Florida Gators Sweep US Trials Men’s Freestyle Events for the 2nd Straight Year

2022 U.S. World Championship Trials

• April 26-30, 2022
• Greensboro, NC
• Greensboro Aquatic Center
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
• Full Results

Varsity and post-graduate groups from the University of Florida showed off their freestyle dominance last week, sweeping all of the men’s freestyle events at World Championship Trials. This is a repeat of last year’s Olympic Trials, when current or former Florida Gators won the men’s 50, 100, 200, 400, 800, and 1500 meter freestyles. 

Once again, there were 3 swimmers responsible for this sweep. Bobby Finke, Kieran Smith, and Caeleb Dressel repeated their performances from the 2021 Trials, winning 2 events each.

Dressel won the first freestyle medal for the Gators in the 100 on day 1. He went a 47.70, just over 3 tenths slower than his winning time from last year’s Olympic Trials. Dressel also won the 50 freestyle on day 5, the last day of the meet. He posted a time of 21.29, marking the fastest time in the world this year.

Dressel also swam the 50 and 100 butterflies, winning both. After Trials, he is ranked 1st in the world in the 100 fly, 3rd in the 50 fly, and 2nd in the 100 free. 

Smith took control of the middle distance events, winning the 200 on day 2, and the 400 on day 4. In the 200, he swam a 1:45.25. This is .04 seconds faster than his 1:45.29 from the  2021 Olympic Trials. In the 400 he was just under 2 seconds slower than last year, posting a 3:46.61. His performance in the 200 was the fastest time in the world this year.

Finke continues to be the standout men’s distance swimmer for Team USA. At 2022 Trials, he won the 1500m free on day 1 and the 800m free on day 5. He now owns the 3rd fastest time in the world this year in both. Finke’s performances in both events were faster than at the Olympic Trials last year. In the 800 he was nearly 5 seconds faster, going a 7:43.32. In the 1500 he shaved .34 off his 2022 trials time to go a 14:45.72. Both swims are just a few seconds slower than his best times of 7:41.87 and 14:39.65, which were set at last summer’s Olympic Games.

Finke and Smith are both finishing up their senior year at Florida, training under head coach Anthony Nesty and assistant Steve Jungbluth. 

Dressel graduated from Florida in 2018. Following graduation, he swam for the adjacent Gator Swim Club under Greg Troy. Last fall, Dressel announced his move to train with the University of Florida and he now trains with Finke and Smith under Nesty.

The University of Florida’s freestyle prowess doesn’t stop at these 3 swimmers, either. Female distance freestyle legend Katie Ledecky recently made the move to Gainesville to train with Anthony Nesty. Ledecky remains on top of women’s distance and middle distance swimming, winning the 200, 400, 800, and 1500 freestyles at Trials. 

Ledecky currently holds the top times in the world this year in the 400, 800, and 1500. In the 200, she is the 4th fastest performer this year behind Tang Muhan and Yang Junxuan of China and Ariarne Titmus of Australia.

The only freestyle events that weren’t won by the Gators were the women’s 50 and 100 freestyles. That doesn’t mean they were out of them completely, however. Natalie Hinds, who recently made her return to Florida, finished 7th in the 50 and 4th in the 100, earning herself a spot at Worlds. 

Trey Freeman, a rising senior for the Gators, also put up strong performances in the middle distance freestyle events. He punched his ticket to Worlds in the 400, coming in second with a time of 3:46.93. This is just over a tenth faster than his previous best time of 3:47.04. Freeman also competed in the 200 free. He earned 6th place with a 1:46.93, nearly a second faster than his previous best of 1:47.90.

The Gators are continuing to build their freestyle dominance. Jake Mitchell, a 2021 Olympian in the 400m free,  recently announced his upcoming transfer from Michigan to Florida. Bella Sims from the Sandpipers of Nevada has also committed to swim for Florida, beginning in fall of 2023. They will both be welcome additions to the star-studded roster currently training under coaches Nesty and Jungbluth.