Women's 100 metre freestyle at the Games of the XXXII Olympiad | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Venue | Tokyo Aquatics Centre | ||||||||||||
Dates | 28 July 2021 (heats) 29 July 2021 (semifinals) 30 July 2021 (final) | ||||||||||||
Competitors | 51 from 42 nations | ||||||||||||
Winning time | 51.96 OR | ||||||||||||
Medalists | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics | |||
---|---|---|---|
![]() | |||
Qualification | |||
Freestyle | |||
50 m | men | women | |
100 m | men | women | |
200 m | men | women | |
400 m | men | women | |
800 m | men | women | |
1500 m | men | women | |
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 | mixed | women |
Marathon | |||
10 km | men | women | |
The women's 100 metre freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 28 to 30 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. [1] It was the event's twenty-fifth consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1912.
Australia's Emma McKeon became only the second woman to break the 52 second threshold in the event, setting a new Olympic and Oceanian record of 51.96. With the victory, McKeon won her first individual Olympic title and Australia's first in the event since Jodie Henry in 2004.
Though first at the 50, Hong Kong's Siobhan Haughey was overtaken by McKeon down the stretch but still won her second silver medal at these Games with an Asian record of 52.27. Australia's Cate Campbell, the resounding favourite for gold in 2016, had a comeback performance to take the bronze medal in 52.52. By joining teammate McKeon on the podium, the pair's 1-3 finish marked the first time two Australians placed on the podium in this event since the country's medal sweep in Melbourne 1956.
One of two defending champions Penny Oleksiak of Canada finished narrowly behind Campbell in a Canadian record of 52.57. Sweden's world-record holder and 2016 bronze medallist Sarah Sjöström was last at the 50 but managed to touch in 52.68 for fifth. Femke Heemskerk (52.79) clocked a new Dutch record to come sixth while Great Britain's Anna Hopkin (52.83) and the U.S.'s Abbey Weitzeil (53.23) rounded out the finalists.
The medals for the competition were presented by Sweden's Gunilla Lindberg, IOC member, and the gifts were presented by Uruguay's Julio Maglione, former FINA President.
Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.
World record | ![]() | 51.71 | Budapest, Hungary | 23 July 2017 | [2] |
Olympic record | 52.70 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 11 August 2016 | [3] [4] |
The following records were established during the competition:
Date | Event | Swimmer | Nation | Time | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
July 25 | Final* | Sarah Sjöström | ![]() | 52.62 | OR |
July 28 | Heat 6 | Emma McKeon | ![]() | 52.13 | OR |
July 30 | Final | Emma McKeon | ![]() | 51.96 | OR |
* Split from the 4 × 100 m freestyle relay
The Olympic Qualifying Time for the event is 54.38 seconds. Up to two swimmers per National Olympic Committee (NOC) can automatically qualify by swimming that time at an approved qualification event. The Olympic Selection Time is 56.01 seconds. Up to one swimmer per NOC meeting that time is eligible for selection, allocated by world ranking until the maximum quota for all swimming events is reached. NOCs without a female swimmer qualified in any event can also use their universality place. [5]
The competition consists of three rounds: heats, semifinals, and a final. The swimmers with the best 16 times in the heats advance to the semifinals. The swimmers with the best 8 times in the semifinals advance to the final. Swim-offs are used as necessary to break ties for advancement to the next round. [6]
All times are Japan Standard Time (UTC+9) [1]
Date | Time | Round |
---|---|---|
28 July 2021 | 19:00 | Heats |
29 July 2021 | 10:53 | Semifinals |
30 July 2021 | 10:59 | Final |
The swimmers with the top 16 times, regardless of heat, advanced to the semifinals. [7]
Rank | Lane | Swimmer | Nation | Time | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 4 | Erika Brown | ![]() | 53.51 | Q |
2 | 5 | Wu Qingfeng | ![]() | 54.47 | Q |
The swimmers with the best 8 times, regardless of heat, advanced to the final. [8]
Rank | Heat | Lane | Swimmer | Nation | Time | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 4 | Emma McKeon | ![]() | 52.32 | Q |
2 | 1 | 4 | Siobhán Haughey | ![]() | 52.40 | Q, AS |
3 | 1 | 5 | Cate Campbell | ![]() | 52.71 | Q |
4 | 2 | 3 | Sarah Sjöström | ![]() | 52.82 | Q |
5 | 1 | 3 | Penny Oleksiak | ![]() | 52.86 | Q |
6 | 1 | 6 | Femke Heemskerk | ![]() | 52.93 | Q |
7 | 2 | 2 | Abbey Weitzeil | ![]() | 52.99 | Q |
8 | 2 | 5 | Anna Hopkin | ![]() | 53.11 | Q |
9 | 1 | 1 | Marie Wattel | ![]() | 53.12 | |
10 | 2 | 6 | Pernille Blume | ![]() | 53.26 | |
11 | 1 | 7 | Freya Anderson | ![]() | 53.53 | |
12 | 2 | 7 | Signe Bro | ![]() | 53.55 | |
13 | 2 | 8 | Erika Brown | ![]() | 53.58 | |
14 | 1 | 2 | Michelle Coleman | ![]() | 53.73 | |
15 | 2 | 1 | Charlotte Bonnet | ![]() | 54.10 | |
16 | 1 | 8 | Wu Qingfeng | ![]() | 54.86 |
Rank | Lane | Swimmer | Nation | Time | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | 4 | Emma McKeon | ![]() | 51.96 | OR , OC |
![]() | 5 | Siobhán Haughey | ![]() | 52.27 | AS |
![]() | 3 | Cate Campbell | ![]() | 52.52 | |
4 | 2 | Penny Oleksiak | ![]() | 52.59 | NR |
5 | 6 | Sarah Sjöström | ![]() | 52.68 | |
6 | 7 | Femke Heemskerk | ![]() | 52.79 | |
7 | 8 | Anna Hopkin | ![]() | 52.83 | |
8 | 1 | Abbey Weitzeil | ![]() | 53.23 |
Sarah Fredrika Sjöström is a Swedish competitive swimmer specialising in the sprint freestyle and butterfly events.
Cate Natalie Campbell, is a Malawian-born Australian former competitive swimmer. She is the current world record holder in the short course 100 m freestyle. She is also a former world record holder in the long course 100 m freestyle, breaking Britta Steffen's supersuit WR by 0.01.
Bronte Campbell is a Malawian-born Australian competitive swimmer. A four time Olympian, Campbell is a triple Olympic gold medallist and a former World Champion in the 50 and 100 m freestyle, having won both titles in 2015.
Emma Jennifer McKeon, is a retired Australian competitive swimmer. She is an eight-time world record holder, three current and five former, in relays. Her total career haul of 14 Olympic medals following the 2024 Olympic Games made her the most decorated Australian, the third-most decorated swimmer, and the seventh-most decorated athlete in Olympic history and included one gold medal from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, four gold medals from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and one gold medal from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. With four gold and three bronze medals she was the most decorated athlete across all sports at the 2020 Summer Olympics, and tied for the most medals won by a woman in a single Olympic Games. She also won 20 medals, including five gold medals, at the World Aquatics Championships; and a record 20 medals, including 14 gold, at the Commonwealth Games.
Abbigail "Abbey" Weitzeil is an American competition swimmer specializing in sprint freestyle. A multiple time Olympic medalist, she won a gold medal in the 4x100-meter medley relay for swimming in the preliminary heats and a silver medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay at the 2016 Rio Olympics. At the 2020 Summer Olympics she won a silver medal in the 4x100-meter medley relay and a bronze medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay, swimming in the final of both events. She is the American record holder in the 50-yard freestyle and is part of the American Record in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay.
The women's 100 metre freestyle event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place between 10 and 11 August at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium.
The women's 200 metre freestyle event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place 8–9 August at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium.
The women's 100 metre butterfly event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place on 6–7 August at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium.
Ariarne Elizabeth Titmus is an Australian swimmer. She is the reigning Olympic champion in the women's 400-metre freestyle, having won the event at the 2020 Summer Olympics and the 2024 Summer Olympics and the world record holder in the long course 200-metre freestyle and 400-metre freestyle events. In 2019 and 2020, she competed representing the Cali Condors in the International Swimming League.
The men's 50 metre freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 30 July to 1 August 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's tenth appearance, first held in 1904 and then at every edition since 1988. The event is nicknamed the "splash and dash" event.
The men's 100 metre freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 27 to 29 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. There were approximately 60 competitors from approximately 45 nations, with the ultimate numbers determined through the ongoing selection process, including universality places.
The women's 50 metre freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 30 July to 1 August 2021 at the Olympic Aquatics Centre. It was the event's ninth consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1988.
The women's 200 metre freestyle event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 26 to 28 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's fourteenth consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1968.
The men's 100 metre backstroke event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 25 to 27 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's twenty-sixth appearance, having been held at every edition since 1904 except 1964. Moreover, these Games marked the first time when the men's sprint backstroke event was held in Tokyo, as the event was not included in the swimming program in 1964.
The men's 100 metre butterfly event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 29 to 31 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's fourteenth consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1968.
The women's 100 metre butterfly event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 24 to 26 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's seventeenth consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1956.
The women's 200 metre individual medley event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held from 26 to 28 July 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It will be the event's twelfth appearance, having been first held in 1968 and 1972 and then at every edition since 1984.
The women's 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay event at the 2020 Summer Olympics will be held in 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It will be the event's twenty-fifth appearance at the Olympics, having been held at every edition since 1912.
The women's 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held in 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's seventh consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1996.
The women's 4 × 100 metre medley relay event at the 2020 Summer Olympics was held on 30 July and 1 August 2021 at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. It was the event's sixteenth consecutive appearance, having been held at every edition since 1960.