| Date | 20 – 21 August 2004 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Olympiako Kentro Ugrou Stivou, Olympiako Athletiko Kentro Athinon Spiros Loues, Athina (Main Pool) |
| Participants | 77 from 16 countries |
The medley relay at the 2004 Olympics boiled down into two separate contests, one between Australia and the USA for the gold medal and another between all the others for the bronze. The contest for the title neatly split into two halves as Natalie Coughlin and Amanda Beard put America into a clear lead at halfway but newly crowned Olympic champions Petria Thomas and Jodie Henry were still to come. Thomas closed down on Jenny Thompson and handed over to Henry with a lead that was built upon by Henry on the final leg for Australia to claim the Olympic title.
This marked the first time that a nation other the USA or the German Democratic Republic had won the gold medal in this event. With silver in this race, Jenny Thompson won a historic 12th medal. This beat the American record of 11 for any Olympic sport set by Mark Spitz in 1968-72 and lasted until Michael Phelps won his 13th career medal in Beijing.
| Pos | Competitors | NOC | R1 | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia |  AUS | 4:01.17 (1 h2) | 3:57.32 (1) | Gold | ||
| Breaststroke | Brooke Hanson | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Jodie Henry | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Leisel Jones | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Alice Mills | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Giaan Rooney | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Jess Schipper | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Petria Thomas | – | – | ||||
| 2 | United States |  USA | 4:02.82 (1 h1) | 3:59.12 (2) | Silver | ||
| Breaststroke | Amanda Beard | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Tara Kirk | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Rachel Komisarz | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Amanda Weir | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Haley Cope | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Natalie Coughlin | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Kara Lynn Joyce | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Jenny Thompson | – | – | ||||
| 3 | Germany |  GER | 4:04.16 (2 h1) | 4:00.72 (3) | Bronze | ||
| Backstroke | Antje Buschschulte | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Daniela Götz | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Sarah Poewe | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Franziska van Almsick | – | – | ||||
| 4 | People's Republic of China |  CHN | 4:05.97 (3 h2) | 4:03.35 (4) | |||
| Backstroke | Chen Xiujun | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Luo Xuejuan | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Zhou Yafei | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Zhu Yingwen | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Qi Hui | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Zhan Shu | – | – | ||||
| 5 | Japan |  JPN | 4:05.99 (3 h1) | 4:04.83 (5) | |||
| Backstroke | Noriko Inada | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Tomoko Nagai | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Reiko Nakamura | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Junko Onishi | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Masami Tanaka | – | – | ||||
| 6 | Netherlands |  NED | 4:08.72 (5 h2) | 4:07.36 (6) | |||
| Breaststroke | Madelon Baans | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Inge de Bruijn | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Stefanie Luiken | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Marleen Veldhuis | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Chantal Groot | – | – | ||||
| 7 | Spain |  ESP | 4:06.90 (4 h2) | 4:07.61 (7) | |||
| Butterfly | María Peláez | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Sara Pérez | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Tatiana Rouba | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Nina Zhivanevskaya | – | – | ||||
| 8 | Great Britain |  GBR | 4:05.63 (2 h2) | – ( | |||
| Breaststroke | Kirsty Balfour | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Kathryn Evans | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Georgina Lee | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Melanie Marshall | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Sarah Price | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Katy Sexton | – | – | ||||
| 9 | Denmark |  DEN | 4:08.89 (4 h1) | – | |||
| Butterfly | Mette Jacobsen | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Louise Ørnstedt | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Jeanette Ottesen Gray | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Majken Thorup | – | – | ||||
| 10 | Ukraine |  UKR | 4:09.79 (5 h1) | – | |||
| Breaststroke | Svitlana Bondarenko | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Yana Klochkova | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Olha Mukomol | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Kateryna Zubkova | – | – | ||||
| 11 | Canada |  CAN | 4:09.84 (6 h2) | – | |||
| Butterfly | Jennifer Fratesi | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Erin Gammel | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Brittany Reimer | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Lauren Van Oosten | – | – | ||||
| 12 | Russian Federation |  RUS | 4:10.18 (7 h2) | – | |||
| Breaststroke | Yelena Bogomazova | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Nataliya Shalagina | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Nataliya Sutyagina | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Oksana Verevka | – | – | ||||
| 13 | New Zealand |  NZL | 4:10.37 (6 h1) | – | |||
| Breaststroke | Annabelle Carey | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Elizabeth Coster | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Alison Fitch | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Hannah McLean | – | – | ||||
| 14 | France |  FRA | 4:11.42 (8 h2) | – | |||
| Freestyle | Malia Metella | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Aurore Mongel | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Alexandra Putra | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Laurie Thomassin | – | – | ||||
| 15 | Switzerland |  SUI | 4:15.54 (7 h1) | – | |||
| Backstroke | Dominique Diezi | – | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Carmela Schlegel | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Carla Stampfli | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Nicole Zahnd | – | – | ||||
| Italy |  ITA | – (DQ h1) | – | ||||
| Breaststroke | Chiara Boggiatto | – | – | ||||
| Backstroke | Alessandra Cappa | – | – | ||||
| Butterfly | Ambra Migliori | – | – | ||||
| Freestyle | Federica Pellegrini | – | – |
| Date | 20 August 2004 |
|---|---|
| Format | Fastest 8 advanced to the final round. |
| Pos | Lane | Team | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Australia | AUS | 4:01.17 | ||
| 2 | 4 | United States | USA | 4:02.82 | ||
| 3 | 5 | Germany | GER | 4:04.16 | ||
| 4 | 6 | Great Britain | GBR | 4:05.63 | ||
| 5 | 4 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 4:05.97 | ||
| 6 | 3 | Japan | JPN | 4:05.99 | ||
| 7 | 7 | Spain | ESP | 4:06.90 | ||
| 8 | 2 | Netherlands | NED | 4:08.72 | ||
| 9 | 1 | Denmark | DEN | 4:08.89 | ||
| 10 | 6 | Ukraine | UKR | 4:09.79 | ||
| 11 | 1 | Canada | CAN | 4:09.84 | ||
| 12 | 8 | Russian Federation | RUS | 4:10.18 | ||
| 13 | 7 | New Zealand | NZL | 4:10.37 | ||
| 14 | 3 | France | FRA | 4:11.42 | ||
| 15 | 8 | Switzerland | SUI | 4:15.54 | ||
| 2 | Italy | ITA | – | 1 |
| Time | 11:55 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Reaction Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | United States | USA | 4:02.82 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Haley Cope | – | 0.68 | 30.68 | 1:01.96 (1) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Tara Kirk | – | 0.39 | 31.41 | 1:07.08 (1) | 2:09.04 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Rachel Komisarz | – | 0.44 | 27.81 | 58.75 (1) | 3:07.79 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Amanda Weir | – | 0.42 | 26.50 | 55.03 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 5 | Germany | GER | 4:04.16 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Antje Buschschulte | – | 0.68 | 30.78 | 1:02.47 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Sarah Poewe | – | 0.32 | 31.72 | 1:07.31 (2) | 2:09.78 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Franziska van Almsick | – | 0.00 | 27.90 | 59.77 (4) | 3:09.55 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Daniela Götz | – | 0.36 | 26.25 | 54.61 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 3 | Japan | JPN | 4:05.99 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Noriko Inada | – | 0.65 | 29.76 | 1:02.14 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Masami Tanaka | – | 0.13 | 32.57 | 1:09.17 (3) | 2:11.31 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Junko Onishi | – | 0.18 | 28.09 | 59.45 (3) | 3:10.76 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Tomoko Nagai | – | 0.19 | 26.29 | 55.23 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 1 | Denmark | DEN | 4:08.89 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Louise Ørnstedt | – | 0.71 | 30.71 | 1:02.71 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Majken Thorup | – | 0.32 | 33.26 | 1:11.46 (6) | 2:14.17 (6) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Mette Jacobsen | – | 0.30 | 27.69 | 59.21 (2) | 3:13.38 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Jeanette Ottesen Gray | – | 0.21 | 26.88 | 55.51 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 6 | Ukraine | UKR | 4:09.79 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Kateryna Zubkova | – | 0.69 | 30.75 | 1:03.66 (7) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Svitlana Bondarenko | – | 0.45 | 33.08 | 1:09.36 (4) | 2:13.02 (5) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Yana Klochkova | – | 0.41 | 27.85 | 1:00.16 (5) | 3:13.18 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Olha Mukomol | – | 0.53 | 27.02 | 56.61 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 7 | New Zealand | NZL | 4:10.37 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Hannah McLean | – | 0.68 | 30.39 | 1:02.40 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Annabelle Carey | – | 0.30 | 33.28 | 1:11.98 (7) | 2:14.38 (7) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Elizabeth Coster | – | 0.41 | 28.09 | 1:00.38 (6) | 3:14.76 (6) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Alison Fitch | – | 0.37 | 26.87 | 55.61 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 8 | Switzerland | SUI | 4:15.54 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Dominique Diezi | – | 0.62 | 30.89 | 1:04.06 (8) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Carmela Schlegel | – | 0.32 | 33.55 | 1:12.04 (8) | 2:16.10 (8) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Carla Stampfli | – | 0.42 | 28.53 | 1:03.37 (7) | 3:19.47 (7) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Nicole Zahnd | – | 0.05 | 26.78 | 56.07 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | Italy | ITA | – | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | 2 | ||
| Backstroke | – | Alessandra Cappa | – | [0.68] | [30.42] | [1:03.11] ([6]) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Chiara Boggiatto | – | [0.10] | [32.76] | [1:09.66] ([5]) | [2:12.77] ([4]) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Ambra Migliori | – | [-0.06] | – | – (–) | – (–) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Federica Pellegrini | – | – | – | – (–) | – (–) |
| Time | 12:01 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Reaction Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Australia | AUS | 4:01.17 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Giaan Rooney | – | 0.70 | 30.55 | 1:01.99 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Brooke Hanson | – | 0.36 | 31.74 | 1:07.55 (1) | 2:09.54 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Jess Schipper | – | 0.32 | 27.07 | 58.09 (1) | 3:07.63 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Alice Mills | – | 0.22 | 25.62 | 53.54 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 6 | Great Britain | GBR | 4:05.63 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Sarah Price | – | 0.72 | 30.32 | 1:01.90 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Kirsty Balfour | – | 0.14 | 32.33 | 1:09.19 (3) | 2:11.09 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Georgina Lee | – | 0.23 | 27.99 | 59.56 (4) | 3:10.65 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Melanie Marshall | – | 0.21 | 26.33 | 54.98 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 4 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 4:05.97 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Zhan Shu | – | 0.72 | 30.21 | 1:01.92 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Qi Hui | – | 0.36 | 32.93 | 1:09.90 (6) | 2:11.82 (4) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Zhou Yafei | – | 0.31 | 27.73 | 59.13 (3) | 3:10.95 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Zhu Yingwen | – | 0.27 | 26.27 | 55.02 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 7 | Spain | ESP | 4:06.90 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nina Zhivanevskaya | – | 0.66 | 29.76 | 1:01.08 (1) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Sara Pérez | – | 0.17 | 33.02 | 1:10.52 (7) | 2:11.60 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | María Peláez | – | 0.09 | 28.00 | 1:00.34 (5) | 3:11.94 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Tatiana Rouba | – | 0.22 | 26.58 | 54.96 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 2 | Netherlands | NED | 4:08.72 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Stefanie Luiken | – | 0.79 | 31.33 | 1:04.13 (6) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Madelon Baans | – | 0.09 | 31.86 | 1:09.53 (4) | 2:13.66 (7) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Chantal Groot | – | 0.28 | 28.07 | 1:00.51 (7) | 3:14.17 (7) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Marleen Veldhuis | – | 0.19 | 25.62 | 54.55 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 1 | Canada | CAN | 4:09.84 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Erin Gammel | – | 0.60 | 30.56 | 1:02.57 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Lauren Van Oosten | – | 0.17 | 32.94 | 1:09.57 (5) | 2:12.14 (5) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Jennifer Fratesi | – | 0.15 | 28.83 | 1:01.60 (8) | 3:13.74 (6) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Brittany Reimer | – | 0.24 | 26.64 | 56.10 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 8 | Russian Federation | RUS | 4:10.18 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Oksana Verevka | – | 0.69 | 31.62 | 1:05.09 (8) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Yelena Bogomazova | – | 0.19 | 32.12 | 1:08.51 (2) | 2:13.60 (6) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Nataliya Sutyagina | – | 0.25 | 27.67 | 58.98 (2) | 3:12.58 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Nataliya Shalagina | – | 0.27 | 27.28 | 57.60 (8) | – (–) | |||
| 8 | 3 | France | FRA | 4:11.42 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Alexandra Putra | – | 0.71 | 31.70 | 1:04.81 (7) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Laurie Thomassin | – | 0.34 | 32.92 | 1:12.16 (8) | 2:16.97 (8) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Aurore Mongel | – | 0.22 | 28.02 | 1:00.40 (6) | 3:17.37 (8) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Malia Metella | – | 0.23 | 25.66 | 54.05 (2) | – (–) |
| Date | 21 August 2004 — 20:10 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitors | NOC | Time | Reaction Time | 50 m Time | Split | Exchange | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Australia | AUS | 3:57.32 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Giaan Rooney | – | 0.71 | 30.04 | 1:01.18 (4) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Leisel Jones | – | 0.24 | 30.94 | 1:06.50 (2) | 2:07.68 (2) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Petria Thomas | – | 0.37 | 26.54 | 56.67 (1) | 3:04.35 (1) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Jodie Henry | – | 0.28 | 25.61 | 52.97 (1) | – (–) | |||
| 2 | 5 | United States | USA | 3:59.12 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Natalie Coughlin | – | 0.60 | 29.07 | 59.68 (1) | – (–) | IOR | ||
| Breaststroke | – | Amanda Beard | – | 0.19 | 31.20 | 1:06.32 (1) | 2:06.00 (1) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Jenny Thompson | – | 0.26 | 27.43 | 58.81 (4) | 3:04.81 (2) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Kara Lynn Joyce | – | 0.19 | 25.78 | 54.31 (3) | – (–) | |||
| 3 | 3 | Germany | GER | 4:00.72 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Antje Buschschulte | – | 0.66 | 29.56 | 1:00.72 (2) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Sarah Poewe | – | 0.27 | 31.45 | 1:07.08 (3) | 2:07.80 (3) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Franziska van Almsick | – | 0.30 | 27.15 | 58.54 (3) | 3:06.34 (3) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Daniela Götz | – | 0.30 | 26.13 | 54.38 (4) | – (–) | |||
| 4 | 2 | People's Republic of China | CHN | 4:03.35 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Chen Xiujun | – | 0.59 | 29.68 | 1:02.00 (6) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Luo Xuejuan | – | 0.27 | 31.89 | 1:08.82 (5) | 2:10.82 (6) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Zhou Yafei | – | 0.22 | 27.10 | 58.10 (2) | 3:08.92 (4) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Zhu Yingwen | – | 0.08 | 25.61 | 54.43 (5) | – (–) | |||
| 5 | 7 | Japan | JPN | 4:04.83 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Reiko Nakamura | – | 0.64 | 29.56 | 1:01.05 (3) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Masami Tanaka | – | 0.15 | 32.30 | 1:09.09 (6) | 2:10.14 (4) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Junko Onishi | – | 0.21 | 27.87 | 59.14 (6) | 3:09.28 (5) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Tomoko Nagai | – | 0.24 | 26.44 | 55.55 (7) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | 8 | Netherlands | NED | 4:07.36 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Stefanie Luiken | – | 0.73 | 31.36 | 1:04.83 (8) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Madelon Baans | – | 0.21 | 31.97 | 1:09.55 (7) | 2:14.38 (8) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Inge de Bruijn | – | 0.28 | 26.80 | 58.85 (5) | 3:13.23 (8) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Marleen Veldhuis | – | 0.12 | 25.24 | 54.13 (2) | – (–) | |||
| 7 | 1 | Spain | ESP | 4:07.61 | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | ||
| Backstroke | – | Nina Zhivanevskaya | – | 0.68 | 29.81 | 1:01.29 (5) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Sara Pérez | – | 0.27 | 33.24 | 1:10.62 (8) | 2:11.91 (7) | |||
| Butterfly | – | María Peláez | – | 0.37 | 28.27 | 1:00.74 (8) | 3:12.65 (7) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Tatiana Rouba | – | 0.14 | 26.15 | 54.96 (6) | – (–) | |||
| 6 | Great Britain | GBR | – | – | – | – (–) | – (–) | 3 | ||
| Backstroke | – | Katy Sexton | – | [0.76] | [30.70] | [1:02.36] ([7]) | – (–) | |||
| Breaststroke | – | Kirsty Balfour | – | [0.12] | [31.98] | [1:07.98] ([4]) | [2:10.34] ([5]) | |||
| Butterfly | – | Georgina Lee | – | [0.36] | [28.31] | [59.63] ([7]) | [3:09.97] ([6]) | |||
| Freestyle | – | Kathryn Evans | – | [-0.05] | – | – (–) | – (–) |
