SwimSwam’s Awards For The 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials

2024 U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS

With the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials coming to an in depth on Sunday evening, it’s time for SwimSwam at hand out some digital {hardware} to the swimmers who stood out over 9 days of racing at Lucas Oil Stadium.

MALE SWIMMER OF THE MEET: CHRIS GUILIANO

Chris Guiliano got here into the meet as one of many favorites to qualify for the Olympic workforce, both individually within the males’s 100 freestyle or a minimum of a berth on the 400 free relay. Because it turned out, the 21-year-old was severely underestimated.

Guiliano kicked issues off with a shock within the 200 free, qualifying for Paris individually after putting 2nd to Luke Hobson (1:44.87) in a lifetime better of 1:45.38, doing so from Lane 1 after he snuck into the ultimate in seventh.

Guiliano then set a private better of 47.25 within the 100 free semis, claiming the highest seed for the ultimate after Jack Alexy scorched a 47.08 U.S. Open File within the heats. When the chips have been down within the ultimate, Guiliano got here by way of below stress, profitable the 100 free in 47.38 over Alexy (47.47) after the 2 males have been useless even on the flip in 22.51.

Regardless of having certified for 2 particular person occasions on the Video games, Guiliano wasn’t glad heading into the 50 free, because the Notre Dame standout broke 22 seconds for the primary time within the prelims (21.83), set one other PB of 21.59 to qualify 1st out of the semis, after which landed the second particular person slot in Paris behind Caeleb Dressel (21.41) after clocking 21.69 within the ultimate, ending .01 away from Matt King.

Guiliano’s efficiency at Trials made him the primary American male since Matt Biondi in 1988 to qualify for the Olympics within the 50, 100 and 200 free.

Honorable Mentions:

• Caeleb Dressel – After he was properly in need of qualifying for the World Championship workforce final summer season after his prolonged hiatus from the game, Dressel confirmed the perfect kind we’ve seen from him in a minimum of two years in Indianapolis. He gained the 50 free (21.41) and 100 fly (50.19) to earn the chance to defend two of his Olympic titles in Paris, and though he missed out on that probability within the 100 free, he nonetheless had a formidable displaying to position third in 47.53.
• Bobby Finke – Finke’s place atop the boys’s 800 and 1500 free was by no means unsure coming into the meet, and that proved to be the case though he needed to fend off rising star Luke Whitlock within the 800 free, clocking 7:44.22 to Whitlock’s 7:45.19. Finke closed out the competitors by dominating the 1500 free, setting a brand new U.S. Open File of 14:40.28, and he additionally set a lifetime greatest of three:46.27 to position 4th within the 400 free.
• Ryan Murphy – Like Finke, Murphy was the favourite to win the boys’s 100 and 200 again, and he got here away with victories in these races regardless of having an actual battle within the one occasion many thought could be a landslide. Murphy was anticipated to go toe-to-toe with Hunter Armstrong within the 100 again, however he ended up making it look comparatively simple with a 52.22 clocking within the ultimate for a half-second victory. Within the 200 again, Murphy discovered himself in a struggle with Keaton Jones and Jack Aikins for the win, and when pressed, Murphy got here by way of with the victory in 1:54.33, his quickest swim in three years.
• Carson Foster – Foster exorcised his demons on the second evening of racing within the males’s 400 IM, profitable the occasion going away to qualify for his first Olympic workforce with the third-fastest swim of his profession: 4:07.64. The efficiency got here below heavy stress given what occurred to Foster on the 2021 Trials. He adopted up by profitable the 200 IM in 1:55.65, a brand new private greatest.

FEMALE SWIMMER OF THE MEET: REGAN SMITH

Regan Smith had a bullet-proof confidence about her all week on the Olympic Trials, and it was on full show within the pool as she gained three occasions and got here shut in a fourth.

Smith kicked the meet off by producing one of many quickest swims in historical past within the girls’s 100 fly, clocking 55.62 to position third behind the brand new world report holder Gretchen Walsh (55.31) and Torri Huske (55.52). Regardless of Smith lacking a spot on the Olympic workforce early within the meet, it solely fueled her performances for the remainder of the competitors.

The 22-year-old was flawless by way of the three rounds of the 100 again, going an easy-looking sub-58 within the prelims (57.93), breaking her American File within the semis (57.47) after which topping issues off by breaking the world report within the ultimate, touching in 57.13 to crack Kaylee McKeown‘s mark of 57.33 set final October.

Smith continued to churn out elite swims down the again half of the meet, setting a Nationwide Championship File within the 200 fly semis (2:04.91) earlier than profitable the ultimate the subsequent evening (2:05.70) after which tackling the 200 again semis later that very same session.

Smith completed the job by profitable the 200 again by over a second in 2:05.16, giving her three particular person entries in Paris. The 200 again win had additional that means for Smith after she was third on the 2021 Trials, lacking out on the possibility to swim the occasion in Tokyo because the world report holder.

Honorable Mentions:

• Katie Ledecky – Ledecky did her factor in Indianapolis, handily sweeping the ladies’s 200, 400, 800 and 1500 free. The now four-time Olympian set a brand new Nationwide Championship File within the 400 free (3:58.35), and was considerably quicker in that occasion and the 1500 free in comparison with the 2021 Trials.
• Kate Douglass – Douglass needed to wait round till Day 4 to start out racing, however as soon as she hit the water she was unbeatable. Douglass rocketed to wins within the girls’s 100 free (52.56), 200 breast (2:19.46) and 200 IM (2:06.79), setting a brand new U.S. Open File within the latter and including a Nationwide Championship File within the 200 breast. Her swims within the 100 free and 200 IM have been additionally new private bests.
• Gretchen Walsh – Walsh could have solely gained one occasion in Indianapolis, however no swim in Lucas Oil Stadium despatched extra shockwaves across the globe than her world report efficiency within the semis of the ladies’s 100 fly (55.18). She adopted up by profitable the occasion the subsequent evening with the second-fastest swim ever (55.31), and went on to make the workforce in a second particular person occasion together with her spectacular runner-up end to Simone Manuel within the 50 free, clocking 24.15 within the ultimate after firing off a lifetime better of 24.06 within the semis. Walsh additionally set a PB within the 100 free, taking third in 53.13 to qualify for the relay in Paris.

MALE PERFORMANCE OF THE MEET: MATT FALLON, 200 BREAST

The lone American File set on the boys’s facet, Matt Fallon‘s efficiency within the 200 breaststroke was three years within the making after he positioned Eighth on the 2021 Trials regardless of coming in as the highest seed out of the semis.

This time, Fallon was the highest seed once more, however didn’t flinch within the ultimate as he turned third on the 100 in 1:01.50 after which blew away the sector on the again half, closing with a pair of 32.5 splits to register a time of two:06.54.

That displaying annihilated the American File of two:07.17, set by Josh Prenot on the 2016 Olympic Trials, and marked the Eighth-fastest swim in historical past and made Fallon the Fifth-fastest performer of all-time.

All-Time Performers, Males’s 200 Breaststroke (LCM)

1. Qin Haiyang (CHN), 2:05.48 – 2023
2. Zac Stubblety-Cook dinner (AUS), 2:05.95 – 2022
3. Anton Chupkov (RUS), 2:06.12 – 2019
4. Shoma Sato (JPN), 2:06.40 – 2021
5. Matt Fallon (USA), 2:06.54 – 2024

The swim marked the second straight greatest time for Fallon, who lowered his earlier PB of two:07.71 with a 2:07.39 clocking within the semi-finals.

Honorable Point out:

FEMALE PERFORMANCE OF THE MEET: GRETCHEN WALSH, 100 FLY

Gretchen Walsh despatched Lucas Oil Stadium right into a frenzy through the opening evening of competitors, rocketing to a brand new world report within the semi-finals of the ladies’s 100 fly.

After turning into the seventh girl in historical past to interrupt 56 seconds within the prelims, Walsh shattered the world report within the semis, touching in 55.18 to knock three-tenths off the earlier mark of 55.48 established by Sarah Sjostrom on the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

Walsh, who got here into the meet with a private better of 56.14, adopted up her record-breaking efficiency by profitable the ultimate the subsequent evening in 55.31, the 2nd-fastest swim in historical past.

All-Time Performances, Ladies’s 100 Butterfly (LCM)

1. Gretchen Walsh, United States — 55.18 (2024)
2. Gretchen Walsh, United States — 55.31 (2024)
3. Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden — 55.48 (2016)
4. Torri Huske, United States — 55.52 (2024)
5. Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden – 55.53 (2017)

Torri Huske (55.52) and Regan Smith (55.62) each went below what the American File was previous to the meet, Huske’s 55.64, in what was an unbelievable three-way battle.

Huske’s swim moved her to #3 all-time, and Smith, regardless of tying for Fifth-fastest ever, didn’t qualify for the Olympic workforce within the occasion.

All-Time Prime Performers, Ladies’s 100 Butterfly (LCM):

1. Gretchen Walsh, United States — 55.18 (2024)
2. Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden — 55.48 (2016)
3. Torri Huske, United States — 55.52 (2024)
4. Maggie MacNeil, Canada — 55.59 (2021)
5. Regan Smith, United States / Zhang Yufei, China — 55.62 (2024/2020)

Walsh’s lengthy course efficiency within the 100 fly comes after she obliterated the NCAA, American and U.S. Open Data within the quick course yards model of the occasion on the Ladies’s NCAA Championships in March, turning into the primary swimmer below 48 seconds in a surprising 47.42.

Honorable Point out:

• Regan Smith, 100 again – It was clear Smith was on top-tier kind after what she did within the 100 fly, and that confirmed up instantly within the 100 again, as she made a sub-58 swim look manner too simple within the prelims, clocking 57.93. She then lowered her American File by 4 one-hundredths within the semis, touching in 57.47, after which blew away Kaylee McKeown‘s world report within the ultimate, placing up a time of 57.13. Smith took two-tenths off McKeown’s mark of 57.33 set final October.

MALE JUNIOR SWIMMER OF THE MEET: THOMAS HEILMAN

Thomas Heilman backed up his breakout summer season of 2023 by making historical past at his first Olympic Trials, turning into the youngest male U.S. Olympian since Michael Phelps in 2000.

Heilman, 17, gained the 200 fly to solidify his spot in Paris on the fifth evening of racing, recording the quickest closing 50 within the subject to complete in 1:54.50—not a private greatest, having been 1:53.82 on the 2023 World Championships, however good for the win.

Heilman then stepped up in a giant manner in ultimate of the 100 fly.

He solely certified eleventh out of the prelims in 52.30, after which superior to the ultimate in seventh, clocking 51.58 within the semis—notably with the slowest first 50 (25.02) and the quickest second 50 (26.56) of all 16 semi-finalists.

Within the ultimate, that back-half capability proved to be the distinction maker for Heilman, as he turned seventh on the 50 in 24.23 earlier than rocketing dwelling in 26.57, edging out Dare Rose on the wall for the second spot in 50.80.

Rose was third in 50.84, whereas Caeleb Dressel claimed victory in 50.19. Regardless of each of them closing quick—Dressel in 26.66, Rose in 26.74—Heilman got here again quicker.

Heilman’s swim additionally marked a brand new Nationwide Age Group File for 17-18 boys, as he cracked Michael Phelps‘ 21-year-old mark of 51.10. When Phelps recorded that point within the semis on the 2003 World Championships, it was a brand new world report.

Honorable Point out:

• Luke Whitlock – Earlier than Heilman made the workforce within the 200 fly, Whitlock briefly held the excellence of being the youngest male U.S. Olympian since 2000—although he had not but formally certified—after he had a standout displaying within the 800 free. Whitlock, 18, broke the 17-18 NAG report by practically three seconds in 7:45.19, downing Larsen Jensen‘s mark of seven:48.09 from 2003, to position 2nd to Bobby Finke (7:44.22) as he gave the defending Olympic champion an actual battle. That efficiency from Whitlock got here after he impressed within the 400 free, shifting to #2 all-time for 17-18 boys within the prelims in a PB of three:46.42, qualifying 1st, earlier than putting Fifth within the ultimate in 3:46.55. Whitlock closed the meet out by practically including a second occasion to his Paris schedule, putting third within the 1500 free in 14:53.00, a large greatest time to maneuver him to #3 all-time within the 17-18 age group. He was properly again of David Johnston with 50 meters to go, however closed in a blazing 27.74 to make it shut, finally ending 26 one-hundredths again.

FEMALE JUNIOR SWIMMER OF THE MEET: ALEX SHACKELL

Alex Shackell and her coaches at Carmel Swim Membership made the troublesome determination to withdraw from the ultimate of the ladies’s 100 fly regardless of her displaying career-best kind, bringing her PB down from 57.22 to 57.07 within the heats, after which breaking 57 seconds for the primary time within the semis in 56.78.

That swim moved Shackell to #3 all-time within the women’ 17-18 age group, and it additionally seeded her 4th for the 100 fly ultimate. Nevertheless, with Walsh, Huske and Smith all below 56 seconds within the semis, Shackell didn’t have a transparent path to Olympic qualification within the occasion, however she did within the 200 free.

Quite than tackling the 100 fly ultimate/200 free semi double on Sunday evening, Shackell put all her eggs within the 200 free basket and it paid off, as she superior to the ultimate in sixth (1:57.42) after which completed in the identical place the subsequent evening, setting a brand new private better of 1:57.05 to all however solidify her spot in Paris. The swim additionally moved her to #8 all-time for 17-18 women.

With Olympic qualification secured, the 17-year-old was freed as much as let it rip in her greatest occasion, the 200 fly, and she or he did simply that. Shackell cracked 2:07 for the primary time within the prelims (2:06.71), broke Smith’s NAG report within the semis (2:06.10), after which positioned 2nd to Smith within the ultimate (2:06.69), giving her a person entry in Paris.

In qualifying for the Video games, Shackell joined her older brother, Aaron Shackell, on the workforce after he gained the boys’s 400 free on the opening evening of competitors.

Honorable Point out:

• Audrey Derivaux – Junior-aged swimmers Katie Grimes and Claire Weinstein certified for the Olympic workforce, however that was anticipated. One swimmer who actually made an influence in Indianapolis, receiving a few of the greatest cheers from the group at Lucas Oil Stadium, was Audrey Derivaux, the 14-year-old Jersey Wahoos product who made the ultimate of the ladies’s 400 IM. Derivaux clocked a time of 4:45.23 within the prelims, touchdown a spot within the ultimate in Eighth and shifting to #7 all-time within the women’ 13-14 age group. After racing the 100 again later in that prelim session, she went on to position Eighth within the 400 IM ultimate (4:46.89), and she or he additionally made semis within the 200 again (2:09.80) and 200 fly (2:09.83), putting tenth in each and shifting to #4 and #3 all-time within the age group, respectively. At first of the meet, she tied for twenty fourth within the 100 fly in 59.25, additionally rating #3 within the 13-14 age group. On prime of all of those races, she additionally positioned twenty third within the 200 IM, inside a half-second of her greatest time in 2:16.05.

TEAM OF THE MEET: CALIFORNIA AQUATICS

Cal and head coach Dave Durden put six swimmers on the Olympic workforce:

*Armstrong represented the New York Athletic Membership (NYAC) on the competitors however trains in Berkeley.

Murphy had his quickest swim within the 200 again in three years to safe the victory, Armstrong confirmed unbelievable kind with three sub-48 swims within the 100 free, and Jones unearthed a monstrous greatest time to snag 2nd to Murphy within the 200 again in 1:54.61.

Alexy’s efficiency within the 100 free prelims was one of many swims of the meet, as his 47.08 clocking moved him to #8 all-time.

On prime of the Olympic qualifiers, numerous different Cal swimmers stood out with finals appearances:

Honorable Point out: