By Steve Keating
SANTIAGO (Reuters) – In a bid for Olympic medals, U.S. Swimming likes to cast a big net, head coach Brent Arckey said on Wednesday, and after a dominant display at the Pan American Games a Paris podium or two may have surfaced at the Aquatic Center Laguna Los Morros.
With big guns like Caeleb Dressel and Katie Ledecky back home, the U.S. leaned on a mostly B Team in Chile and still reigned supreme by winning 19 gold and 45 medals from 36 races.
The Americans finished with a bang, picking up five medals including gold in the women’s 1,500m freestyle and the men’s 4x100m medley relay.
Relative newcomers to the international stage like Rachel Stege, who crushed the Pan American Games record on the way to winning the 1,500m, will benefit from their experience in Santiago but taking on the likes of Ledecky at June’s Olympic trials in Indianapolis will be another level.
“I understand people wanting to see the super stars but those super stars have to get made at some point,” Arckey told Reuters.
“We cast a huge net the year before the Olympic trials and Olympic Games trying to make sure we give a lot of people opportunity to get international experience which only sets us up to be better in 2024.
“In this particular case while most of these guys may have not been at a world championship or an Olympic Games before it gives some of these younger swimmers an opportunity to showcase what they are capable of.”
Arckey noted that the U.S. competed in four major international meets this season (world championships, world junior championships, LEN European Ireland and Pan Ams) and topped the medals table in each with different teams.
Such is the depth in U.S. swimming that only three athletes in Santiago, Brooks Curry and Paige Madden and Jay Litherland, have stood on the Olympic podium.
The Pan Am pool was not without a few big fish.
Olympic butterfly champion Maggie MacNeil was the swimmer in the spotlight, claiming five gold medals (100 butterfly, 100 freestyle, 50 freestyle, 4×100 freestyle relay, 4×100 medley relay), the most by a Canadian athlete at a single Pan Am Games.
Her total medal haul of seven (five gold, a silver and bronze) is also a single Games high for a Canadian swimmer.
“I had no idea what the records were,” said MacNeil, after helping Canada to gold ahead of the United States in the 4x100m medley relay.
“The 100 fly was the goal for me to secure that title but other than that I was like I’ll just see what happens.”
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Santiago. Editing by Ed Osmond)
