The twelve teams of three riders raced the course without competition in the qualifying round. The top eight qualified for the first round, while the bottom four received final rankings based on their times in the qualifying round.
In the first round of match competition, teams raced head-to-head. The two fastest winners advanced to the finals, the other two winners competed for the bronze medal and fourth place, and losers received final rankings (fifth through eight places) based on their times in the round. In this round, Great Britain had the second fastest time overall, but lost their match to Germany and therefore did not advance to the medal round.
"Cycling Track"(PDF) (Press release). Organising Committee for the Olympic Games Athens 2004. 21 August 2004. Retrieved 20 March 2008. Men's Team Sprint: Communiqués 7, 31, 35, 39, and 40.