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

By James Sutherland on SwimSwam

2024 U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS

June 15-23, 2024
Lucas Oil Stadium — Indianapolis, IN
LCM (50 Meters)
Meet Central
Live Results

With the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials coming to a close on Sunday night, it’s time for SwimSwam to hand out some electronic hardware to the swimmers who stood out over nine days of racing at Lucas Oil Stadium.

MALE SWIMMER OF THE MEET: CHRIS GUILIANO

Chris Guiliano came into the meet as one of the favorites to qualify for the Olympic team, either individually in the men’s 100 freestyle or at least a berth on the 400 free relay. As it turned out, the 21-year-old was severely underestimated.

Guiliano kicked things off with a surprise in the 200 free, qualifying for Paris individually after placing 2nd to Luke Hobson (1:44.87) in a lifetime best of 1:45.38, doing so from Lane 1 after he snuck into the final in 7th.

Guiliano then set a personal best of 47.25 in the 100 free semis, claiming the top seed for the final after Jack Alexy scorched a 47.08 U.S. Open Record in the heats. When the chips were down in the final, Guiliano came through under pressure, winning the 100 free in 47.38 over Alexy (47.47) after the two men were dead even at the turn in 22.51.

Despite having qualified for two individual events at the Games, Guiliano wasn’t satisfied heading into the 50 free, as the Notre Dame standout broke 22 seconds for the first time in the prelims (21.83), set another PB of 21.59 to qualify 1st out of the semis, and then landed the second individual slot in Paris behind Caeleb Dressel (21.41) after clocking 21.69 in the final, finishing .01 clear of Matt King.

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

Honorable Mentions:

Caeleb Dressel – After he was well short of qualifying for the World Championship team last summer after his extended hiatus from the sport, Dressel showed the best form we’ve seen from him in at least two years in Indianapolis. He won the 50 free (21.41) and 100 fly (50.19) to earn the opportunity to defend two of his Olympic titles in Paris, and although he missed out on that chance in the 100 free, he still had an impressive showing to place 3rd in 47.53.
Bobby Finke – Finke’s place atop the men’s 800 and 1500 free was never in doubt coming into the meet, and that proved to be the case although he had to fend off rising star Luke Whitlock in the 800 free, clocking 7:44.22 to Whitlock’s 7:45.19. Finke closed out the competition by dominating the 1500 free, setting a new U.S. Open Record of 14:40.28, and he also set a lifetime best of 3:46.27 to place 4th in the 400 free.
Ryan Murphy – Like Finke, Murphy was the favorite to win the men’s 100 and 200 back, and he came away with victories in those races despite having a real battle in the one event many thought would be a landslide. Murphy was expected to go toe-to-toe with Hunter Armstrong in the 100 back, but he ended up making it look relatively easy with a 52.22 clocking in the final for a half-second victory. In the 200 back, Murphy found himself in a fight with Keaton Jones and Jack Aikins for the win, and when pressed, Murphy came through with the victory in 1:54.33, his fastest swim in three years.
Carson Foster – Foster exorcised his demons on the second night of racing in the men’s 400 IM, winning the event going away to qualify for his first Olympic team with the third-fastest swim of his career: 4:07.64. The performance came under heavy pressure given what happened to Foster at the 2021 Trials. He followed up by winning the 200 IM in 1:55.65, a new personal best.

FEMALE SWIMMER OF THE MEET: REGAN SMITH

Regan Smith had a bullet-proof confidence about her all week at the Olympic Trials, and it was on full display in the pool as she won three events and came close in a fourth.

Smith kicked the meet off by producing one of the fastest swims in history in the women’s 100 fly, clocking 55.62 to place 3rd behind the new world record holder Gretchen Walsh (55.31) and Torri Huske (55.52). Despite Smith missing a spot on the Olympic team early in the meet, it only fueled her performances for the rest of the competition.

The 22-year-old was flawless through the three rounds of the 100 back, going an easy-looking sub-58 in the prelims (57.93), breaking her American Record in the semis (57.47) and then topping things off by breaking the world record in the final, touching in 57.13 to crack Kaylee McKeown‘s mark of 57.33 set last October.

Smith continued to churn out elite swims down the back half of the meet, setting a National Championship Record in the 200 fly semis (2:04.91) before winning the final the next night (2:05.70) and then tackling the 200 back semis later that same session.

Smith finished the job by winning the 200 back by over a second in 2:05.16, giving her three individual entries in Paris. The 200 back win had extra meaning for Smith after she was 3rd at the 2021 Trials, missing out on the chance to swim the event in Tokyo as the world record holder.

Honorable Mentions:

Katie Ledecky – Ledecky did her thing in Indianapolis, handily sweeping the women’s 200, 400, 800 and 1500 free. The now four-time Olympian set a new National Championship Record in the 400 free (3:58.35), and was significantly faster in that event and the 1500 free compared to the 2021 Trials.
Kate Douglass – Douglass had to wait around until Day 4 to start racing, but once she hit the water she was unbeatable. Douglass rocketed to wins in the women’s 100 free (52.56), 200 breast (2:19.46) and 200 IM (2:06.79), setting a new U.S. Open Record in the latter and adding a National Championship Record in the 200 breast. Her swims in the 100 free and 200 IM were also new personal bests.
Gretchen Walsh – Walsh may have only won one event in Indianapolis, but no swim in Lucas Oil Stadium sent more shockwaves around the globe than her world record performance in the semis of the women’s 100 fly (55.18). She followed up by winning the event the next night with the second-fastest swim ever (55.31), and went on to make the team in a second individual event with her impressive runner-up finish to Simone Manuel in the 50 free, clocking 24.15 in the final after firing off a lifetime best of 24.06 in the semis. Walsh also set a PB in the 100 free, taking 3rd in 53.13 to qualify for the relay in Paris.

MALE PERFORMANCE OF THE MEET: MATT FALLON, 200 BREAST

The lone American Record set on the men’s side, Matt Fallon‘s performance in the 200 breaststroke was three years in the making after he placed 8th at the 2021 Trials despite coming in as the top seed out of the semis.

This time, Fallon was the top seed again, but didn’t flinch in the final as he turned 3rd at the 100 in 1:01.50 and then blew away the field on the back half, closing with a pair of 32.5 splits to register a time of 2:06.54.

That showing annihilated the American Record of 2:07.17, set by Josh Prenot at the 2016 Olympic Trials, and marked the 8th-fastest swim in history and made Fallon the 5th-fastest performer of all-time.

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

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

The swim marked the second straight best time for Fallon, who lowered his previous PB of 2:07.71 with a 2:07.39 clocking in the semi-finals.

Honorable Mention:

Jack Alexy, 100 free – It wasn’t in the final, or even during an evening session, so its place on this list is debatable, but Alexy dropped a stunner in the prelims of the men’s 100 free, coming within a tenth of joining the elusive sub-47 club. Alexy clocked 47.08, breaking the U.S. Open Record by more than three-tenths and moving into a tie with Kyle Chalmers for #8 all-time in the event.

FEMALE PERFORMANCE OF THE MEET: GRETCHEN WALSH, 100 FLY

Gretchen Walsh sent Lucas Oil Stadium into a frenzy during the opening night of competition, rocketing to a new world record in the semi-finals of the women’s 100 fly.

After becoming the seventh woman in history to break 56 seconds in the prelims, Walsh shattered the world record in the semis, touching in 55.18 to knock three-tenths off the previous mark of 55.48 established by Sarah Sjostrom at the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

Walsh, who came into the meet with a personal best of 56.14, followed up her record-breaking performance by winning the final the next night in 55.31, the 2nd-fastest swim in history.

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

Gretchen Walsh, United States — 55.18 (2024)
Gretchen Walsh, United States — 55.31 (2024)
Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden — 55.48 (2016)
Torri Huske, United States — 55.52 (2024)
Sarah Sjostrom, Sweden – 55.53 (2017)

Torri Huske (55.52) and Regan Smith (55.62) both went under what the American Record was prior to the meet, Huske’s 55.64, in what was an incredible three-way battle.

Huske’s swim moved her to #3 all-time, and Smith, despite tying for 5th-fastest ever, didn’t qualify for the Olympic team in the event.

All-Time Top Performers, Women’s 100 Butterfly (LCM):

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

Walsh’s long course performance in the 100 fly comes after she obliterated the NCAA, American and U.S. Open Records in the short course yards version of the event at the Women’s NCAA Championships in March, becoming the first swimmer under 48 seconds in a stunning 47.42.

Honorable Mention:

Regan Smith, 100 back – It was clear Smith was on top-tier form after what she did in the 100 fly, and that showed up right away in the 100 back, as she made a sub-58 swim look way too easy in the prelims, clocking 57.93. She then lowered her American Record by four one-hundredths in the semis, touching in 57.47, and then blew away Kaylee McKeown‘s world record in the final, putting up a time of 57.13. Smith took two-tenths off McKeown’s mark of 57.33 set last October.

MALE JUNIOR SWIMMER OF THE MEET: THOMAS HEILMAN

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

Heilman, 17, won the 200 fly to solidify his spot in Paris on the fifth night of racing, recording the fastest closing 50 in the field to finish in 1:54.50—not a personal best, having been 1:53.82 at the 2023 World Championships, but good for the win.

Heilman then stepped up in a big way in final of the 100 fly.

He only qualified 11th out of the prelims in 52.30, and then advanced to the final in 7th, clocking 51.58 in the semis—notably with the slowest first 50 (25.02) and the fastest second 50 (26.56) of all 16 semi-finalists.

In the final, that back-half ability proved to be the difference maker for Heilman, as he turned 7th at the 50 in 24.23 before rocketing home in 26.57, edging out Dare Rose at the wall for the second spot in 50.80.

Rose was 3rd in 50.84, while Caeleb Dressel claimed victory in 50.19. Despite both of them closing fast—Dressel in 26.66, Rose in 26.74—Heilman came back faster.

Dressel
Heilman
Rose

23.53
24.23
24.10

50.19 (26.66)
50.80 (26.57)
50.84 (26.74)

Heilman’s swim also marked a new National Age Group Record for 17-18 boys, as he cracked Michael Phelps‘ 21-year-old mark of 51.10. When Phelps recorded that time in the semis at the 2003 World Championships, it was a new world record.

Honorable Mention:

Luke Whitlock – Before Heilman made the team in the 200 fly, Whitlock briefly held the distinction of being the youngest male U.S. Olympian since 2000—though he had not yet officially qualified—after he had a standout showing in the 800 free. Whitlock, 18, broke the 17-18 NAG record by nearly three seconds in 7:45.19, downing Larsen Jensen‘s mark of 7:48.09 from 2003, to place 2nd to Bobby Finke (7:44.22) as he gave the defending Olympic champion a real battle. That performance from Whitlock came after he impressed in the 400 free, moving to #2 all-time for 17-18 boys in the prelims in a PB of 3:46.42, qualifying 1st, before placing 5th in the final in 3:46.55. Whitlock closed the meet out by nearly adding a second event to his Paris schedule, placing 3rd in the 1500 free in 14:53.00, a massive best time to move him to #3 all-time in the 17-18 age group. He was well back of David Johnston with 50 meters to go, but closed in a blazing 27.74 to make it close, ultimately finishing 26 one-hundredths back.

FEMALE JUNIOR SWIMMER OF THE MEET: ALEX SHACKELL

Alex Shackell and her coaches at Carmel Swim Club made the difficult decision to withdraw from the final of the women’s 100 fly despite her showing career-best form, bringing her PB down from 57.22 to 57.07 in the heats, and then breaking 57 seconds for the first time in the semis in 56.78.

That swim moved Shackell to #3 all-time in the girls’ 17-18 age group, and it also seeded her 4th for the 100 fly final. However, with Walsh, Huske and Smith all under 56 seconds in the semis, Shackell didn’t have a clear path to Olympic qualification in the event, but she did in the 200 free.

Rather than tackling the 100 fly final/200 free semi double on Sunday night, Shackell put all her eggs in the 200 free basket and it paid off, as she advanced to the final in 6th (1:57.42) and then finished in the same position the next night, setting a new personal best of 1:57.05 to all but solidify her spot in Paris. The swim also moved her to #8 all-time for 17-18 girls.

With Olympic qualification secured, the 17-year-old was freed up to let it rip in her best event, the 200 fly, and she did just that. Shackell cracked 2:07 for the first time in the prelims (2:06.71), broke Smith’s NAG record in the semis (2:06.10), and then placed 2nd to Smith in the final (2:06.69), giving her an individual entry in Paris.

In qualifying for the Games, Shackell joined her older brother, Aaron Shackell, on the team after he won the men’s 400 free on the opening night of competition.

Honorable Mention:

Audrey Derivaux – Junior-aged swimmers Katie Grimes and Claire Weinstein qualified for the Olympic team, but that was expected. One swimmer who really made an impact in Indianapolis, receiving some of the biggest cheers from the crowd at Lucas Oil Stadium, was Audrey Derivaux, the 14-year-old Jersey Wahoos product who made the final of the women’s 400 IM. Derivaux clocked a time of 4:45.23 in the prelims, landing a spot in the final in 8th and moving to #7 all-time in the girls’ 13-14 age group. After racing the 100 back later in that prelim session, she went on to place 8th in the 400 IM final (4:46.89), and she also made semis in the 200 back (2:09.80) and 200 fly (2:09.83), placing 10th in both and moving to #4 and #3 all-time in the age group, respectively. At the beginning of the meet, she tied for 24th in the 100 fly in 59.25, also ranking #3 in the 13-14 age group. On top of all of these races, she also placed 23rd in the 200 IM, within a half-second of her best time in 2:16.05.

TEAM OF THE MEET: CALIFORNIA AQUATICS

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

Ryan Murphy – men’s 100/200 back
Hunter Armstrong* – men’s 100 back, 400 free relay
Keaton Jones – men’s 200 back
Jack Alexy – men’s 100 free
Brooks Curry – men’s 800 free relay
Abbey Weitzeil – women’s 400 free relay

*Armstrong represented the New York Athletic Club (NYAC) at the competition but trains in Berkeley.

Murphy had his fastest swim in the 200 back in three years to secure the victory, Armstrong showed incredible form with three sub-48 swims in the 100 free, and Jones unearthed a monstrous best time to snag 2nd to Murphy in the 200 back in 1:54.61.

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

On top of the Olympic qualifiers, a number of other Cal swimmers stood out with finals appearances:

Liam Bell – 4th, men’s 100 breast
Luke Rodarte – 7th, men’s 100 breast
Destin Lasco – 7th, men’s 100 free
Dare Rose – 3rd, men’s 100 fly / 4th, men’s 200 fly
Colby Mefford – 5th, men’s 200 fly
Isabelle Stadden – 7th, women’s 200 back

Honorable Mention:

Longhorn Aquatics – The Longhorn Aquatics squad is a mixed bag with the established group in Austin recently having been joined by Bob Bowman‘s swimmers from Arizona State, but we can’t ignore how several of the swimmers now based at Texas performed well. Regan Smith, Simone Manuel, Paige Madden, Drew Kibler and Chase Kalisz were among the standouts from Bowman’s crew, while Texas mainstays training under Eddie Reese and Carol Capitani made the Olympic team in the form of Carson Foster, Shaine Casas and Erin Gemmell, while names such as Jillian Cox, Leah Smith, Emma Sticklen and Will Licon performed perhaps better than expected.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: SwimSwam’s Awards For The 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials