Stephanie Rice 2012 Olympics: Event Schedule, Results, Highlights & More

Blake DorfmanJun 1, 2018

With so much hype splashing around American swimmers, some may tend to overlook international stars like Stephanie Rice.

The 24-year-old Australian won three gold medals and set three world records in Beijing. That year, she was named Female Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World Magazine.

While she has yet to win gold in a World Championships, Rice took two bronze medals in Shanghai last year and has a full plate with the 200 IM, 400 IM, 200 Butterfly and 4x100 Medley Relay In London.

Follow the Aussie by bookmarking this page and returning frequently during the Games. We've got everything you need to know about her background and London schedule as well as results and expert analysis.

4x200-Meter Freestyle Relay Heats

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This morning saw Stephanie Rice and her Australian team-mates set a blistering qualifying time in the women's 4x200-meter freestyle relay heats.

Simply put, nobody could catch the Australians as they cruised their way to the fastest overall qualifying time of 7:49.44.

Rice will want to put the disappointment of the 200-meter individual medley final behind her and there's no better way to do that than to be a part of a gold-medal winning Australian team in this event.

They'll have some competition in the form of the USA and Canada, but, without being disrespectful, they should have enough to see off the other finalists.

200-Meter Individual Medley Final

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For a second, it looked like Stephanie Rice would finish high in the 200-meter individual medley. At the first turn, she was in the lead, and her backstroke leg is usually solid.

However, she couldn't sustain that strong start and faded dramatically in the last three legs. After Caitlin Leverenz came out strong in the breaststroke leg, Rice was in trouble.

She couldn't make up ground on Leverenz in the freestyle leg, and she ended up finishing fourth, off the medal podium. It was a disappointing result for the Australian, who was expected to win at least a bronze medal in the event.

Rice's time in the 200 IM final was 2 minutes, 9.55 seconds.

--Liviu Bird

200-Meter Individual Medley Qualification

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Rice holds the Olympic record in this event, but qualified for the semi-finals in unspectacular fashion (2:12.23). Actually, to be fair, she "held" the Olympic record.

She was facing some stiff competition in her heat, including China's Ye Shiwen who out-swam Ryan Lochte's final 50 meters. World-record holder Ariana Kukors of the United States was also in the heat.

Ye finished well ahead of the pace to steal Rice's Olympic record.

Alicia Coutts of Australia and Americans Caitlin Leverenz and Kukors finished just behind. Rice was well behind in fifth, but six swimmers from the heat made the finals.

Rice will have a difficult time reaching the podium, but she's the reigning Olympic champion for a reason. Her experience could get her a medal.

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400-Meter Individual Medley Final

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Australian star swimmer Stephanie Rice saw her 400m IM world record vanquished on Saturday. To add insult to injury, she failed to earn a medal in the event.

Shiwen Ye, who at 16 was the competitor in the final, shattered Rice's record (4:29.45) with a finishing time of 4:28.43.

Rice settled for a sixth-place finish, tied with American Caitlin Levernz at 4:35.49.

400-Meter Individual Medley Qualification

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Taking second in her heat with a time of 4 minutes and 35.76 seconds, Stephanie Rice is moving on in the women's 400-meter individual medley.

It was the only the seventh fastest time during the qualification round, but we know she can slice quicker through the water. After all, Rice is the world record-holder at 4:29.45 in the event.

And with the 200 individual medley not coming up until Monday, expect Rice to kick in high gear in the 400 medley final.