The 100 metre freestyle is often considered to be the highlight (Blue Ribbon event)[1] of the sport of swimming, like 100 metres in the sport of Athletics.
The first swimmer to break the one-minute barrier (long course) was Johnny Weissmuller, in 1922.[2] The current world records holders are Pan Zhanle (since February 2024) and Sarah Sjöström (since 2017).
Australian Dawn Fraser won the event a record three times at the Olympics, and she is the only woman to win it more than once. Four men, American Duke Kahanamoku, Weissmuller, Russian Alexander Popov, and Dutchman Pieter van den Hoogenband won the event at the Olympics twice. Popov was also world champion (held since 1973) three times.
| Edition | Winner | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 Belgrade 1973
|
 Jim Montgomery (USA)
|
51.70 | [4] |
 Cali 1975
|
Andy Coan (USA)
|
51.25 | 
|
 Berlin 1978
|
David McCagg (USA)
|
50.24 |
|
 Guayaquil 1982
|
 Jörg Woithe (GDR)
|
50.18 |
|
 Madrid 1986
|
Matt Biondi (USA)
|
48.94 |
|
 Perth 1991
|
Matt Biondi (USA)
|
49.18 | |
 Roma 1994
|
 Alexander Popov (RUS)
|
49.12 | |
| Perth 1998
|
Alexander Popov (RUS)
|
48.93 |
|
 Fukuoka 2001
|
Anthony Ervin (USA)
|
48.33 |
|
| Barcelona 2003
|
Alexander Popov (RUS)
|
48.42 | |
 Montreal 2005
|
 Filippo Magnini (ITA)
|
48.12 |
|
| Melbourne 2007
|
Filippo Magnini (ITA) Brent Hayden (CAN)
|
48.43 | |
| Rome 2009
|
 César Cielo (BRA)
|
46.91 | 
|
 Shanghai 2011
|
 James Magnussen (AUS)
|
47.63 | |
| Barcelona 2013
|
James Magnussen (AUS)
|
47.71 | |
 Kazan 2015
|
 Ning Zetao (CHN)
|
47.84 | |
 Budapest 2017
|
Caeleb Dressel (USA)
|
47.17 | |
 Gwanju 2019
|
Caeleb Dressel (USA)
|
46.96 | |
| Budapest 2022
|
 David Popovici (ROU)
|
47.58 | |
| Fukuoka 2023
|
Kyle Chalmers (AUS)
|
47.15 | |
 Doha 2024
|
Pan Zhanle (CHN)
|
47.53 |
| Edition | Winner | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgrade 1973
|
Kornelia Ender (GDR)
|
57.54 |
|
| Cali 1975
|
Kornelia Ender (GDR)
|
56.50 |
|
| Berlin 1978
|
Barbara Krause (GDR)
|
55.68 |
|
| Guayaquil 1982
|
Birgit Meineke (GDR)
|
55.79 | |
| Madrid 1986
|
Kristin Otto (GDR)
|
55.05 |
|
| Perth 1991
|
Nicole Haislett (USA)
|
55.17 | |
| Roma 1994
|
Le Jingyi (CHN)
|
54.01 |
|
| Perth 1998
|
Jenny Thompson (USA)
|
54.95 | |
| Fukuoka 2001
|
 Inge de Bruijn (NED)
|
54.18 | |
| Barcelona 2003
|
 Hanna-Maria Seppälä (FIN)
|
54.37 | |
| Montreal 2005
|
Jodie Henry (AUS)
|
54.18 | |
| Melbourne 2007
|
Libby Lenton (AUS)
|
53.40 |
|
| Rome 2009
|
 Britta Steffen (GER)
|
52.07 |
|
| Shanghai 2011
|
 Aliaksandra Herasimenia (BLR)
|
53.45 | |
 Jeanette Ottesen (DEN)
|
|||
| Barcelona 2013
|
Cate Campbell (AUS)
|
52.34 | |
| Kazan 2015
|
Bronte Campbell (AUS)
|
52.52 | |
| Budapest 2017
|
Simone Manuel (USA)
|
52.27 | |
| Gwanju 2019
|
Simone Manuel (USA)
|
52.04 | |
| Budapest 2022
|
Mollie O'Callaghan (AUS)
|
52.67 | |
| Fukuoka 2023
|
Mollie O'Callaghan (AUS)
|
52.16 | |
| Doha 2024
|
Marrit Steenbergen (NED)
|
52.26 |
