Americans have more depth than anyone in the pool, but gold medals are getting harder to come by
NANTERRE, France — No one can match America’s depth in the pool.
That said, reaching the top step of the Olympic podium is no longer a given for American swimmers.
Nine days of thrilling competition at La Défense Arena packed up On Sunday night, the Americans narrowly took the lead in the gold medal standings with a victory in the final race.
The United States finished with just eight gold medals, its fewest since the 1988 Seoul Games and one more than its biggest rival, Australia.
“This is one of the worst performances in Team USA history,” Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time and a member of NBC’s broadcast team in Paris, said Monday. “Something has to happen before 2028, because if it happens again, it will be even more embarrassing.”
Notably, the rest of the world The United States has more wins (20) than the United States and Australia combined, a first since the 1996 Atlanta Games.
The Americans will certainly be looking to improve their performances ahead of the home games in Los Angeles in 2028, when swimming will have its biggest and most spectacular setting yet – a temporary indoor pool. SoFi Stadium with a capacity of approximately 38,000 spectators.
However, with more and more international swimmers training in the United States – and leading American coaches such as Bob Bowman by spreading their knowledge to other countries — a more diverse list of gold medalists is likely to become the norm in the future.
“This sport is booming and I can’t help but think we’ve contributed to that,” said American gold medalist Bobby Finke. “It’s something we can be proud of.”
Two of the biggest swimming stars in Paris, Frenchman Leon Marchand and Canadian Summer McIntosh, train in the United States but have won numerous medals for their home country.
Marchand, who has won four individual gold medals as well as a relay bronze, is coached by Bowman, best known as the man who guided Michael Phelps through his record-breaking career. It was a bit strange to see Bowman wearing the France jersey, working on the coaching staff of Marchand’s nation.
After a break to savour his Olympic triumph, Marchand will return to the United States to continue his work with Bowman, who now heads the swimming program at the University of Texas.
“Look at Bob Bowman. He doesn’t care if you’re American or not,” said Shane Ryan, an American swimmer who competes for Ireland. “He just wants to coach the fastest swimmers at any given time.”
McIntosh She trains with a team in Sarasota, Fla., where she has honed the form that has earned her three individual gold medals – the most ever won by a Canadian athlete – and a silver medal.
“I think the competition is great,” said Ryan Murphy, a longtime American who trains with several international athletes at Cal-Berkeley, including Spain’s Hugo González. “He’s pushed me a lot. There’s a lot of days where he’s right next to me and helping me get better.”
Murphy said it is only natural that in today’s information-driven world, more nations are rising up to challenge the United States.
“People take a video of what they do in training and immediately post it on social media,” he said. “The learning curve is very fast all over the world. That’s one of the main reasons why there are so many talented athletes in the world today.”
The United States certainly had some glorious moments in Paris.
Katie Ledecky won two more gold medals, moving her into a tie for second place among all athletes on the career list with nine. She also joined Phelps as the only swimmers to win the same event in four consecutive Summer Games with her victory in the 800-meter freestyle.
The women’s team has produced several other stars, including Torri Huske (three gold, two silver), Gretchen Walsh (two gold, two silver) and Regan Smith (two gold, three silver).
But there were many disappointments, especially on the men’s side.
Caeleb DresselThe big star of the Tokyo Games with five gold medals, finished sixth in the 50m freestyle and did not even qualify for the final of the 100m butterfly.
Murphy settled for a bronze medal in the 100m backstroke and, like Dressel, failed to qualify for the final of his other individual event, the 200 backstroke.
In total, the Americans won just two gold medals and did not claim an individual victory until Finke’s world record in the 1,500 freestyle on the final night.
“We always want to get better,” said Anthony Nesty, the men’s head coach. “Yes, we want our athletes to win gold medals, but the other teams have great athletes too. We have to come back, all the coaches in the United States, get back on track and hopefully in four years we’ll have a better result. For the men, for sure.”
The depth of the American team remains its greatest strength. Even with four of its most prominent stars – Dressel, Murphy, Lilly King and Simone Manuel — having won just one individual medal (Murphy’s bronze in the 100 backstroke), the United States easily topped the overall medal table with 28.
Three of the four world records set during the competition were achieved by Americans, including two in relays.
“Whether our athletes won a gold medal or fell short in the semifinals or whatever it was,” U.S. women’s coach Todd DeSorbo said, “you have to learn from it, go home and get better.”
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