INDIANAPOLIS – Five things to watch at swimming’s U.S. Olympic Trials, which open Saturday and run through June 23. The event selects a team for the Paris Olympics, which run from July 26-Aug. 11.
Pool in a football stadium
It is not often a venue tops the marquee of a sports event. It is happening now.
Assembly of a 10-lane, 50-meter pool inside Lucas Oil Stadium, plus a warmup area that is larger, evokes gasps from those who see it for the first time. There are 2 million gallons of water, pumped in from the White River. A 35,000-pound LED scoreboard hangs from the ceiling.
‘Largest swim meet ever’: How an Olympic pool was built inside Lucas Oil Stadium
“We pride ourselves in taking events to the next level. We have done that,” said Patrick Talty, president of the Indiana Sports Corp.
Tim Hinchey III, CEO of USA Swimming, said the pools look even better than the renderings. Additionally, there is a 70-foot “blocks walk” tower that will show images of swimmers as they are introduced.
Although the Sports Corp. and USA Swimming had hoped to attract crowds of 30,000 for each of nine nights, advance ticket sales are less than that, according to Hinchey.
Revised goal is to have 16,000 seated in the south half of the stadium Saturday night, exceeding a record for swimming under a roof. To have 15,000 each night — “which would be the most we ever sold by a lot,” Hinchey said — would apparently satisfy organizers. Total attendance over nine days could be 250,000.
Projected economic impact of the Olympic Trials in Indianapolis is $100 million.
When the trials left Indianapolis after 2000, they went to Long Beach, Calif., in 2004 and to Omaha, Neb., four times. Hinchey said crowds at Omaha were bigger at the second trials than the first.
“Whatever we do here, I don’t think it’s against any real odds to say, ‘Listen, if it goes well, if we can accomplish what we want to accomplish, I would be open to coming back,’“ he said. “We’ve invested this much first time around. Can we reap more reward second time around?”
Hoosiers to watch
Swimmers with Indiana ties will be in the mix on each of nine nights.
Most celebrated among them is Evansville native Lilly King, an Indiana University graduate who memorably won Olympic gold in the 100-meter breaststroke in 2016. She was off the podium in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes at the 2023 World Championships. King, 27, will be in a fight to make the U.S. team.
Others from the 2021 Olympics — Drew Kibler, Jake Mitchell, Blake Pieroni, Michael Brinegar — are in the mix for 2024. So, too, are teens Kayla Han, 16; Alex Shackell, 17; Luke Whitlock, 18, and Aaron Shackell, 19.
Old stars
Swimming has no crossover superstar like Michael Phelps, with the possible exception of Katie Ledecky. Ledecky, still just 27, has seven Olympic gold medals and 21 World Championship golds, most ever by a female swimmer.
Otherwise, the most high-profile swimmers, Simone Manuel and Caeleb Dressel, also 27, are in the midst of promising comebacks.
Manuel, a five-time Olympic medalist, recently clocked 53.10 in the 100 freestyle — her fastest time since 2019 and No. 3 by an American this year.
Dressel won five golds at Tokyo but quit the sport in the middle of the 2022 World Championships, sitting out for nine months. He has been dropping times recently, including a 50.84 in the 100 butterfly that is best by an American in 2024.
Regan Smith, 22, recently lowered the American record in the 100 backstroke to 57.51, breaking her record from 2019. She won three medals at Tokyo and five at last year’s World Championships.
Ryan Murphy, 28, Olympic champion in both backstrokes in 2016, won gold in the 100 at 2023 worlds and could repeat that at Paris 2024. Bobby Finke, 24, won golds in 800 and 1,500 freestyles at Tokyo.
New stars
Gretchen Walsh, 21, of the University of Virginia is coming off one of the best college seasons ever, winning three individual events in record times at the NCAA Championships. She has not been as accomplished in a 50-meter pool as in 25-yard short course, although she did make the world team last year and won a bronze medal in the 50-meter butterfly (not an Olympic event).
There is a youth movement on the women’s side, featuring Katie Grimes, 18; Claire Curzan and Bella Sims, both 19; Tori Huske, 21, and Kate Douglass, 22. Douglass won five medals at February’s worlds in Doha, including a repeat gold in the 200 individual medley.
On the men’s side, Cal’s 21-year-old Jack Alexy won five medals at 2023 worlds, including silvers in 50 and 100 freestyles. At March’s NCAAs in Indianapolis, he was second in the 200-yard freestyle and third in both 50 and 100 freestyles.
Swimmers of all ages
Those qualifying for the trials include swimmers from ages 13 to 46. Then there is Matt Grevers, 39, who qualified for his seventh trials.
The 13-year-old is Gabi Brito of Beach Cities Swimming (Calif.). Her recent time of 25.42 in the 50 freestyle made the cut of 25.69, and she broke the record of 25.80 for 13-year-olds set by Douglass in 2015.
Gabrielle Rose, 46, made cuts in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes. She made the U.S. team at Indianapolis in 2000 and finished seventh in the 200 individual medley at the Sydney Olympics. Rose is older than any Olympic Trials swimmer since at least 2004, according to USA Swimming.
Grevers’ first trials were as a 15-year-old in 2000. He made the 2024 cut by clocking 22.50 in the 50 freestyle, his fastest time in the event since December 2015. He has six Olympic medals — including gold in the 100 backstroke in 2012 — and 13 world medals.
What time are USA Swimming Trials?
Prelims are at 11 a.m. each day, finals at 8 p.m.
What channel are USA Swimming Trials on?
NBC will televise finals live. There will be streaming on Peacock, NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app.
Contact IndyStar correspondent David Woods at dwoods1411@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: USA Swimming trials what to watch: Pool in football stadium, new stars
