Olympic Swimming Schedule 2012: Sunday's Can't-Miss Finals Events

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Every final of the swimming events during the Summer Olympics is must-see television.

The 2012 London Games are no different, and Sunday brings us plenty of exciting action. From the women's 100-meter butterfly to the men's first relay event (4x100 freestyle), you can confidently anticipate being on the edge of your seat.

Ahead, we'll get to see notable Olympians such as USA Dana Vollmer who just set the Olympic record in the 100-meter butterfly, among others.

So let's get to it, here are the can't-miss finals to check out before the work week.

Women's 400-Meter Freestyle

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When:

July 29—Heats, 6:23 a.m. EDT, Final 3:18 p.m. EDT

 

Potential Contenders to Watch:

Camille Muffat, France

Federica Pellegrini, Italy

Rebecca Adlington, Great Britain

Allison Schmitt, USA

 

Arguably the deepest competition of any single swimming event, the women's 400-meter freestyle presents many legit gold medal contenders. Federica Pellegrini is the current world record-holder, and Rebecca Adlington is the defending Olympic gold-medalist.

Camille Muffat, on the other hand, enters with the fastest seeded time, and Allison Schmitt isn't far behind.

Men's 4x100 Freestyle Relay

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When:

July 29—Heats, 6:56 a.m. EDT, Final, 4 p.m. EDT

 

Potential Medal Contenders to Watch:

Australia

France

USA

Italy

 

No surprise here to see Australia, France, USA and Italy among the top contenders for the men's 4x100 freestyle relay.

The United States is the defending gold-medalist, and Austrailia and France took silver and bronze in Beijing, respectively. Italy however, needs to get over the hump after taking fourth in 2008 and begins London with the fourth fastest seeded time.

Women's 100-Meter Butterfly

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When:

July 29—Final, 2:30 p.m. EDT

 

Potential Medal Contenders

Dana Vollmer, USA

Ying Lu, China

Sarah Sjostrom, Australia

Tao Li, Singapore

 

Setting a new Olympic record in the preliminary rounds, Dana Vollmer immediately propelled herself to the front of the women's 100-meter butterfly with a time of 56.25 seconds.

That said, the rest of the field has strong competition in the world record-holder Sarah Sjostrom and Singapore's Tao Li who took fifth at the Beijing Games. China's Ying Lu is also one to watch for after swimming the second-fastest time in the prelims.

Men's 100-Meter Breaststroke

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When:

July 29—Final, 3:11 p.m. EDT

 

Potential Medal Contenders to Watch:

Christian Sprenger, Australia

Kosuke Kitajima, Japan

Giedrius Titenis, Lithuania

Brendan Hansen, USA

 

The men's 100-meter breaststroke is an interesting group. Christian Sprenger, Kosuke Kitajima and Giedrius Titenis all swam the top three times and were in the same heat.

Additionally, Kitajima is the defending gold-medalist, while Brendan Hansen took fourth during the 2008 Beijing Games.

 

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