Women's 4 × 100 metre medley relay at the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad | ||||||||||
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Venue | Olympic Aquatic Centre | |||||||||
Dates | August 20, 2004 (heats) August 21, 2004 (final) | |||||||||
Competitors | 77 from 16 nations | |||||||||
Winning time | 3:57.32 WR | |||||||||
Medalists | ||||||||||
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Swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics | ||
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Freestyle | ||
50 m | men | women |
100 m | men | women |
200 m | men | women |
400 m | men | women |
800 m | women | |
1500 m | men | |
Backstroke | ||
100 m | men | women |
200 m | men | women |
Breaststroke | ||
100 m | men | women |
200 m | men | women |
Butterfly | ||
100 m | men | women |
200 m | men | women |
Individual medley | ||
200 m | men | women |
400 m | men | women |
Freestyle relay | ||
4 × 100 m | men | women |
4 × 200 m | men | women |
Medley relay | ||
4 × 100 m | men | women |
The women's 4 × 100 metre medley relay took place on 20–21 August at the Olympic Aquatic Centre of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece. [1]
The Australians reinforced their claim to become the strongest women's team in the world with a convincing triumph over their American rivals in the event. Giaan Rooney, Leisel Jones, Petria Thomas, and Jodie Henry broke almost a full second off the world record set by Team USA in 2000, stopping the clock at 3:57.32. At the start of the race, the U.S. team got off to a flying start in the backstroke, until the Australians reeled them in on the butterfly leg. Thomas blasted a remarkable split of 56.67, the fastest of all-time in Olympic history, to overhaul Jenny Thompson of the U.S. team, and eventually move the Aussies in front of the race. The anchor freestyle leg left Henry to go up against Kara Lynn Joyce, and the Australians looked unbeatable with Henry, touching the wall first in 52.97, the second-fastest split of all-time. [2] [3]
Meanwhile, the U.S. team of Thompson, Joyce, Natalie Coughlin, and Amanda Beard settled only for the silver in 3:59.12, almost two seconds behind the Aussies. The Germans maintained their pace to earn a bronze, and finished in a European record of 4:00.72. [2] [4]
Competing in her fourth Olympics for Team USA, Thompson became the most decorated American athlete in history with her twelfth career medal, including 10 from the relays. [4]
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
World record | United States (USA) Barbara Bedford (1:01.39) Megan Quann (1:06.29) Jenny Thompson (57.25) Dara Torres (53.37) | 3:58.30 | Sydney, Australia | 23 September 2000 |
Olympic record | United States (USA) Barbara Bedford (1:01.39) Megan Quann (1:06.29) Jenny Thompson (57.25) Dara Torres (53.37) | 3:58.30 | Sydney, Australia | 23 September 2000 |
The following new world and Olympic records were set during this competition.
Date | Event | Swimmers | Nationality | Time | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
August 21 | Final | Giaan Rooney (1:01.18) Leisel Jones (1:06.70) Petria Thomas (56.67) Jodie Henry (52.97) | Australia | 3:57.32 | WR |
Rank | Lane | Nation | Swimmers | Time | Time behind | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | Australia | Giaan Rooney (1:01.18) OC Leisel Jones (1:06.50) Petria Thomas (56.67) Jodie Henry (52.97) | 3:57.32 | WR | ||
5 | United States | Natalie Coughlin (59.68) OR Amanda Beard (1:06.32) Jenny Thompson (58.81) Kara Lynn Joyce (54.31) | 3:59.12 | 1.80 | ||
3 | Germany | Antje Buschschulte (1:00.72) Sarah Poewe (1:07.08) Franziska van Almsick (58.54) Daniela Götz (54.38) | 4:00.72 | 3.40 | EU | |
4 | 2 | China | Chen Xiujun (1:02.00) Luo Xuejuan (1:08.82) Zhou Yafei (58.10) Zhu Yingwen (54.43) | 4:03.35 | 6.03 | |
5 | 7 | Japan | Reiko Nakamura (1:01.05) Masami Tanaka (1:09.09) Junko Onishi (59.14) Tomoko Nagai (55.55) | 4:04.83 | 7.51 | |
6 | 8 | Netherlands | Stefanie Luiken (1:04.83) Madelon Baans (1:09.55) Inge de Bruijn (58.85) Marleen Veldhuis (54.13) | 4:07.36 | 10.04 | |
7 | 1 | Spain | Nina Zhivanevskaya (1:01.29) Sara Pérez (1:10.62) María Peláez (1:00.74) Tatiana Rouba (54.96) | 4:07.61 | 10.29 | |
6 | Great Britain | Katy Sexton (1:02.36) Kirsty Balfour (1:07.98) Georgina Lee (59.63) Kathryn Evans | DSQ |
Lisbeth Constance Trickett, OAM is a retired Australian swimmer. She was a gold medallist at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2008 Summer Olympics, and the 2012 Summer Olympics. She was the world record holder in the short-course (25m) 100-metre freestyle.
Jodie Clare Henry, OAM is an Australian competitive swimmer, Olympic gold medallist and former world-record holder.
The women's 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay took place on 14 August at the Olympic Aquatic Centre of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece.
The women's 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay took place on 18 August at the Olympic Aquatic Centre of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece.
The men's 4 × 100 meter medley relay took place on 20–21 August at the Olympic Aquatic Centre of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece.
Elizabeth Mary Coster is a New Zealand former swimmer, who specialises in backstroke and butterfly events. She helped the New Zealand team to pull off a fourth-place effort and broke a New Zealand record of 4:06.30 in the medley relay at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia.
Louise Mai Jansen is a Danish former swimmer, who specialized in freestyle and individual medley events. She is an eighteen-time national champion and a Nordic record holder in the freestyle and medley. She is also an eighth-place finalist in the 200 m individual medley at the 2010 European Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary with a time of 2:17.37, just eight seconds off the record set by Julie Hjorth-Hansen in 2009. Jansen is an economics graduate, majoring in mathematics at Copenhagen Business School in Copenhagen.
Nataliya Dmitriyevna Shalagina is a Russian former swimmer, who specialized in freestyle events. She is a 2003 Russian swimming champion in the 100 m freestyle, and a two-time relay medalist at the Russian Championships. Shalagina is a member of PK Yekaterinburg, and is coached and trained by her father Dmitry Shalagin.
Shim Min-ji is a South Korean former swimmer, who specialized in freestyle and backstroke events. She is a two-time Olympian and a three-time relay medalist at the Asian Games (2002).
Sun So-eun is a South Korean former swimmer, who specialized in freestyle events. She won a total of two bronze medals, as a member of the South Korean team, in the 4×100 m freestyle (3:44.81) and 4×100 m medley relay (4:13.41) at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan.
Dominique Lorraine Diezi is a Swiss former swimmer who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She is a two-time Olympian, a 32-time Swiss national champion, a multiple-time record holder in sprint freestyle, and a member of Switzerland's national swimming team (1992–2004). She also earned multiple All-American honors while studying in the United States.
Rebecca Jane Linton is a New Zealand former swimmer, who specialised in long-distance freestyle events. She held New Zealand records in the 400 and 800 m freestyle, until they were all broken by Lauren Boyle in 2012. Linton is also a member of Howick Pakuranga Swim Club in Auckland.
Annabelle Jane Carey was a New Zealand swimmer, who specialized in breaststroke events. As of 2006, she currently holds a New Zealand record of 1:09.26 in the 100 m breaststroke from the World Championship Trials in Auckland. In the same year she helped out the New Zealand team to pull off a fourth-place effort in the medley relay at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia, with a record-breaking time of 4:06.30.
Riley Janes is a Canadian former competition swimmer who specialized in freestyle and backstroke events. He is a single-time Olympian (2004), and is part of the bronze-medal Canadian medley relay team at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, England.
Kathryn Evans is an English former competitive swimmer who represented Great Britain in the Olympic Games. Evans specialised in freestyle and individual medley events. She is a two-time Olympian, and a double British champion in the 200 m individual medley. Evans also played for Nova Centurion Swim Club in Nottingham, under head coach Bill Furniss. Evans is the cousin of late rower Acer Nethercott, who competed in the men's eight at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
Iryna Mikailauna Niafedava is a Belarusian former swimmer, who specialized in freestyle events. Niafedava qualified for the women's 4×100 m freestyle relay, as a member of the Belarusian team, at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Teaming with Sviatlana Khakhlova, and sisters Hanna and Maryia Shcherba in heat two, Niafedava swam a third leg and recorded a split of 56.46, but the Belarusians missed the top 8 final by 2.5 seconds, sharing a fifth-place tie and eleventh overall with the Brazilians in a final time of 3:45.38.
Nicole Zahnd is a retired Swiss swimmer, who specialized in sprint freestyle events. She was born in Bern. She is a two-time Olympian, and a top 8 finalist in the 200 m freestyle at the 2001 European Short Course Swimming Championships in Antwerp, Belgium. Zahnd played for two swimming clubs in Geneva, before she trained under head coach Dirk Reinecke as part of the Swiss national team. Zahnd is also the wife of former medley swimmer and two-time Olympian Yves Platel.
Nathalie Bernard is a South African-born New Zealand former swimmer, who specialised in freestyle events. She is a single-time Olympian (2004), and a member of North Shore Swim Club in Auckland, under head coach Thomas Ansorg.
Carla Stampfli is a Swiss former swimmer, who specialized in butterfly events and later became a professional triathlete. She is a single-time Olympian (2004), a 27-time Swiss swimming champion, and a short-course national record holder in the 100 m butterfly (2007).
Carmela Schlegel is a Swiss former swimmer, who specialized in breaststroke events. She is a single-time Olympian (2004), a double Swiss champion, and a former national record holder in the 100 m breaststroke. Schlegel also played for Uster Wallisellen Swim Club in Uster, under her coach Ralph Müller.