| Date | 30 July 1992 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Piscinas Bernat Picornell, Barcelona |
| Participants | 78 from 17 countries |
The world record was still the 4:03.69 set by East Germany to win the 1984 Friendship Games in Moscow. But the drug-enhanced East German swimmers were no more, their swimming hegemony ended by the political dissolution of the two Germanies. Germany had not even won the 1991 Europeans, that going to the Netherlands. The United States was favored in Barcelona, having won the 1991 World Championship and Pan Pacifics, trailed at both races by Australia. The USA qualified only third fastest, behind the Unified Team and Germany, but they had used only their B team in the prelims. In the final Lea Loveless put the US well in front on the opening backstroke leg, splitting an American record 1:00.82, with Germany second, but 0.79 seconds behind. On the breaststroke leg, Russian Yelena Rudkovskaya finished in 1:07.44, the second fastest ever breaststroke split, which almost caught the USA’s Anita Nall, and moved the Unifieds into second. Crissy Ahmann-Leighton then swam fly for the US, putting the race away, as Germany and the Unified Team settled into second and third. That is how they would finish, Jenny Thompson anchoring the Americans on freestyle for the gold medal, splitting 54.47 for the third-fastest split of all-time. The USA won in 4:02.54, breaking the world record which had been held by an East German team since 1973.
| Pos | Number | Competitors | NOC | R1 | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | United States |  USA | 4:10.83 (1 h3) | 4:02.54 (1) | Gold | ||
| Backstroke | 621 | Lea Loveless | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 624 | Anita Nall | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 600 | Crissy Ahmann-Leighton | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 635 | Jenny Thompson | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | 637 | Janie Wagstaff | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 620 | Megan Kleine | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 628 | Summer Sanders | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 610 | Nicole Haislett | – | – | ||||
| 2 | – | Germany |  GER | 4:10.62 (2 h1) | 4:05.19 (2) | Silver | ||
| Backstroke | 272 | Dagmar Hase | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 268 | Jana Dörries | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 292 | Franziska van Almsick | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 277 | Daniela Hunger | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 267 | Daniela Brendel | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 291 | Bettina Ustrowski | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 281 | Simone Osygus | – | – | ||||
| 3 | – | Unified Team |  EUN | 4:10.37 (1 h1) | 4:06.44 (3) | Bronze | ||
| Backstroke | 175 | Nina Zhivanevskaya | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 189 | Alena Rudkouskaya | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 177 | Olga Kirichenko | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 183 | Nataliya Meshcheryakova | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 170 | Yelena Shubina | – | – | ||||
| 4 | – | People's Republic of China |  CHN | 4:12.55 (3 h3) | 4:06.78 (4) | |||
| Backstroke | 112 | Lin Li | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 113 | Lou Xia | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 116 | Qian Hong | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 110 | Le Jingyi | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | 109 | He Cihong | – | – | ||||
| 5 | – | Australia |  AUS | 4:12.54 (2 h2) | 4:07.01 (5) | |||
| Backstroke | 39 | Nicole Stevenson | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 34 | Sam Riley | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 30 | Susie O'Neill | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 13 | Lisa Curry-Kenny | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | 28 | Joanne Meehan | – | – | ||||
| 6 | – | Canada |  CAN | 4:11.67 (1 h2) | 4:09.26 (6) | |||
| Backstroke | 86 | Nikki Dryden | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 84 | Guylaine Cloutier | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 105 | Kristin Topham | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 98 | Andrea Nugent | – | – | ||||
| 7 | – | Japan |  JPN | 4:11.48 (2 h3) | 4:09.92 (7) | |||
| Backstroke | 393 | Yoko Koikawa | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 386 | Kyoko Iwasaki | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 387 | Yoko Kando | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 379 | Suzu Chiba | – | – | ||||
| 8 | – | Netherlands |  NED | 4:11.25 (3 h1) | 4:10.87 (8) | |||
| Backstroke | 445 | Ellen Elzerman | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 443 | Kira Bulten | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 444 | Inge de Bruijn | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 447 | Marianne Muis | – | – | ||||
| 9 | – | Italy |  ITA | 4:12.77 (4 h3) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 378 | Lorenza Vigarani | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 361 | Manuela Dalla Valle | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 376 | Ilaria Tocchini | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 374 | Ilaria Sciorelli | – | – | ||||
| 10 | – | Great Britain |  GBR | 4:16.51 (3 h2) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 242 | Joanne Deakins | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 238 | Suki Brownsdon | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 239 | Madeleine Campbell | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 257 | Karen Pickering | – | – | ||||
| 11 | – | Denmark |  DEN | 4:17.20 (4 h1) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 130 | Mette Jacobsen | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 137 | Britta Vestergaard | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 135 | Berit Puggaard | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 131 | Gitta Jensen | – | – | ||||
| 12 | – | Romania |  ROU | 4:17.91 (4 h2) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 517 | Claudia Stănescu | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 509 | Beatrice Coadă | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 518 | Diana Ureche | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 510 | Luminița Dobrescu | – | – | ||||
| 13 | – | Spain |  ESP | 4:19.27 (5 h1) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 145 | Núria Castelló | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 161 | Rocío Ruiz | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 155 | María Peláez | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 151 | Claudia Franco | – | – | ||||
| 14 | – | France |  FRA | 4:21.19 (5 h3) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 212 | Céline Bonnet | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 221 | Audrey Guérit | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 217 | Jacqueline Delord | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 211 | Julie Blaise | – | – | ||||
| 15 | – | Finland |  FIN | 4:23.07 (5 h2) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 203 | Anne Lackman | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 209 | Riikka Ukkola | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 205 | Marja Päivinen | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 206 | Minna Salmela | – | – | ||||
| 16 | – | South Africa |  RSA | 4:24.28 (6 h3) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 519 | Jill Brukman | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 522 | Penny Heyns | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 527 | Jeanine Steenkamp | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 525 | Marianne Kriel | – | – | ||||
| 17 | – | Mexico |  MEX | 4:26.73 (6 h1) | – | |||
| Backstroke | 426 | Heike Koerner | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | 427 | Ana Mendoza | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | 423 | Gabriela Gaja | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | 428 | Laura Sánchez | – | – |
| Date | 30 July 1992 — 13:00 |
|---|---|
| Format | Fastest 8 advanced to the final round. |
| Pos | Lane | Team | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Unified Team | EUN | 4:10.37 | ||
| 2 | 5 | Germany | GER | 4:10.62 | ||
| 3 | 4 | United States | USA | 4:10.83 | ||
| 4 | 3 | Netherlands | NED | 4:11.25 | ||
| 5 | 3 | Japan | JPN | 4:11.48 | ||
| 6 | 5 | Canada | CAN | 4:11.67 | ||
| 7 | 4 | Australia | AUS | 4:12.54 | ||
| 8 | 5 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 4:12.55 | ||
| 9 | 2 | Italy | ITA | 4:12.77 | ||
| 10 | 3 | Great Britain | GBR | 4:16.51 | ||
| 11 | 6 | Denmark | DEN | 4:17.20 | ||
| 12 | 2 | Romania | ROU | 4:17.91 | ||
| 13 | 2 | Spain | ESP | 4:19.27 | ||
| 14 | 6 | France | FRA | 4:21.19 | ||
| 15 | 7 | Finland | FIN | 4:23.07 | ||
| 16 | 7 | South Africa | RSA | 4:24.28 | ||
| 17 | 7 | Mexico | MEX | 4:26.73 |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Unified Team | EUN | 4:10.37 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nina Zhivanevskaya | – | 30.46 | 1:02.24 (1) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Alena Rudkouskaya | – | 33.31 | 1:10.04 (1) | 2:12.28 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Olga Kirichenko | – | 28.20 | 1:01.55 (2) | 3:13.83 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Yelena Shubina | – | 26.96 | 56.54 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 5 | Germany | GER | 4:10.62 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Dagmar Hase | – | 30.94 | 1:02.67 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Daniela Brendel | – | 32.83 | 1:10.27 (2) | 2:12.94 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Bettina Ustrowski | – | 28.19 | 1:01.93 (3) | 3:14.87 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Simone Osygus | – | 26.56 | 55.75 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 3 | Netherlands | NED | 4:11.25 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Ellen Elzerman | – | 31.13 | 1:04.19 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Kira Bulten | – | 33.25 | 1:10.84 (3) | 2:15.03 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Inge de Bruijn | – | 27.13 | 1:00.64 (1) | 3:15.67 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Marianne Muis | – | 26.50 | 55.58 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 6 | Denmark | DEN | 4:17.20 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Mette Jacobsen | – | 31.95 | 1:04.06 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Britta Vestergaard | – | 34.24 | 1:12.58 (4) | 2:16.64 (4) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Berit Puggaard | – | 29.90 | 1:03.89 (5) | 3:20.53 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Gitta Jensen | – | 27.45 | 56.67 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 2 | Spain | ESP | 4:19.27 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Núria Castelló | – | 31.56 | 1:04.87 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Rocío Ruiz | – | 34.08 | 1:12.86 (5) | 2:17.73 (5) | |||
| Butterfly | – | María Peláez | – | 29.84 | 1:03.54 (4) | 3:21.27 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Claudia Franco | – | 27.32 | 58.00 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 7 | Mexico | MEX | 4:26.73 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Heike Koerner | – | 32.62 | 1:06.77 (6) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Ana Mendoza | – | 35.30 | 1:16.42 (6) | 2:23.19 (6) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Gabriela Gaja | – | 29.57 | 1:04.57 (6) | 3:27.76 (6) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Laura Sánchez | – | 28.29 | 58.97 (6) | – (–) |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Canada | CAN | 4:11.67 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nikki Dryden | – | 31.33 | 1:03.96 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Guylaine Cloutier | – | 33.02 | 1:10.16 (1) | 2:14.12 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Kristin Topham | – | 27.96 | 1:01.06 (1) | 3:15.18 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Andrea Nugent | – | 26.88 | 56.49 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 4 | Australia | AUS | 4:12.54 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Joanne Meehan | – | 30.98 | 1:03.70 (1) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Sam Riley | – | 32.41 | 1:10.83 (2) | 2:14.53 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Susie O'Neill | – | 28.29 | 1:01.28 (2) | 3:15.81 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Lisa Curry-Kenny | – | 27.06 | 56.73 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 3 | Great Britain | GBR | 4:16.51 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Joanne Deakins | – | 31.83 | 1:04.51 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Suki Brownsdon | – | 34.03 | 1:13.52 (4) | 2:18.03 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Madeleine Campbell | – | 29.32 | 1:02.70 (4) | 3:20.73 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Karen Pickering | – | 26.75 | 55.78 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 2 | Romania | ROU | 4:17.91 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Claudia Stănescu | – | 31.41 | 1:04.90 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Beatrice Coadă | – | 34.34 | 1:13.35 (3) | 2:18.25 (4) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Diana Ureche | – | 28.98 | 1:02.51 (3) | 3:20.76 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Luminița Dobrescu | – | 27.57 | 57.15 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 7 | Finland | FIN | 4:23.07 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Anne Lackman | – | 32.35 | 1:06.56 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Riikka Ukkola | – | 35.24 | 1:15.58 (5) | 2:22.14 (5) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Marja Päivinen | – | 29.00 | 1:03.07 (5) | 3:25.21 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Minna Salmela | – | 27.70 | 57.86 (5) | – (–) |
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | United States | USA | 4:10.83 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Janie Wagstaff | – | 30.79 | 1:03.19 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Megan Kleine | – | 33.65 | 1:12.05 (4) | 2:15.24 (4) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Summer Sanders | – | 27.89 | 1:00.15 (1) | 3:15.39 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Nicole Haislett | – | 27.02 | 55.44 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 3 | Japan | JPN | 4:11.48 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Yoko Koikawa | – | 31.13 | 1:02.81 (1) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Kyoko Iwasaki | – | 34.17 | 1:11.11 (3) | 2:13.92 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Yoko Kando | – | 28.72 | 1:01.14 (3) | 3:15.06 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Suzu Chiba | – | 27.36 | 56.42 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 5 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 4:12.55 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | He Cihong | – | 31.41 | 1:04.48 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Lou Xia | – | 32.49 | 1:10.47 (2) | 2:14.95 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Qian Hong | – | 28.43 | 1:00.82 (2) | 3:15.77 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Le Jingyi | – | 27.47 | 56.78 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 2 | Italy | ITA | 4:12.77 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Lorenza Vigarani | – | 31.26 | 1:03.97 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Manuela Dalla Valle | – | 32.49 | 1:09.60 (1) | 2:13.57 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Ilaria Tocchini | – | 28.73 | 1:01.67 (4) | 3:15.24 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Ilaria Sciorelli | – | 27.40 | 57.53 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 6 | France | FRA | 4:21.19 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Céline Bonnet | – | 32.08 | 1:05.73 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Audrey Guérit | – | 34.35 | 1:12.90 (5) | 2:18.63 (5) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Jacqueline Delord | – | 30.13 | 1:05.10 (5) | 3:23.73 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Julie Blaise | – | 27.59 | 57.46 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 7 | South Africa | RSA | 4:24.28 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Jill Brukman | – | 31.97 | 1:05.78 (6) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Penny Heyns | – | 34.19 | 1:14.43 (6) | 2:20.21 (6) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Jeanine Steenkamp | – | 30.61 | 1:06.19 (6) | 3:26.40 (6) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Marianne Kriel | – | 27.56 | 57.88 (6) | – (–) |
| Date | 30 July 1992 — 20:00 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | United States | USA | 4:02.54 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Lea Loveless | – | 29.55 | 1:00.82 (1) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Anita Nall | – | 32.28 | 1:08.67 (2) | 2:09.49 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Crissy Ahmann-Leighton | – | 27.18 | 58.58 (1) | 3:08.07 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Jenny Thompson | – | 26.72 | 54.47 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 5 | Germany | GER | 4:05.19 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Dagmar Hase | – | 30.51 | 1:01.61 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Jana Dörries | – | 32.86 | 1:09.43 (3) | 2:11.04 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Franziska van Almsick | – | 27.40 | 59.08 (3) | 3:10.12 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Daniela Hunger | – | 26.44 | 55.07 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 4 | Unified Team | EUN | 4:06.44 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nina Zhivanevskaya | – | 30.47 | 1:02.54 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Alena Rudkouskaya | – | 31.55 | 1:07.44 (1) | 2:09.98 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Olga Kirichenko | – | 28.28 | 1:00.98 (8) | 3:10.96 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Nataliya Meshcheryakova | – | 25.87 | 55.48 (=5) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 8 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 4:06.78 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Lin Li | – | 31.09 | 1:02.90 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Lou Xia | – | 31.88 | 1:09.51 (4) | 2:12.41 (5) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Qian Hong | – | 27.94 | 58.97 (2) | 3:11.38 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Le Jingyi | – | 26.60 | 55.40 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 1 | Australia | AUS | 4:07.01 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nicole Stevenson | – | 30.68 | 1:02.09 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Sam Riley | – | 32.18 | 1:10.06 (6) | 2:12.15 (4) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Susie O'Neill | – | 27.47 | 59.38 (4) | 3:11.53 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Lisa Curry-Kenny | – | 26.15 | 55.48 (=5) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 7 | Canada | CAN | 4:09.26 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nikki Dryden | – | 31.29 | 1:03.51 (7) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Guylaine Cloutier | – | 32.64 | 1:09.55 (5) | 2:13.06 (6) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Kristin Topham | – | 27.65 | 1:00.38 (5) | 3:13.44 (6) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Andrea Nugent | – | 26.28 | 55.82 (8) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 2 | Japan | JPN | 4:09.92 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Yoko Koikawa | – | 31.35 | 1:03.12 (6) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Kyoko Iwasaki | – | 34.05 | 1:10.75 (7) | 2:13.87 (7) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Yoko Kando | – | 28.65 | 1:00.51 (7) | 3:14.38 (7) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Suzu Chiba | – | 26.59 | 55.54 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 8 | 6 | Netherlands | NED | 4:10.87 | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Ellen Elzerman | – | 31.21 | 1:03.81 (8) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Kira Bulten | – | 33.41 | 1:11.30 (8) | 2:15.11 (8) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Inge de Bruijn | – | 27.57 | 1:00.39 (6) | 3:15.50 (8) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Marianne Muis | – | 26.39 | 55.37 (3) | – (–) |
