# Swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics

The swimming competitions at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens took place from 14 to 21 August 2004 at the Athens Olympic Aquatic Centre in Marousi. It featured 32 events (16 male, 16 female), a total of 937 swimmers from 152 nations, and the program's changes instituted in the previous Games, including notably the three-phase format (heats, semifinals, and final) for all short-distance races (200 metres and under).
Swimmers from the United States continued to dominate the medal tally with a total of 28, earning twelve golds, nine silver, and seven bronze. Australia still maintained the second spot from Sydney in 2000, but produced a total of 15 more medals (seven golds, five silver, and three bronze) to its historical hardware in swimming. Meanwhile, Japan moved from behind to third overall in the medal board with eight medals after a sterling breaststroke double from Kosuke Kitajima. A total of eight world records and twenty-five Olympic records were set during the competition.

## Venue

Swimming events at the 2004 Summer Olympics were held at the Athens Olympic Aquatic Centre, officially known as the Olympic Aquatic Centre of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex (OCO) during the games. Originally built for the 1991 Mediterranean Games, it was refurbished to host swimming, diving, synchronised swimming, and water polo events; it was the first time in the history of the Olympics that all aquatics disciplines had been held at a single venue. Swimming events were held at the main outdoor pool of the complex, which held 10,893 spectators, and was interchangeably used for swimming and water polo events throughout the duration of the games. A plastic-coated tarpaulin roof covering the two outdoor pools of the complex, designed to protect spectators and swimmers from being exposed to the summer heat, was originally planned to be built as part of the renovations. However, due to cost overruns and delays in construction, planners decided to scrap the roof in March 2004, which was criticised by FINA, the governing body of water sports. The venue would ultimately be approved by FINA weeks before the opening of the games in August.

## Events

The following events were contested (all pool events were long course, and distances are in metres unless stated):
* Freestyle : 50, 100, 200, 400, 800 (women) and 1500 (men);
* Backstroke : 100 and 200;
* Breaststroke : 100 and 200;
* Butterfly : 100 and 200;
* Individual medley : 200 and 400;
* Relays: 4 × 100 free, 4 × 200 free, and 4 × 100 medley.

### Schedule

Men :
| Date → | Aug 14 | Aug 14 | Aug 15 | Aug 15 | Aug 16 | Aug 16 | Aug 17 | Aug 17 | Aug 18 | Aug 18 | Aug 19 | Aug 19 | Aug 20 | Aug 20 | Aug 21 | Aug 21 |
| Event ↓ | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E |
| 50 m freestyle | | | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | |
| 100 m freestyle | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | |
| 200 m freestyle | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | | | |
| 400 m freestyle | H | F | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 1500 m freestyle | | | | | | | | | | | | | H | | | F |
| 100 m backstroke | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | | | |
| 200 m backstroke | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | |
| 100 m breaststroke | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 200 m breaststroke | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | |
| 100 m butterfly | | | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | |
| 200 m butterfly | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | |
| 200 m individual medley | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | |
| 400 m individual medley | H | F | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 × 100 m freestyle relay | | | H | F | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 × 200 m freestyle relay | | | | | | | H | F | | | | | | | | |
| 4 × 100 m medley relay | | | | | | | | | | | | | H | | | F |
Women :
| Date → | Aug 14 | Aug 14 | Aug 15 | Aug 15 | Aug 16 | Aug 16 | Aug 17 | Aug 17 | Aug 18 | Aug 18 | Aug 19 | Aug 19 | Aug 20 | Aug 20 | Aug 21 | Aug 21 |
| Event ↓ | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E | M | E |
| 50 m freestyle | | | | | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F |
| 100 m freestyle | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | |
| 200 m freestyle | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | |
| 400 m freestyle | | | H | F | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 800 m freestyle | | | | | | | | | | | H | | | F | | |
| 100 m backstroke | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | | | |
| 200 m backstroke | | | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | |
| 100 m breaststroke | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | | | |
| 200 m breaststroke | | | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | |
| 100 m butterfly | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 200 m butterfly | | | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | |
| 200 m individual medley | | | | | H | ½ | | F | | | | | | | | |
| 400 m individual medley | H | F | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 × 100 m freestyle relay | H | F | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 × 200 m freestyle relay | | | | | | | | | H | F | | | | | | |
| 4 × 100 m medley relay | | | | | | | | | | | | | H | | | F |

## Participating nations

A total of 937 swimmers (544 men and 393 women) from 152 nations would compete in swimming events at these Olympic Games. Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Guyana, and Turkmenistan made their official debut in swimming. Meanwhile, Albania, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and Norway returned to the sport after long years of absence. Nations with swimmers at the Games are (team size in parentheses):
* Albania (2)
* Algeria (6)
* Andorra (2)
* Angola (1)
* Antigua and Barbuda (2)
* Argentina (10)
* Armenia (1)
* Aruba (2)
* Australia (41)
* Austria (6)
* Azerbaijan (2)
* Bahamas (4)
* Bahrain (2)
* Bangladesh (2)
* Barbados (4)
* Belarus (9)
* Benin (2)
* Bermuda (1)
* Bolivia (2)
* Bosnia and Herzegovina (1)
* Brazil (23)
* Bulgaria (6)
* Burkina Faso (1)
* Burundi (2)
* Cambodia (2)
* Cameroon (1)
* Canada (20)
* Cayman Islands (3)
* Chile (3)
* China (28)
* Colombia (3)
* Republic of the Congo (2)
* Costa Rica (1)
* Ivory Coast (2)
* Croatia (13)
* Cuba (2)
* Cyprus (5)
* Czech Republic (12)
* Denmark (6)
* Ecuador (1)
* Egypt (2)
* El Salvador (1)
* Estonia (6)
* Fiji (1)
* Finland (7)
* France (21)
* Germany (35)
* Georgia (1)
* Great Britain (33)
* Greece (28)
* Grenada (2)
* Guam (1)
* Guatemala (4)
* Guinea (1)
* Guyana (1)
* Honduras (2)
* Hong Kong (7)
* Hungary (25)
* Iceland (7)
* India (1)
* Indonesia (3)
* Iran (1)
* Iraq (1)
* Ireland (2)
* Israel (2)
* Italy (29)
* Jamaica (4)
* Japan (20)
* Jordan (2)
* Kazakhstan (11)
* Kenya (2)
* South Korea (19)
* Kyrgyzstan (6)
* Laos (2)
* Latvia (5)
* Lebanon (2)
* Libya (2)
* Lithuania (10)
* Luxembourg (2)
* Macedonia (4)
* Madagascar (2)
* Malawi (2)
* Malaysia (4)
* Maldives (2)
* Mali (2)
* Malta (2)
* Mauritius (2)
* Mexico (6)
* Federated States of Micronesia (2)
* Moldova (10)
* Monaco (1)
* Mongolia (1)
* Morocco (1)
* Mozambique (2)
* Nepal (2)
* Netherlands (16)
* New Zealand (13)
* Nicaragua (2)
* Niger (1)
* Nigeria (2)
* Norway (1)
* Pakistan (2)
* Palau (1)
* Palestine (1)
* Panama (2)
* Papua New Guinea (1)
* Paraguay (1)
* Peru (2)
* Philippines (5)
* Poland (7)
* Portugal (11)
* Puerto Rico (6)
* Qatar (1)
* Romania (7)
* Russia (30)
* Rwanda (2)
* Saint Lucia (1)
* Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (1)
* San Marino (2)
* Saudi Arabia (1)
* Senegal (2)
* Serbia and Montenegro (7)
* Seychelles (2)
* Singapore (5)
* Slovakia (2)
* Slovenia (11)
* South Africa (8)
* Spain (16)
* Sri Lanka (2)
* Suriname (2)
* Swaziland (1)
* Sweden (15)
* Switzerland (13)
* Syria (1)
* Chinese Taipei (13)
* Thailand (6)
* Trinidad and Tobago (3)
* Tunisia (2)
* Turkey (9)
* Turkmenistan (2)
* Uganda (1)
* Ukraine (27)
* United Arab Emirates (1)
* United States (43)
* Uruguay (4)
* Uzbekistan (15)
* Venezuela (4)
* Vietnam (1)
* Virgin Islands (2)
* Yemen (1)
* Zambia (2)
* Zimbabwe (2)

## Medal summary

| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | United States (USA) | 12 | 9 | 7 | 28 |
| 2 | Australia (AUS) | 7 | 5 | 3 | 15 |
| 3 | Japan (JPN) | 3 | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| 4 | Netherlands (NED) | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 5 | Ukraine (UKR) | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 6 | France (FRA) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 7 | Poland (POL) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | South Africa (RSA) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 8 | Zimbabwe (ZIM) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 10 | China (CHN) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 11 | Romania (ROM) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 12 | Austria (AUT) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 13 | Germany (GER) | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 14 | Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 14 | Italy (ITA) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 16 | Croatia (CRO) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | Russia (RUS) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | Great Britain (GBR) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 19 | Argentina (ARG) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 19 | Trinidad and Tobago (TRI) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (20 entries) | Totals (20 entries) | 32 | 32 | 33 | 97 |

## Results
### Men's events

| Games | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| 50 m freestyle details | Gary Hall, Jr. United States | 21.93 | Duje Draganja Croatia | 21.94 NR | Roland Schoeman South Africa | 22.02 |
| 100 m freestyle details | Pieter van den Hoogenband Netherlands | 48.17 | Roland Schoeman South Africa | 48.23 | Ian Thorpe Australia | 48.56 |
| 200 m freestyle details | Ian Thorpe Australia | 1:44.71 OR | Pieter van den Hoogenband Netherlands | 1:45.23 | Michael Phelps United States | 1:45.32 AM |
| 400 m freestyle details | Ian Thorpe Australia | 3:43.10 | Grant Hackett Australia | 3:43.36 | Klete Keller United States | 3:44.11 AM |
| 1500 m freestyle details | Grant Hackett Australia | 14:43.40 OR | Larsen Jensen United States | 14:45.29 AM | David Davies Great Britain | 14:45.95 ER |
| 100 m backstroke details | Aaron Peirsol United States | 54.06 | Markus Rogan Austria | 54.35 | Tomomi Morita Japan | 54.36 AS |
| 200 m backstroke details | Aaron Peirsol United States | 1:54.95 OR | Markus Rogan Austria | 1:57.35 | Răzvan Florea Romania | 1:57.56 NR |
| 100 m breaststroke details | Kosuke Kitajima Japan | 1:00.08 | Brendan Hansen United States | 1:00.25 | Hugues Duboscq France | 1:00.88 |
| 200 m breaststroke details | Kosuke Kitajima Japan | 2:09.44 OR | Dániel Gyurta Hungary | 2:10.80 | Brendan Hansen United States | 2:10.87 |
| 100 m butterfly details | Michael Phelps United States | 51.25 OR | Ian Crocker United States | 51.29 | Andriy Serdinov Ukraine | 51.36 ER |
| 200 m butterfly details | Michael Phelps United States | 1:54.04 OR | Takashi Yamamoto Japan | 1:54.56 AS | Stephen Parry Great Britain | 1:55.52 NR |
| 200 m individual medley details | Michael Phelps United States | 1:57.14 OR | Ryan Lochte United States | 1:58.78 | George Bovell Trinidad and Tobago | 1:58.80 NR |
| 400 m individual medley details | Michael Phelps United States | 4:08.26 WR | Erik Vendt United States | 4:11.81 | László Cseh Hungary | 4:12.15 |
| 4 × 100 m freestyle relay details | South Africa Roland Schoeman (48.17) AF Lyndon Ferns (48.13) Darian Townsend (48.96) Ryk Neethling (47.91) | 3:13.17 WR | Netherlands Johan Kenkhuis (49.81) Mitja Zastrow (49.25) Klaas-Erik Zwering (48.51) Pieter van den Hoogenband (46.79) Mark Veens* | 3:14.36 NR | United States Ian Crocker (50.05) Michael Phelps (48.74) Neil Walker 47.97) Jason Lezak (47.86) Nate Dusing* Gary Hall, Jr.* Gabe Woodward* | 3:14.62 |
| 4 × 200 m freestyle relay details | United States Michael Phelps (1:46.49) Ryan Lochte (1:47.52) Peter Vanderkaay (1:47.79) Klete Keller (1:45.53) Scott Goldblatt* Dan Ketchum* | 7:07.33 AM | Australia Grant Hackett (1:47.50) Michael Klim (1:47.62) Nicholas Sprenger (1:48.16) Ian Thorpe (1:44.18) Antony Matkovich* Todd Pearson* Craig Stevens* | 7:07.46 | Italy Emiliano Brembilla (1:48.16) Massimiliano Rosolino (1:46.24) Simone Cercato (1:49.85) Filippo Magnini (1:47.58) Federico Cappellazzo* Matteo Pelliciari* | 7:11.83 |
| 4 × 100 m medley relay details | United States Aaron Peirsol (53.45) WR Brendan Hansen (59.37) Ian Crocker (50.28) Jason Lezak (47.58) Lenny Krayzelburg* Mark Gangloff* Michael Phelps* Neil Walker* | 3:30.68 WR | Germany Steffen Driesen (54.26) Jens Kruppa (1:00.50) Thomas Rupprath (51.40) Lars Conrad (47.46) Helge Meeuw* | 3:33.62 ER | Japan Tomomi Morita (54.25) AS Kosuke Kitajima (59.35) Takashi Yamamoto (51.87) Yoshihiro Okumura (49.75) | 3:35.22 AS |
* Swimmers who participated in the heats only and received medals.

### Women's events

| Games | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| 50 m freestyle details | Inge de Bruijn Netherlands | 24.58 | Malia Metella France | 24.89 NR | Lisbeth Lenton Australia | 24.91 |
| 100 m freestyle details | Jodie Henry Australia | 53.84 | Inge de Bruijn Netherlands | 54.16 | Natalie Coughlin United States | 54.40 |
| 200 m freestyle details | Camelia Potec Romania | 1:58.03 | Federica Pellegrini Italy | 1:58.22 | Solenne Figuès France | 1:58.45 |
| 400 m freestyle details | Laure Manaudou France | 4:05.34 ER | Otylia Jędrzejczak Poland | 4:05.84 | Kaitlin Sandeno United States | 4:06.19 |
| 800 m freestyle details | Ai Shibata Japan | 8:24.54 | Laure Manaudou France | 8:24.96 | Diana Munz United States | 8:26.61 |
| 100 m backstroke details | Natalie Coughlin United States | 1:00.37 | Kirsty Coventry Zimbabwe | 1:00.50 | Laure Manaudou France | 1:00.88 |
| 200 m backstroke details | Kirsty Coventry Zimbabwe | 2:09.19 AF | Stanislava Komarova Russia | 2:09.72 | Antje Buschschulte Germany Reiko Nakamura Japan | 2:09.88 |
| 100 m breaststroke details | Luo Xuejuan China | 1:06.64 OR | Brooke Hanson Australia | 1:07.15 | Leisel Jones Australia | 1:07.16 |
| 200 m breaststroke details | Amanda Beard United States | 2:23.37 OR | Leisel Jones Australia | 2:23.60 | Anne Poleska Germany | 2:25.82 |
| 100 m butterfly details | Petria Thomas Australia | 57.72 | Otylia Jędrzejczak Poland | 57.84 | Inge de Bruijn Netherlands | 57.99 |
| 200 m butterfly details | Otylia Jędrzejczak Poland | 2:06.05 | Petria Thomas Australia | 2:06.36 | Yuko Nakanishi Japan | 2:08.04 |
| 200 m individual medley details | Yana Klochkova Ukraine | 2:11.14 | Amanda Beard United States | 2:11.70 AM | Kirsty Coventry Zimbabwe | 2:12.72 AF |
| 400 m individual medley details | Yana Klochkova Ukraine | 4:34.83 | Kaitlin Sandeno United States | 4:34.95 AM | Georgina Bardach Argentina | 4:37.51 SA |
| 4 × 100 m freestyle relay details | Australia Alice Mills Lisbeth Lenton Petria Thomas Jodie Henry Sarah Ryan* | 3:35.94 WR | United States Kara Lynn Joyce Natalie Coughlin Amanda Weir Jenny Thompson Lindsay Benko* Maritza Correia* Colleen Lanne* | 3:36.39 AM | Netherlands Chantal Groot Inge Dekker Marleen Veldhuis Inge de Bruijn Annabel Kosten* | 3:37.59 NR |
| 4 × 200 m freestyle relay details | United States Natalie Coughlin Carly Piper Dana Vollmer Kaitlin Sandeno Lindsay Benko* Rhi Jeffrey* Rachel Komisarz* | 7:53.42 WR | China Zhu Yingwen Xu Yanwei Yang Yu Pang Jiaying Li Ji* | 7:55.97 AS | Germany Franziska van Almsick Petra Dallmann Antje Buschschulte Hannah Stockbauer Janina Götz* Sara Harstick* | 7:57.37 |
| 4 × 100 m medley relay details | Australia Giaan Rooney (1:01.18) OC Leisel Jones (1:06.50) Petria Thomas (56.67) Jodie Henry (52.97) Brooke Hanson* Alice Mills* Jessicah Schipper* | 3:57.32 WR | United States Natalie Coughlin (59.68) OR Amanda Beard (1:06.32) Jenny Thompson (58.81) Kara Lynn Joyce (54.31) Haley Cope* Tara Kirk* Rachel Komisarz* Amanda Weir* | 3:59.12 | Germany Antje Buschschulte (1:00.72) Sarah Poewe (1:07.08) Franziska van Almsick (58.54) Daniela Götz (54.38) | 4:00.72 ER |
* Swimmers who participated in the heats only and received medals.

## Records

The following world and Olympic records were established during the competition:

### World records

| Date | Round | Event | Established for | Time | Name | Nation |
| 14 August | Final | Men's 400 metre individual medley | (same) | 4:08.26 | Michael Phelps | United States |
| 14 August | Final | Women's 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay | (same) | 3:35.94 | Alice Mills (54.75) Libby Lenton (53.57) Petria Thomas (54.67) Jodie Henry (52.95) | Australia |
| 15 August | Final | Men's 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay | (same) | 3:13.17 | Roland Schoeman (48.17) Lyndon Ferns (48.13) Darian Townsend (48.96) Ryk Neethling (47.91) | South Africa |
| 18 August | Semifinal 2 | Women's 100 metre freestyle | (same) | 53.52 | Jodie Henry | Australia |
| 18 August | Final | Women's 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay | (same) | 7:53.42 | Natalie Coughlin (1:57.74) Carly Piper (1:59.39) Dana Vollmer (1:58.12) Kaitlin Sandeno (1:58.17) | United States |
| 21 August | Final | Women's 4 × 100 metre medley relay | (same) | 3:57.32 | Giaan Rooney (1:01.18) Leisel Jones (1:06.70) Petria Thomas (56.67) Jodie Henry (52.97) | Australia |
| 21 August | Final | Men's 4 × 100 metre medley relay | Men's 100 metre backstroke | 53.45 | Aaron Peirsol | United States |
| 21 August | Final | Men's 4 × 100 metre medley relay | (same) | 3:30.68 | Aaron Peirsol (53.45) Brendan Hansen (59.37) Ian Crocker (50.28) Jason Lezak (47.58) | United States |

### Olympic records

| Date | Round | Event | Established for | Time | Name | Nation |
| 14 August | Heat 7 | Men's 100 metre breaststroke | (same) | 1:00.03 | Kosuke Kitajima | Japan |
| 14 August | Semifinal 1 | Men's 100 metre breaststroke | (same) | 1:00.01 | Brendan Hansen | United States |
| 15 August | Semifinal 2 | Women's 100 metre backstroke | (same) | 1:00.17 | Natalie Coughlin | United States |
| 15 August | Semifinal 1 | Women's 100 metre breaststroke | (same) | 1:06.78 | Leisel Jones | Australia |
| 16 August | Final | Men's 200 metre freestyle | (same) | 1:44.71 | Ian Thorpe | Australia |
| 16 August | Final | Women's 100 metre breaststroke | (same) | 1:06.64 | Luo Xuejuan | China |
| 17 August | Final | Men's 200 metre butterfly | (same) | 1:54.04 | Michael Phelps | United States |
| 18 August | Final | Men's 200 metre breaststroke | (same) | 2:09.44 | Kosuke Kitajima | Japan |
| 18 August | Semifinal 2 | Men's 200 metre backstroke | (same) | 1:55.14 | Aaron Peirsol | United States |
| 18 August | Semifinal 1 | Men's 200 metre individual medley | (same) | 1:58.52 | Michael Phelps | United States |
| 19 August | Final | Women's 200 metre breaststroke | (same) | 2:23.57 | Amanda Beard | United States |
| 19 August | Final | Men's 200 metre backstroke | (same) | 1:54.95 | Aaron Peirsol | United States |
| 19 August | Final | Men's 200 metre individual medley | (same) | 1:57.14 | Michael Phelps | United States |
| 19 August | Semifinal 1 | Men's 100 metre butterfly | (same) | 51.74 | Andriy Serdinov | Ukraine |
| 19 August | Semifinal 2 | Men's 100 metre butterfly | (same) | 51.61 | Michael Phelps | United States |
| 20 August | Final | Men's 100 metre butterfly | (same) | 51.25 | Michael Phelps | United States |
| 21 August | Final | Men's 1500 metre freestyle | (same) | 14:43.40 | Grant Hackett | Australia |
| 21 August | Final | Women's 4 × 100 metre medley relay | Women's 100 metre backstroke | 59.68 | Natalie Coughlin | United States |