Swimming at the 1948 Summer Games: Previous Summer Games ▪ Next Summer Games
Host City: London, Great Britain
Venue(s): Wembley Arena, Wembley, London
Date Started: August 3, 1948
Date Finished: August 5, 1948
| Gold: | Karen Margrethe Harup |
| Silver: | Suzanne Zimmerman |
| Bronze: | Judy-Joy Davies |
The cancellation of the 1940 and 1944 Games meant that Con Kint of Holland would never grace the Olympic stage. Her world record, set in 1939, would last for 21 years but Kint herself was long retired by the time the London Games came around. The favourite was the Dane, Karen Margrethe Harup, who had won the event at the 1947 European Championships. Harup proved to be a worthy champion as she broke the Olympic record in all three of her races. She finished over a second clear of Suzanne Zimmerman of the USA with Judy-Joy Davies taking bronze for Australia. Monique Berlioux, who was eliminated in the semi-finals was a member of the French Resistance during World War Two and later went on a career with the International Olympic Committee. She served as Director of the IOC between 1971 and 1995.
| Rank | Athlete | Age | Team | NOC | Medal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Karen Margrethe Harup | 23 | Denmark | DEN | Gold | OR |
| 2 | Suzanne Zimmerman | 23 | United States | USA | Silver | |
| 3 | Judy-Joy Davies | 20 | Australia | AUS | Bronze | |
| 4 | Ilona Novák | 23 | Hungary | HUN | ||
| 5 | Ria van der Horst | 15 | Netherlands | NED | ||
| 6 | Dicky van Ekris | 15 | Netherlands | NED | ||
| 7 | Muriel Mellon | 20 | United States | USA | ||
| 8 | Greetje Gaillard | 21 | Netherlands | NED | ||
| 4 h2 r2/3 | Helen Yate | 27 | Great Britain | GBR | ||
| 5 h2 r2/3 | Barbara Jensen | 18 | United States | USA | ||
| 6 h1 r2/3 | Cathie Gibson | 17 | Great Britain | GBR | ||
| 6 h2 r2/3 | Monique Berlioux | 22 | France | FRA | ||
| 7 h1 r2/3 | Ngaire Lane | 22 | New Zealand | NZL | ||
| 7 h2 r2/3 | Vera Ellery | 21 | Great Britain | GBR | ||
| 8 h1 r2/3 | Beryl Marshall | Argentina | ARG | |||
| 4 h1 r1/3 | Ingegerd Fredin | 17 | Sweden | SWE | ||
| 4 h4 r1/3 | Magda Bruggemann | Mexico | MEX | |||
| 5 h1 r1/3 | Kolbrún Ólafsdóttir | 15 | Iceland | ISL | ||
| 5 h2 r1/3 | Doris Gontersweiler-Vetterli | 14 | Switzerland | SUI | ||
| 5 h4 r1/3 | Bea Ballintijn | 25 | Norway | NOR | ||
| 6 h2 r1/3 | Joyce Court | Canada | CAN | |||
| 6 h3 r1/3 | Liliana Gonzalias | Argentina | ARG | |||
| 6 h4 r1/3 | Edith de Oliveira | 19 | Brazil | BRA | ||
| 7 h4 r1/3 | Ginette Jany-Sendral | 16 | France | FRA |