Carsten Vissering Helps U.S. Bobsled Team to 11th Place Finish at Winter Olympics

2026 Winter Olympic Games

• February 4 – February 22, 2026
• Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy
• Event Website
• Schedule

Former USC breaststroke star Carsten Vissering made a successful Olympic debut at the 2026 Winter Olympics competing in the 4-man bobsled event for the United States.

Even though he had to wait until the last 2 days of the entire Olympics to compete, Vissering took advantage of his opportunity as he combined with pilot Kris Horn and fellow crew members Caleb Furnell and Hunter Powell for a four‑run time of 3:39.94 to finish 11th overall in a crowded field. The event was ultimately swept by Germany, as the German squads went 1-2 in the event, following up on their sweep of the 2-man final.

Before entering the world of Olympic bobsled, Vissering had a standout age-group swimming career and competed for USC. He grew up swimming for Nation’s Capital alongside Katie Ledecky, one of the most dominant Olympic swimmers in history. As an age-grouper, Vissering made a splash at both the national and international level.

In 2014, Vissering set a National Independent High School Record in the boys’ 100 breast while swimming for Georgetown Prep touching in a time of 53.49 to break a 16-year-old record held by Patrick Fowler.

Vissering also once held the boys’ 15-16 National Age Group Record (NAG) in the 100 breast (SCY) and represented the U.S. at the 2013 FINA World Junior Championships and the 2015 World University Games.

Upon heading to USC for college, Vissering made an immediate impact, picking-up multiple individual PAC-12 Championships and an NCAA relay title in 2018.

After retiring from swimming, Vissering took-up weightlifting, while eventually led him to tryout for the US bobsled team. He recently sat down with us to discuss this transition on the SwimSwam Podcast.