The leaders of the team:

The Mexican open water swimmers that will represent Mexico at the next 19th FINA World Championships are in Austria in preparation for the main competition. The team leaders, Arturo Pérez Vertti, Martha Sandoval and Daniel Delgadillo are ready to have their best international competition.

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Young Talent:

Apart from experienced swimmers, this team counts with young talented swimmers: Paulo Strehlke, Paulina Alanis and Montserrat Mora. It will be the first World Championships for all these teenagers. Even though Paulo Strehlke is one of the youngest in the team at only 16 years old, he enters the competition as the fastest Mexican this year in 10k (1:58). 

Joel Rodriguez, Strehlke and Paulina’s coach, is in Austria preparing his swimmers to have the best competition ever. Both open water swimmers will also participate at the FINA World Junior Open Water Championships later this year. 

According to internal sources, the team is projected to compete at the Italian Open Water Tour as preparation for Budapest. Maximiliano Strehlke, qualified for the FINA World Junior Open Water Championships, is also training with the senior team and will definitely gain some experience. He is a favorite to medal at World Juniors. 

Here is the Open Water Schedule for Budapest: 

Check latest results here.

Last update: June, 2022

As a high performance athlete, going to the Olympics is the highest achievement you can make. According to the World Economic Forum only 11,500 athletes competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, representing just 0.00014% of the world’s population. Certainly, just the ones who are willing to put in hard work and discipline are the ones who achieve it. 

However, there is a big difference between going to just one Olympics representing your country and doing that 5 consecutive times.

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According to BBC the probability of a person to win gold in 100 meter athletics is 1 in 9 million. Michael Phelps defeated all the odds and due his passion, technique, discipline, ability, willingness and many other factors, he became the most decorated Olympian of all time with 28 Olympic Medals. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics Phelps won Gold in all his 8 events in which he participated: 100 and 200 butterfly, 200 freestyle, 200 IM and 400 IM, 4×100 and 4×200 free relays, and 4×100 medley relay. 

Sydney 2000: 

The men’s 200 butterfly was the first event that Michael raced at the Olympics when he was only 15 years of age. He finished in 5th place at the Sydney Games in a time of 1:56.50. 

Athens 2004:

In 2004 at the Athens Olympic Games, Michael improved more than two seconds and won the men’s 200 butterfly in an Olympic Record Time of 1:54.04. At this point in his career and at only 19 years old, he had already been in 2 consecutive finals in the same event and became Olympic Champion. 

Beijing 2008: 

4 years later, Michael entered the Beijing Olympics as the main favorite to win the 200 meter butterfly. He won the race in a WR time of 1:52.03. This Gold Medal was part of his 8 Gold medal collection that he achieved at these games. 

London 2012: 

Finally, 4 years later at the 2012 London Olympics Michael entered the 200 meter butterfly final with the mentality of being his last final and Olympic Games. The years before the games certainly weren’t the best for the American, however, he still was able to achieved the Olympic final. Every single person in the world thought that Michael was going to win for the 3rd consecutive time, nevertheless, nobody considered a motivated and talented kid from South Africa named Chad le Clos. In the last 5 meters of the race the swimmer from South Africa closed extremely fast and it was during the touch where everything was decided. 

Considering his experience, Phelps did not touch the wall as he was supposed to, giving le Clos the opportunity to win the gold medal in a time of 1:52.98

Rio 2016: 

Phelps seemed disappointed after the race and even though he already was the most decorated Olympian of all time, he knew he could have retired with a gold in his favorite event: the 200 meter butterfly.

He announced his retirement from swimming after the London Olympics, nevertheless, he knew he still had something left to give. Not only to people, but to himself. 

In 2014, he came back. He put in the hard work again and in Rio 2016 he qualified for his 5th Olympic team. At the games, he reclaimed his Olympic title in the men’s 200 meter butterfly.

Last update: June, 2022

The 50 meter freestyle is the race that has the most entries at the Olympic Games, with 73 male swimmers participating at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Source (FINA & Olympics, 2021)

It is the event that decides which swimmer will become the fastest on the planet. Certainly, it is a very exciting race to watch as a viewer, although it is even more incredible to take part in it as an athlete.

As a former high-performance swimmer, I can tell you that the margin of error is little to nothing. One most be physically and mentally prepared to have a good reaction time, be able to apply the strategy learned in all trainings and never take a breath.

If we analyze Florent Manaudou at the 2012 Olympics, he took 33 strokes without a single breath.

The Fastest Swimmers at the Olympics: 

Winning the 50 meter freestyle at the most prestigious sports event in the world is definitely not an easy task, therefore these men’s technique and strategy must be analyzed.

Source: (International Olympic Committee & FINA)

Facts about the Champions: 

Ervin, the 2016 Olympic Champion, has been the “slowest” 50 meter freestyle Olympic winner in the past 2 decades. He is also the oldest male swimmer to win Olympic gold, at 35 years of age. 

Cielo won his Olympic title in Beijing in Olympic Record Time of 21.30. The following year, in Brazil, he broke his previous PB in a time of 20.91, which now stands as the current World Record.

In 2016, Florent Manaudou was 0.01 off from taking gold and becoming Double 50 Meter Freestyle Olympic Champion. He has been at the podium of this race in the past 3 Olympics (Silver Medal in Tokyo, Silver Medal in Rio and Gold Medal in London).

Caeleb Dressel is the fastest swimmer the Olympics has ever seen in the new swimsuit era (when Cielo broke the OR, he was wearing the full-body swimsuits). At the Tokyo Olympics, he won both the 50 and 100 meter freestyle.

Watch the Final of the 50 Freestyle, London 2012 

Watch the Final of the 50 Freestyle, Beijing 2008

Last update: June, 2022

As former professional and high-performance swimmer I can tell you that this sport is one of the hardest ones in the entire world. 

I have practiced other sports like football, soccer, tennis and basketball and any of them challenge me physically or mentally as swimming did. 

What is swimming? 

For me, it is a physical activity that requires a lot of skills, determination and willingness, because if none of these 3 qualities are present when you carry it out, you will never have success. 

I started swimming when I was 2 years old and since then I have realized how difficult it is to maintain a good aerobic base and anaerobic capacity that will allow you to distance yourself from your competitors. 

Another important aspect that a swimmer is always thinking about is the responsibility that it comes from being named a ‘swimmer.’ There are hundreds of hours dedicated to the sport in and outside the pool, and thousands of sacrifices; however, the reward that comes after winning a medal or representing your country is worth those sacrifices and even more.

Mental Benefits of Swimming: 

1. Ability to become more determined than ever: swimming prepares you mentally for any activity or situation in life. All the pain after hours of training must have a purpose. 
2. Focus: concentration is a skill that is developed and trained everyday at the pool. 
3. Never giving up: swimming prepares you mentally for the most difficult moments in life. I’m sure any swimmer can overcome situations like any other person. 

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Physical Benefits of Swimming: 

1. Strength and conditioning: the best athletes in the world, regardless if they are swimmers or not, have incorporated aquatic activities into their training schedule. It allows muscles to grow faster, better recovery and faster development of aerobic and anaerobic capacity. 
2. Being in good and healthy shape: swimming is one of the sports that burns the most calories.When I was training two sessions a day, I was burning between 2,000 calories just in the water. 

Last update: May, 2022

Men’s 50 freestyle: 

Caeleb Dressel, Bruno Fratus and Kristian Gkolomeev, the 2019 FINA World Swimming Championships podium in the men ‘s 50 freestyle will all be competing in Budapest again. 

Michael Andrew is definitely a threat for the podium, as well as the Jr. swimmers from Poland who are ranked within the top 5 in the world this year (NAMES) ( data from FINA, 2022)

My predictions:

1. Caeleb Dressel – 20.85 
2. Michael Andrew – 21.20 
3. Florent Manaudou – 21.23

Women’s 400 freestyle 

Titmus, who just broke the WR, said that she will not be competing at Worlds to focus on Commonwealth Games, which leaves former world record holder, Katie Ledecky, as the favorite to win this race. USA’s Leah Smith is favorite to the podium. She was third at the 2016 Olympics in this same race.

My predictions: 

1. Katie Ledecky – 3:56.10
2. Summer McIntosh – 3:59.90
3. Leah Smith – 4:03.40

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Men’s 100 freestyle: 

This is probably le of the most famous and exciting races in swimming. Caeleb Dressel, the current World and Olympic Champion, enters the meet as the main favorite to win the gold. However, Olympic Champion from Rio 2016 in this event, Kyle Chalmers, will be heading to worlds after all.

After just a few weeks of training, he is a huge threat to win the gold. Let’s see if he can make it and become LCM World Champion.

My predictions: 

1. Caeleb Dressel – 47.20
2. Brooks Curry – 47.74
3. Kyle Chalmers – 47.93

Last update: May, 2022