Wednesday, July 14, 2021
Ten Days to Tokyo: What to Look Forward To
Ten. More. Days.
The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is finally in sight, and if the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming showed us anything, it is that our Olympic Team is primed for another incredible showing.
Here are 10 things to look forward to for the U.S. swimmers competing in Tokyo.
Ledecky and Schmitt Tackle the 200
There have been 132 female U.S. swimmers who have captured a gold medal at the Olympic Games. Of those 132 gold medalists, only eight have captured four golds or more. On July 26, we’ll get to see two of those quadruple-gold medalists take the pool together in the 200-meter freestyle prelims. The two have combined for two Olympic golds, two Pan Pacific Championships golds and three FINA World Championships medals in the event, but shockingly have only tackled the event together on international soil once – at the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships. Regardless of outcome in Tokyo, it will be a treat to watch two of the greatest female swimmers in American history tackle an individual event together.
Harting’s Heroics
Zach Harting has always had a loud and laughter-filled personality. But the 200m butterflier and his family took on a difficult battle in early 2020: Harting found out his father, Scott, was in stage five of kidney failure during the spring of 2020. Luckily, Haring’s mother (Lori) qualified as an eligible kidney donor. In August, Lori and Scott underwent a successful transplant surgery to effectively save Scott’s life. 2020 was certainly a tough year for all swimmers, but Zach’s balance of taking care of his parents during their recoveries, along with his efforts to find a pool and train, make his journey to Tokyo particularly special.
Read more about the Harting family's story here.
The Face of Backstroke?
After qualifying in the 100- and 200m backstroke, Ryan Murphy now has an opportunity to become the greatest backstroke swimmer in U.S. history. With golds in both backstroke events at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Murphy now has the chance to become just the second person (first American) to ever have multiple golds in both backstroke events. If he can accomplish the feat, he will certainly cement himself as one of the greatest to ever tackle the stroke.
This One is For Alaska! (And Also the Leap Year Birthdays!)
When Lydia Jacoby finished second at Trials in the 100m breaststroke, she became the first Alaskan-born swimmer to qualify for the Olympics. A native of Seward, Alaska, and a representative of the Seward Tsunami Swim Team, Jacoby has already trailblazed for the Alaska swimming community. But did you know that Jacoby was also born on a leap day? That’s right, Jacoby was born on February 29, 2004, making her 17 years old but having only celebrated her actual birthday four times. When Jacoby takes the blocks, she will have extra support from anyone with Alaskan ties or leap-year-birthdays.
Open Water Legends Take on Tokyo
When the U.S. captured a bronze medal in the 5K Team Relay at the 2019 FINA Open Water World Championships, it gave Jordan Wilimovsky the most open water world championships medals by a male swimmer in U.S. history. On the women’s side, the bronze gave Haley Anderson and Ashley Twichell their fifth open water worlds medals of their respective careers, putting themselves as the U.S. females with the most open water worlds medals. Now, they will head to the Olympics for the first time as a trio, adding to their incredible resumes that already place them as three of the greatest open water swimmers in American history. The women’s 10K will take place on August 4, followed by the men’s 10K on August 5.
Bring on the Relays
Olympic relays are back. Team celebrations are back. Replays of Jason Lezak’s anchor leg from 2008 are back. With history, national pride and medals on the line, we will soon enough get to experience all the anxiety and exhilaration that come with four of the country’s top swimmers come together to make one U.S. team. Don’t forget, the 4x100m mixed medley relay will make its Olympic debut this year!
Splash ‘n Dash History
Four Americans will take on the Olympic 50m freestyle this summer: Michael Andrew, Caeleb Dressel, Simone Manuel and Abbey Weitzeil. On the men’s side, Dressel’s 21.04 from Trials tied his own American record and puts him dangerously close to breaking the :21 mark, a barrier that no other American has ever bested. Should Andrew and Dressel medal in the event, it would be the fifth time that two Americans share the podium in the 50m freestyle. The feat happened in 1988, 1992, 2000 and 2016. On the women’s side, Manuel is looking to become the first American woman to ever medal in the 50m freestyle in back-to-back Olympic Games. Should Manuel and Weitzeil medal in the event, it would be the first time that two Americans share the podium in the 50m freestyle.
Magician’s Code
Swimming isn’t the only thing that 100m backstroke Olympian Hunter Armstrong is talented in. When he’s not impressing onlookers in the water, he may be doing so through magic tricks. Armstrong displays plenty of his tricks on his Instagram, and even showcased his magic skills to the Olympic Team by naming the U.S. Olympic Team captains through a card trick. We may not be able to find out the secrets behind his magic acts, but what tricks will he have up his sleeve in the 100m backstroke? We will soon find out.
An Early Glimpse Into Future Stars
Eleven athletes will still be teenagers when the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 begin, and fans will get an early glimpse into the young talent. Events two through four are comprised of the men’s 400m freestyle, women’s 400m I.M. and women’s 100m butterfly, respectively. Five of the six U.S. Olympians in those events are Olympic rookies and are also under the age of 21, four of whom are still teenagers. It will be a treat to watch the young talents of Jake Mitchell, Kieran Smith, Emma Weyant, Claire Curzan and Torri Huske make their debuts, and it could be a chance to set the tone for the rest of the emerging talents on the U.S. roster.
Let’s Get it Started!
We have had to wait five LONG years for these Olympics to take place. Since swimming joined the Olympic lineup in 1896, there have been three other occasions (1940, 1940 and 1980) where fans were not able to watch a U.S. swim team compete at the Olympics. The worldwide swimming community went through an incredibly challenging 2020, but now get to unite together over watching the world’s best compete head-to-head on the sport’s biggest stage. It will be an incredible display that will be an absolute joy to watch.
The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is finally in sight, and if the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming showed us anything, it is that our Olympic Team is primed for another incredible showing.
Here are 10 things to look forward to for the U.S. swimmers competing in Tokyo.
Ledecky and Schmitt Tackle the 200
There have been 132 female U.S. swimmers who have captured a gold medal at the Olympic Games. Of those 132 gold medalists, only eight have captured four golds or more. On July 26, we’ll get to see two of those quadruple-gold medalists take the pool together in the 200-meter freestyle prelims. The two have combined for two Olympic golds, two Pan Pacific Championships golds and three FINA World Championships medals in the event, but shockingly have only tackled the event together on international soil once – at the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships. Regardless of outcome in Tokyo, it will be a treat to watch two of the greatest female swimmers in American history tackle an individual event together.
Harting’s Heroics
Zach Harting has always had a loud and laughter-filled personality. But the 200m butterflier and his family took on a difficult battle in early 2020: Harting found out his father, Scott, was in stage five of kidney failure during the spring of 2020. Luckily, Haring’s mother (Lori) qualified as an eligible kidney donor. In August, Lori and Scott underwent a successful transplant surgery to effectively save Scott’s life. 2020 was certainly a tough year for all swimmers, but Zach’s balance of taking care of his parents during their recoveries, along with his efforts to find a pool and train, make his journey to Tokyo particularly special.
Read more about the Harting family's story here.
The Face of Backstroke?
After qualifying in the 100- and 200m backstroke, Ryan Murphy now has an opportunity to become the greatest backstroke swimmer in U.S. history. With golds in both backstroke events at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Murphy now has the chance to become just the second person (first American) to ever have multiple golds in both backstroke events. If he can accomplish the feat, he will certainly cement himself as one of the greatest to ever tackle the stroke.
This One is For Alaska! (And Also the Leap Year Birthdays!)
When Lydia Jacoby finished second at Trials in the 100m breaststroke, she became the first Alaskan-born swimmer to qualify for the Olympics. A native of Seward, Alaska, and a representative of the Seward Tsunami Swim Team, Jacoby has already trailblazed for the Alaska swimming community. But did you know that Jacoby was also born on a leap day? That’s right, Jacoby was born on February 29, 2004, making her 17 years old but having only celebrated her actual birthday four times. When Jacoby takes the blocks, she will have extra support from anyone with Alaskan ties or leap-year-birthdays.
Open Water Legends Take on Tokyo
When the U.S. captured a bronze medal in the 5K Team Relay at the 2019 FINA Open Water World Championships, it gave Jordan Wilimovsky the most open water world championships medals by a male swimmer in U.S. history. On the women’s side, the bronze gave Haley Anderson and Ashley Twichell their fifth open water worlds medals of their respective careers, putting themselves as the U.S. females with the most open water worlds medals. Now, they will head to the Olympics for the first time as a trio, adding to their incredible resumes that already place them as three of the greatest open water swimmers in American history. The women’s 10K will take place on August 4, followed by the men’s 10K on August 5.
Bring on the Relays
Olympic relays are back. Team celebrations are back. Replays of Jason Lezak’s anchor leg from 2008 are back. With history, national pride and medals on the line, we will soon enough get to experience all the anxiety and exhilaration that come with four of the country’s top swimmers come together to make one U.S. team. Don’t forget, the 4x100m mixed medley relay will make its Olympic debut this year!
Splash ‘n Dash History
Four Americans will take on the Olympic 50m freestyle this summer: Michael Andrew, Caeleb Dressel, Simone Manuel and Abbey Weitzeil. On the men’s side, Dressel’s 21.04 from Trials tied his own American record and puts him dangerously close to breaking the :21 mark, a barrier that no other American has ever bested. Should Andrew and Dressel medal in the event, it would be the fifth time that two Americans share the podium in the 50m freestyle. The feat happened in 1988, 1992, 2000 and 2016. On the women’s side, Manuel is looking to become the first American woman to ever medal in the 50m freestyle in back-to-back Olympic Games. Should Manuel and Weitzeil medal in the event, it would be the first time that two Americans share the podium in the 50m freestyle.
Magician’s Code
Swimming isn’t the only thing that 100m backstroke Olympian Hunter Armstrong is talented in. When he’s not impressing onlookers in the water, he may be doing so through magic tricks. Armstrong displays plenty of his tricks on his Instagram, and even showcased his magic skills to the Olympic Team by naming the U.S. Olympic Team captains through a card trick. We may not be able to find out the secrets behind his magic acts, but what tricks will he have up his sleeve in the 100m backstroke? We will soon find out.
An Early Glimpse Into Future Stars
Eleven athletes will still be teenagers when the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 begin, and fans will get an early glimpse into the young talent. Events two through four are comprised of the men’s 400m freestyle, women’s 400m I.M. and women’s 100m butterfly, respectively. Five of the six U.S. Olympians in those events are Olympic rookies and are also under the age of 21, four of whom are still teenagers. It will be a treat to watch the young talents of Jake Mitchell, Kieran Smith, Emma Weyant, Claire Curzan and Torri Huske make their debuts, and it could be a chance to set the tone for the rest of the emerging talents on the U.S. roster.
Let’s Get it Started!
We have had to wait five LONG years for these Olympics to take place. Since swimming joined the Olympic lineup in 1896, there have been three other occasions (1940, 1940 and 1980) where fans were not able to watch a U.S. swim team compete at the Olympics. The worldwide swimming community went through an incredibly challenging 2020, but now get to unite together over watching the world’s best compete head-to-head on the sport’s biggest stage. It will be an incredible display that will be an absolute joy to watch.