2023 U.S. Trials Previews: It’s Anybody’s Race In The Men’s 400 Free

2023 U.S. National Championships

• June 27 – July 1, 2023
• Indianapolis, IN
• Indiana University Natatorium
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
• SwimSwam Preview Index

Men’s 400 Free – By The Numbers:

• World Record: Paul Biedermann (GER) — 3:40.07 (2009)
• American Record:  Larsen Jensen — 3:42.78 (2008)
• U.S. Open Record: Larsen Jensen (USA) — 3:43.53 (2008)
• 2022 U.S. International Team Trials Winner: Kieran Smith — 3:46.61
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 3:48.15

Oh the times, they are a-changin’. For the last two years, the story of the men’s 400 freestyle has been the search for two men to hit the elusive World Aquatics ‘A’ cut. Kieran Smith has been reliable in that regard, but there’s been a big question mark as to who—if anyone—could join him on the senior international roster.

Luckily for the Americans, this year the World Aquatics ‘A’ cut held at last year’s standard, 3:48.15. Not only that, but there are now five (yes, five!) active American men who have been under that mark during the qualifying window.

The Tokyo Olympians

Smith has become the go-to guy for the U.S. in this event. The 23-year-old won bronze at the Tokyo Olympics in a lifetime best of 3:43.94 which makes him the sixth-fastest U.S. performer in history. He wasn’t quite as fast in 2022, but still won U.S. Trials before finishing seventh at Worlds (3:46.43).

Jake Mitchell (photo: Jack Spitser)

Last year, we didn’t have any reference points for Smith heading into Trials as he spent the season racing in yards and finishing up his college career at Florida. Now, he’s a full-time pro and has raced at three of the four Pro Swims. He’s bringing a season-best of 3:48.02 to Indianapolis, which makes him one of the few people in the field to get under 3:50 this season. Smith has consistently shown that he’s one of (if not the best) active American men in this event. His consistency over the last two years and his in-season times make him a safe bet to repeat as the 400 freestyle champion.

One of the other men with a season-best under 3:50 is Smith’s Olympic and Florida teammate Jake Mitchell (3:49.65). Mitchell qualified for the Olympics in the most electric time trial in history, swimming by himself and cutting over two seconds from his best to hit the World Aquatics ‘A’ cut. He dropped even more time at the Games, eventually finishing seventh in 3:45.38, which still stands as his best.

His 2022 was less magical–he found out that he had mono during NCAAs, which took him out of the water for weeks. Because of that, he didn’t compete at 2022 World Trials. Since then, he’s made the move from Michigan to Florida, and hit best times in both yards and meters. After a less-than-ideal 2022, Mitchell will be ready to reassert himself as one of the top American men in this event.

Also Under The ‘A’ Cut

But of course, it’s not just Smith and Mitchell under the ‘A’ cut anymore.

The most intriguing of the three other men faster than the ‘A’ cut is Carson Foster, who blasted 3:45.29 during a time trial at last summer’s Austin Sectionals. The swim made him the 10th-fastest American in history and confirmed many suspicions about Foster’s potential in the event.

However, there is a slight problem: the 400 free and 400 IM finals are both on the first day of Worlds. Even for a swimmer like Foster, the reigning 400 IM silver medalist, that’s a nasty double. And even though the 400 IM features Leon Marchand, Foster has a better chance at a medal in the IM than the free.

There’s no conflict at Trials, so maybe he swims it. But he did opt out last year after initially being on the psych sheet.

Jake Magahey (photo: Jack Spitser)

That leaves Ross Dant and Jake Magahey. Dant has been racking up third-place finishes at selection meets. He finished third in the 400 and 800 free at 2020 Olympic Trials. Then, he finished third in the 400 and fourth in the 800 at last year’s Trials. He swam a lifetime best 3:47.11 in the 400, missing the Worlds team by .18 seconds.

Part of the NC State distance crew, Dant finished second in the 1650 (14:30.32) and seventh in the 500 free (4:12.59) at the 2023 NCAAs. We know he’s got the speed, now he’s just got to get his hand on the wall ahead of his competitors. If he does that, he’ll be on his way to his first international competition.

After a few years of his meters times not matching his yards speed, Magahey finally put the pieces together at last summer’s U.S Nationals. There, Magahey won the 400 free with his usual back-half-focused race strategy, passing Smith, Mitchell, David Johnston, and Luke Hobson. He hit the wall in a lifetime best 3:46.36.

Magahey skipped Trials last year to give himself time to heal after a minor pec injury. But after his end-of-summer results, he’ll arrive in Indianapolis as a threat for the second spot on the Worlds roster.

‘A’ Cut In Sight

There’s a handful of other swimmers knocking on the door of the ‘A’ standard, most of whom spent the season racing in the NCAA. Though Foster may not be in the race, there are still plenty of Longhorns: Hobson, Johnston, and Coby Carrozza all hold 3:49-point personal bests.

Luke Hobson (photo: Jack Spitser)

Hobson heads to Indianapolis with an extremely hot hand. He had an excellent yards season, which not only saw him win the 200/500 free national titles, but also break 1:30 in the 200 free and make big improvements on his freshman year times. After his freshman season at Texas, he dropped from 3:52.79 to 3:49.95 at U.S Nationals. With another season at Texas under his belt that saw so much success for him, it’s hard not to feel like he’s got another drop coming in meters.

Johnston and Carrozza have both swum faster than Hobson. Johnston went a 3:49.69 personal best in the same U.S. Nationals race as Hobson, finishing in fifth compared to Hobson’s seventh. Carrozza, meanwhile, clocked 3:49.48 at Austin Sectionals. Both are more known for their speed at other distances—Carrozza was a member of the 2022 Worlds team for the 4×200 free relay—but with a drop, both could be in contention for a roster spot. It’s also worth noting that Johnston scratched this race last year.

Two more names to watch are Charlie Clark and Will Gallant. Clark qualified for Worlds last year in the 800/1500 freestyles. He also raced the 400 at Trials, finishing fourth in a personal best of 3:49.36. Like the others in this section, he’s got some work to do to hit the ‘A’ cut (and this may prove to be too short a distance for him) but he should be a factor again in the final.

Gallant, like Magahey, really came into his own at U.S. Nationals last summer. There he won X. He followed that up with a lifetime best of 3:49.83 in the 400 free. Gallant had a great college season at NC State, capped off with a national title in the 1650. This year, with more time between the end of NCAAs and Trials, watch for Gallant in the final.

Finally, we’d be remiss to not mention Rex Maurer as a factor here. He won the Trials ‘B’ final last year, then swam a lifetime best 3:49.86 later in the summer for silver at Junior Pan Pacs. That time puts him right in the mix with these college stars–needing another drop for the ‘A’ cut but a potential threat in the final. Maurer has had a sensational season in yards and is one of the most likely candidates for a big-time drop.

SwimSwam’s Top 8 Picks

Dark Horse: Gabriel Jett — Jett is another swimmer who could be primed for a sizable time drop. He gets the most attention for his butterfly skill, but he’s also a capable mid-distance freestyler, which he’s shown off in yards to the tune of personal bests of 1:30.74/4:09.66 in the 200/500-yard freestyle. In LCM, his lifetime best stands at 3:52.16 from the 2022 U.S. Nationals, and after his yards season it feels like there’s definitely some room for him to drop. His season-best (4:05.62) isn’t much to write home about but it came at the Knoxville PSS during the middle of January training, so it shouldn’t be weighed too heavily. Expect him to be much faster in Indianapolis.