2024 World Swimming Championships (25m)
- December 10-December 15, 2024
- Duna Arena, Budapest, Hungary
- Short Course Meters (25 meters)
- Official Meet Site
In spite of a $2.1 million prize pool available at the 2024 Short Course World Swimming Championships in Budapest starting later this month, most of the Olympic medalists from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will not be participating.
In fact, only 10/42 (23.8%) of individual Olympic medals in men’s events and only 20/42 (47.6%) of individual Olympic medals in women’s events will be represented at the Short Course World Championships, with at least one more committed high-profile swimmer rumored to be on the ropes.
When original rosters and winter plans were announced, the numbers looked much better, but the defection of a couple of high profile swimmers like Leon Marchand, Torri Huske, and Kaylee McKeown have whacked the anticipated starpower of the meet.
Among other medalists, some, like Tatjana Schoenmaker Smith, have retired. Others, like home-nation star Kristof Milak, need time to train. The same goes for Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy.
Some, like Katie Ledecky, just don’t race Short Course Worlds (she never has).
For whatever the reason, the charts below show who is in, and who is out, as of today, from the Budapest Short Course world Championships.
That still leaves some good matchups – like Summer McIntosh versus Kate Douglass in the 200 IM or Lukas Maertens versus Elijah Winnington in the 400 free – but will also leave some wide open events – like the men’s 100 free, 200 IM, 100 breast, and the men’s distance events, which will have no Olympic medalists participating.
That leaves opportunities – especially for swimmers who excel in short course versus long course – to win big medals and big money.
That includes swimmers like Canadian Ilya Kharun, who has been electric early in the NCAA season, and Regan Smith, who broke World Records in the 100 and 200 backstrokes in short course meters during the World Cup Series.
Below is a table of who is in and who is out among Paris 2024 Olympic medalists.
H/T to SwimSwam reader Caeleb GOAT, who found this format on Weibo.
Men’s In/Out
Green = in, Red = out
For colorblind folks:
Women’s In/Out
Green = in, Red = out
For colorblind folks:
Thanks for including the chart for color-blind folks. Very thoughtful!
I think it is great that these athletes are taking a break!! If you can call it one! The top athletes have been doing pro commitments, traveling, and photo shoots etc. Plus the meets are soooo long now! 9 days for the OLYMPICS, and I don’t know about worlds.. There are so many events now…yeah, the schedule in 2024 was pretty bad!
Oh my goodness, not photo shoots!
Man it’s like swimming is a full-time job. That’s not what these athletes signed up for!!!
Except it’s not a full-time job for many. Torri Huske is at Stanford. Others may be financially independent enough to have the luxury of picking and choosing which events they go too.
Do you want swimmers to be so destitute that they have to go to meets that they don’t want to go to or that don’t fit into their long-term training plan?
Yes. I’m so destitute that I have to go to my job every day even though I don’t want to, and I would love for them to experience that same joy.
My long-term plan was to be an Olympic swimmer, but instead I’m just a bloody accountant.
Stop being obtuse. There is so actual “job” of being a swimmer. A real job has a defined contract with parametres around hours worked, and other conditions of employment. Some may have endorsement contracts or terms to fulfill from their national governing bodies but that varies from swimmer to swimmer.
Swimming is an activity that encompasses a massively broad range of experiences (I.e from a 15-year old girl living at home with their parents and retaining all their college eligibility to people in their 30s who make all their living from prize money at meets and every situation in between).
No swimmer is “not doing their job”. Every swimmer is making their own decisions based on their unique circumstances.
I always find it fascinating when folks like you recognize an athlete’s right to choose, but not a sports fan’s right to choose.
Everything you said is correct. But that also means I can choose to not like their decisions, right? Since we’re all making these decisions considering our own personal wants and needs?
I want swimmers to race at the World Championships. My needs are most met by appreciate the ones who do and not appreciating the ones who don’t. Are my needs less important because…I make less money than Leon Marchand? Is that what you’re telling me?
Tired of people trying to pretend like millionaire athletes are somehow the bottom of the food chain, some poor victims of… Read more »
I take no issue with people being disappointed by athletes not participating or if people choose not to watch because of a lack of big-time names.
I do take issue with people acting like they are entitled to certain athletes participating or saying non-factual statements like “it’s their job”
I don’t normally reply to responses..but…yes pro commitments all over the globe..it is part of the job, plus the 5 to 6 hours a day of grueling training. Then prelims, semi finals, and finals..with some athletes racing up to 15 races over the course of a meet..Swimmers get one chance on the world stage..once every four years. That one meet can change their life financially.( especially non Americans)
And because of that one chance, the pressure is enormous. Yeah, maybe a well needed break to reset..figure out what they want to do going forward..find the hunger again, or move on..
Wouldn’t it be great if NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL athletes could decide to just not show up for part of the season after winning a title.
my question on that is compare the off season of those sports with swimming and then think about some of those athletes that don’t come to training camp or hold out for more money.
I would not think the comparison is apples to apples.
You need a break to recharge and come back at full speed.
If they wanted bigger stars, then there needs to be more money. Free market!!
Duna Arena is the best pool/facility on the planet right now
So if they had a major tennis tournament, say the Australian open, and 10 of the top 14 women and 12 of the top 14 men didn’t show up, don’t you think they would change something or say the system was broken? (I just used our gold medalists for the comparison). This is awful. We are broken.
Well, nothing new about the fact that no one gives a sh.. about short course competitions.
When they are paid what the tennis players are paid, it might change. Also, I’m sure some of the students want to take their finals…
Which comes first: the chicken or the egg?
So true dude. Tennis players long ago paid the dues for a sport they were passionate about. I hope swimmers get there someday but I’m not hopeful.
This isn’t wrong.
But even I don’t think I’d get pumped for a big, world level championship meet more than once a year.
Is that also because we’re conditioned to only expect something huge every four years, or is it something inherent to the sport?
Idk. But you are right that you’ll never pick up new fans the current way.
Addressing the color blind folk … nice touch!
Pan zhanle and yufei zhang no, but tang yes.
When had added china list?
Haiyang yes or no?
Will Gretchen set 4 more world records? Looking forward.
I want Gretchen and Regan to switch strokes for the 4×50 medly heats, to allow Gretchen to add another WR to her tally lol
same here
but i think phoebe bacon will swim that but maybe the mixed medley realy or smething
There’s no single gender 4×50 medleys this year
I don’t think the women’s 100 free is an easy one, but the 50 fly, 100 fly and 50 free are no-brainers (well, maybe the 50 free not so much, but I think she’s gonna break that one as well).
Any updates on Alex W?