Men’s 100 Freestyle – The Battle Of The 4 Swimming Kings

The Challengers:

Imagine you are one of these world-class swimmers: Kristof Milak, Josh Liendo, Maxime Grousset, Kliment Kolesnikov, Matthew Richards, Jack Alexy, Alessandro Miressi. Each has a real shot at winning the 100-meter freestyle at the Olympics.

The 4 kings of 100 freestyle 

• Kyle Chalmers: King Kick. Winner of this event in 2016 and runner-up in 2021. No one can move their legs as fast as Chalmers in the last 50 meters.
• Caeleb Dressel: King of the Starts. Explosive off the blocks, dominating the first few meters. His start is so powerful that most competitors are left behind in the first 15 meters. 
• David Popovici: The Stoic King, who broke Cesar Cielo’s world record. His mental game is his biggest advantage. 
• Pan Zhanle: King Efficiency. The fastest man in history, known for his impeccable swimming technique.

The Invincible Kings with Weaknesses

When you put them together, they seem invincible, like the Avengers of swimming. Even though they each have a strength (whether it’s the start, the kick, mentality, or technique) they also have weaknesses. This is where a challenger can beat them.

The Evolution of the Event

In the early days of the Olympics, winners were dominant, often winning by more than half a second or even two seconds. However, as swimming became more popular, margins became smaller. For many years, winning the 100 freestyle was the ultimate goal, even with the introduction of the 50 freestyle in 1988.

From Mark Spitz to Nathan Adrian, the winning margins became tighter over time. Recent champions, such as Chalmers and Dressel, have proven their consistency but can still swim slower in some rounds, giving other swimmers a chance.

The Big Numbers 

So the margins of wins got smaller and smaller.These 4 kings have proven to be very fast. But in any given competition, they can swim this event twice and swim .10 to .60 slower from semifinals or relays to the finals where it matters the most. That is less than the average time to win.

The best Strategy to Beat the Kings

What you want is to be in lanes 1 or 8, away from the pressure in the middle. The kings will probably split the race, with Pan and Dressel leading the first 50 meters, and Chalmers and Popovici catching up in the final 50, being carried a little by the waves of the other swimmers, especially from Pan and Dressel. But you don’t want to play their game.

You might feel the pressure of going too fast or too slow, and your race will be messed up. Those 4 are either the best openers or the best closers in this event’s history. 

Becoming a Legend

If you are one of these six swimmers, you have a real shot at winning and becoming an instant swimming legend. If you aren’t, your best option might be to watch this video!

See you there! Swim fast!

By the way, don’t forget to share this knowledge to others…

Thank you!