Swimming - Team United States

General
No other nation has won as many Olympic medals as the United States of America in the men's 4x200m freestyle relay, and only Great Britain's 25 Olympic appearances is higher than the US team's record. In 24 Olympic appearances the US team have won 24 medals, including 17 gold. They won their fourth consecutive gold medal in the event at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, with Australia the only team to upset their dominance this century when they finished ahead of the US team at the 2000 Games in Sydney.

The US team made their Olympic debut in the inaugural men's 4x200m freestyle relay at the 1908 Games in London, where they claimed bronze. They won silver four years later in Stockholm, and then a first gold at the 1920 Games in Antwerp with a world record time of 10:04.4. By comparison, their winning time at the 2016 Games was 7:00.66, and the world record the team set at the world championships in 2009 was 6:58.55, just 0.01s faster than their 2008 Olympic gold medal-winning time.

The US team's record at world championships, while not quite as dominant, is still unrivalled. Their total of 18 medals is two more than their nearest rivals Australia and Italy, and includes eight gold medals, which is twice as many as nearest rival Australia. They won five consecutive titles between 2005 and 2013, but in 2015 the team had to settle for silver when Great Britain upset the odds to take a surprise gold. The US team won bronze at the 2017 edition of the tournament, finishing behind Great Britain and winners the Russian Federation. At the 2019 World Championships it was the Russian Federation and winners Australia claiming the top two spots ahead of them. Their 2009 world title remains the only time they have swum the event in under seven minutes at the world championships.