Representing his adopted nation Germany, El-Masri competed in the men's 50 m freestyle, along with his compatriot Deibler, who finished ahead of him in the trials. He challenged seven other swimmers on the twelfth heat, including heavy favorites Amaury Leveaux of France and three-time Olympian Stefan Nystrand of Sweden. El-Masri finished behind U.S. swimmer Ben Wildman-Tobriner in fourth place by 0.21 of a second with a time of 21.96 seconds. El-Masri recorded a tenth fastest time in the preliminary heats to advance further into the semifinals. The following morning, El-Masri fell short in his bid for the final, as he finished the semifinal run with a third slowest time of 22.09 seconds.