USA Swimming News

Thursday, September 28, 2023

2023 Golden Goggles at a Glance: Breakout Performer of the Year


GG Breakout Performer


The 2023 Golden Goggle Awards are set to take place in Los Angeles on Sunday, November 19, 2023. With the voting deadline of October 15 quickly approaching, here is the breakdown of the nominees for this year's Breakout Performer of the Year award:

Thomas Heilman

The 16-year-old from Cavalier Aquatics had a jaw-dropping performance at the Phillips 66 National Championships, where he went 1:54.54 in the men’s 200m butterfly to take down Michael Phelps’ 15-16 National Age Group (NAG) record that had stood for 22 years. Heilman was the youngest male on the U.S. roster at the World Aquatics Championships, where he won gold with a prelims swim on the 4x100-meter medley relay, finished fourth in the 200m butterfly and placed 17th in the 100m butterfly. His fourth-place finish in the 200m fly earned him a new personal best from his Nationals NAG (1:53.82).

 

Jack Alexy

After slipping on his start in the semifinals and entering the 100m freestyle final at the World Aquatics Championships in lane eight, Alexy captured silver with a time of 47.31. The swim made him the second-fastest American in event history. He also won silver in the 50-meter freestyle in addition to three relay medal performances (one gold, one silver, one bronze).

 

Dare Rose

Rose won this year’s 100m butterfly national title in a time of 50.74 to qualify for his first senior-level international team. In Fukuoka, he took home an individual bronze medal in the 100m butterfly, was a part of two medal-winning relay teams for the U.S. (gold and bronze), and placed sixth in the 50m butterfly final. His 100m butterfly bronze was the first medal for the USA Swimming in that event since 2019.

 

Katie Grimes

With her third-place finish in the Open Water 10K at the World Aquatics Championships, Grimes became the first American in any sport to qualify for the Paris Olympic Games and the fourth American woman in history to qualify for the Olympics in an open water event. In the pool, Grimes won the national title in the 400m IM and represented USA Swimming in the 1500m freestyle and 400m IM in Fukuoka.

 

 

*Please cast your vote by October 15 at 11:59 p.m. MT.

 

For more information about the 2023 Golden Goggle Awards, click here.


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