2024 U.S. Olympic Selection
Day 3 Qualifying Heat Sheet
I hope you all wake up and feel energized after such a fast and exciting weekend. Over the past two days, we have Katie Ledecky He made the Olympic team for the fourth time. Aaron Shackel She captivated the local crowd with her first swim in an Olympic qualifying event. Gretchen Walsh In the 100m butterfly semi-finals, he set a new world record of 55.18 seconds, dealing a major blow to his rivals, but only on the first night.
Last night was just as enjoyable as the first night, and the women's 200m freestyle semi-final was a strong one. Lily King A fantastic performance in the 100m breaststroke in front of a home crowd and then tonight the Men's 200m Freestyle Final was swam which proved to be one of the most entertaining swims so far this week.
Just because there was no competition this morning doesn't mean you can relax all day: the women's 400 individual medley and men's 800 freestyle advance directly to the finals, so all qualifiers will have to do their best to avoid finishing in ninth place. But we start the morning preview with one of the most competitive strokes for women: backstroke.
Already top seeded Regan Smith She joined the sub-56 club on the first day and has been doing well ever since. Last night she improved her time in the event, moving her to fifth fastest time of all time in the event. Regan, a former world record holder in the event, posted a season's best time of 57.51 seconds last month, also a new personal best. Next on the verge of finishing under 58 seconds is North Carolina State's Katherine BerkoffBerkhoff, a bronze medalist at the 2023 Fukuoka World Championships, was seen as a surefire contender for the second backstroke spot at the Olympics and a medal contender, but through no fault of her own, the level of competition both at home and abroad has risen and it will be up to her to see how she responds.
Claire CurzanSeeded third, she is the defending world champion in the event, having clocked 58.29 seconds in Doha, and is not competing in the freestyle event, so it appears she is concentrating all her efforts on the backstroke. Molly O'CallaghanStrong performance in the trials and Kylie Masse This event in Paris is sure to be one to watch.
The morning began with the women's 400m individual medley, with top seed Katie Grimes entering the event with a lead of more than five seconds. Leah HayesGrimes finished seventh in the 400m freestyle heats but did not qualify for the final and last night lost in the 200m freestyle.
Hayes, who has committed to the University of Virginia, is aiming to make her first Olympic team in 2022 after catapulting herself into the spotlight by competing at the world championships in the 200m individual medley. But her youth means Emma Weyant and Leah SmithWeyant competed for the United States at the Tokyo Olympics, winning a silver medal, and won a bronze medal at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest.
The morning ends with the preliminaries for the men's 800m freestyle. With the 400m and 200m over, it's now time for the long distance focused athletes to shine. Top seeds Bobby FinkeHis gamble in the 400 freestyle over the 400 individual medley appears to have paid off: Though he finished fourth and didn't make the Olympic team, he set a new personal best of nearly two seconds and qualified for the OQT, an honor the U.S. men struggled to achieve at the last Olympics.
It's a group of motivated young players and experienced veterans looking to challenge Finke's overwhelming dominance. Ross Dant and Will Gallant He is a training partner at NC State University. David Johnston and Charlie Clarke He took the top spot after Finke. The two who represent the younger generation are Luke and Jorge. Luke Whitlock He is the No. 4 seed. Luke Ellis is seeded 10th. Both were born in 2006 and are aiming not only to qualify for tomorrow's final, but also to make the Junior Pan Pacific team.
