INDIANAPOLIS — Greetings from Lucas Oil Stadium, the newest and biggest home of an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
One of us (Nicole) has covered swimming at two previous Olympic Games and will be on-site here for U.S. Olympic trials as American swimmers compete and qualify for Paris. The other (Peter) has also covered a world championship meet and NCAA championships — and is here in spirit.
Ahead of the most pressure-packed and important meet on American soil this quadrennial, we convened to chat about the meet and our expectations for the women and men who will make up this U.S. team. There are 28 total events from Saturday through June 23; the top two finishers in each event qualify for Paris (pending roster size limitations and Olympic qualifying times) and up to the top six finishers in the 100- and 200-meter freestyle, who earn roster spots for relays.
We’ll have coverage for you all week at The Athletic, plus plenty more features and analysis ahead of the Paris Games. But for now, let’s preview Indianapolis.
Is there an overall storyline you’re tracking this week?
Nicole: The state of American swimming. It already feels like a very different Olympics, because the biggest American stars are elsewhere — Simone Biles in gymnastics, Noah Lyles and Sha’Carri Richardson…
