Ryan Lochte, Missy Franklin struggle at U.S. Olympic swimming trials
OMAHA, Neb. - They're called trials for a reason. Four years ago at the London Games, Ryan Lochte and Missy Franklin combined to win 10 medals, six of them gold.
OMAHA, Neb. - They're called trials for a reason.
Four years ago at the London Games, Ryan Lochte and Missy Franklin combined to win 10 medals, six of them gold.
Tuesday night, in their Day 3 finals at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, they weren't even competitive.
Franklin, who took the gold medal in the event at London, finished seventh, next to last, in a women's 100-meter breaststroke final won by Olivia Smoliga.
Meanwhile, Lochte, who missed qualifying in the 400 IM Monday night after injuring his groin in warm-ups, hit the wall fourth in a closely contested men's 200-meter freestyle final. Although he cannot compete individually in the event at Rio, the fourth-place finish got him a spot on the U.S. team as a member of the 4-x-100 relay team.
"You can never go into these trials knowing you're going to make the team," Lochte, 31, said after the race that at least guaranteed he'll become one of just a handful of male U.S. swimmers to compete in four Olympics. "The U.S. is just too strong in every event.
"I know I could have done better, but I'm proud I made the team. I'm just happy I'm going to Rio. I'm representing my country at the highest stage of sports, so I'm really honored."
That 200 was won by Townley Haas, a lanky University of Texas freshman. In a water-churning stretch drive that had the enthusiastic, sold-out crowd at the Century Link Center roaring, he edged out runner-up Conor Dwyer and Jack Conger.
"I knew they were right next to me," Haas said. "But I just kind of put my head down at the end and tried to finish as fast as I could."
Despite pain that he rated "7 or 8" on a scale of 10, Lochte said he planned to compete in another three or four events here. Unlike Lochte, Franklin hasn't sewn up an Olympic spot yet.
Shockingly, the accomplished 21-year-old Tennessean almost didn't make it to the nighttime final, getting in by the thinnest of margins, .004 of a second, in afternoon qualifying.
Swimming from Lane 1 in the final, she fell far back early and could never recover. Her time of 1 minute, 0.24 seconds was more than a second behind Smoliga's. The only competitor she beat was 33-year-old multi-Olympic veteran Natalie Coughlin.
It was a major disappointment for someone who not long ago was the face of American women's swimming.
"I'm definitely dealing with a little more pressure than I had before," Franklin said, her wide smile seemingly glued to her freckled face. "But it's all part of the process. All I can do is the best I can do. I had a race strategy. I went out and I did it. It just wasn't good enough."
And so the 100-meter backstroke at Rio will be without a defending champion.
"It's going to be really hard not swimming that race this summer," she added. "But like I said, I can't wait to watch how Olivia and [runner-up Kathleen Baker] do."
Asked what she was looking for in the rest of her races at these weeklong trials, she paused before answering and running off to prepare for the women's 200-meter freestyle semifinals, 15 minutes later.
"Right now what I'm looking to do is make the team," Franklin said. "Whatever I have to do to make the team, that's what I'm going to do my best to do."
In those semis, Franklin finished fourth overall, guaranteeing her a berth - but hardly the top-two finish she'll need to become an Olympian again.
In other events, the two swimmers who will be the spotlit stars of the American team at Rio ran away with their semifinals.
Michael Phelps, who already has an Olympic-record 22 medals, routed the field in his 200-meter butterfly race. His winning time of 1:56.68 beat runner-up Pace Clark's by 0.22 seconds.
In the women's 200-meter freestyle semifinal, Katie Ledecky, the Maryland teenager who may be the world's most dominant swimmer right now, cruised to another win.
"Katie Ledecky," the arena announcer informed the crowd as she lengthened her lead, "is putting on another clinic."
On Wednesday, Penn Charter's 16-year-old Reece Whitley, the silver medalist in the 100-meter breaststroke at the 2015 World Junior Championships, will begin competition in the 200-meter backstroke. Earlier in the week, he failed to reach the final in the 100-meter backstroke.
@philafitz