Day 5 Prelims Live Recap

2024 AUSTRALIAN OLYMPIC TRIALS

Buckle up, folks: Has there ever been a more stacked event at Olympic Trials than the women’s 100 freestyle tonight in Australia?

Making the A-final is going to be an absolute dogfight with talents such as 2023 world champion Mollie O’Callaghan (52.16), defending Olympic champion Emma McKeon (52.52), top-5 performer this season Meg Harris (52.59), reigning Worlds bronze medalist Shayna Jack (52.60), four-time Olympian Cate Campbell (53.23), 2015 world champion Bronte Campbell (53.30), 200 free world record holder Ariarne Titmus (53.68), world junior champion Olivia Wunsch (53.71), and two-time Olympian Brianna Throssell (53.77) listed on the psych sheet. No matter the lineup, the Aussies will be heavy favorites in the women’s 4×100 free relay in Paris this summer.

Former world record holder Zac Stubblety-Cook will kick off the session in the men’s 200 breast as the top seed (2:05.95), with Joshua Yong a couple seconds behind (2:08.54). Both own entry times under the Swimming Australia cut of 2:09.50. Jenna Strauch (2:22.22) and Abbey Harkin (2:23.65) are the women to beat in the 200 breast, as both have also been under the Australian Olympic mark of 2:23.91.

In the men’s 200 back, Joshua Edwards-Smith (1:55.42) and Bradley Woodward (1:55.95) boast the top entry times a couple seconds faster than the field. They should clear the Aussie Olympic cut of 1:57.28 on Friday.

The men’s 1500 free might be the toughest event for the Aussies to qualify two individual swimmers in today, but it’s certainly possible. 2023 Worlds bronze medalist Sam Short is the top seed at 14:37.28 with Matthew Galea next at 14:57.19, a few seconds outside of qualifying range (14:54.29).

MEN’S 200 BREAST – PRELIMS

World Record – 2:05.48, Qin Haiyang, 2023
Australian Record – 2:05.95, Zac Stubblety-Cook, 2022
Oceanian Record – 2:05.95, Zac Stubblety-Cook, 2022
Commonwealth Record – 2:05.95, Zac Stubblety-Cook, 2022
All Comers Record – 2:05.95, Zac Stubblety-Cook, 2022
Swim Australia OQT – 2:09.50

Top 8:

Zac Stubblety-Cook – 2:08.40
Joshua Yong – 2:10.66
Bailey Lello – 2:11.46
Joshua Collett – 2:11.83
Finlay Schuster – 2:12.57
Matthew Wilson – 2:12.85
Angus Menzies – 2:13.00
Daniel Cave – 2:14.33

Former world record holder Zac Stubblety-Cook claimed the top seed in the men’s 200 breast with a time of 2:08.40, already under the Australian Olympic qualifying mark of 2:09.50. The 25-year-old has been as fast as 2:05.95 in 2022, and his 2:07.50 from April ranks 6th in the world this season

Joshua Yong touched a couple seconds behind Stubblety-Cook in 2:10.66, only about a second of the Aussie Olympic cut. The 22-year-old owns a lifetime best of 2:08.54 from April.

Bailey Lello (2:11.46) and Joshua Collett (2:11.83) were the only other swimmers under 2:12 in prelims.

Stubblety-Cook wasn’t the only ex-world record holder in the 200 breast prelims as Matthew Wilson qualified 6th in 2:12.85, close behind Finlay Schuster (2:12.57). The 25-year-old Wilson brought the global standard down to 2:06.67 back at the 2019 World Championships, though he only held the record for a day.

WOMEN’S 200 BREAST – PRELIMS

World Record – 2:17.55, Evgeniia Chikunova, 2023
Australian Record – 2:20.54, Leisel Jones, 2006
Oceanian Record – 2:20.54, Leisel Jones, 2006
Commonwealth Record – 2:18.95, Tatjana Schoenmaker, 2021
All Comers Record – 2:20.04, Rie Kaneto, 2016
Swim Australia OQT – 2:23.91

Top 8:

Jenna Strauch – 2:24.83
Ella Ramsay – 2:25.21
Matilda Smith – 2:26.95
Abbey Harkin – 2:28.83
Mikayla Smith – 2:28.99
Kara Tinder – 2:29.40
Reidel Smith – 2:30.28
Zoe Deacon – 2:30.35

Jenna Strauch notched the top time in the women’s 200 breast prelims at 2:24.83, only a couple seconds off her personal-best 2:22.22 from the 2022 World Championships. The 27-year-old reached the wall within a second of the Aussie Olympic qualifying time of 2:23.91.

Ella Ramsay qualified 2nd for tonight’s final with a time of 2:25.21, within a second of her personal-best 2:24.28 from last December. The 19-year-old needs to drop a few tenths off her lifetime best tonight in order to hit the Aussie Olympic cut.

Another 19-year-old, Matilda Smith, clocked a time of 2:26.95 for the third qualifying spot. Her best time sits at 2:24.89 from April’s Australian Open Championships, where she beat 26-year-old Abbey Harkin. Harkin qualified 4th in 2:28.83, well off her personal-best 2:23.59 from 2021.

MEN’S 200 BACK – PRELIMS

World Record – 1:51.92, Aaron Piersol, 2009
Australian Record – 1:53.17, Mitch Larkin, 2015
Oceanian Record – 1:53.17, Mitch Larkin, 2015
Commonwealth Record – 1:53.17, Mitch Larkin, 2015
All Comers Record – 1:53.72, Mitch Larkin, 2015
Swim Australia OQT – 1:57.28

Top 8:

Bradley Woodward – 1:56.91
Joshua Edwards-Smith – 1:58.14
Stuart Swinburn – 1:58.48
Enoch Robb – 1:58.91
Se-Bom Lee – 1:59.36
Marius Boll – 1:59.44
Ty Hartwell – 1:59.60
Mitch Larkin – 1:59.93

Bradley Woodward paced the men’s 200 back heats in 1:56.91, already under the Aussie Olympic cut of 1:57.28. The 25-year-old was only about a second off his personal-best 1:55.56 from last December. On Tuesday, Woodward placed 2nd in the 100 back (53.53) a few tenths off the Aussie Olympic cut (53.21).

Joshua Edwards-Smith was next to the wall in 1:58.14, a couple seconds off his best time from 2022 (1:55.42). The 21-year-old needs to drop another seconds to get under the Australian Olympic qualifying mark.

Stuart Swinburn (1:58.48) and Enoch Robb (1:58.91) also broke 1:59 in prelims this morning to put themselves in contention for a top-2 finish tonight.

WOMEN’S 100 FREE – PRELIMS

World Record – 51.71, Sarah Sjostrom, 2017
Australian Record – 51.96, Emma McKeon, 2021
Oceanian Record – 51.96, Emma McKeon, 2021
Commonwealth Record – 51.96, Emma McKeon, 2021
All Comers Record – 52.06, Cate Campbell, 2016
Swim Australia OQT – 53.61

Top 8:

Meg Harris – 52.52
Mollie O’Callaghan – 52.57
Shayna Jack – 52.65
Bronte Campbell – 52.95
Olivia Wunsch – 53.30
Emma McKeon – 53.61
Brianna Throssell – 53.78
Milla Jansen – 54.26

Meg Harris fired off a personal-best 52.52 to lead a loaded women’s 100 free prelims just a blink ahead of 2023 world champion Mollie O’Callaghan (52.57). Harris shaved .07 seconds off her best time from April, remaining the No. 4 performer in the world this season behind O’Callaghan (52.27 in April), 2024 world champion Marrit Steenbergen (52.26), and Siobhan Haughey (52.02).

Shayna Jack was next to the wall in 52.65, not far off her personal-best 52.28 from the 2023 World Championships. Bronte Campbell wound up 4th in 52.95 while her older sister, Cate Campbell, missed the A-final by just a hundredth of a second with a 9th-place showing in 54.27.

World junior champion Olivia Wunsch (53.30) held off reigning Olympic champion Emma McKeon (53.61) and Brianna Throssell (53.78) for the fifth-fastest time in prelims. Milla Jansen, a 17-year-old who placed 2nd behind Wunsch at World Juniors last September, snagged the last spot in the A-final with a time of 54.26.

200 free world record holder Ariarne Titmus missed the A-final with a 10th-place effort of 54.37.