Princeton’s Mitchell Schott Drops 200 IM for 2026 NCAAs; Will Swim 500 Free Instead

2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships

• Dates: Wednesday, March 25–Saturday, March 28
• Location: McAuley Aquatic Center, Atlanta, GA
• Defending Champions: Texas (1x)
• Championship Central
• Psych Sheets
• Live Results
• Live Video

Princeton senior Mitchell Schott has modified his events for the 2026 NCAA Division I Championships. He is entered in the 200 free, 500 free, and 200 fly this time around, eschewing the 200 IM-200 free-200 fly lineup he swam at the 2026 Ivy League Championships and the 200 IM-400 IM-200 fly configuration he swam last year at the 2025 NCAA Championships.

Schott’s Individual Entries:

• 200 Freestyle: #12 seed, 1:31.52
• 500 Freestyle: #34 seed, 4:15.55
• 200 Butterfly: #5 seed, 1:39.05

At the 2025 NCAA Division I Championships, Schott competed in the 200 IM, 400 IM, and 200 fly, which was already a modification from what he swam at the 2025 Ivy League Championships: 200 IM, 200 free, and 200 fly. At NCAAs, he came in 17th in prelims of the 200 IM (1:42.01), 24th in the 400 IM (3:43.83), and 28th in the 200 fly (1:41.61).

This year, Schott repeated his titles in the 200 IM, 200 free, and 200 fly at the 2026 Ivies, hitting NCAA automatic qualifying times in all three events. He set an Ivy League, meet, pool, and Princeton program record in the 200 IM with 1:40.93, a school record of 1:31.52 in the 200 free, and an Ivy League, meet, pool, and program record of 1:39.05 in the 200 fly. His 200 fly performance ranks 5th in the NCAA this season and makes him the 18th-fastest performer of all time.

The NCAA changed the schedule for the 2026 Division I Championships, which has led swimmers to rethink their events:

If he is trying to maximize his chances to make finals in his best events, then logically, Schott must choose between the 400 IM and 200 free on Day 2 (which is the same choice he had last year), and between the 200 IM and 200 fly on Day 4. He has clearly developed into a stronger 200 freestyler over the last year, so that would have been an easy choice. But swimmers facing the 200 IM vs 200 fly conundrum must have wished the 2026 NCAAs looked more like the 2025 version.

And yet, as the #5 seed in the 200 fly, Schott has his best opportunity to make the ‘A’ final this year. With the 4:15.55 he swam at the 2025 Big Al Invitational, in which he broke the Princeton record in the 500 free, Schott cleared the 2026 NCAA standard (4:18.07) and was able to enter the event on Day 3.