Australia wins women's 4x200m relay

Australia's Stephanie Rice-led 4x200m relay turned one of the nation's most disastrous days in the Olympic pool into one of its most memorable.

The quartet of Rice, Bronte Barratt, Kylie Palmer and Linda Mackenzie combined for one of the biggest boilovers of the Beijing Games, obliterating the world record and ending the Americans stranglehold on the event.

Their timing could not have been better on a drama-charged morning for Australia at the Water Cube.

It all started brightly enough with Brenton Rickard collecting silver in the 200m breaststroke.

Then red-hot favourite Libby Trickett almost missed out on the 100m freestyle final for the second straight Games - only a disqualification saving her bacon.

Two world record holders in Jess Schipper (bronze, 200m butterfly) and Eamon Sullivan (silver, 100m freestyle) then stepped up but came with away with shrapnel in their respective events.

It was looking pretty grim.

Enter the most unlikely of heroines - Australia's cursed women's 4x200m relay.

This is the relay in which the swimmers always clamber over each other to press the self-destruct button.

It is hard to forget the foursome at the 2001 Fukuoka world championships being disqualified for jumping in the pool early after coming first.

But no brain explosions today.

Rice led the team out and Australia were just a fingernail behind the French at the first change before Bronte Barratt grabbed a slight lead.

It was in the third leg the race was won with Palmer, more noted as a distance competitor, blowing away the opposition in the swim normally reserved for the weakest member.

She posted the fastest time of Australia's foursome and handed Mackenzie a commanding 3.14 lead against the best 200m swimmers on the globe.

Not only was Mackenzie a member of the 2001 relay that threw away the world championships gold medal, she had been a perennial underachiever on the international stage.

She gave away ground in the opening two laps to the chasing pack, her lead slashed in half.

But on a day of upsets, she held on to touch the wall at seven minutes and 44.31 seconds, just under six seconds below the old world mark.

"I got the job done," Mackenzie said after holding off the resurgent China (7:45.93) and USA (7:46.33).

The Mackay swimmer said it would probably be her last race and if so, what a way to go out for the 24-year-old.

There had been some whispers the 4x200m relay had been coming along well but even Australian head coach Alan Thompson said the women had exceeded his expectations.

Australia have long had talent in the 4x200m it has just been rare for it all to come together on the day.

Rice is known as a talented 200m freestyle swimmer but has generally preferred to focus on the medley.

Barratt and Mackenzie have previously struggled to perform to their potential at big meets while Palmer has been a bolter since producing stunning form at this year's Manchester world shortcourse championships.

Even so, Thompson admitted there still had been a slight risk attached to selecting Palmer, but it has proved a masterstroke.

And he praised the courage of Mackenzie in holding on to win as China and the US closed in.

"There was no more pressure on a person than could have been there," he said of Mackenzie's swim.

"She had the Americans having a crack at her and the Chinese having a crack at her and she held on."

The win capped a stunning week for Queensland stunner Rice.

Three races, three world records, three gold medals.

"It is still a shock .. and now to finish a little bit sad that it is over, it is something I have been looking forward to my whole life," she said.

"My first Olympics I never could have imagined to have a meet like this ... walking away with three gold medals and three world records is just amazing."

Australia have won five gold medals at the pool this week and the relay triumph kept the momentum going towards becoming the nation's most successful team.

The record tally is the eight titles won at the 1956 Melbourne Games when the sport had only 13 events compared to the 32 on the pool program.

The next best was the seven titles won in Athens four years ago.

The 4x200m triumph continued the great run by the Queensland girls in the pool, the banana benders have been responsible for all of the nation's five titles this week.

The only other state that could make a claim could be Victoria with 100m breaststroke champion Leisel Jones having moved from Brisbane to Melbourne last year.

The Americans missed out on a title for the first morning of the meet and it was no surprise that it coincided with the first finals session in which Michael Phelps wasn't chasing a medal.