| | Event type

100 metres Freestyle, Women

Date	28 – 29 August 1972
Status	Olympic
Location	Schwimmhalle, Olympiapark, München
Participants	46 from 23 countries

The world record holder was Shane Gould, considered the greatest female swimmer in the world, as in 1971 she had finally broken the records set by her countrywoman, Dawn Fraser. She came into Munich not having lost a freestyle race, at any distance, for two years. The day before she had opened the Munich female swimming events by winning the 200 individual medley. But in this final, she was beaten by two Americans, Sandy Neilson winning gold followed by Shirley Babashoff, Gould trailing in third. Neilson had a great start in the final and went to the wall first and hung on for her victory by almost half-a-second. Six women broke the one-minute barrier in the race.

Pos	Number	Competitor	NOC	R1	SF	Final
1	1072	Sandy Neilson	USA	59.51 (2 h3)	59.41 (2 h2)	58.59 (1)	Gold
2	1054	Shirley Babashoff	USA	59.51 (1 h4)	59.05 (1 h1)	59.02 (2)	Silver
3	–	Shane Gould	AUS	59.44 (1 h6)	59.20 (1 h2)	59.06 (3)	Bronze
4	808	Gabriele Wetzko	GDR	1:00.40 (1 h1)	59.46 (3 h2)	59.21 (4)
5	828	Heidi Reineck	FRG	1:00.39 (3 h6)	59.66 (3 h1)	59.73 (5)
6	789	Andrea Eife	GDR	59.73 (2 h6)	59.71 (4 h1)	59.91 (6)
7	865	Magdolna Patóh	HUN	59.47 (1 h3)	59.64 (2 h1)	1:00.02 (7)
8	844	Enith Brigitha	NED	1:00.02 (1 h2)	59.75 (4 h2)	1:00.09 (8)
9	836	Jutta Weber	FRG	59.72 (1 h5)	59.90 (5 h2)	–
10	1065	Jenny Kemp	USA	1:00.42 (2 h5)	59.93 (5 h1)	–
11	788	Sylvia Eichner	GDR	1:00.64 (3 h5)	1:00.73 (6 h2)	–
12	–	Hansje Bunschoten	NED	1:00.82 (3 h3)	1:00.79 (7 h2)	–
13	856	Anke Rijnders	NED	1:00.76 (2 h2)	1:00.84 (6 h1)	–
14	1045	Tatyana Zolotnitskaya	URS	1:01.24 (2 h1)	1:01.12 (8 h2)	–
15	694	Wendy Cook	CAN	1:01.20 (2 h4)	1:01.26 (7 h1)	–
16	–	Claude Mandonnaud	FRA	1:01.34 (3 h1)	1:01.88 (8 h1)	–
17	708	Mary Beth Rondeau	CAN	1:01.46 (3 h4)	–	–
18	953	Grethe Mathiesen	NOR	1:01.47 (4 h6)	–	–
19	744	Guylaine Berger	FRA	1:01.54 (4 h1)	–	–
20	863	Judit Turóczy	HUN	1:01.57 (5 h1)	–	–
21	834	Angela Steinbach	FRG	1:01.66 (4 h5)	–	–
22	1042	Yelena Timoshenko	URS	1:01.68 (5 h6)	–	–
23	1010	Eva Andersson	SWE	1:01.88 (4 h3)	–	–
24	655	Leanne Francis	AUS	1:01.90 (4 h4)	–	–
25	713	Judy Wright	CAN	1:01.97 (3 h2)	–	–
=26	–	Sharon Booth	AUS	1:02.07 (6 h1)	–	–
=26	–	Lesley Allardice	GBR	1:02.07 (5 h4)	–	–
28	914	Shigeko Kawanishi	JPN	1:02.13 (6 h6)	–	–
29	1032	Nadezhda Matyukhina	URS	1:02.14 (5 h5)	–	–
30	764	Susan Edmondson	GBR	1:02.29 (5 h3)	–	–
31	1004	Margrit Thomet	SUI	1:02.33 (6 h5)	–	–
32	1001	Françoise Monod	SUI	1:02.43 (6 h3)	–	–
33	750	Chantal Schertz	FRA	1:02.82 (4 h2)	–	–
34	893	Laura Podestà	ITA	1:02.88 (7 h5)	–	–
35	959	Heather Coombridge	NZL	1:02.95 (7 h3)	–	–
36	864	Edit Kovács	HUN	1:03.00 (5 h2)	–	–
37	686	Lucy Burle	BRA	1:03.12 (6 h2)	–	–
38	1011	Inger Andersson	SWE	1:03.40 (6 h4)	–	–
39	688	Hriska Peycheva	BUL	1:03.43 (7 h6)	–	–
40	–	Marcia Arriaga	MEX	1:03.66 (7 h2)	–	–
41	727	Kirsten Campbell	DEN	1:03.83 (7 h1)	–	–
42	1088	Ileana Morales	VEN	1:04.13 (8 h2)	–	–
43	777	Diane Walker	GBR	1:04.44 (7 h4)	–	–
44	977	Hsu Yue-Yun	TPE	1:04.77 (8 h3)	–	–
45	–	Susana Saxlund	URU	1:04.91 (8 h1)	–	–
46	936	Virginia Anchestegui	MEX	1:04.99 (8 h6)	–	–
DNS	–	Irwi Johansson	SWE	– (DNS h5)	–	–
DNS	927	Mireille Bassoul	LBN	– (DNS h4)	–	–

Round One

Date	28 August 1972 — 11:45
Format	Fastest 16 advanced to the semi-finals.

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time
1	Shane Gould	AUS	59.44	QOR
2	Magdolna Patóh	HUN	59.47	QOR
=3	Sandy Neilson	USA	59.51	Q
=3	Shirley Babashoff	USA	59.51	Q
5	Jutta Weber	FRG	59.72	Q
6	Andrea Eife	GDR	59.73	Q
7	Enith Brigitha	NED	1:00.02	Q
8	Heidi Reineck	FRG	1:00.39	Q
9	Gabriele Wetzko	GDR	1:00.40	Q
10	Jenny Kemp	USA	1:00.42	Q
11	Sylvia Eichner	GDR	1:00.64	Q
12	Anke Rijnders	NED	1:00.76	Q
13	Hansje Bunschoten	NED	1:00.82	Q
14	Wendy Cook	CAN	1:01.20	Q
15	Tatyana Zolotnitskaya	URS	1:01.24	Q
16	Claude Mandonnaud	FRA	1:01.34	Q
17	Mary Beth Rondeau	CAN	1:01.46
18	Grethe Mathiesen	NOR	1:01.47
19	Guylaine Berger	FRA	1:01.54
20	Judit Turóczy	HUN	1:01.57
21	Angela Steinbach	FRG	1:01.66
22	Yelena Timoshenko	URS	1:01.68
23	Eva Andersson	SWE	1:01.88
24	Leanne Francis	AUS	1:01.90
25	Judy Wright	CAN	1:01.97
=26	Sharon Booth	AUS	1:02.07
=26	Lesley Allardice	GBR	1:02.07
28	Shigeko Kawanishi	JPN	1:02.13
29	Nadezhda Matyukhina	URS	1:02.14
30	Susan Edmondson	GBR	1:02.29
31	Margrit Thomet	SUI	1:02.33
32	Françoise Monod	SUI	1:02.43
33	Chantal Schertz	FRA	1:02.82
34	Laura Podestà	ITA	1:02.88
35	Heather Coombridge	NZL	1:02.95
36	Edit Kovács	HUN	1:03.00
37	Lucy Burle	BRA	1:03.12
38	Inger Andersson	SWE	1:03.40
39	Hriska Peycheva	BUL	1:03.43
40	Marcia Arriaga	MEX	1:03.66
41	Kirsten Campbell	DEN	1:03.83
42	Ileana Morales	VEN	1:04.13
43	Diane Walker	GBR	1:04.44
44	Hsu Yue-Yun	TPE	1:04.77
45	Susana Saxlund	URU	1:04.91
46	Virginia Anchestegui	MEX	1:04.99
DNS	Mireille Bassoul	LBN	–
DNS	Irwi Johansson	SWE	–

Heat #1

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Gabriele Wetzko	GDR	1:00.40	29.91 (4)	30.49 (1)	Q
2	Tatyana Zolotnitskaya	URS	1:01.24	29.84 (3)	31.40 (3)	Q
3	Claude Mandonnaud	FRA	1:01.34	29.97 (5)	31.37 (2)	Q
4	Guylaine Berger	FRA	1:01.54	30.06 (6)	31.48 (4)
5	Judit Turóczy	HUN	1:01.57	29.62 (1)	31.95 (5)
6	Sharon Booth	AUS	1:02.07	29.70 (2)	32.37 (6)
7	Kirsten Campbell	DEN	1:03.83	30.77 (7)	33.06 (7)
8	Susana Saxlund	URU	1:04.91	31.58 (8)	33.33 (8)

Heat #2

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Enith Brigitha	NED	1:00.02	28.95 (1)	31.07 (1)	Q
2	Anke Rijnders	NED	1:00.76	29.57 (3)	31.19 (2)	Q
3	Judy Wright	CAN	1:01.97	30.16 (5)	31.81 (3)
4	Chantal Schertz	FRA	1:02.82	30.78 (8)	32.04 (4)
5	Edit Kovács	HUN	1:03.00	29.01 (2)	33.99 (8)
6	Lucy Burle	BRA	1:03.12	30.03 (4)	33.09 (5)
7	Marcia Arriaga	MEX	1:03.66	30.45 (7)	33.21 (6)
8	Ileana Morales	VEN	1:04.13	30.41 (6)	33.72 (7)

Heat #3

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Magdolna Patóh	HUN	59.47	28.99 (1)	30.48 (2)	QOR
2	Sandy Neilson	USA	59.51	29.17 (2)	30.34 (1)	Q
3	Hansje Bunschoten	NED	1:00.82	29.57 (4)	31.25 (3)	Q
4	Eva Andersson	SWE	1:01.88	29.21 (3)	32.67 (5)
5	Susan Edmondson	GBR	1:02.29	30.22 (=6)	32.07 (4)
6	Françoise Monod	SUI	1:02.43	29.73 (5)	32.70 (6)
7	Heather Coombridge	NZL	1:02.95	30.22 (=6)	32.73 (7)
8	Hsu Yue-Yun	TPE	1:04.77	31.33 (8)	33.44 (8)

Heat #4

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Shirley Babashoff	USA	59.51	29.21 (1)	30.30 (1)	Q
2	Wendy Cook	CAN	1:01.20	29.56 (3)	31.64 (2)	Q
3	Mary Beth Rondeau	CAN	1:01.46	29.54 (2)	31.92 (4)
4	Leanne Francis	AUS	1:01.90	30.07 (5)	31.83 (3)
5	Lesley Allardice	GBR	1:02.07	29.90 (4)	32.17 (5)
6	Inger Andersson	SWE	1:03.40	30.24 (6)	33.16 (6)
7	Diane Walker	GBR	1:04.44	31.21 (7)	33.23 (7)
DNS	Mireille Bassoul	LBN	–	– (–)	–

Heat #5

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Jutta Weber	FRG	59.72	29.12 (1)	30.60 (1)	Q
2	Jenny Kemp	USA	1:00.42	29.22 (2)	31.20 (3)	Q
3	Sylvia Eichner	GDR	1:00.64	29.73 (3)	30.91 (2)	Q
4	Angela Steinbach	FRG	1:01.66	30.01 (6)	31.65 (4)
5	Nadezhda Matyukhina	URS	1:02.14	29.94 (5)	32.20 (5)
6	Margrit Thomet	SUI	1:02.33	29.87 (4)	32.46 (6)
7	Laura Podestà	ITA	1:02.88	– (–)	–
DNS	Irwi Johansson	SWE	–	– (–)	–

Heat #6

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Shane Gould	AUS	59.44	29.21 (3)	30.23 (1)	QOR
2	Andrea Eife	GDR	59.73	28.93 (1)	30.80 (2)	Q
3	Heidi Reineck	FRG	1:00.39	29.10 (2)	31.29 (3)	Q
4	Grethe Mathiesen	NOR	1:01.47	29.95 (=4)	31.52 (4)
5	Yelena Timoshenko	URS	1:01.68	29.95 (=4)	31.73 (6)
6	Shigeko Kawanishi	JPN	1:02.13	30.58 (6)	31.55 (5)
7	Hriska Peycheva	BUL	1:03.43	30.62 (7)	32.81 (7)
8	Virginia Anchestegui	MEX	1:04.99	31.75 (8)	33.24 (8)

Semi-Finals

Date	28 August 1972 — 17:45
Format	Top three in each heat and next two fastest advanced to the final.

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time
1	Shirley Babashoff	USA	59.05	QOR
2	Shane Gould	AUS	59.20	Q
3	Sandy Neilson	USA	59.41	Q
4	Gabriele Wetzko	GDR	59.46	Q
5	Magdolna Patóh	HUN	59.64	Q
6	Heidi Reineck	FRG	59.66	Q
7	Andrea Eife	GDR	59.71	Q
8	Enith Brigitha	NED	59.75	Q
9	Jutta Weber	FRG	59.90
10	Jenny Kemp	USA	59.93
11	Sylvia Eichner	GDR	1:00.73
12	Hansje Bunschoten	NED	1:00.79
13	Anke Rijnders	NED	1:00.84
14	Tatyana Zolotnitskaya	URS	1:01.12
15	Wendy Cook	CAN	1:01.26
16	Claude Mandonnaud	FRA	1:01.88

Heat #1

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Shirley Babashoff	USA	59.05	29.37 (5)	29.68 (1)	QOR
2	Magdolna Patóh	HUN	59.64	29.34 (4)	30.30 (3)	Q
3	Heidi Reineck	FRG	59.66	28.79 (1)	30.87 (5)	Q
4	Andrea Eife	GDR	59.71	29.45 (6)	30.26 (2)	Q
5	Jenny Kemp	USA	59.93	29.16 (2)	30.77 (4)
6	Anke Rijnders	NED	1:00.84	29.59 (7)	31.25 (6)
7	Wendy Cook	CAN	1:01.26	29.24 (3)	32.02 (7)
8	Claude Mandonnaud	FRA	1:01.88	29.72 (8)	32.16 (8)

Heat #2

Pos	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	Shane Gould	AUS	59.20	29.05 (2)	30.15 (1)	Q
2	Sandy Neilson	USA	59.41	29.08 (3)	30.33 (3)	Q
3	Gabriele Wetzko	GDR	59.46	29.14 (4)	30.32 (2)	Q
4	Enith Brigitha	NED	59.75	29.17 (5)	30.58 (4)	Q
5	Jutta Weber	FRG	59.90	28.94 (1)	30.96 (5)
6	Sylvia Eichner	GDR	1:00.73	29.48 (7)	31.25 (7)
7	Hansje Bunschoten	NED	1:00.79	29.29 (6)	31.50 (8)
8	Tatyana Zolotnitskaya	URS	1:01.12	29.93 (8)	31.19 (6)

Final Round

Date	29 August 1972 — 17:40

Pos	Lane	Competitor	NOC	Time	50 m	50-100 m Time (Rank)
1	–	Sandy Neilson	USA	58.59	28.46 (1)	30.13 (3)	OR
2	–	Shirley Babashoff	USA	59.02	29.16 (7)	29.86 (1)
3	–	Shane Gould	AUS	59.06	28.82 (4)	30.24 (4)
4	–	Gabriele Wetzko	GDR	59.21	29.18 (8)	30.03 (2)
5	–	Heidi Reineck	FRG	59.73	28.81 (3)	30.92 (5)
6	–	Andrea Eife	GDR	59.91	28.96 (6)	30.95 (6)
7	–	Magdolna Patóh	HUN	1:00.02	28.92 (5)	31.10 (7)
8	–	Enith Brigitha	NED	1:00.09	28.72 (2)	31.37 (8)