Six sprinters have qualified for the finals in the 100-meter dash at the NCAA national track meet. In how many ways can the sprinters come in first, second, and third?

Question

(Let's assume there are no tires).

Answer 1

6 sprinters 3 at a time but ORDER matters

so we are talking permutations not combinations

n!/(n-r)! = 6!/3! = 6*5*4 = 120