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. 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.
| 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 |
Medal table
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 8 | 4 | 2 | 14 |
| 2 | United States | 2 | 4 | 5 | 11 |
| 3 | Japan | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| 4 | Great Britain | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| United Team of Germany | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 6 | Hungary | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | Soviet Union | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 8 | South Africa | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (8 entries) | 13 | 13 | 13 | 39 | |
Medalists
Men's events
| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 m freestyle | Jon Henricks Australia | 55.4 (WR) | John Devitt Australia | 55.8 | Gary Chapman Australia | 56.7 |
| 400 m freestyle | Murray Rose Australia | 4:27.3 (WR) | Tsuyoshi Yamanaka Japan | 4:30.4 | George Breen United States | 4:32.5 |
| 1500 m freestyle | Murray Rose Australia | 17:58.9 | Tsuyoshi Yamanaka Japan | 18:00.3 | George Breen United States | 18:08.2 |
| 100 m backstroke | David Theile Australia | 1:02.2 (WR) | John Monckton Australia | 1:03.2 | Frank McKinney United States | 1:04.5 |
| 200 m breaststroke | Masaru Furukawa Japan | 2:34.7 | Masahiro Yoshimura Japan | 2:36.7 | Kharis Yunichev Soviet Union | 2:36.8 |
| 200 m butterfly | William Yorzyk United States | 2:19.3 | Takashi Ishimoto Japan | 2:23.8 | György Tumpek Hungary | 2:23.9 |
| 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay | Australia Kevin O'Halloran John Devitt Murray Rose Jon Henricks | 8:23.6 (WR) | United States Dick Hanley George Breen Bill Woolsey Ford Konno | 8:31.5 | Soviet Union Vitaly Sorokin Vladimir Struzhanov Gennady Nikolayev Boris Nikitin | 8:34.7 |
Women's events
| Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 m freestyle | Dawn Fraser Australia | 1:02.0 (WR) | Lorraine Crapp Australia | 1:02.3 | Faith Leech Australia | 1:05.1 |
| 400 m freestyle | Lorraine Crapp Australia | 4:54.6 (OR) | Dawn Fraser Australia | 5:02.5 | Sylvia Ruuska United States | 5:07.1 |
| 100 m backstroke | 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 | 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 | 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 | Australia Dawn Fraser Faith Leech Sandra Morgan Lorraine Crapp | 4:17.1 (WR) | United States Sylvia Ruuska Shelley Mann Nancy Simons Joan Rosazza | 4:19.2 | South Africa Natalie Myburgh Susan Roberts Moira Abernethy Jeanette Myburgh | 4:25.7 |
Participating nations
235 swimmers from 33 nations competed.
- 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)
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