2024 Paris Olympics: Day 1 Prelims Preview

2024 PARIS SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES

• Pool Swimming: July 27 – August 4, 2024
  • Open Water Swimming: August 8 – 9, 2024
• La Défense Arena — Paris, France
• LCM (50 meters)
• Meet Central
• Full Schedule
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Entry Lists

Day 1 Prelim Heat Sheets

Event Lineup:

• Women’s 100 butterfly
• Women’s 400 freestyle
• Men’s 100 breaststroke
• Men’s 400 freestyle
• Women’s 4×100 freestyle relay
• Men’s 4×100 freestyle relay

It’s finally here. Day 1 prelims of the 2024 Paris Olympics feature four individual events and two relays.

The morning will kick off with the women’s 100 buttefly as newly-minted World Record holder Gretchen Walsh enters as the top seed. Walsh won the event at US Trials and is coming off of a historic season at the collegiate level with the University of Virginia. Walsh is competing in her first Olympic Games but represented the USA at the 2023 World Championships getting some major international experience under her belt. Walsh enters with a 55.18 entry time. She will race next to Germany’s Angelina Kohler who had a huge swim in February to win the 2024 World Championship and is entered with a 56.11.

The #2 seed is fellow American Torri Huske who is the former-American Record holder in the event and has a 55.52 entry time. Huske will look to make her way to another Olympic final in the event after a 4th place finish in Tokyo. Huske will swim next to defending Olympic Champion Maggie MacNeil in prelims as MacNeil enters with a 56.45.

The first of the three circle-seeded heats will feature defending silver medalist Zhang Yufei of China who swam a 55.64 in Tokyo and is entered with a 55.86. She will be next to Australia’s Emma McKeon who won bronze in Tokyo and is entered with a 56.58 here.

After what was considering an upset in 2020, Ariarne Titmus of Australia is the top seed in the 400 free with a 3:55.38 which stands as the World Record. With only two circle-seeded heats in the event, Titmus will swim next to Katie Ledecky (3:58.35) in the morning.

The first circle-seeded heat will feature Canadian teenager Summer McIntosh who enters with a 3:56.08. New Zealand’s Erika Fairweather won the 2024 World Championship title in the event and is the final sub-4:00 entry with a 3:59.44.

Turning things over to the men’s side will be the 100 breast as 2023 World Champion Qin Haiyang of China is the top seed with a 57.69. Defending Olympic Champion and World record holder Adam Peaty returns to the big stage and will look to set himself up for his 3rd-striaght Olympic title in the event. Peaty is entered with a 57.94 from this April and missed the 2022 and 2023 World Championships.

Last summer, Nic Fink (USA), Arno Kamminga (Netherlands), and Nicolo Martinenghi (Italy) had a three-way tie for silver. All three are the 3rd, 4th, and 5th seeds repsectively and will look to return to an international level podium. Kamminga won silver in Tokyo while Martinenghi won bronze.

The final individual race of the morning is the men’s 400 free. Defending champion Ahmed Hafnaoui will not be competing in the race so a new champion will be crowned. Leading the entries is Germany’s Lukas Maertens who just missed the World Record earlier this year posting a 3:40.33. Martens won bronze at 2023 Worlds and will swim next to Australia’s Elijah Winnington in the morning.

Fellow Australian Sam Short is the top seed in the first heat with a 4:40.68 which he swam to win the event at 2023 Worlds. Korea’s Kim Woomin will swim next to Short and is coming off of a 2024 World title from February.

The 4×100 free relays will conclude the morning. Relay lineups are posted the morning of and will be detailed in a separate article. The Australian’s enter as the top seed in both events but are larger favorites on the women’s side.