# Swimming at the 1988 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metre individual medley

The women's 200 metre individual medley event at the 1988 Summer Olympics took place on 24 September at the Jamsil Indoor Swimming Pool in Seoul, South Korea.

## Records

Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
| World record | Ute Geweniger (GDR) | 2:11.73 | Magdeburg, East Germany | 4 July 1981 |
| Olympic record | Tracy Caulkins (USA) | 2:12.24 | Los Angeles, United States | 3 August 1984 |
The following records were established during the competition:
| Date | Round | Name | Nation | Time | Record |
| 24 September | Final A | Daniela Hunger | East Germany | 2:12.59 | OR |

## Results
### Heats

Rule: The eight fastest swimmers advance to final A (Q), while the next eight to final B (q).
| Rank | Heat | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 4 | Yelena Dendeberova | Soviet Union | 2:15.30 | Q |
| 2 | 3 | Noemi Lung | Romania | 2:15.55 | Q |
| 3 | 5 | Daniela Hunger | East Germany | 2:16.23 | Q |
| 4 | 4 | Marianne Muis | Netherlands | 2:16.60 | Q |
| 5 | 4 | Lin Li | China | 2:17.09 | Q |
| 6 | 3 | Jodie Clatworthy | Australia | 2:17.29 | Q |
| 7 | 5 | Anca Pătrășcoiu | Romania | 2:17.39 | Q |
| 8 | 5 | Whitney Hedgepeth | United States | 2:17.45 | Q |
| 9 | 3 | Birgit Lohberg-Schulz | West Germany | 2:17.46 | q |
| 10 | 5 | Jean Hill | Great Britain | 2:17.57 | q |
| 11 | 5 | Anette Philipsson | Sweden | 2:18.86 | q |
| 12 | 5 | Yuliya Bogacheva | Soviet Union | 2:19.07 | q |
| 13 | 3 | Anamarija Petričević | Yugoslavia | 2:19.38 | q |
| 14 | 3 | Mildred Muis | Netherlands | 2:19.46 | q |
| 15 | 4 | Allison Higson | Canada | 2:19.54 | q, WD |
| 16 | 5 | Roberta Felotti | Italy | 2:19.62 | q |
| 17 | 4 | Yoshie Nishioka | Japan | 2:20.20 | q |
| 18 | 5 | Svenja Schlicht | West Germany | 2:20.31 | |
| 19 | 2 | Donna Procter | Australia | 2:21.79 | |
| 20 | 2 | Annette Poulsen | Denmark | 2:21.83 | |
| 21 | 4 | Silvia Parera | Spain | 2:22.20 | |
| 22 | 2 | Hiroyo Harada | Japan | 2:22.59 | |
| 23 | 3 | Zara Long | Great Britain | 2:22.64 | |
| 24 | 2 | Ragnheiður Runólfsdóttir | Iceland | 2:22.65 | |
| 25 | 4 | Manuela Dalla Valle | Italy | 2:22.85 | |
| 26 | 2 | Michelle Smith | Ireland | 2:25.53 | |
| 27 | 2 | Marlene Bruten | Mexico | 2:26.89 | |
| 28 | 1 | Carwai Seto | Chinese Taipei | 2:27.72 | |
| 29 | 1 | Patricia Kohlmann | Mexico | 2:29.61 | |
| 30 | 2 | Valentina Aracil | Argentina | 2:31.53 | |
| 31 | 1 | Dipika Chanmugam | Sri Lanka | 2:33.58 | |
| 32 | 1 | Annemarie Munk | Hong Kong | 2:34.32 | |
| 33 | 1 | Kimberly Chen | Chinese Taipei | 2:35.11 | |
| 34 | 1 | Sharon Pickering | Fiji | 2:35.22 | |
| 35 | 1 | Angela Birch | Fiji | 2:39.20 | |
| | 3 | Mary Wayte | United States | DSQ | |
| | 3 | Tanya Dangalakova | Bulgaria | DNS | |

### Finals
#### Final B

| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time |
| 9 | 7 | Mildred Muis | Netherlands | 2:17.73 |
| 10 | 4 | Birgit Lohberg-Schulz | West Germany | 2:17.85 |
| 11 | 5 | Jean Hill | Great Britain | 2:19.20 |
| 12 | 3 | Anette Philipsson | Sweden | 2:19.35 |
| 13 | 1 | Roberta Felotti | Italy | 2:19.63 |
| 13 | 2 | Anamarija Petričević | Yugoslavia | 2:19.63 |
| 15 | 6 | Yuliya Bogacheva | Soviet Union | 2:19.91 |
| 16 | 8 | Yoshie Nishioka | Japan | 2:20.43 |

#### Final A

| Rank | Lane | Name | Nationality | Time | Notes |
| | 3 | Daniela Hunger | East Germany | 2:12.59 | OR |
| | 4 | Yelena Dendeberova | Soviet Union | 2:13.31 | |
| | 5 | Noemi Lung | Romania | 2:14.85 | |
| 4 | 7 | Jodie Clatworthy | Australia | 2:16.31 | |
| 5 | 6 | Marianne Muis | Netherlands | 2:16.40 | |
| 6 | 1 | Anca Pătrășcoiu | Romania | 2:16.70 | |
| 7 | 2 | Lin Li | China | 2:17.42 | |
| 8 | 8 | Whitney Hedgepeth | United States | 2:17.99 | |