2024 Paris Summer Olympics
Day 1 Qualifying Heat Sheet
Hello friends. It's almost here. The Olympics are finally here. Although it's only been three short years, it feels like a whole period since the Tokyo Olympics began. While those Olympics were memorable in their own way, this one feels like a seminal moment in the world of sports.
Not just on a macro scale, but also on a micro scale: crowds returning to stadiums and heated medal battles are big stories, but as fans, it's the individual stories that we're obsessed with. The power of these events is clear just from the number of comments on our Olympic preview articles, and there were certainly quite a few on the first day.
first, Adam PeatyThe greatest sprint breaststroker of all time and the fastest man in the 50m and 100m, he begins his quest for a “three-peat” after winning gold medals in Rio and Tokyo. He's had his ups and downs, and his road to Paris (via the Channel Tunnel, yes, we're back) was more eventful than most, but his will to compete is a testament not only to himself, but to what this Games means to all the athletes competing. We don't have the space or bandwidth to cover every single one of them, but they all deserve to be celebrated for all they've sacrificed to get here.
But that doesn't mean Britain's Peaty will take the 100m breaststroke crown. Peaty is seeded second in the only individual event, behind China's Qin HaiyangThey shocked the world last summer by sweeping the medals at the World Championships, and while these two stand out from the crowd, that doesn't mean they can't be a threat. Arno Camminga He put in the third fastest performance in the history of the tournament, finishing alongside Hata in the qualifying rounds. Nick Fink He will enter as the third seed and the reigning world champion.
However, the morning starts with the women's 100m butterfly, so there's no need to be too early. Gretchen WalshIn the fourth heat, he competed in his first Olympic swimming event, among a field of strong swimmers from Japan and abroad. Tori Fuske Seeded second, she is aiming for her first Olympic individual medal. Always a danger Zhang Yufei 2021 Olympic Champions Maggie McNeill They too will be lurking in the field, looking for a way back onto the podium.
The longest race of the morning follows shortly, but this is also one of the most anticipated races of the tournament. Arianne Titmuss The title defense will begin in the women's 400m freestyle, but even as the world record holder, victory is not guaranteed. In the preliminaries, 2021 bronze medalist Li Bingjie And the other is the 2021 silver medalist and one of the greatest swimmers of all time. Katie LedeckyDespite the accolades, Titmuss's biggest test will be an uphill battle before teenage phenom Summer McIntosh, the world record holder in the event, hits the water in pursuit of her first Olympic medal.
The men's 100m breaststroke separates the women's 400m freestyle from the men's 400m, the final individual event of the morning. Lucas Martens And Australia's Sam Short He will be chasing Paul Biederman's current personal record of 3:40.07, the oldest man on the LCM record books. Both men came in within a second of each other and are unlikely to challenge it this morning, but they will need to perform just as strongly as their compatriots to make the final. Oliver Clement and Elijah Winnington The 2024 world champion is also looking to put pressure on that record. Kim Woo-min.
Swimming is inherently an individual sport, but some of the sport's most memorable events happen when teamwork is involved, and this morning we'll see two events that perfectly demonstrate that.
The women's 4×100 freestyle relay will showcase the overwhelming strength of Australia, who are looking to defend their Olympic gold medal and win their fourth consecutive gold medal. The world record-holding team will likely not field their best swimmers, but Australia has a strong sprint and will not face any tough opposition until the final. However, the relay is not a done deal. This race will be the start of the week for many of the swimmers and will help condition not only themselves but the entire country.
The morning ends with the men's events, and judging by the entry times, the USA looks to be the favorite to win. But the result won't be known until the last hand hits the wall and the judges call a disqualification. So all the world record holders and their team can do is swim as hard as they can and hope they do well enough to advance to tonight's final.
Women's 100m Butterfly – Qualification
- World Record: 55.18 – Gretchen WalshUnited States (2024)
- World Junior Record: 56.43 – Claire Curzan, USA (2021)
- Olympic Record: 55.48 – Sarah SjostromSweden (2016)
- 2021 Winning Time: 55.59 – Maggie McNeillcan
- Time to semifinal 2021: 58.08
Top 16
- Zhang Yufei (CHN) – 56.50
- Mizuki Hirai (Japan) – 56.71
- Tori Fuske (United States) – 56.72
- Gretchen Walsh (United States) – 56.75
- Emma McKeown (Australia) – 56.79
- Angelina Koehler (GER) – 56.90
- Maggie McNeill (Canada) – 57.00
- Alexandria Perkins (AUS) – 57.46
- Barbora Simanova (CZE) – 57.50
- Marie Wattel (France) – 57.54
- Ruth Vannotterdijk (BEL) – 57.54
- Louise Hanson (Sweden) – 57.57
- Erin Gallagher (RSA) – 57.80
- Ikee Rikako (Japan) – 57.82
- Tessa Geel (NED) – 57.89
- Kianna McInnes (GBR) – 57.90
Thus began the first Olympic swimming competition. The winner of the first heat was Helena Rosendahl-Bach of Denmark. The Dane led from start to finish, starting the race in 27.46 and finishing in 30.99, finishing in 58.45, just slightly slower than her entry time of 58.13.
Heat 2 Zhang YufeiThat's how it works. The 2021 silver medalist was in second place by 0.01 seconds to Australia's Emma McKeon at the turn, but outran her rival by 0.30 seconds in the final 50 meters to win her heat in 56.50 seconds. McKeon came in second, also under 57 seconds, hitting the wall in 56.79 seconds. Local favorite Marie Wattel moved from fourth to third at the 50 meter mark, hitting the wall in 57.54 seconds.
American, seeded 2nd Tori Fuske In the penultimate heat, Husku looked smooth and in control, clocking 26.01 to hold off a late charge from the defending Olympic champion. Maggie McNeillMcNeill overtook Louise Hanson in the final 50 metres to finish in 57.00, 0.28 seconds behind Husk. Australia's Alexandria Perkins also produced a strong final 50 metres to move from fifth place (26.77) at 50 metres to third overall in 57.46.
In the final heat of the morning, the new world record holder Gretchen Walshkicking off her Olympic campaign. The University of Virginia swimmer took first place with a trademark fast opening split of 25.98. At the 50 meter mark, she was more than half a second ahead of Mizuki Hirai, who touched down in 26.54. Hirai, however, was not content to settle for second place, and sped off in the final 50 meters in 30.17, passing Walsh in the final meters to win her heat in 56.71. Walsh finished in 56.75 with a split of 30.77, six-tenths slower. 2024 World Champion Angelina Koehler, like Hirai, had a strong final 50 meters to touch the wall in 56.90 for third place.
In 2021 it took him 58.08 to reach the semi-finals, but this morning it took him 57.97.
Women's 400m Freestyle Qualifying
Top 8
- Katie Ledecky (USA) – 4:02.19
- Arianne Titmuss (Australia) – 4:02.46
- Erica Fairweather (New Zealand) – 4:02.55
- Summer McIntosh (CAN) – 4:02.65
- Jamie Perkins (Australia) – 4:03.30
- Paige Madden (USA) – 4:03.34
- Maria Fernanda Costa (BRA) – 4:03.47
- Isabel Goese (Germany) – 4:03.83
Germany's Leonie Martens recorded the fastest time of 4 minutes 9.62 seconds in the first heat, but her time didn't last long at the top of the rankings as the next heat was the start of a circle seeded heat.
Erica Fairweather of New Zealand led from start to finish, but was constantly being hounded by Summer McIntosh. At 100 meters, the gap between them was just 0.1, 57.67 to 57.77. At 200 meters, Fairweather's lead had grown to 0.31, and at 300 meters, it was 0.4. However, McIntosh put in a strong performance in the final 50 meters, beating Fairweather by 0.38, but she did not have enough room in the pool to fully catch up. Fairweather won her heat in a time of 4:02.55, while McIntosh lost by 0.1 in 4:02.65.
While those two were battling for first place, Australia's Jamie Perkins was the only runner to break 30 seconds in the heat, clocking 29.67 to move from fifth to third, finishing in 4:03.30. American Paige Madden was third, finishing just 0.04 seconds behind in 4:03.47, about 1.5 seconds slower than the U.S. qualifying time but faster than her qualifying heat time of 4:04.83.
In the final heat, all of the 2021 Olympic podium winners were in the water. Arianne Titmuss The race looked smooth and under control, starting in 57.10 and turning around at the halfway point in 1:58.16. Katie Ledecky Trailing the Australian for much of the race's opening stretch, she started in 57.87, then was 0.9 seconds behind at 200 meters, flipping in 1:59.06. But the American outran her rival over the next 150 meters, and at 350 meters, when both flipped to the same time, she began to fight back from nearly a second behind. Ledecky finished in 30.16 to win her heat in 4:02.19. Titmus followed suit, clocking a 30.43 final 50 meters to take second in her heat in 30.43. China's Li Bingjie She was in third place after the 100 metres mark, swapping places with Germany's Isabel Goese, but was unable to find the speed required to finish fourth in the heats in 4 minutes 3.96 seconds and ninth overall, just 0.13 seconds away from qualifying for the final.
Men's 100m Breaststroke – Qualifying
- World Record: 56.88 – Adam PeatyUK (2019)
- World Junior Record: 59.01 – Nicolo MartinenghiITA (2017)
- Olympic Record: 57.13 – Adam Peaty United Kingdom (2016)
- 2021 Winning Time: 57.37 – Adam Peaty,England
- Time to semifinal 2021: 59.68
Top 16
After the circle-seeded qualifying rounds, the early leader was Anton Mackie, a University of Alabama swimmer from Iceland who ran a 1:00.62 in the second heat.
Heat 3, the first of the circle seeded heats, was won by Dutch but American-born Caspar Corbeau. Corbeau, who trains at the University of Texas, led from start to finish and won the first 50 in 27.69. Corbeau was also the fastest in the final 50 in 31.35 to win the heat in 59.04. Nick FinkFink, a 2021 Olympic 200m representative, was third in the 50m in 28.07, but used his speed in the second half to outsprint Joshua Yong to take second in 59.66, behind Yong's 59.75. That time should be fast enough to get him into the top 16 (he was 59.68 in 2021), but it's a bit concerning for the American considering his heat time at the U.S. Trials was 59.24.
Men's 400m Freestyle Qualifying
- World Record: 3:40.07 — Paul Biedermann, Germany (2009)
- World Junior Record: 3:44.31 — Petar Mitsin, Bulgaria (2023)
- Olympic Record: 3:40.14 — Sun Yang, CHN (2012)
- 2021 Winning Time: 3:43.36 – Ahmed Hafnaoui, TUN
- 2021 Final Qualifying Time: 3:45.68
Top 8
Women's 4×100 Freestyle Relay – Qualifying
- World Record: 3:27.96 – Australia: M. O'Callaghan, S. Jack, M. Harris, E. McKeown (2023)
- World Junior Record: 3:36.19 – Canada: T. Luck, P. Oleksiak, R. Smith, K. Sanchez (2017)
- Olympic Record: 3:29.69 – Australia: B. Campbell, C. Campbell, M. Harris, E. McKeown (2021)
- 2021 Winning Time: 3:29.69 – Australia: B. Campbell, C. Campbell, M. Harris, E. McKeown
- 2021 Final Qualifying Time: 3:35.93
Top 8
Men's 4×100 Freestyle Relay – Qualifying
- World Record: 3:08.24 — USA: M. Phelps, G. Weber-Gale, C. Jones, J. Lezak (2008)
- World Junior Record: 3:15.49 — USA: D. Diehl, M. Williamson, H. Williams, J. Zhao (2023)
- Olympic Record: 3:08.24 — USA: M. Phelps, G. Weber-Gale, C. Jones, J. Lezak (2008)
- 2021 Winning time: 3:08.97 — USA: C. Dressel, B. Pieroni, B. Becker, Z. Apple
- 2021 Final Qualifying Time: 3:13.13
Top 8
