[1] U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps broke a new world record of 4:08.26 to claim his first ever Olympic gold medal.

Phelps' teammate Erik Vendt added a second silver to the one he earned behind Tom Dolan in Sydney four years earlier, finishing with a time of 4:11.81.

Hungary's László Cseh, silver medalist at the 2003 FINA World Championships, held on for bronze in 4:12.15.

[2][3] Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.

The following new world and Olympic records were set during this competition.