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
- Meet Central
- Psych Sheets
- Live Results
- Day 1 Prelims Live Recap
The 2025 U.S. National Championships, which also serve as the selection meet for this summer’s World Championships, began this morning in Indianapolis with several standout performances, including Jack Alexy’s U.S. Open record-breaking 46.99 in the 100 freestyle. However, one of the most quietly revealing races of the day was the men’s 200 butterfly—an event that showed significant gains in depth.
Although the prelims might have appeared uneventful to the casual observer, the times told a different story. To qualify for tonight’s ‘A’ final, swimmers had to post a time of 1:55.86 or faster, a benchmark nearly a full second quicker than last year’s Olympic Trials and the fastest qualifying standard in recent memory. By comparison, the cutoff at the 2023 World Championship Trials was 1:56.71, while the 2022 and 2021 standards stood at 1:57.81 and 1:57.08, respectively.
Yearly Comparison For Making The Trials Championship Final:
| 2025 World Trials Prelims | 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials Semifinals | 2023 World Trials Prelims | 2022 World Trials Prelims | 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Semifinals |
| Luca Urlando — 1:54.57 | Luca Urlando — 1:54.64 | Carson Foster — 1:54.30 | Trenton Julian — 1:54.34 | Luca Urlando — 1:55.21 |
| Gabriel Jett — 1:54.87 | Thomas Heilman — 1:54.93 | Thomas Heilman — 1:55.11 | Zach Harting — 1:55.83 | Zach Harting — 1:55.21 |
| Mason Laur — 1:54.97 | Mason Laur — 1:55.05 | Zach Harting — 1:55.48 | Chase Kalisz — 1:56.04 | Trenton Julian — 1:55.35 |
| Carson Foster — 1:55.11 | Dare Rose — 1:55.25 | Jack Dahlgren — 1:55.72 | Luca Urlando — 1:56.32 | Gunnar Bentz — 1:55.42 |
| Jack Dahlgren — 1:55.18 | Jack Dahlgren — 1:55.65 | Mason Laur — 1:55.97 | Alexander Colson — 1:56.50 | Nicolas Albiero — 1:56.29 |
| Trenton Julian — 1:55.33 | Colby Mefford — 1:55.72 | Trenton Julian — 1:56.38 | Gabriel Jett — 1:56.77 | Corey Gambardella — 1:56.56 |
| Thomas Heilman — 1:55.51 | Zach Harting — 1:56.52 | Chase Kalisz — 1:56.44 | Jace Crawford — 1:57.40 | Zach Brown — 1:57.02 |
| Mitchell Schott — 1:55.86 | Trenton Julian — 1:56.73 | Aiden Hayes — 1:56.71 | Nicolas Albiero — 1:57.81 | Brooks Fail — 1:57.08 |
This leap forward in depth was underscored by Thomas Heilman, the reigning U.S. Olympic Trials champion and representative of Cavalier Aquatics. The 17-year-old touched 7th in this morning’s session, narrowly advancing to the final. Rather than indicating a decline in form, his swim highlights just how much more competitive the field has become. He was 1:55.51 this morning, a time that would have situated him 5th heading into the Trials final last year and 4th in 2023, and he was only a few tenths slower than his outings of 1:54.93 and 1:55.11 in the qualifying rounds of those meets.
Don’t be too alarmed just yet about Heilman, as he has made the past two senior international teams for Team USA in the 100 fly swimming out of an outside lane, one he will occupy again tonight. Although he appeared to tighten up during the closing stages of this morning’s race, this was also evident during the early rounds at last summer’s Trials before he delivered a winning performance in the final. He’s a big-time performer, and while the field is much deeper this year, you can’t discount his ability to find a way when it matters most in the ‘A’ heat.
Outside of Heilman, Georgia’s Luca Urlando led the way this morning with a composed 1:54.57, a swim that appeared to be well within himself. He split faster than his personal-best pace through the first 100 and was just four-tenths off his 150-meter split from the 1:52.37 he posted earlier this year, an outing that made him the fourth-fastest performer in history. He visibility shut his stroke rate down over the final 25, indicating that he has a chunk of time to drop tonight, but how much is to be determined.
Behind him, Gabriel Jett of Cal posted a 1:54.87, coming close to his 2022 personal best of 1:54.37. Florida’s Mason Laur continued his steady progression with a lifetime best of 1:54.97, dipping under the 1:55 barrier for the first time. His splits, 25.68, 29.00, 29.93, and 30.36, not only reflect a well-balanced race strategy but also reinforce his reputation as the most consistent pacer in the field. Notably, Laur had the smallest drop-off between the third and fourth 50 in the entire field, just 0.43. No other swimmer closed within six-tenths of their third 50, so if he turns for home within striking distance tonight, the rest of the field will be in trouble.
The emergence of multiple 1:54 swims in the same meet highlights a major step forward for American men in this event. In past seasons, many swimmers popped their lifetime bests outside of Trials, often in lower-pressure settings. This year, nearly the entire field has arrived at Nationals near peak form—a promising sign for a U.S. men’s team hungry for breakthroughs. With Urlando potentially challenging his 1:52.37 tonight and Alexy’s 46.99 joined by four other sub-48 performances, the American men are already making some noise through the first two individual events of the meet, and it was just prelims.
Looking ahead, tonight’s fly final presents several compelling storylines. Can Carson Foster, who touched 4th this morning in 1:55.11, return to the 1:53.67 form he showed in 2022? Will Jett deliver the performance many have anticipated since his breakout summer three years ago? Can 17-year-old Heilman qualify for his third consecutive senior international team? Or will Laur take another step forward and nab a roster spot?
Tonight’s Championship Final Qualifiers:
- Luca Urlando (DART) — 1:54.57
- Gabriel Jett (CAL) — 1:54.87
- Mason Laur (FLOR) — 1:54.97
- Carson Foster (UN) — 1:55.11
- Jack Dahlgren (AQJT) — 1:55.18
- Trenton Julian (MVN) — 1:55.33
- Thomas Heilman (CA-Y) — 1:55.51
- Mitchell Schott (PRIN) — 1:55.86
I’m a little surprised Rose didn’t enter this event.
Did he ever do a 200 on a major championships?
2024 Olympic Trials
i wonder if training for the 200 fried his speed a little. he went a pb in the 200 but was a off in the 100 at olympic trials. this year hes only doing the 50 / 100. i feel like its trickier to balance the 100 / 200 for butterfly vs other strokes bc tempo and rhythm are so important