17-18 100 Back NAG Record Holder Daniel Diehl DFS’s 100 Back After Making 200 Free Semi

2024 U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS

• June 15-23, 2024
• Lucas Oil Stadium — Indianapolis, IN
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Even at Olympic Trials, it’s not often you see a recent National Age Group record-holding swimmer bow out of an event in which they hold a NAG record in favor of another event. But it’s tough to fault Daniel Diehl‘s decision this morning to skip the 100 back.

Over the last few years, Diehl has generate a ton of headlines, and many of them have related to his backstroke exploits. He currently holds the 17-18 NAG 100 back record with a time of 53.07. He set that mark at the 2022 US Open, while still only 17. But, Diehl’s first NAG record came in the 200 yard freestyle back in the fall of 2020.

As an age grouper, Diehl trained essentially by himself as part of the Cumberland YMCA program. He was scheduled to graduate high school this spring, but instead, he graduated high school early and joined the NC State team as a freshman in January. At NCAAs, he anchored NC State’s 9th-place 800 free relay

This morning, Diehl was scheduled to swim the 200 free and the 100 back. If asked to guess which one he’d choose he had to choose between the two, most observers probably would’ve guessed the 100 back, where he was seeded 5th. However, with the 200 free coming first, Diehl swam that and knocked nearly three seconds off of his lifetime best, swimming a 1:46.83 that qualified him 8th for this evening’s semi-finals. Again, Diehl certainly does have a strong background in the 200 free, including a 1:46.61 200 free relay split at last summer’s Junior World Championships.

Still, Diehl could’ve swum the 100 back after that, and his best time (that 53.07) would’ve easily qualified for semis in that event. But according to NC State head coach Braden Holloway, he and Diehl decided, after the 200 free swim, that it made more sense to go after the 200 free tonight and (possibly) tomorrow, so Diehl declared a false start (DFS) in the 100 back.

Even if Diehl was able to improve on his 100 back time, he’d still face a lot of stiff competition for the two individual spots, especially from Ryan Murphy and Hunter Armstrong.

By switching focus to the 200 free, Diehl arguably tripled his chances for making the Olympic team, as the US may take up to six swimmers in that event. He’ll still have his work cut out for him, as it took a 1:46.49 to earn 6th at this meet in 2021, and there’s a strong chance it’ll take a faster time tomorrow.

Still only 18, Diehl will have a chance to tonight to move up at the all-time 17-18 rankings after taking the #5 spot this morning. Should Diehl make the Olympic the team, he’ll become the youngest US male Olympic swimmer since 2000, when teenagers Aaron Piersol and Michael Phelps both made the squad.