Editor’s note: Follow the latest Olympics live results, medal count and updates for Saturday, July 27.
NANTERRE, France — Team USA’s men’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay team did some remarkable work to medal after qualifying early on Saturday night’s fourth day in the finals. Alternating between the prelims and finals at Paris La Defense Arena, the Americans put on a show in the fast relay in the pool en route to gold — the U.S.’s first at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The team of Jake Alexi, Chris Giuliano, Hunter Armstrong and Caleb Dressel won in 3:09.28, USA Swimming’s first gold of the Paris Olympics, but fell short of world record expectations. Australia took silver (1.07 behind) and Italy took bronze.
It was the Americans’ third swimming medal, following Katie Ledecky’s bronze in the 400 freestyle and silver in the women’s 4×100 freestyle relay.
The world record of 3:08.24 from the 2008 Beijing Olympics — owned by Michael Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones and Jason Leszak — stood despite predictions that Phelps, Jones and Leszak would all finally fall in Paris.
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The starting lineup of Ryan Held, Matt King, Armstrong and Dressel swam 3:12.61 to qualify behind China, Australia and Great Britain.
Alternating between second and fourth in the first half of the prelim race, Armstrong led the Americans to first with his unique third leg and 47.50 split — the only swimmer of the four to break 48-seconds. Dressel looked sluggish and faded at the end of his anchor leg, with Australian star Kyle Chalmers taking first place in his heat with a 100 .75-second faster than the American three-time Olympian.
