[1] Massimiliano Rosolino blasted a new Olympic record to add Italy's third gold medal in swimming at these Games.

He edged out U.S. swimmer Tom Dolan with a fastest split (33.52) on the breaststroke leg to take over the lead at the final turn, and hit the wall first in a sterling time of 1:58.98, clipping 0.93 seconds off a record set by Hungary's Attila Czene in Atlanta.

[2][3] Dolan, the defending champion in the 400 m individual medley four days earlier, became the first American to break a two-minute barrier, taking home the silver in a new national record of 1:59.77.

[4] Meanwhile, Tom Wilkens earned a bronze in 2:00.87, handing an entire medal haul for the U.S. team with a two–three finish.

Finland's world record holder Jani Sievinen closed out the field with an eighth-place finish in 2:02.49.