Swimming at the 1912 Summer Olympics – Women's 100 metre freestyle

The women's 100 metre freestyle was a swimming event held as part of the swimming at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the first appearance of a women's event in Olympic swimming, followed closely by the 4×100 metre free relay. The competition was held from Monday to Friday, 8 to 12 July 1912.

Twenty-seven swimmers from eight nations competed.

Durack also won the gold medal, with compatriot Wylie close behind for silver.

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in minutes) prior to the 1912 Summer Olympics.

World Record	1:20.6	Template:Flagicon Daisy Curwen	Birkenhead (GBR)	10 June 1912
Olympic Record		none

Belle Moore, swimming in the first heat, set the first Olympic record with 1 minute 29.8 seconds. In the second heat Daisy Curwen bettered the record with 1 minute 23.6 seconds, and in the fourth heat Fanny Durack set a new world record with 1 minute 19.8 seconds.

Results

Quarterfinals

The top two in each heat advanced along with the fastest loser overall.

Heat 1

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:29.8	QS OR
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:34.4	QS
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:37.2
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:41.4
5	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:42.4
—	Template:FlagIOCathlete	DNF

Heat 2

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:23.6	QS OR
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:26.2	QS
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:38.6
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:41.2
5	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:44.8
6	Template:FlagIOCathlete

Heat 3

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:26.8	QS
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:28.0	QS
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:29.2
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:31.8
5	Template:FlagIOCathlete
6	Template:FlagIOCathlete

Heat 4

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:19.8	QS WR
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.2	QS
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:28.6	qs
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:34.4
5	Template:FlagIOCathlete
6	Template:FlagIOCathlete

Heat 5

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:25.0	QS
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:25.6	QS
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:44.0

Semifinals

The top two from each heat and the faster of the two third place swimmers advanced.

Semifinal 1

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:20.2	QF
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:26.8	QF
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.0	qf
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.4
5	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:29.2
6	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:32.0

Semifinal 2

Place	Swimmer	Time	Qual.
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.0	QF
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.2	QF
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:29.2	*
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:33.4
—	Template:FlagIOCathlete	DQ

Curwen had to undergo an operation for appendicitis and missed the final. Rosenberg advanced to the final to replace her.

Final

File:1912 Swimming women's 100 metre freestyle final.JPG

The final

Place	Swimmer	Time
1	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:22.2
2	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:25.4
3	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.0
4	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.2
5	Template:FlagIOCathlete	1:27.4
—	Template:FlagIOCathlete	DNS

Notes

• Philipps, Wolfgang: „There was a hard struggle between Miss Fletcher and Fräulein Rosenberg“. Ein Beitrag zur niedersächsischen Schwimmsport-Geschichte (in German). In: Jahrbuch des Niedersächsischen Instituts für Sportgeschichte, Bd. 20-21 (2017-2018), pp. 183–209