Swimming at the 1956 Summer Olympics

Swimming

at the Games of the XVI Olympiad

Venue| Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Centre
Dates| 29 November – 7 December 1956
No. of events| 13
Competitors| 235 from 33 nations

<- 1952

1960 ->

Swimming at the
1956 Summer Olympics

Freestyle
100 m| men| women
400 m| men| women
1500 m| men|
Backstroke
100 m| men| women
Breaststroke
200 m| men| women
Butterfly
100 m| | women
200 m| men|
Freestyle relay
4 × 100 m| | women
4 × 200 m| men|

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At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, 13 swimming events were contested, seven for men and six for women. There was a total of 235 participants from 33 countries competing.[1][2] For the first time, the butterfly stroke was contested as a separate event. Australia dominated the medal standings with a total of 8 out of a possible 13 gold medals, eventually finishing with 14 medals overall.

## Medal table

[edit]

Rank| Nation| Gold| Silver| Bronze| Total

|
|
|
|
|

1|  Australia (AUS)| 8| 4| 2| 14
2|  United States (USA)| 2| 4| 5| 11
3|  Japan (JPN)| 1| 4| 0| 5
4|  Great Britain (GBR)| 1| 0| 1| 2
United Team of Germany (EUA)| 1| 0| 1| 2
6|  Hungary (HUN)| 0| 1| 1| 2
7|  Soviet Union (URS)| 0| 0| 2| 2
8|  South Africa (RSA)| 0| 0| 1| 1
Totals (8 entries)| 13| 13| 13| 39

## Medalists

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### Men's events

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Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

100 m freestyle
details | Jon Henricks
Australia | 55.4 (WR) | John Devitt
Australia | 55.8  | Gary Chapman
Australia | 56.7
400 m freestyle
details | Murray Rose
Australia | 4:27.3 (WR) | Tsuyoshi Yamanaka
Japan | 4:30.4  | George Breen
United States | 4:32.5
1500 m freestyle
details | Murray Rose
Australia | 17:58.9  | Tsuyoshi Yamanaka
Japan | 18:00.3  | George Breen
United States | 18:08.2
100 m backstroke
details | David Theile
Australia | 1:02.2 (WR) | John Monckton
Australia | 1:03.2  | Frank McKinney
United States | 1:04.5
200 m breaststroke
details | Masaru Furukawa
Japan | 2:34.7  | Masahiro Yoshimura
Japan | 2:36.7  | Kharis Yunichev
Soviet Union | 2:36.8
200 m butterfly
details | William Yorzyk
United States | 2:19.3  | Takashi Ishimoto
Japan | 2:23.8  | György Tumpek
Hungary | 2:23.9
4 × 200 metre freestyle relay
details |  Australia (AUS)
Kevin O'Halloran
John Devitt
Murray Rose
Jon Henricks | 8:23.6 (WR) |  United States (USA)
Dick Hanley
George Breen
Bill Woolsey
Ford Konno | 8:31.5  |  Soviet Union (URS)
Vitaly Sorokin
Vladimir Struzhanov
Gennady Nikolayev
Boris Nikitin | 8:34.7

### Women's events

[edit]

Games  | Gold  | Silver  | Bronze

|
|
|

100 m freestyle
details | Dawn Fraser
Australia | 1:02.0 (WR) | Lorraine Crapp
Australia | 1:02.3  | Faith Leech
Australia | 1:05.1
400 m freestyle
details | Lorraine Crapp
Australia | 4:54.6 (OR) | Dawn Fraser
Australia | 5:02.5  | Sylvia Ruuska
United States | 5:07.1
100 m backstroke
details | Judy Grinham
Great Britain | 1:12.9 (WR) | Carin Cone
United States | 1:12.9 (WR) | Margaret Edwards
Great Britain | 1:13.1
200 m breaststroke
details | Ursula Happe
United Team of Germany | 2:53.1 (OR) | Éva Székely
Hungary | 2:54.8  | Eva-Maria Elsen
United Team of Germany | 2:55.1
100 m butterfly
details | Shelley Mann
United States | 1:11.0 (OR) | Nancy Ramey
United States | 1:11.9  | Mary Sears
United States | 1:14.4
4 × 100 metre freestyle relay
details |  Australia (AUS)
Dawn Fraser
Faith Leech
Sandra Morgan
Lorraine Crapp | 4:17.1 (WR) |  United States (USA)
Sylvia Ruuska
Shelley Mann
Nancy Simons
Joan Rosazza | 4:19.2  |  South Africa (RSA)
Natalie Myburgh
Susan Roberts
Moira Abernethy
Jeanette Myburgh | 4:25.7

## Participating nations

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235 swimmers from 33 nations competed.[1]

* Australia (26)
* Belgium (6)
* Brazil (4)
* Canada (8)
* Colombia (3)
* Cuba (2)
* Czechoslovakia (2)
* Denmark (2)
* Finland (1)
* France (16)
* United Team of Germany (18)
* Great Britain (18)
* Hong Kong (2)
* Hungary (16)
* India (2)
* Indonesia (3)
* Israel (1)
* Italy (7)
* Japan (19)
* Kenya (1)
* Luxembourg (1)
* Malaya (2)
* Mexico (4)
* New Zealand (5)
* Pakistan (3)
* Philippines (8)
* Poland (1)
* Romania (2)
* South Africa (8)
* Sweden (5)
* Soviet Union (10)
* United States (28)
* Yugoslavia (1)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Swimming at the 1956 Melbourne Summer Games". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
2. ^ "Olympedia – Swimming at the 1956 Summer Olympics". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 17 December 2023.

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Events at the 1956 Summer Olympics (Melbourne/Stockholm)

* Athletics
* Association football
* Australian football (demonstration)
* Baseball (demonstration)
* Basketball
* Boxing
* Canoeing
* Cycling
* Diving
* Equestrian
* Fencing
* Field hockey
* Gymnastics
* Modern pentathlon
* Rowing
* Sailing
* Shooting
* Swimming
* Water polo
* Weightlifting
* Wrestling

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Swimming at the Summer Olympics

Editions|

* 1896
* 1900
* 1904
* 1906 (Intercalated)
* 1908
* 1912
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
* 2004
* 2008
* 2012
* 2016
* 2020
* 2024

Current events|

* 50 m free
* 100 m free
* 200 m free
* 400 m free
* 800 m free
* 1500 m free
* 100 m back
* 200 m back
* 100 m breast
* 200 m breast
* 100 m fly
* 200 m fly
* 200 m IM
* 400 m IM
* 4 × 100 m free relay
* 4 × 200 m free relay
* 4 × 100 m medlay relay
* 10 km

Past events|

* 500 m free (1896)
* 1000 m free (1900)
* 1200 m free (1896)
* 4000 m free (1900)
* 400 m breast
* 1904
* 1912
* 1920
* 4 × 100 yd free relay (1904)
* 200 m team (1900)
* 200 m obstacle (1900)
* underwater (1900)
* 100 m free sailors (1896)

* List of medalists
* men
* women
* List of Olympic records
* List of Olympic venues

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