After an unprecedented 12 months of racing that included the Olympics sandwiched between the Lengthy Course and Brief Course World Championships, it’s time to start out releasing our fifth annual Prime 100 record—try final 12 months’s rankings right here.
As in earlier years, we’ve taken a statistically pushed strategy reliant primarily upon world rankings and medals received on the Olympics, and to a lesser extent, Brief Course Worlds and the 2024 Worlds in Doha. We’ve additionally taken into consideration issues corresponding to potential, future medal alternatives, accidents, and flexibility. Lengthy course is weighted greater than brief course, although efficiency potential in each codecs is factored in.
After a big contingent of Russian and Belarusian swimmers raced at Brief Course Worlds in December, these swimmers have began to maneuver again up the rankings after they have been low on the lists final 12 months attributable to lack of competitors.
We’ll be breaking down the highest 100 into a number of installments, so hold an eye fixed out as they’re launched.
These lists are, by nature, subjective. For those who disagree, depart your ideas/ranks within the feedback.
Thanks to Daniel Takata for his assist with the info and compiling the rankings. Sophie Kaufman contributed to this report.
Ladies’s Rankings:
- #100 – #91
- #90 – #81
- #80 – #71
- #70 – #61
- #60 – #51
- #50 – #41
- #40 – #31
- #30 – #21
- #20 – #11
- #10 – #1
#80: Amelie Blocksidge, Nice Britain (2024 Rank: 95) — 15-year-old Amelie Blocksidge made our record final 12 months within the 95 spot, and she or he solely received quicker this 12 months. On the British Olympic Trials, she completed 1st within the 800 and 1500 freestyle occasions, 2nd within the 400 free, and seventh within the 400 IM, however she missed the Olympic Qualifying Occasions in her occasions and was unable to swim in Paris. She did swim on the European Junior Championships in July, choosing up wins and new greatest instances within the 800 free (8:30.05) and the 1500 free (16:10.23). Blocksidge was newly 15 at this meet, and she or he is already quicker than the 15 and 16-year-old British Age Group Information within the 800. To place her 800 free time into perspective, at just some months youthful, Katie Ledecky was 8:30.14. Blocksidge received the chance to swim on the 2024 SC Worlds in three occasions, inserting twentieth within the 400 free, twelfth within the 800 free, and seventh within the 1500 free. Her 1500 time of 15:47.28 was simply over a second shy of the British Nationwide File within the occasion.
#79: Katie Shanahan, Nice Britain (2024 Rank: 46) —20-year-old Katie Shanahan has proven herself to be a flexible swimmer, however the occasion the place she’s discovered probably the most success on the worldwide stage is the 200 backstroke. She’s helped barely by the truth that the ladies’s 200 backstroke isn’t the deepest worldwide subject however Shanahan has proved that she’s a constant risk on this race. She took fifth within the 200 backstroke with the second-fastest swim of her profession, a 2:07.53, simply off her greatest of two:07.45. She made the 400 IM at her debut Video games as effectively, flexing her versatility and taking seventh (4:40.17).
#78: Rebecca Meder, South Africa (2024 Rank: NR) —South Africa’s Rebecca Meder reinvented her swimming this 12 months, including the breaststroke depth in South Africa on high of her IM expertise. 22-year-old Meder began swimming the breaststroke occasions after the Olympics, and she or he is shortly establishing herself as somebody to look at. Meder has beforehand swam IM occasions internationally, inserting eleventh within the 200 on the Olympics. She began swimming the breaststroke occasions on the World Cup in Shanghai, the place she completed third within the 100 and 200 breaststroke and the 200 IM. On the SC World Champs, Meder swam the 100 and 200 breaststrokes, and the 100 and 200 IM occasions. She completed within the high eight in all 4, inserting sixth within the 100 breast, fifth within the 200 breast, sixth within the 100 IM and sixth within the 200 IM. She additionally participated on two of South Africa’s relays, swimming fly on the medley (57.20) and breast on the blended medley (1:04.81).
#77: Ksenia Misharina, Russia (2024 Rank: 23) —15-year-old Ksenia Misharina has risen the ranks of Russian distance swimming within the final 12 months, and she or he is barely getting quicker. On the Russian Swimming Championships in April, Misharina picked up two occasion wins within the 800 (8:29.05) and 1500 (16:06.09) freestyle occasions, and a bronze within the 400 free (4:10.32). Her instances have been considerably quicker than when she broke into mainstream swimming only a 12 months prior, dropping nearly 30 seconds within the mile, 15 seconds within the 800 and 5 seconds within the 400. On the Nationwide SC Swimming Championships she picked up extra wins within the 1500 and 800 freestyles, and positioned third within the 200. At SC Worlds, Misharina positioned twelfth within the 1500 (15:55.80) and eleventh within the 800 (8:20.81). She additionally swam on the 4th place 4×200 freestyle relay for thej Russian Impartial Athletes.
#76: Brianna Throssell, Australia (2024 Rank: NR) —Brianna Throssell had a robust begin to 2024. The Australian 28-year-old began the 12 months on the 2024 World Aquatics Championships in Doha, the place she swam three particular person occasions and 5 relays, successful six medals. Her solely particular person medal got here within the ladies’s 200 freestyle, the place she positioned third at 1:56.00. She additionally completed 4th within the 100 fly and eighth within the 50 fly. She did compete as a member of the gold medal ladies’s 4×100 medley relay (fly), the silver medal ladies’s 4×100 freestyle relay, blended 4×100 medley relay (fly), and blended 4×100 freestyle relay, and the bronze medal ladies’s 4×200 freestyle relay. On the Australian Olympic Trials, she completed third within the 100 fly and 4th within the 200 free earlier than scratching the 200 fly, lacking the Olympic Staff individually. The 4th place end within the 200 did earn her a Paris swim and a gold medal as a member of the ladies’s 4×200 freestyle relay.
#75: Waka Kobori, Japan (2024 Rank: NR) —Japanese distance swimmer Waka Kobori has been on the high of Japanese distance swimming for a number of years. She began her 12 months on the Japanese Olympic Trials the place she received the 200 and 800 freestyle occasions, positioned 2nd within the 400 free, and third within the 400 IM. She went on to swim the 400 on the Olympic Video games, the place she completed eleventh at 4:08.02. She was additionally a member of the 4×200 freestyle relay, which positioned thirteenth general. She didn’t compete within the 800 or the 200 however she completed the 12 months ranked fifteenth within the 800. Her highest year-end rating got here within the 400 IM the place she completed tenth at 4:36.55, however there have been two Japanese swimmers forward of her. Kobori additionally swam at two legs of the World Cup the place earned two third place finishes within the 400 free (Incheon) and the 400 IM (Singapore).
#74: Chen Luying, China (2024 Rank: NR) —Chen Luying from China held a World Junior File this 12 months for somewhat greater than three months. Luying is a 200 butterfly specialist, and the 17-year-old blasted a time of two:02.52 on the SC Chinese language Nationwide Championships in September to set the World Junior File within the occasion. The 17-year-old held the file till the SC World Championships in December, when Summer season McIntosh broke it within the preliminaries. Luying additionally swam the 200 fly on the Olympic video games the place she got here in fifth, and on the 2024 SC Worlds the place she was fifth once more. As well as, at SC Worlds she swam 100 fly at SC Worlds individually (ending twelfth), and on relays for China, incomes a bronze medal within the 4×100 medley.
#73: Olivia Wunsch, Australia (2024 Rank: 80) — Australia will not be hurting for quick freestylers, and Olivia Wunsch finds herself as a sufferer of that, regardless of having a number of high 100 instances, and two high 15 instances. Wunsch, 18, competed largely at Australia meets final 12 months. On the Australian Age Group Championships, she received the 50 fly, 100 free, and 100 fly, and completed 2nd within the 50. She went on to swim the 50 free, 100 free, 200 free, and 100 butterfly on the Australian trials, together with her highest end coming at 4th within the 50. She completed fifth within the 100, which certified her for the Olympic Staff and finally received her a gold medal as a member of the prelims 4×100 freestyle relay. Wunsch completed the 12 months ranked fifteenth within the 50 and 100 freestyles. She was the best ranked junior swimmer in each. She additionally completed 51st within the 200 free and 61st within the 100 fly.
#72: Ella Ramsay, Australia (2024 Rank: NR) —Ella Ramsay, 20, joins two different Australian swimmers on this part of ten. Ramsay swims the IM and breaststroke occasions, and took 4 high two spots on the 2024 Olympic Trials within the 400 IM, 200 breaststroke, 100 breaststroke, and 200 IM. Her 100 breaststroke simply missed the Olympic Qualifying commonplace, however she swam the 400 IM, 200 IM, and 200 breaststroke on the Video games. She ended up ending fifth within the 400 IM and twelfth within the 200 breaststroke. She had additionally certified for the ultimate of the 200 IM, however scratched on the final minute attributable to sickness, leaving an empty lane within the last. She did win one medal in Paris, as a member of Australia’s 4×100 medley relay staff, swimming the prelims breaststroke leg.
#71: Airi Mitsui, Japan (2024 Rank: 58) — Airi Mitsui is nearly completely a 200 butterflier, however she is high 10 on this planet within the occasion. On the 2024 Japanese Olympic Trials, she received the 200 fly in 2:06.54. The 20-year-old was not fairly capable of maintain onto this pace via the video games, and went 2:08.71 to complete eleventh within the semifinals. Had she gone her greatest time, she would have completed 4th within the occasion. That point was additionally sufficient to put her seventh on the World Rankings within the occasion for 2024. She additionally swam the 100 fly and the 200 IM on the Japanese trials, inserting ninth and twenty fifth respectively. If she places collectively the suitable swim, she might simply discover herself within the last or in medal competition at Worlds.
