06-18-2021, 10:15 AM
Ugh, that sounds awful. I hope she can take a well-deserved break soon.
The 100 free now looms as an event that could keep Brooke Forde out of the Olympics. Here are the 8 finalists and their qualification status
T1. Olivia Smoliga
T1. Natalie Hinds
3. Abbey Weitzeil
4. Catie Deloof
5. Linnea Mack
6. Allison Schmitt (2nd in 200 free)
7. Kate Douglass (2nd in 200 IM)
8. Erika Brown
Let's say the top 6 go in order here, but the 50 free still ends up Manuel in first and Curzan in second. Forde would be the 26th and last swimmer on the team, saved by Schmitt being 6th here because she's already qualified elsewhere. But if, say, Curzan finishes third and it's two swimmers making it in the 50 who didn't otherwise qualify, Forde would be on the outside looking in.
Forde really wants Schmitt and Douglass in the top 6 in tonight's 100 free final.
**
Other relevant action in this morning's prelims:
* 800 freestyle: Ledecky is fastest in the prelims (no semis, just straight from this morning's heats to tomorrow's final), which is no surprise. But Leah Smith failed to make the final in something of a shock--she's been the closest to Ledecky at the 400/800 for years, and she will now not be going to the Olympics after just missing out in the 200 free (by two spots) and the 400 free (by one spot). That is actually good news for Forde, as the 2nd- and 3rd-fastest swimmers are likely to qualify elsewhere (Bella Sims was 5th in the 200 free and Erica Sullivan was second in the 1500 free). But the rest of the swimmers in the final won't qualify elsewhere, so if one of them goes slightly faster tomorrow night, she'd be back where she was at the start of the day--very much on the bubble.
* 200 back: Incoming freshman Regan Smith holds the world record, so she's the favorite, and she came through with the top time. The semis are tonight, with Phoebe Bacon and Rhyan White (2nd in 100 back) the 2nd and 3rd seeds after this morning's heats. Interestingly, Kathleen Baker qualified for tonight's semis in 11th place, and she had the second-fastest time coming in. Could've been intentional to avoid overtaxing herself, like many elite swimmers have done before her (I remember Phelps and Lochte barely qualifying for the semis in some of their events an Olympics or two ago, and many were breathless with concern that they might be injured, but they came out and crushed those events in the end. Sometimes it is indeed a sign that something is off, like Manuel's prelim swims, but sometimes it's just strategy.) She left it a little close, though. Another .34 seconds slower and she wouldn't have advanced. Forde is rooting for White to take second behind Smith.
**
As a reminder, tonight on the women's side we have the 200 back semis and finals in the 200 breaststroke and the 100 free. While Forde will understandably be cheering on Stanford teammate Allie Raab in the 200 breaststroke, Raab isn't expected to be in the top two, and Lilly King being in the top two is what will help her the most. (It's awesome that Raab even made the final--she was 25th on the psych sheet coming in, but she made the final by going a full two seconds faster than she ever has. The problem is that 2:26.68 is the fastest she's gone, and the top few swimmers should be in the 2:21s or lower tonight.)
The 100 free now looms as an event that could keep Brooke Forde out of the Olympics. Here are the 8 finalists and their qualification status
T1. Olivia Smoliga
T1. Natalie Hinds
3. Abbey Weitzeil
4. Catie Deloof
5. Linnea Mack
6. Allison Schmitt (2nd in 200 free)
7. Kate Douglass (2nd in 200 IM)
8. Erika Brown
Let's say the top 6 go in order here, but the 50 free still ends up Manuel in first and Curzan in second. Forde would be the 26th and last swimmer on the team, saved by Schmitt being 6th here because she's already qualified elsewhere. But if, say, Curzan finishes third and it's two swimmers making it in the 50 who didn't otherwise qualify, Forde would be on the outside looking in.
Forde really wants Schmitt and Douglass in the top 6 in tonight's 100 free final.
**
Other relevant action in this morning's prelims:
* 800 freestyle: Ledecky is fastest in the prelims (no semis, just straight from this morning's heats to tomorrow's final), which is no surprise. But Leah Smith failed to make the final in something of a shock--she's been the closest to Ledecky at the 400/800 for years, and she will now not be going to the Olympics after just missing out in the 200 free (by two spots) and the 400 free (by one spot). That is actually good news for Forde, as the 2nd- and 3rd-fastest swimmers are likely to qualify elsewhere (Bella Sims was 5th in the 200 free and Erica Sullivan was second in the 1500 free). But the rest of the swimmers in the final won't qualify elsewhere, so if one of them goes slightly faster tomorrow night, she'd be back where she was at the start of the day--very much on the bubble.
* 200 back: Incoming freshman Regan Smith holds the world record, so she's the favorite, and she came through with the top time. The semis are tonight, with Phoebe Bacon and Rhyan White (2nd in 100 back) the 2nd and 3rd seeds after this morning's heats. Interestingly, Kathleen Baker qualified for tonight's semis in 11th place, and she had the second-fastest time coming in. Could've been intentional to avoid overtaxing herself, like many elite swimmers have done before her (I remember Phelps and Lochte barely qualifying for the semis in some of their events an Olympics or two ago, and many were breathless with concern that they might be injured, but they came out and crushed those events in the end. Sometimes it is indeed a sign that something is off, like Manuel's prelim swims, but sometimes it's just strategy.) She left it a little close, though. Another .34 seconds slower and she wouldn't have advanced. Forde is rooting for White to take second behind Smith.
**
As a reminder, tonight on the women's side we have the 200 back semis and finals in the 200 breaststroke and the 100 free. While Forde will understandably be cheering on Stanford teammate Allie Raab in the 200 breaststroke, Raab isn't expected to be in the top two, and Lilly King being in the top two is what will help her the most. (It's awesome that Raab even made the final--she was 25th on the psych sheet coming in, but she made the final by going a full two seconds faster than she ever has. The problem is that 2:26.68 is the fastest she's gone, and the top few swimmers should be in the 2:21s or lower tonight.)