For the swimming events, Laos had no competitors qualify for the Olympics. For the men's 50m freestyle, Pathana Inthavong received a universality spot. His entry time of 28.94 seconds was 6.06 seconds slower than the invitational time for the Olympics. Prior to the Games, Inthavong had swum at the 2011 World Aquatics Championships as a requirement to compete as a non-qualified Olympic athlete. On 2 August, Inthavong was second with a time of 28.17 seconds during the first heat of the 50 m freestyle event. As Inthavong did not have one of the top 16 times during the heats, he did not qualify for the semifinals. Overall, Inthavong finished 56th out of 58 competitors.