 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 1 | Chinese Taipei | TPE | 4:09.84 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Wang Chi | – | 1:02.17 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Sabrina Lum | – | 1:03.31 (7) | 2:05.48 (7) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Seto Car-Wai | – | 1:01.82 (7) | 3:07.30 (7) | |||
| Anchor | – | Chang Hui-Chien | – | 1:02.54 (7) | – (–) |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Netherlands | NED | 3:44.12 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Conny van Bentum | – | 56.34 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Marianne Muis | – | 55.96 (1) | 1:52.30 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Mildred Muis | – | 55.85 (1) | 2:48.15 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Diane van der Plaats | – | 55.97 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 4 | United States | USA | 3:45.10 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Laura Walker | – | 57.46 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Paige Zemina | – | 56.51 (2) | 1:53.97 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Jill Sterkel | – | 56.07 (3) | 2:50.04 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Mary Wayte | – | 55.06 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 5 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 3:46.36 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Xia Fujie | – | 57.37 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Lou Yaping | – | 57.23 (4) | 1:54.60 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Yang Wenyi | – | 55.86 (2) | 2:50.46 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Zhuang Yong | – | 55.90 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 2 | Denmark | DEN | 3:48.83 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Mette Jacobsen | – | 57.10 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Gitta Jensen | – | 56.85 (3) | 1:53.95 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Pia Sørensen | – | 56.93 (4) | 2:50.88 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Annette Moldrup Jørgensen | – | 57.95 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 3 | Canada | CAN | 3:49.20 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Kathy Bald | – | 57.29 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Kristin Topham | – | 58.08 (5) | 1:55.37 (5) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Allison Higson | – | 57.09 (5) | 2:52.46 (5) | |||
| Anchor | – | Jane Kerr | – | 56.74 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 7 | Brazil | BRA | 3:56.29 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Adriana Pereira | – | 58.59 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Mônica Rezende | – | 59.37 (6) | 1:57.96 (6) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Patrícia Amorim | – | 59.92 (6) | 2:57.88 (6) | |||
| Anchor | – | Isabele Vieira | – | 58.41 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 8 | Republic of Korea | KOR | 4:03.18 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Kim Eun-Jeong | – | 1:01.33 (8) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Han Yeong-Hui | – | 1:00.37 (7) | 2:01.70 (7) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Park Ju-Ri | – | 1:01.42 (7) | 3:03.12 (7) | |||
| Anchor | – | Lee Hong-Mi | – | 1:00.06 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 8 | 1 | Hong Kong | HKG | 4:08.58 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Celeste Hung | – | 1:00.80 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Fenella Ng | – | 1:01.15 (8) | 2:01.95 (8) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Tsang Wing Sze | – | 1:03.67 (8) | 3:05.62 (8) | |||
| Anchor | – | Annemarie Munk | – | 1:02.96 (8) | – (–) |
| Date | 22 September 1988 — 20:00 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | East Germany | GDR | 3:40.63 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Kristin Otto | – | 55.11 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Katrin Meißner | – | 54.73 (1) | 1:49.84 (1) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Daniela Hunger | – | 55.69 (1) | 2:45.53 (1) | |||
| Anchor | – | Manuela Stellmach | – | 55.10 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 5 | Netherlands | NED | 3:43.39 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Marianne Muis | – | 56.26 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Mildred Muis | – | 56.36 (6) | 1:52.62 (3) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Conny van Bentum | – | 55.73 (2) | 2:48.35 (3) | |||
| Anchor | – | Karin Brienesse | – | 55.04 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 3 | United States | USA | 3:44.25 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Mary Wayte | – | 55.88 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Mitzi Kremer | – | 55.68 (3) | 1:51.56 (2) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Laura Walker | – | 56.71 (6) | 2:48.27 (2) | |||
| Anchor | – | Dara Torres | – | 55.98 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 2 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 3:44.69 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Xia Fujie | – | 57.78 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Yang Wenyi | – | 55.38 (2) | 1:53.16 (5) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Lou Yaping | – | 57.28 (8) | 2:50.44 (7) | |||
| Anchor | – | Zhuang Yong | – | 54.25 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 6 | Soviet Union | URS | 3:44.99 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Yelena Dendeberova | – | 56.49 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Svetlana Isakova | – | 56.20 (5) | 1:52.69 (4) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Nataliya Trefilova | – | 56.00 (3) | 2:48.69 (4) | |||
| Anchor | – | Svetlana Kopchikova | – | 56.30 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 8 | Canada | CAN | 3:46.75 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Kathy Bald | – | 57.01 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Patricia Noall | – | 56.75 (7) | 1:53.76 (7) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Andrea Nugent | – | 56.31 (4) | 2:50.07 (5) | |||
| Anchor | – | Jane Kerr | – | 56.68 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 7 | West Germany | FRG | 3:46.90 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Stephanie Ortwig | – | 57.91 (8) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Marion Aizpors | – | 55.71 (4) | 1:53.62 (6) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Christiane Pielke | – | 56.46 (5) | 2:50.08 (6) | |||
| Anchor | – | Karin Seick | – | 56.82 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 8 | 1 | Denmark | DEN | 3:49.25 | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Lead-off | – | Gitta Jensen | – | 56.93 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 2nd Leg | – | Pia Sørensen | – | 57.28 (8) | 1:54.21 (8) | |||
| 3rd Leg | – | Mette Jacobsen | – | 56.95 (7) | 2:51.16 (8) | |||
| Anchor | – | Annette Moldrup Jørgensen | – | 58.09 (8) | – (–) |
