The Revitalization of The Women’s 500 Free In The NCAA Has Arrived

Last night at the Tennessee Invitational, Aimee Canny won the women’s 500 free with a 4:36.26. It was her first time swimming the event, and it would’ve won the 2023 NCAA title.

It turns out that the women’s 500 freestylers were just getting started.

There’s been a vacuum at the top the women’s 500 freestyle since Katie Ledecky, then Brooke Forde,then Paige Madden left collegiate swimming. But suddenly, there are more contenders than ever vying for the NCAA crown.

Through the morning prelims of the major midseason invitationals happening this weekend, there are now three swimmers who have beaten last year’s title-winning time: Canny, Dune Coetzee,and Bella Sims. These three have made the biggest impression thus far, but it’s not just that trio contributing to the excitement around women’s collegiate distance swimming. After a few dry years, it seems like the discipline has been revitalized.

In prelims at the Georgia Invitational, Coetzee swam a massive personal best, dropping nearly three seconds to lead the way into finals in 4:35.72. Sims sits .03 behind her, but we know that she’s got a much bigger swim in her. The Florida freshman–who was a unanimous choice for the NCAA title among SwimSwam writers–holds a sizzling lifetime best of 4:28.64, making her one of the fastest swimmers in history.

Heading into the evening’s finals sessions which are sure to bring changes, here’s what the top 10 landscape of the women’s 500 freestyle looks like this season:

2023-24 NCAA Rankings, Women’s 500 Freestyle

1. Dune Coetzee (Georgia) — 4:35.72
2. Bella Sims (Florida) — 4:35.75
3. Aimee Canny (Virginia) — 4:36.36
4. Rachel Stege (Georgia) — 4:37.63
5. Abby McCulloh (Georgia) — 4:38.11
6. Sloane Reinstein (Georgia) — 4:38.79
7. Cavan Gormsen (Virginia) — 4:38.80
8. Claire Tuggle (USC) — 4:39.16
9. Emma Weyant (Florida)/Justina Kozan (USC) — 4:39.22
10. –
11. Aurora Roghair (Stanford) — 4:39.47

This list is a stark contrast from this point last season when only three women had broken 4:40: Alex Walsh, Katie Crom, and Mabel Zavaros. Walsh then opted for the 200 IM at NCAAs, and Zavaros made the ‘B’ final. And there are still tonight’s finals sessions for more swimmers to join that list.

Now, there are 10 women who have already broken the 4:40 barrier, promising a much tighter race at NCAAs. And this list doesn’t even include swimmers like Abby Carlson, Deniz Ertan, or Erica Sullivan. Even if one swimmer runs away with the title (most likely Sims), the battle for the rest of the spots on the podium looks like it will be tighter than it has been in the last five years.

Women’s NCAA 500 Freestyle ‘A’ Final Times 2018-2023

One of the major factors contributing to the re-energizing of women’s distance is that the speed isn’t just concentrated at the top. Yes, there are Olympians on the list, but none have taken over. And for some, like Coetzee, they’ve been working steadily to see this kind of jump in the yards pool.

With Coetzee, Rachel Stege, Abby McCulloh, and Sloane Reinstein, it’s Georgia that has the most swimmers in the current top 10 rankings. Both Coetzee and Stege in particular have had big drops in the last 12 months, with Stege winning the 2023 SEC title and taking 3rd at NCAAs.

It’s unrealistic to expect that each of these swimmers is going to hit their taper perfectly in March, but even so, it’s looking like the 8th-place time to qualify for the ‘A’ final will be under 4:40 for the first time since 2019. And with finals tonight, most of these swimmers have another chance to assert themselves as one to watch for in the postseason.

The opportunity is there for the taking. And for the first time in years, there’s finally a huge field of swimmers with the ability to take advantage of it.