# Athletics at the 1948 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metres

The women's 200 metres sprint event at the 1948 Olympic Games took place on August 5 and August 6. The final was won by Dutch athlete Fanny Blankers-Koen. It was the first time this event was included in the Summer Olympics.

## Records

Prior to the competition, the existing World record was as follows.
| World Record | Stanisława Walasiewicz (POL) | 23.6 | Warsaw, Poland | 4 August 1935 |
Since it was the first time this event took place, the following new Olympic record was set during this competition:
| Date | Event | Athlete | Time | Notes |
| 6 August | Final | Fanny Blankers-Koen (NED) | 24.4 | OR |

## Schedule

All times are British Summer Time (UTC+1)
| Date | Time | Round |
| Thursday, 5 August 1948 | 15:30 17:00 | Round 1 Semifinals |
| Friday, 6 August 1948 | 16:30 | Final |

## Results
### Round 1

Round 1 took place on 5 August. The first two runners from each heat advanced to the semifinals.
Heat 1
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) | Notes |
| 1 | Fanny Blankers-Koen | Netherlands | 25.7 | |
| 2 | Liliane Sprécher | France | 26.0 | |
| 3 | Mae Faggs | United States | 26.0 | |
| 4 | Melânia Luz | Brazil | 26.6 | EST |
| 5 | Phyllis Edness | Bermuda | 26.6 | |
Heat 2
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Cynthia Thompson | Jamaica | 25.6 |
| 2 | Sylvia Cheeseman | Great Britain | 25.7 |
| 3 | Diane Foster | Canada | 26.1 |
| 4 | Helena de Menezes | Brazil | 27.7 |
Heat 3
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Joyce King | Australia | 25.9 |
| 2 | Phyllis Lightbourne-Jones | Bermuda | 27.0 |
| 3 | Lucila Pini | Brazil | 27.6 |
| 4 | Maria-Therese Renard | Belgium | 28.5 |
| 5 | Olga Sicnerova | Czechoslovakia | 28.5 |
Heat 4
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Daphne Robb-Hasenjager | South Africa | 24.4 |
| 2 | Shirley Strickland | Australia | 25.1 |
| 3 | Nell Jackson | United States | 25.8 |
| 4 | Donna Gilmore | Canada | 25.8 |
| 5 | Alma Butia | Yugoslavia | 25.8 |
Heat 5
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Audrey Patterson | United States | 25.5 |
| 2 | Margaret Walker | Great Britain | 25.8 |
| 3 | Kathleen Russell | Jamaica | 26.3 |
| 4 | Ann-Britt Leyman | Sweden | 26.3 |
| 5 | Tilly Decker | Luxembourg | 26.3 |
| 6 | Betty Kretschmer | Chile | 26.3 |
Heat 6
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Betty McKinnon | Australia | 25.9 |
| 2 | Rosine Faugouin | France | 25.9 |
| 3 | Grietje de Jongh | Netherlands | 26.2 |
| 4 | Grete Pavlousek | Austria | 26.2 |
Heat 7
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Audrey Williamson | Great Britain | 25.4 |
| 2 | Neeltje Karelse | Netherlands | 26.0 |
| 3 | Millie Cheater | Canada | 26.4 |
| 4 | Annegret Weller-Schneider | Chile | 26.4 |

### Semifinals

The semifinals took place on 5 August. The top three runners from each heat advanced to the final.
Heat 1
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Fanny Blankers-Koen | Netherlands | 24.3 |
| 2 | Audrey Patterson | United States | 25.0 |
| 3 | Margaret Walker | Great Britain | 25.3 |
| 4 | Cynthia Thompson | Jamaica | 25.3 |
| 5 | Rosine Faugouin | France | 25.3 |
| 6 | Joyce King | Australia | 25.3 |
| 7 | Phyllis Lightbourne-Jones | Bermuda | 25.3 |
Heat 2
| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) |
| 1 | Shirley Strickland | Australia | 24.9 |
| 2 | Audrey Williamson | Great Britain | 24.9 |
| 3 | Daphne Robb-Hasenjager | South Africa | 25.1 |
| 4 | Sylvia Cheeseman | Great Britain | 25.1 |
| 5 | Neeltje Karelse | Netherlands | 25.1 |
| 6 | Liliane Sprécher | France | 25.1 |
| 7 | Betty McKinnon | Australia | 25.1 |

### Final

| Rank | Name | Nationality | Time (hand) | Notes |
| | Fanny Blankers-Koen | Netherlands | 24.4 | OR |
| | Audrey Williamson | Great Britain | 25.1 | |
| | Audrey Patterson | United States | 25.2 | |
| 4 | Shirley Strickland | Australia | 25.3 | Est |
| 5 | Margaret Walker | Great Britain | 25.6 | Est |
| 6 | Daphne Robb-Hasenjäger | South Africa | 25.7 | Est |
Key: Est = Time is an estimate, OR = Olympic record
Despite Strickland's 4th placing in the final, a photo finish of the race (that was not consulted then but discovered in 1975) showed that she had beaten Patterson into 3rd place, a discrepancy that has been recognised by many reputable Olympic historians.