Doha 2024, Day 4 North America Recap: Klinker In Conversation For 200 Fly Spot For Paris

2024 WORLD AQUATIC CHAMPIONSHIPS

• February 11th – February 18th, 2024
• Doha, Qatar
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Official Entries
• Live Results
• How To Watch
• Day 1 Prelims Recap | Day 1 Finals Recap
• Day 2 Prelims Recap | Day 2 Finals Recap
• Day 3 Prelims Recap | Day 3 Finals Recap
• Day 4 Prelims Live Recap
• Day 4 Finals Live Recap

Day 4 Finals Heat Sheet

Rachel Klinker of the United States had a big swim in the women’s 200 butterfly semifinal on night four of competition in Doha at the 2024 World Championships. Klinker swam a personal best of a 2:07.70 to be the #2 seed heading into tomorrow night’s final.

Klinker was a last-minute addition to the United States roster as Klinker was added less than three weeks ago. Originally, Sandpipers of Nevada teammates Claire Weinstein and Katie Grimes were on the US roster for Doha.

In January, the rosters were updated replacing Weinstein and Grimes with four teenagers. The four teenagers covered all of the events that Weinstein and Grimes were entered in, with the exception of the 200 butterfly. Grimes was originally scheduled to swim the event and no one had replaced that entry until Klinker was added for the 200 fly.

Klinker entered Doha with a lifetime best of a 2:09.18 which she swam at 2020 Wave II Olympic Trials in semifinals, where she went on to finish 8th in the finals. In this morning’s prelims, Klinker was just off her best time swimming a 2:09.85 to be the 4th seed heading into semifinals. Her swim in semifinals in Doha marked a personal best by over a second.

Now, Klinker’s swim places her big into the conversation for the 2024 Paris Olympics women’s 200 butterfly spot. With only (up to) two spots up for grabs and her 9th place finish from this past summer at US Summer Nationals, a big drop would be needed to qualify for Paris. That drop was shown today that it can happen.

Her time from today’s semifinal would have been third only behind Regan Smith (2:05.79) and Lindsay Looney (2:07.35) at 2023 US Summer Nationals, where Smith and Looney went on to swim the event for the US at 2023 Worlds. Smith went on to win bronze (2:06.58) while Looney was 8th (2:07.90) in the final in Fukuoka.

Not only is Klinker’s swim important as far as looking into the field for the US Olympic Trials, but it also is important to look into the combined programs under head coach Dave Durden now at Cal. The Cal fifth year had been within a second of her lifetime best in the LCM 200 fly for the last two summers, but now she has broken through. Klinker and the Cal women will compete at the 2024 Pac-12 Championships starting February 28th.