The men's 50 metre freestyle event at the
2000 Summer Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...
took place on 21–22 September at the
Sydney International Aquatic Centre
The Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (SOPAC) , formerly Sydney International Aquatic Centre (SIAC), is a swimming pool, swimming venue located in the Sydney Olympic Park in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Built in 1994, the SOPAC was a majo ...
in
Sydney, Australia
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...
.
U.S. swimmers
Gary Hall, Jr.
Gary Wayne Hall Jr. (born September 26, 1974) is an American former competition swimmer who represented the United States at the 1996, 2000, and 2004 Olympics and won ten Olympic medals (five gold, three silver, two bronze). He is a former wor ...
and
Anthony Ervin
Anthony Lee Ervin (born May 26, 1981) is an American competition swimmer who has won four Olympic medals and two World Championship golds. At the 2000 Summer Olympics, he won a gold medal in the men's 50-meter freestyle, and earned a silver med ...
, 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
Pieter Cornelis Martijn van den Hoogenband (; born 14 March 1978) is a Dutch retired swimmer. He is a triple Olympic champion and former world record holder.
Early life
Born in Maastricht, Limburg, he is the son of Cees-Rein van den Hoogenband ...
in 22.03.
Italy's
Lorenzo Vismara
Lorenzo Vismara (born 10 August 1975 in Saronno, Varese) is an Italian freestyle sprinter. He achieved many European-level medals in 50 m freestyle, 100 m freestyle and 4 × 100 m freestyle relay events. He participated for Italy in the Summer ...
finished fourth in 22.11, while Poland's
Bartosz Kizierowski
Bartłomiej "Bartosz" Kizierowski (born 20 February 1977) is a freestyle who represented Poland in four consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1996.
Biography
Kizierowski began his career as a backstroke swimmer, but changed to freestyle ...
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.
[ Great Britain's four-time Olympian Mark Foster (22.41) and Ukraine's ]Oleksandr Volynets
Oleksandr Volynets (born 9 October 1974 in Ternopil) is a Ukrainian swimmer who competes in the freestyle events. He has been a scholarship holder with the Olympic Solidarity Program since August 2002.
Achievements
*2006 FINA Short Course World ...
(22.51) rounded out the finale.[ 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.
Ervin stopped swimming competitively in 2003, auctioned off his gold medal on ]eBay
eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became a ...
to aid survivors of the 2004 tsunami
An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Suma ...
, but returned from retirement to claim his place on his second Olympics
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
, in London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, twelve years after his first.2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
and Ervin in 2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
), 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
[
]
Semifinals
Final
References
External links
Official Olympic Report
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swimming at the 2000 Summer Olympics - Men's 50 metre freestyle
F
Men's events at the 2000 Summer Olympics