The men's 200 metre butterfly event at the 2004 Olympic Games was contested at the Olympic Aquatic Centre of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece on August 16 and 17. After finishing fifth in Sydney four years earlier, U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps added a second gold to his collection. He touched the wall first in 1:54.04, just 0.11 of a second under his own world record. Japan's Takashi Yamamoto earned a silver medal in an Asian record of 1:54.56. Stephen Parry ended Great Britain's 8-year medal drought with a bronze in 1:55.52. Parry also put his teammate Melanie Marshall on the spot to fulfill her promise of shaving her head if the Brits won a single swimming medal in Athens.