Swimming at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre freestyle explained

Event:	Men's 50 metre freestyle
Games:	2000 Summer
Venue:	Sydney International Aquatic Centre
Date:	September 21, 2000 (heats &<br />semifinals) September 22, 2000 (final)
Competitors:	80
Nations:	73
Win Value:	21.98
Gold:	Anthony Ervin
Goldnoc:	USA
Gold2:	Gary Hall, Jr.
Goldnoc2:	USA
Bronze:	Pieter van den Hoogenband
Bronzenoc:	NED
Longnames:	yes
Prev:	1996
Next:	2004

The men's 50 metre freestyle event at the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on 21–22 September at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre in Sydney, Australia.^[1]

U.S. swimmers Gary Hall, Jr. and Anthony Ervin, who trained together at the Phoenix Swim Club, tied for the gold; they finished with a matching time of 21.98, edging out Dutch swimmer Pieter van den Hoogenband in 22.03.^{[2] [3]}

Italy's Lorenzo Vismara finished fourth in 22.11, while Poland's Bartosz Kizierowski was a fraction behind the leading pack in sixth at 22.22. Russia's double defending champion Alexander Popov finished outside the medals in sixth place with a time of 22.24.^{[2] [4]} Great Britain's four-time Olympian Mark Foster (22.41) and Ukraine's Oleksandr Volynets (22.51) rounded out the finale.^[2] Earlier in the prelims, Volynets made a surprise packet with a ninth fastest time and a Ukrainian record of 22.52 to lead the sixth heat.^[5]

Ervin stopped swimming competitively in 2003, auctioned off his gold medal on eBay to aid survivors of the 2004 tsunami, but returned from retirement to claim his place on his second Olympics, in London, twelve years after his first.^{[6] [7] [8]} Both men would later continue to win another gold in this event outright (Hall, Jr. in 2004 and Ervin in 2016), edging out the runner-up by 0.01 second in their respective races.

Records

Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.

Competition format

In a change from previous Games, the competition consisted of three rounds: heats, semifinals, and a final. The swimmers with the best 16 times in the heats advanced to the semifinals. The swimmers with the best 8 times in the semifinals advanced to the final. Swim-offs were used as necessary to break ties for advancement to the next round.

Results

Heats

Rank	Heat	Lane	Name	Nation	Time	Notes
1	9	6			22.05	, NR
2	9	4			22.14
3	10	4			22.15
4	8	4			22.24
5	10	5			22.32
6	8	6			22.42
7	10	6			22.45	, OC
8	9	5			22.48
9	6	2			22.52	, NR
10	10	3			22.53
	8	7				, NR
12	9	2			22.61
13	8	5			22.62
14	8	3			22.65
15	9	8			22.74
16	10	2			22.80
17	7	4			22.82
	6	6				NR
19	10	8			22.83
20	9	3			22.88
21	8	2			22.89
22	8	1			22.95
23	10	7			22.96
	8	8
25	6	8			23.02
26	7	6			23.03
27	6	7			23.05
28	7	1			23.08
29	10	1			23.11
30	5	1			23.12
31	7	2			23.15
32	7	7			23.16
33	7	5			23.20
34	7	3			23.21
	6	5
36	7	8			23.27
37	5	4			23.34
38	6	1			23.36
39	6	4			23.44
40	4	1			23.46
41	4	4			23.53
42	5	7			23.56
43	5	8			23.57
44	5	2			23.63
45	3	4			23.72	NR
46	5	6			23.77
47	4	8			23.84
48	4	3			23.90
49	4	7			24.00
	4	6
51	4	2			24.01
52	3	5			24.07
53	4	5			24.20
54	3	8			24.28
55	5	3			24.50
56	3	1			24.91
57	3	3			25.07
58	3	2			25.29
59	2	6			25.33
60	3	7			25.36
61	1	1			25.43
62	2	4			25.57
63	3	6			25.70
64	2	5			25.84
65	2	3			26.28
66	2	8			26.41
67	2	1			26.85
68	2	7			26.96
69	1	5			27.02
70	2	2			27.03
71	1	4			27.24
72	1	3			27.84
73	1	6			28.86
74	1	2			29.69
75	1	8			38.76
	1	7
	6	3
	5	5
	9	1
	9	7

Semifinals

Rank	Heat	Lane	Name	Nation	Time	Notes
1	1	4			22.07
2	2	3			22.11
3	1	5			22.13
4	2	5			22.17
5	2	1			22.30
6	1	1			22.32
7	2	4			22.35
8	2	2			22.36	, NR
9	1	6			22.39
10	1	8			22.41
	2	7			22.41
12	1	7			22.47
13	2	6			22.49
	1	2			22.49	NR
15	1	3			22.51
16	2	8			22.89

Final

Rank	Lane	Name	Nation	Time	Notes
	4			21.98
	3
	5			22.03
4	2			22.11
5	1			22.22
6	6			22.24
7	7			22.41
8	8			22.51

External links

• Official Olympic Report

Notes and References

1. Web site: Swimming schedule . Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 14 September 2000. 14 May 2013.
2. News: Whitten. Phillip. Olympic Day 7 Finals (50 Free, 800 Free, 200 Back, 100 Fly). Swimming World Magazine. 22 September 2000. 13 May 2013.
3. News: Gelman. Mitch. Hall Jr., Ervin share gold in 50; Dutchman takes bronze. Sports Illustrated. CNN. 22 September 2000. 13 May 2013.
4. News: Fitzpatrick. Franz. Sharing The Gold Anthony Ervin And Gary Hall Jr. Each Finished The 50-meter Final In 21.98 Seconds As The U.s. Ruled The Pool Again. The Philadelphia Inquirer. 23 September 2000. 13 May 2013.
5. News: Whitten. Phillip. Olympic Day 6 Prelims (50 Free, 800 Free, 200 Back, 100 Fly). Swimming World Magazine. 21 September 2000. 23 May 2013.
6. News: Kelly. Barry. Olympic Gold Medalist Anthony Ervin Gives Up Swimming, Fame and Money. The Daily Californian. 6 July 2004. 1 July 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120705043737/http://archive.dailycal.org/article/15583/olympic_gold_medalist_anthony_ervin_gives_up_swimm. 5 July 2012.
7. News: Brady. Erik. Anthony Ervin has no regrets, feels lucky to be at trials. USA Today. 27 June 2012. 1 July 2012.
8. News: Borzi. Pat. Spreading Joy of Swimming, Ex-Olympian Finds It Again. The New York Times. 28 June 2012. 1 July 2012.