2025 World Championships
- July 27 – August 3, 2025 (pool swimming)
- Singapore, Singapore
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Kyle Chalmers Is Eternal, But Australia Are No Longer So Reliant On The King
For the fifth summer in a row, Chalmers anchored the freestyle relay in a time between 46.4 and 46.6. Every single time, he has made up at least one place for Australia.
Although he is still yet to break 47 seconds from a flat start, Chalmers now has 14 splits under that mark – nearly 20% of the total number of 46-point-or-better splits. He is the most feared anchor on the 4×100 free relay in the world right now.
He has shown few signs of slowing down, despite an exhausted-looking 48.3 on the medley relay on the final day. The gold in the individual event may be gone now, with it seeming like a 46-point swim will be required from here on out, but as long as Australia are in this final he’ll give them the best possible shot at winning.
A note on the rest of this relay: all three swimmers were fantastic. Flynn Southam had his breakout world champs performance this year, Kai Taylor had a huge 47.0, and Max Giuliani came down from the 200 to give a very solid 47.64 leg. Even without Chalmers, this is a medal-caliber relay – exactly what they need to be building for when he hangs up his goggles.
The U.S. Less Than The Sum Of Its Parts Again
For the second consecutive summer, the U.S. came into this relay with a season best add-up in the 3:09 range and failed to drop much, if any time.
Using Jonny Kulow, 5th at Nationals, instead of Destin Lasco means that the finals team were a quarter second faster than their add-up, but this was far smaller than the drops from the teams around them.
Teams drop an average of around two seconds from their season best add up on this relay, and the two countries that beat the U.S. dropped at least three. Patrick Sammon looks an absolute asset, but Chris Giuliano is still yet to beat his flat start time from a relay start and Jonny Kulow chose a bad time to have his first shaky anchor in just about forever.
It should not be forgotten that this relay has had a full turnover in the last three years – not one swimmer remains from the 2022 world championships. They’ll need to buck their recent trend in terms of time drops in two years time, to set them up for the subsequent year. There wouldn’t be many better ways to end Day 1 at LA 2028 than with a dominant win in this event.
Italy Finally Get All Their Pieces Firing
Make no mistake, Italy have been a force in this relay over the past few years, and this was the fifth summer in a row in which they have won a medal. However, they have always had at least one split in the 47-high range.
Not so this year. After a 47.78 leadoff from 18-year-old Carlos D’Ambrosio, they got splits of 47.10, 47.36 and 47.34 from the stalwart trio of Thomas Ceccon, Lorenzo Zazzeri and Manuel Frigo. That allowed them to break 3:10 for the first time, and they were right with the U.S. and Australia the whole race.
Frigo, Ceccon and Zazzeri have been involved with all five medal-winning relays, but Italy have had Carlos D’Ambrosio and Paolo Conte Bonin step up in the last couple of years. With Leonardo Deplano and hopefully Alessandro Miressi also options, this team is deep.
They have kept a tight rotation through the years, making at most a single swap from heats to finals, but if the competition can push them to new heights then not only are they gold-medal-favorites at Europeans next summer, but podium locks through to 2028 and beyond.
Great Britain Missed Their Chance In 2023
Great Britain broke their national record in the final as they finished 4th in 3:10.73, slicing four-tenths of a second from their 2022 mark, but were more than a second back from the podium.
This is a relay that Great Britain have never medalled in and, with their core of Tom Dean, Matt Richards and Duncan Scott not looking quite in the same form at this distance as they have in the past, may still be one where they don’t make the podium for a while yet.
Their best chance at a medal was in 2023. Matt Richards split 46.9 and 46.8 at worlds that year, with Tom Dean having been 46.7 the summer before. With National Record holder (at the time) Lewis Burris, Jacob Whittle and Duncan Scott joining them, they were rightly favourites for gold.
They did not back that up, disqualified for an early takeover in the heats after going 3:10.63. That was slightly faster than they managed in the final this year, but the world has caught back up to them and the podium is a second away.
Right now this team is not a medal contender. Wasting the opportunity they had back in 2023 will sting a little.
Lithuania Show Up For The Smaller Nations
The last few years have seen some non-traditional nations make the final of this event, with Serbia in 2022, Spain and Israel in 2023 and Germany in 2024. This year’s new team was Lithuania, who dropped four seconds from their National Record with their morning swim of 3:12.74, beating out NAB by a tenth of a second for the final spot in the top eight.
They last raced this relay at the European Championships in 2021 where they were 16th in 3:19.71. They have a completely different team now to the quartet that swam there, with teenager Tajus Juska and NCAA pair Tomas Navikonis and Tomas Lukminas joining National Record holder Danas Rapsys.
The two Tomas’, who swim for Ohio State and Arizona respectively, were sub-48 in the morning with Navikonis having one of the fastest splits in the field in 47.47. He switched to lead off in the final, setting a new PB of 48.37, while Lukminas swam another 47.8 on the third leg.
They ended up touching 8th in 3:12.84, a tenth back from their newly-minted record, but this team is young, hungry and improving – and could well be back in two years time.
Death, Taxes, and Nandor Nemeth Breaking 48
The leadoff leg of this relay, coming on day 1 of the meet, is often a little slower than we might expect with sub-48 swims more uncommon. For Nandor Nemeth, who has now led off in a 47-point at five major championships in five years, doing so is no issue.
That is the sign of a big-stage performer, for a swimmer who hasn’t won the medals on the world stage that his performances may have warranted. It’s easy to forget he was 4th in Paris, a hundredth behind David Popovici.
This was his first and only swim under 48 seconds this season, but extends his streak of breaking the barrier to five years. He is a contender to return to the podium individually at Europeans next year, and will continue to give Hungary the best possible platform on this relay.
Chris Guiliano
Men’s 4 x 100 meter freestyle relay
Splits
2023 – 47.77
2024 – 47.33
2025 – 47.43
Not exactly Sammon-esque.
If D’Ambrosio keeps improving and they get Miressi back near his best Italy are gonna be a serious problem
I thought the USA were a lock for gold. I mean, yes, Chalmers anchors like a beast, you can take that to the bank, but what other nation had SEVEN swimmers clocking under 48 at Trials?!?
Poor execution and basically all the American swimmers have an aggressive race plan which allows other teams to draft off them.
The coach pretty much made an error putting a rookie to anchor the relay and he split 47.9
Meh.
Kulow is a great relay anchor in NCAA for 2 years
Should’ve been Alexy or Giuliano if they want to put someone reliable to be the anchor
After watching the men’s medley relay, Alexy as anchor, please.
In my book, USA wins 4×100 free 💯
Your book is obviously fiction.
To clinch the game, a team has to have a preeminent captain besides above-average teammates compared in the field.
Aussies is the only one that meets this prerequisite while Italians and Americans don’t have a leader to race a sub 47 in the event as Chalmers and Pan did by flying start, 46.53 & 46.63.
However, China quartet was so heavily relying on super Pan’s form that the other triplet had had its work cut out for Pan to anchor for podium.
And Team China’s tactics in the relay did have a repercussion on Pan’s performance in 200 free Heats following the night while Pan couldn’t recharge oversight, quoted his own saying.
Still, the U.S. side has… Read more »
Ummmm…Alexy?
I guess 45.95 just aint fast these days smh
No guys hes right he wasnt sub 47, he was sub 46
Are you serious…alexy leadd of with 47.2..the fastest..and went 46.8, 46.9 in individual event..lead off the mixed free in 46.9, anchored the medley relay prelim with 46.7, and finals with 45.9..HE IS THE LEADER
Alexy definitely did the job with the leadoff ,it’s just that they’re putting Kulow who is brand new to international meet on the anchor just to split 47.9 is an error by the coaching staff cause he even get passed by the Italian swimmer .
Weird strategy from the US once again.
They always put Dressel first more because he had the best flat start in the world and less because he was the fastest.
There is not much reason to continue to lead off Alexy. He’s great from a swing and his flat start is probably the biggest weakness of his race.
Kulow over Lasco was also a crazy choice when you factor in flat start best alongside the very small difference between them in prelims. In what world does someone you beat by .24 flat start in a 100 get the spot over you with a .09 difference in prelims of which .06 was reaction time? Their swimming speed was .03 different!
The strategy was fine, they just shouldn’t have put Kulow last, but putting two rookies in the middle period gives rise to a shaky position for the anchor anyways.
If you check the results from the last two NCAA meets and 2023 Worlds, you’ll see that Alexy wasn’t a great relay start swimmer. Cal usually had him leadoff for this reason, because the times he would swing a flying start he’d end up going the same time anyways. Short course worlds in 2024 was probably the first time he outperformed his flat start splits on relays significantly, but it wasn’t a large enough data point. Him going 45.95 was a very unexpected but nice surprise at the end of… Read more »
he also had 47 low splits at pan ams which faster than he was at worlds lol. with how much faster he is now its very reasonable he could have had a crazy split in finals. im guessing it was a combo of nerves and not being in top form due to illness.
parallel example but bella had a crazy split at 2022 worlds as a newbie anchor
USA always consider the prelim swim..relays are relays..historically Kulows has bunch of 47 low splits which lasco does not..
Alexy is the fastest from the blocks and flying in both ways.
Next international podium is gonna be all sub 3:09. Everyone is swimming 47’s, and it seems like at least one person in each relay gets close to dipping below for a 46.
Alexy is the shot in the arm TEAM USA needed. We have Bobby Finke in distance races and Alexy in the sprints. We can build that. Alexa was VERY CONSISTENT and that 45.95 was the icing on the cake. Right on time.
The problem was the order of the swimmers for the USA. I love Kulow and think he has great potential, but he shouldn’t have been swimming anchor. That was a dumb move by the coaches. His prelim times were faster in the relays he did. I’d have put him second
I’d have just swapped him and Guiliano cause 3rd seems like a safe place to put a rookie if you think you can give them clean water, so all they have to do it hold position and not chase anyone down – which the US def knew they could do – but potato tomato.