American Women to Chase 20-Plus Medals at World Championships
Twenty-one women will represent the United States in pool competition at this year’s World Championships, and only three are total newcomers to the international level, Caroline Bricker, Anna Moesch and McKenzie Siroky. Jillian Cox was a finalist at the 2023 World Championships and a medal-winner at the short course global meet last December. The remaining 17 swimmers are Olympians, with 10 having qualified for the U.S. Olympic team on two or more occasions.
Sixteen swimmers heading to Singapore have won Olympic medals, with Phoebe Bacon having narrowly missed out in heartbreaking fashion on two separate occasions. Included on the team are eight of the nine women who captured individual medals at the Paris Games, plus three further individual-medal winners from previous Olympiads.
This team is stocked full of talent with virtually no weak spots across the spectrum of events. In Paris, American swimmers won medals in 11 out of 14 events, and two of the misses came by one hundredth of a second. Expect more of the same this time around. Add in the 50-meter stroke events, and the tally for the U.S. women alone could be upwards of 20, perhaps even higher than any other country’s medal haul for women and men combined. Here is the stroke-by-stroke outlook.
Katie Ledecky — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Freestyle
The story here begins with Katie Ledecky, who is a virtual lock to win medals in the 400, 800 and 1500 free. Ledecky is heavily favored to win a sixth global title over 1500 meters, and her expected duel with Summer McIntosh in the 800 could be a legendary battle.
Looking to the shorter events, the American women have a stellar 1-2 punch in the 50 free with Gretchen Walsh and Torri Huske, the only swimmers to crack 24 thus far this year. Huske is also the top-ranked swimmer in the world in the 100 free and Olympic silver medalist in the event, and she is poised to challenge for individual gold in a freestyle event for the first time. Walsh could also reach the podium in the 100 free.
The 200 free is the only real weak spot here, but maybe Claire Weinstein could sneak into the mix. She has been as fast as 1:54.92 this year, making her the fastest non-Australian thus far. Weinstein could also be close to the podium in the 400 and 800-meter races. Of all the Americans bound for Singapore in a freestyle event, all except Cox (1500 free) currently sit top-five in the world.
Projected medal total: 6
Backstroke
The long-dominant group of U.S. women’s backstrokers left would-be medal contenders behind at U.S. Nationals, and it’s not out of the question for American to combine with Australia’s Kaylee McKeown to win all nine medals in the stroke this year.
Regan Smith and Katharine Berkoff were both on the podium in Paris in the 100 back, and they rank first and third in the world, respectively. Berkoff holds the top spot in the 50 back, having gone 26.97 at Nationals to break the American record. McKeown is favored in the 200-meter event, but Claire Curzan and Smith are clearly ahead of anyone else globally.
Projected medal total: 5
Breaststroke
The sprint breaststroke races mark another questionable area for the American women. In her final international competition, Lilly King will try to snag one more individual medal, and her best chance will come in the 50. She is one of three swimmers to break 30 this year along with Estonia’s Eneli Jefimova and Italy’s Bendetta Pilato. In the 100, Kate Douglass edged out King for the national title, but it’s not clear yet if Douglass has enough speed to hang with the world’s best in the two-lap race.
As for the 200 breast, expect a two-swimmer battle for gold between Douglass and Russia’s Evgeniia Chikunova, the world-record holder who has been away from major international competition in recent years but competing as a neutral athlete in 2025. Alex Walsh has the potential to challenge for bronze here.
Projected medal total: 2
Gretchen Walsh — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Butterfly
It’s virtually impossible to imagine anyone coming close to Gretchen Walsh in either the 50 or 100 fly. Her American record in the one-lap event brought her to within a quarter-second of Sarah Sjostrom’s world record, and Sjostrom will not race at this year’s meet. In the 100, Walsh’s latest world record of 54.60 is more than nine tenths better than the lifetime best of anyone in the field, even Olympic-gold-medal-winner Huske.
Walsh’s American teammates should also be podium threats, with Huske definitely in line for a medal in the 100 and Douglass in a strong spot in the 50. As for the 200 fly, no one is coming close to McIntosh, but Smith and Bricker have both been 2:05s this year, more than a second clear of anyone else racing in Singapore.
Projected medal total: 4
Individual Medley
Just like with the 200 fly, these races will be all about McIntosh, but the Americans have very real medal hopes. With Douglass and McKeown missing from the 200 IM, Alex Walsh will be the clear favorite for silver while Emma Weyant is more than a second ahead of the world’s third-fastest swimmer in the 400 IM. Katie Grimes has won silver medals in the event at the Paris Olympics plus the 2022 and 2023 World Championships.
Projected medal total: 2
Overall
The outlook for the American women is once again extremely strong, with the core of top performers continuing to build experience ahead of a home Olympics showcase in Los Angeles in three years. The projections listed above are conservative estimates, and they add up to 19, with three relay medals virtually assured barring a disqualification.
As for gold medals, only Ledecky in the 1500 free, Gretchen Walsh in the sprint butterfly events and the medley relay are strong favorites, but Huske, Smith, Douglass and Berkoff are all co-favorites. The American women’s freestyle relays are also in great shape, particularly with notable Australians like Ariarne Titmus sitting out this year. Expect between five and eight gold medals, with 10 a possibility if everything breaks perfectly.
