2021 U.S. OLYMPIC SWIMMING TRIALS
- When:
- Wave I Dates: June 4-7, 2021
- Wave II Dates: June 13-20, 2021
- Prelims: 10am CDT | Finals: 7pm CDT
- Where: CHI Health Center / Omaha, Nebraska
- 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Qualifying Cuts
- Wave I & II Event Order
- LCM (50m)
- Prelims Live Stream (USA Swimming)
- Finals Live Stream (Olympic Channel)
- Wave I Psych Sheets
- Wave I Live Results
- Day 1 Prelims Heat Sheet
Just two swimmers, Carl Bloebaum and Jacob Steele, bettered Wave II Trials cuts on day 1 prelims of the Wave I Olympic Trials meet.
As a reminder, simply making a Wave II cut in this meet isn’t enough to qualify for the Wave II meet. Athletes must finish in the top 2 of an A final in the Wave I meet to move on, regardless of whether they hit a Wave II cut or not. At this point, the time standards themselves are largely symbolic, but tracking Wave II times achieved at this meet help inform the ongoing conversation about how much impact splitting the meet into two waves will have on top-performing swimmers.
There were a couple more close calls with Wave II cuts this morning. Camille Spink was 0.07 off the Wave II cut with a 55.63 in the 100 free. Micah Slaton was 0.13 off the cut in the 200 fly and sits second behind Bloebaum. Autumn Haebig was 0.09 from the cut with a 1:01.58 in the 100 back. Nate Stoffle sits 0.12 off the cut in the 100 back, just behind Steele.
Here’s a look at all the swimmers who hit Wave II cuts this morning:
- 200 fly: Carl Bloebaum (RAYS) – 1:59.57
- Wave II cut is 1:59.63
- 100 back: Jacob Steele (ISC) – 55.46
- Wave II cut is 55.51
More often, we saw swimmers – or event entire fields – slower than the Wave I cuts. That’s not abnormal for the Olympics Trials, a meet where, historically, lifetime-best swims are extremely hard to come by. Here’s a look at how many swimmers in each event bettered the Wave I cut in prelims today:
- Women’s 100 free: 7
- Men’s 100 free: 4
- Women’s 200 fly: 6
- Men’s 200 fly: 5
- Women’s 100 back: 6
- Men’s 100 back: 22
- Women’s 800 free (early heat): 0
- Men’s 800 free (early heat):0
If we go back and look at Trials results in previous years, maybe this will shed some light. Not that I did that, but I’m thinking …. In prior Trials, I think I focus on results of the top eight swimmers – those making finals. But maybe the swimmers in the ’40th place and lower’ seeds often are not achieving their best times at Trials. Quite possibly many of them qualified by having that one swim where everything just all fell into place. Perfect taper, perfect warmup, the right lunch, whatever. Qualifying times come from a ‘best time’. Should I expect to see ‘best time’ every time from every swimmer?
Everyone is talking about LPT. the meet directors don’t want people to know.
#lpt
#shortenThePool
Carl Bloebaum is a rock star! I want to be reincarnated as him!
Only a low percent in the Wave II meet will do better than Wave II cuts – I predict like 20-25% in each event, averaged. 10-15% of swims will be best times, maybe less. This shouldn’t be surprising at this point – we see this at every big meet, including NCAAs. Doing a best time is hard – full stop. And then the pressure and hoopla of Trials is not conducive either, overall.
I think most if not all of the top two finishers this evening will hit the wave 2 cut
7 swimmers will hit wave 2 cuts tonight. Upvote if you say 7 or higher, downvote if you say fewer than 7.
Give these kids a break, this is literally the slower seeded athletes competing in the heats. At any given Olympic Trials (2016, 2012, 2008, etc), you would expect these types of times to be within the top 80 or 90, as they usually do. It is great USA Swimming is allowing for 2 waves, so many people’s dreams would have been crushed and a slower seeded meet with prelims/finals is a great experience for any age!
I coudn’t watch the livestream today, I hope it will get fixed
Forget wave 2 how many swimmers where even under the wave 1 cuts?
It’s in the article….if you care to read it
Fifty
~ 22% of swims made wave 1 qualifying time.
< 1% made wave 2 cut