| Women 200m Freestyle Swimming III World Championship 1978 West Berlin - Sunday, 22th August - Gold Medal: Cynthia Woodhead, United States | 
| Final |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | 50m | 100m | 150m |  | 1. Cynthia Woodhead |   United States | 1:58.53 | WR |   | 4 | 14 | 28.50s | 58.27s | 1:28.56 |  | 2. Barbara Krause |   East Germany | 1:59.76 |   | +1.23 | 3 | 19 | 28.31s | 58.27s | 1:29.60 |  | 3. Larisa Tsaryova |   Soviet Union | 2:01.76 | NR | +3.23 | 6 | 20 | 28.64s | 59.57s | 1:30.95 |  | 4. Annelies Maas |   Netherlands | 2:01.89 |   | +3.36 | 2 | 18 | 28.79s | 59.90s | 1:31.11 |  | 5. Enith Brigitha |   Netherlands | 2:01.99 |   | +3.46 | 5 | 23 | 28.47s | 58.90s | 1:29.97 |  | 6. Stephanie Elkins |   United States | 2:02.29 |   | +3.76 | 7 | 15 | 28.38s | 59.03s | 1:30.63 |  | 7. Nancy Garapick |   Canada | 2:04.14 |   | +5.61 | 1 | 16 | 29.17s | 1:00.27 | 1:32.16 |  | 7. Gail Amundrud |   Canada | 2:04.14 |   | +5.61 | 8 | 21 | 28.91s | 1:00.40 | 1:32.30 |   
 | 
 |  
| World Record: Barbara Krause, East Germany 1:59.04 (27.99s, 58.53s, 1:29.61) |  | Championship Record: Shirley Babashoff, United States 2:02.50 (29.14s, 1:00.60, 1:31.96) 1975 |   
|
 Heats - Sunday, 22nd August |  | Best 8 times advanced to Final>.  |   
| Heat 6 |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk |  | 3. Barbara Krause |   East Germany | 2:01.42 |   | +0.98s | - | 19 | 1. |  | 14.Marion Aizpors |   West Germany | 2:05.07 |   | +4.63s | - | 17 | 2. |  | 21.Heidi Koch |   Austria | 2:09.94 |   | +9.50s | - | 16 | 3. |   
| Heat 5 |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk |  | 1. Cynthia Woodhead |   United States | 2:00.44 | CR |   | - | 14 | 1. |  | 7. Nancy Garapick |   Canada | 2:03.70 |   | +3.26s | - | 16 | 2. |  | 8. Gail Amundrud |   Canada | 2:04.23 |   | +3.79s | - | 21 | 3. |   
| Heat 4 |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk |  | 5. Annelies Maas |   Netherlands | 2:03.02 |   | +2.58s | - | 18 | 1. |  | 6. Stephanie Elkins |   United States | 2:03.21 |   | +2.77s | - | 15 | 2. |  | 9. Birgitta Jonsson |   Sweden | 2:04.29 |   | +3.85s | - | 16 | 3. |   
| Heat 3 |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk |  | 4. Larisa Tsaryova |   Soviet Union | 2:02.02 |   | +1.58s | - | 20 | 1. |  | 12.Rebecca Perrott |   New Zealand | 2:04.79 |   | +4.35s | - | 17 | 2. |  | 17.Lone Jansen |   Denmark | 2:09.18 |   | +8.74s | - | _ | 3. |   
 | 
 |  
 | 
 | 
 | 
| Heat 2 |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk |  | 10.Irina Aksyonova |   Soviet Union | 2:04.39 |   | +3.95s | - | 15 | 1. |  | 11.Petra Jensurski |   West Germany | 2:04.51 | NR | +4.07s | - | _ | 2. |  | 18.Charlotte Petersen |   Denmark | 2:09.31 |   | +8.87s | - | _ | 3. |   
 | 
 | 
| Heat 1 |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk |  | 2. Enith Brigitha |   Netherlands | 2:01.15 | NR | +0.71s | - | 23 | 1. |  | 13.Guri Kogstad |   Norway | 2:05.06 |   | +4.62s | - | 17 | 2. |  | 15.Cheryl Brazendale |   Great Britain | 2:06.54 |   | +6.10s | - | _ | 3. |   
 | 
| Heat - |   | time |   | gap | L | ag | Rk  |  | 16.Andrea Strechota |   Austria | 2:08.15 |   | +7.71s | - | _ |   |  | 19.Maria Elisa Guimaraes |   Brazil | 2:09.67 |   | +9.23s | - | 19 |   |  | 20.Sonya Dangalakova |   Bulgaria | 2:09.92 |   | +9.48s | - | 15 |   |  | 21.Sachiko Yamazaki |   Japan | 2:09.94 | NR | +9.50s | - | 16 |   |  | 23.Ratchaneewan Bulakul |   Thailand | 2:10.90 | NR | +10.46s | - | 15 |   |  | 24.Natalia Mas |   Spain | 2:11.01 |   | +10.57s | - | 15 |   |  | 25.Shelley Katherine Cramer |   US Virgin Islands | 2:11.19 | NR | +10.75s | - | 16 |   |  | 26.Pascale Verbauwen |   Belgium | 2:11.73 |   | +11.29s | - | 15 |   |  | 27.Andrea Neumayer |   Argentina | 2:11.87 |   | +11.43s | - | _ |   |  | 28.Marta Slonina |   Poland | 2:12.27 |   | +11.83s | - | _ |   |  | 29.Wen-Hsuen Kiang |   Taiwan | 2:13.14 |   | +12.70s | - | _ |   |  | 30.Renata Janik |   Poland | 2:14.13 | NR | +13.69s | - | _ |   |  | 31.Adriana Fontan |   Colombia | 2:14.34 |   | +13.90s | - | _ |   |  | 32.Marie Rose Verplaetse |   Belgium | 2:14.52 |   | +14.08s | - | _ |   |  | 33.Lorgia Orejuela |   Ecuador | 2:15.03 |   | +14.59s | - | _ |   |  | 34.Myriam Mizouni |   Tunisia | 2:15.23 |   | +14.79s | - | 19 |   |  | 35.Maria Raikkala |   Finland | 2:15.65 |   | +15.21s | - | _ |   |  | 36.Sumatana Pingkatswan |   Thailand | 2:22.04 |   | +21.60s | - | _ |   |  | 37.Ahlem Gheribi |   Tunisia | 2:22.38 |   | +21.94s | - | _ |   |  | -. Michelle Ford |   Australia | DNS |   | - | - | 16 |   |  | -. Petra Thumer |   East Germany | DNS |   | - | - | 17 |   |  | -. Sharron Davies |   Great Britain | DNS |   | - | - | 15 |   |  | -. Tracey Wickham |   Australia | DNS |   | - | - | 15 |   |   
 | 
 |