The men's 200 metre butterfly event at the 1956 Summer Olympics took place on 30 November and 1 December in the Olympic Park Swimming and Diving Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.[1] This swimming event used the butterfly stroke. Because an Olympic-size swimming pool is 50 metres long, this race consisted of four lengths of the pool. This was the first time that the butterfly stroke had appeared in the Olympic Games as a separate event, following its introduction as a superior variant of breaststroke in the 1936 Olympics Men's 200 metre Breaststroke and subsequent dominance in the 200 metre breaststroke events at the 1948 Summer Olympics and 1952 Summer Olympics. [2]
The winning margin was 4.5 seconds which as of 2023 remains the only time this event for men has been won by more than three seconds at the Olympics.
Three heats were held. The swimmers with the eight fastest times advanced to the Finals. The swimmers that advanced are highlighted.