INDIANAPOLIS — Regan Smith reclaimed the world record in the women’s 100-meter backstroke here at U.S. Olympic swimming trials in Indianapolis, outdueling her biggest rival from halfway around the world a month before they’ll meet head-to-head in Paris.
Smith went 57.13 in Tuesday’s final, shattering Australian Kaylee McKeown’s previous mark by two full tenths.
Smith, 22, slammed the water, and smiled in delight, as her family erupted joyously in the stands nearby.
A former teen phenom, Smith first broke the world record in both the 100 and 200 backstroke in 2019, two days apart, at age 17. But over the years that followed, she crumbled under the pressure that came with the records and the corresponding hype. She failed to qualify in the 200 at 2021 Olympic trials; she took bronze in the 100 in Tokyo. After her freshman year at Stanford, she had fallen out of love with the sport.
But she refound that love. She left Stanford, and went pro with coach Bob Bowman in Arizona. And she built back toward her best.
In the meantime, McKeown took the record and established herself as the woman to beat in all backstroke events.
But in 2024, after a bout with mononucleosis in December, Smith took aim at the throne. She kept lowering her personal-best time. She swam great in March. She broke the American record in May, and again Monday night here in the 100 backstroke semifinals at trials.
The world record, she knew, was within reach.
Twenty-four hours later, it fell, and Smith qualified for her second Olympic team.
“I’m so proud of myself,” she said.
