The Olympics are known for dramatic moments and close calls, and the swimming pool has witnessed some of the most thrilling finishes in sports history. These races were decided by fractions of a second, showcasing the incredible athleticism and determination of these athletes.
In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Michael Phelps, already a legend, was aiming for his eighth gold medal. He faced a formidable opponent in Serbia’s Milorad Cavic, who held the Olympic record in the 100m butterfly. Cavic had a commanding lead at the halfway point, but Phelps, as he often does, surged forward in the final stretch. The two swimmers touched the wall nearly simultaneously, with Phelps edging out Cavic by a mere one-hundredth of a second (50.58s to 50.59s). This victory cemented Phelps’s place in Olympic history.
Just a few moments later, Phelps and his American teammates Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones, and Jason Lezak took to the pool for the 4x100m freestyle relay. This race was a nail-biter from start to finish. The USA team trailed for much of the competition, facing stiff competition from Australia and France. It was Lezak, in the anchor leg, who put in a phenomenal effort, pushing the USA to victory and setting a new world record in the process. The team clocked 3:08:24, shaving off almost four seconds from their previous record, with France finishing a mere eight-hundredths of a second behind.
Russian swimming legend Alexander Popov, known for his dominance in shorter distances, faced his own heart-stopping finish at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. In the 50m freestyle, he battled it out against America’s Matthew Biondi. Popov touched the wall first, setting a new Olympic record with a time of 21.91 seconds, while Biondi, a four-time Olympic gold medalist, finished a mere 18-hundredths of a second behind. Popov went on to win the 100m freestyle as well, solidifying his place as one of the greatest sprinters of all time.
The 1996 Atlanta Olympics saw another incredibly tight finish in the women’s 50m freestyle. Amy Van Dyken, making her Olympic debut, battled China’s Jingyi Le for the gold. Le finished with a time of 24.90 seconds, but Van Dyken, in a remarkable display of speed and precision, touched the wall just three-hundredths of a second ahead, securing the gold medal with a time of 24.87 seconds. Van Dyken, in a historic feat, went on to win four gold medals in Atlanta, becoming the first American woman to achieve this distinction.
And finally, the list wouldn’t be complete without another Michael Phelps moment. At the 2012 London Olympics, Phelps was aiming for a third consecutive gold in the men’s 200m butterfly. He was in the lead for much of the race, but in the final stretch, South Africa’s Chad le Clos, just 20 years old, surged forward with incredible power. Le Clos touched the wall first with a time of 1:52:96, beating Phelps, the legendary champion, by a mere 0.05 seconds. This race was a reminder that in the world of Olympic swimming, even the greatest athletes can be surprised by the next generation.
