Katie Ledecky wins big and Gretchen Walsh breaks world record on night one of 2024 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials
The U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials started with a big win from Katie Ledecky and a new world record for Gretchen Walsh on Saturday night (15 April) in Indianapolis, where athletes were looking to be selected for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The night had both Ledecky earning her fourth selection to the U.S. Olympic team, and also two newcomers bursting onto the scene.
Ledecky swam the women’s 400m free in 3:58.35. As happens so often with the seven-time Olympic champ, she was a full body-length ahead of her competition for much of the race, and she was the only swimmer to break four minutes. She celebrated with a hug from Paige Madden, who took second in the race.
"I couldn't ask for a better start with Gretchen's world record and then a young kid from Indiana qualified for the Olympic team, being the first one to be an Olympian. So, it was a pretty cool start to the week. This morning was pretty loud for prelims. I mean, we got up on the blocks for my heat, and I thought that the noise had died down, and then it got louder again. And like, I started shaking, I went down for take your mark and I was like, relax, Katie, relax. Relax. Don't false start. Don't false start. Don't false start," she said in the post-meet press conference.
Ledecky still has a full week ahead of her, with the 1500m freestyle on Wednesday and the 800m freestyle on Saturday. With the win on Saturday, she is now expected to be a four-time Olympian, and has the chance to break Jenny Thompson’s record for the most medals won by an American woman with 12 Olympic medals.
Madden took second place with a time of 4:02.08, beating her personal best of 4:03.98 from the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. She helped the U.S. win silver in the 4x200m freestyle relay, and now is expected to be nominated to her second Olympic team.
As National Olympic Committees have the exclusive authority for the representation of their respective countries at the Olympic Games, athletes' participation at the Paris Games depends on their NOC selecting them to represent their delegation at Paris 2024.
Gretchen Walsh breaks the 100m butterfly record in the semifinals
The night started out with a bang in the women’s 100m butterfly semifinals. Gretchen Walsh broke the world record, swimming a blistering 55.18, taking down the previous record held by Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden by four tenths of a second. Walsh was a full body length in front of her competition for much of the race. It sets the stage for a thrilling 100m butterfly women’s final on Sunday night, as previous American record holder Torri Huske won her semifinal in a time of 55.79.
Aaron Shackell wins the men’s 400m freestyle
Coming from nearby Carmel, Ind., Aaron Shackell had the crowd behind him in the men’s 400m freestyle as he led for the entire race. Shackell won with a time of 3:45.46. He jumped out of the pool and waved his arms to the crowd, who were already standing to cheer him on. With the win, Shackell was the first winner from the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials to be nominated to the U.S. team.
At just 19 years old, Shackell is still swimming in college. He swam his freshman year at California, and is transferring to Texas in the upcoming season. He said he was motivated by knowing his father, Nicholas Shackell, competed. The elder Shackell competed for Great Britain at the Olympic Games Atlanta 1996.
He was followed by Kieran Smith, who swam the 400m 3:45.76, and is also expected to be nominated to the U.S. team.
A pool in a football stadium?
This competition took place at a venue unlike anything the U.S. has had for an Olympic trials for swimming before. Two Olympic-size pools were built on top of the American football field in Indianapolis where the Colts in the NFL play. One pool was for the competition, while the other one was for warm-ups and practices. The pools took about three years of planning to pull off, and they will be disassembled and sent to permanent homes in Fort Wayne, Ind., and the Cayman Islands. Even the water in the pools was sourced sustainably; the water came from the White River and will be returned to it after the event.
While the size of the stadium is a first of its kind, two-time Olympian Lilly King – an Indiana native – said it still feels like the pools she’s competed in.
“You guys have seen the movie Hoosiers? There's a screen where small-town basketball team shows up at the state basketball game and they walk on to the court and they say, "What does it look like?" And they measure everything and it's the same measurements as their basketball court at home. That's all it is. You know, I've been in the competition pool once, and I know the walls like the back of my hand because it's the same Myrtha pool that has been at every other Olympic Trials,” she said at the pre-event press conference.
Though it’s a football stadium, the heat and humidity still make the arena feel like a swimming pool. All of the other hallmarks of a competition pool – swimmers milling about, fast times, and coaches anxiously checking their stopwatches – are here. Fans have happily showed out for the event, with an attendance of 20,689 on Saturday night.