2025 U.S. Trials Previews: King’s Last Stand In Women’s 100 Breaststroke

2025 U.S. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, June 3 – Saturday, June 7, 2025
• Indianapolis, Indiana
• Indiana University Natatorium
• LCM (50 meters)
• World Championship Selection Criteria
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• SwimSwam Pick ’em Contest
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheets
• Live Results

WOMEN’S 100 BREASTSTROKE: BY THE NUMBERS

• World Record: 1:04.13, Lilly King (USA) – 2017
• American Record: 1:04.13, Lilly King – 2017
• 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials Winner: Lilly King, 1:05.43
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 1:06.87

Lilly King has been on an unprecedented run of dominance domestically in the women’s 100 breaststroke.

The last time King didn’t win the event at a U.S. selection meet was in 2014, placing 6th as a young 17-year-old, which was good enough to qualify her for the 2015 World University Games, where she won the silver medal in a then-personal best time of 1:06.93.

Since then, it’s been a whole lot of winning for King. She’s come out on top at seven straight selection meets, beginning with the 2016 Olympic Trials in Omaha and spanning through the 2024 Trials last summer in Indianapolis.

Last week, King announced that 2025 would be her final competitive season, and fittingly, her last competition in the United States will be held at the Indiana University Natatorium, where the Evansville native and former Hoosier has been competing throughout her career.

So, in her last meet racing on U.S. soil, it’s hard to bet against King keeping her unbeaten streak domestically alive—she may be nearing retirement and isn’t training as much as she used to, but we know that competitive fire still burns bright.

KING IS STILL THE BREASTSTROKE QUEEN

King has had a penchant for coming up clutch when the pressure’s on.

Lilly King and Katie Meili go 1-3 for the U.S. at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio -Photo: Simone Castrovillari

She won Olympic gold in 2016 after stoking the fires to her rivalry with Russian Yuliya Efimova, threw down the fastest swim in history (1:04.13) en route to the world title in 2017, and then defended her title in 2019, beating Efimova for the third straight time head-to-head in a major final after publicly calling her out for doping.

Since then, King hasn’t won a major long course title in the 100 breast, earning bronze at the Tokyo Olympics, and then placing 4th three straight times at the 2022 and 2023 Worlds and the 2024 Olympics.

Despite not being the undisputed best in the world in the 100 breast anymore, King has never relinquished her status as the best in the country and there’s not much to suggest she’ll do so this year.

King’s U.S. Selection Meet Results – 100 Breast

• 2016 Olympic Trials – 1:05.20 (1st)
• 2017 World Championship Trials– 1:04.95 (1st)
• 2018 Nationals – 1:05.36 (1st)
• 2021 Olympic Trials – 1:04.79 (1st)
• 2022 International Team Trials – 1:05.67 (1st)
• 2023 Nationals – 1:04.75 (1st)
• 2024 Olympic Trials – 1:05.43 (1st)

So far this season, the 28-year-old King has been as fast as 1:06.67, done on May 1 at the Pro Swim in Fort Lauderdale. That race was a preview of sorts of the final at U.S. Nationals, as she went head-to-head with four of the other contenders, Emma Weber, Kate Douglass, Alex Walsh, and Skyler Smith, placing 2nd by four one-hundredths of a second.

King usually manages to get her hands on the wall first when a race is close, and though she got out-touched by Weber one month ago, it’s hard to imagine anyone getting the upper hand on her while she’s racing in front of her home crowd in Indy.

King being 1:06-mid in-season is relatively on par with where she’s been in recent years leading into the selection meet—she was 1:06.2 in 2022 and 2023, and although she went 1:05.67 in January 2024, she was 1:06.37 that May prior to the Olympic Trials.

So, despite knowing retirement is near, there’s not much to indicate King has taken her foot off the gas. At 1:06 untapered, she should be good for 1:05-mid at Nationals, or something in that range, and, with Tokyo Olympic champion Lydia Jacoby sitting out this year, no one else in the field has ever been sub-1:06.

THE VIRGINIA TRIO

The University of Virginia women have long been a dominant force in college swimming, and, though they’ve become known for sprint free, IM and 200 breaststroke prowess in recent years, the Cavaliers have claimed the 100 breast at NCAAs the last two seasons for the first time in program history.

Kate Douglass, Alex Walsh (photo: Jack Spitser)

The 100 breast was never a part of Kate Douglass‘ NCAA schedule, and it was only added to Alex Walsh‘s program this season, resulting in her winning the national title after Italian Jasmine Nocentini won the event for the first time in Virginia history in 2024.

Emma Weber hasn’t had the same NCAA success as Douglass or Walsh, placing 8th, 11th and 11th in the 100 breast in her first three seasons with the Cavaliers, but last summer, she was the biggest surprise on the women’s side to qualify for the U.S. Olympic team, snagging 2nd in the Trials final in the 100 breast behind King.

Douglass, Walsh and Weber could all realistically earn a World Championship berth in the 100 breast this summer, but there are questions.

Douglass is the fastest American this season with her time of 1:06.51 from the Westmont Pro Swim in March, and she’s now gone 1:06 five times in the last 18 months—all at in-season meets, indicating she’s probably capable of going 1:05.

The thing with Douglass, however, is that she’s entered the 100 breast at the 2023 U.S. Nationals and 2024 Olympic Trials, but didn’t end up racing it. She’s entered again this year, and though the event has no scheduling conflicts for her at Nationals—at Worlds, there would be a conflict with the 200 IM semis, but she’s rumored to be dropping that for the 50 free—we can’t be sure she’ll actually be racing it.

Walsh has turned her focus away from 400 IM training and has zeroed in on the 200 IM and 200 breast, with the 100 breast being her third event in long course. This past short course season, she hit a new level with three sub-57 swims in the 100 breast, moving to #3 all-time with her NCAA-winning 56.49 performance in March.

In the big pool, she hasn’t shown quite the same amount of speed as of yet, but has been under 1:07, setting a PB of 1:06.87 in the Olympic Trials semis last year before placing 6th in the final (1:07.38). Looking into the splits, Walsh was actually faster on the second 50 of the 200 breast final at the Trials (35.57) than she was coming home in the 100 breast final (35.89), indicating she tightened up a bit and is capable of going much quicker, likely pushing a sub-35 split coming home (was 35.20 coming back in the semis).

Emma Weber (photo: Jack Spitser)

The 23-year-old clocked 1:07.36 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim, her second-fastest swim ever, so she looks to be on track for a new best time. But if she can get into 1:06 low territory, which is what it will likely take for a top-two finish, remains to be seen.

That brings us to Weber, who actually booked a plane ticket to fly to Paris and watch last summer’s Olympics before she surprised herself by qualifying.

The now 21-year-old had a big breakthrough swim last April at the San Antonio Pro Swim, dropping her best time down from 1:07.39 to 1:06.50, and then came through under the lights at the Olympic Trials two months later, clocking a PB of 1:06.10 in the final to place 2nd to King and take down the likes of Jacoby (1:06.37) and Kaitlyn Dobler (1:06.77).

Now with some international experience under her belt from the Olympics and Short Course Worlds, Weber is in a great position to make it back-to-back berths on the U.S. team at a major international meet, ranking 2nd in the nation this season after winning in Fort Lauderdale in 1:06.63.

NCAA FINALISTS

A good percentage of the top contenders in the women’s 100 breast raced in the NCAA this season, led by Walsh and Weber, but there are several others with a chance to shake things up in Indianapolis coming off strong college seasons.

Outside of King, Weber and Walsh, the only other woman from last year’s Olympic Trials final who will be competing this week is McKenzie Siroky, who is coming off completing her freshman year at Tennessee.

McKenzie Siroky (photo: Jack Spitser)

Siroky set three straight best times at the 2024 Trials, going 1:07.80 in the heats, 1:07.73 in the semis and then 1:07.71 in the final to place 7th after just one year of swimming full-time.

She was the runner-up at the 2025 SEC Championships in the 100 breast and went on to finish 3rd at NCAAs as a freshman.

In her first long course meet this season, Siroky set best times in all three breaststroke distances, including a 1:07.05 clocking in the 100.

The 20-year-old will be dangerous, no doubt, with a 1:06 swim in her sights.

The 2025 NCAA ‘A’ final also featured Texas’ Piper Enge, while the consolation final had the likes of Lucy Thomas and Skyler Smith, all of whom will be factors this week.

Enge, who was a freshman at Texas this past season, placed 5th at NCAAs and has been as fast as 1:07.27 in the long course pool, set in March 2024 before placing 14th at the Olympic Trials, clocking 1:08.5 in the prelims and semis.

The 18-year-old has already been faster than they were at the Olympic Trials last year, clocking 1:08.21 at the Longhorn Elite Invite, and figures to factor prominently in the final in Indianapolis.

Thomas, who placed 12th at NCAAs in the 100 breast in her sophomore year at Stanford, produced her fastest long course swim in three years at the beginning of May, clocking 1:08.63 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim to rank 9th in the country this season.

The 19-year-old has only been faster at the 2022 Junior Nationals, where she set her PB of 1:07.63, and she also set a new best time of 58.48 in the short course pool at NCAAs, so Thomas is trending in the right direction heading into Nationals.

Smith placed 9th at the Olympic Trials last year, missing out on a lane in the final by just under four-tenths of a second. She set a PB of 1:07.52 at the 2024 Mare Nostrum Tour stop in Monaco shortly before the Trials, and before embarking on the series again this year, narrowly missed her best time in 1:07.85 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim.

She only managed 1:09-highs on the Mare Nostrum Tour this year, so assuming she trained through it and will come back down with a good taper in the last two weeks, the 21-year-old should be back in 1:07 form and vying for a lane in the final.

Washington State’s Emily Lundgren set a SCY best time of 58.83 to crack the top 16 at NCAAs, though she’s less established in long course with a best time of 1:10.22 and no swims on record in the big pool this season.

OTHER CONTENDERS

A significant portion of the 16 swimmers who contested the semis at the 2024 Olympic Trials won’t be racing in Indianapolis.

In addition to Jacoby, we also won’t see fellow finalists Dobler, Kaelyn Gridley and Ella Nelson in the field, nor will we see semi-finalists Abby Arens, Zoie Hartman and Joleigh Crye, with Crye entering the meet but only in the 50 breast according to the latest updated psych sheets.

Gabrielle Rose (photo: Jack Spitser)

Placing 10th last year was the remarkable Gabby Rose, who wowed the crowd at Lucas Oil Stadium by making the semi-finals of the 100 and 200 breast at the age of 46.

Now 47, Rose set a best time of 1:08.32 at last year’s Trials and went 1:08.77 at the Speedo Grand Challenge just over a week ago, so she’ll be in the hunt for a top finish yet again—cracking the ‘A’ final will be a tall order, but with so many names missing, she’s got a good chance.

Also swimming in the semis last year was Hannah Bach, who has wrapped up her college career at Ohio State and is now pursuing her Master’s degree and working in the school’s athletic department. She raced for the first time since the 2024 Trials in mid-May, clocking 1:12.15 in the 100 breast (and 31.91 in the 50) at the LE Busbey Invitational. The 24-year-old might not have the training behind her to challenge in the 100, but she shouldn’t be discounted in the 50.

The only swimmer to go under 1:09 this season that we’ve yet to mention is Leah Hayes, who set a new lifetime best of 1:08.51 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim to put herself in the hunt. It’s possible she drops this event to rest up for the 200 IM, her best event, which is the day after, however.

Cal commit Elle Scott, 17, is also coming off setting a new PB, going 1:09.06 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim. Fellow 17-year-old Kayda Geyer, a Colorado State commit, also set a new best time in May with a 1:09.28 clocking at the Martha McKee Open.

Irvine Novaquatics’ Isabelle Odgers has been 1:09.45 this season and owns a best of 1:08.17, rising UVA senior Zoe Skirboll set a PB of 1:08.99 from last year’s Olympic Trials, and up-and-comer Addie Robillard has been as fast as 1:08.79, though that came in the summer of 2023 (she’s been 1:10.45 this season).

Hannah Marinovich, coming off her freshman year at Tennessee, could be one to keep an eye on after she dropped a best time of 1:09.17 last July at the Futures Championships in Sacramento. Though she didn’t qualify for NCAAs, she broke 1:00 in SCY for the first time at SECs and has proven to be better in the long course pool.

THE VERDICT

If Douglass is racing the 100 breast, she’d be hard to bet against for a top-two finish, but with her entering seven events, and having dropped this event at each of the last two selection meets, it’s hard not to lean towards her opting out again this year.

King will be riding the emotion of her last 100 breast on U.S. soil in front of the home crowd, giving her the edge, while Weber is more proven in long course than Walsh in the race for the second spot.

SWIMSWAM PICKS

Dark Horse: Lucy Bell – Bell pulled out a big win in the 200 breast at Women’s NCAAs just over two months ago, and though her best time in the long course 100 breast stands at 1:10.16 and was set in 2022 (and hasn’t raced it since 2023), she did hit a SCY best of 58.30 at the beginning of February.