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TOKYO (AP) – Michael Phelps sat in his broadcast seat, a mere observer rather than the driving force behind American swimming.
No need to worry about what he left behind.
The Americans are off to a good start at the Tokyo Aquatic Center.
Showing their brand depth, the United States has won six of 12 medals Sunday, the first morning of the finals, showing no signs of slipping even without the most decorated athlete in Olympic history.
From Chase Kalisz’s gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley to Kieran Smith’s bronze medal in his first major international competition, there were plenty of reds, whites and blues on the medal podium in the largely empty arena.
“We were in the warm-up pool to see people take gold, finish second, second and third. It was crazy, ”said Abbey Weitzeil, who was part of the 4×100-meter freestyle relay team that won bronze in the final event of the session. “It just got us excited and really excited us.”
Kalisz got things going with his victory in the grueling IM, netting a second place finish at the Rio 2016 Games. Jay Litherland rallied on the final leg to give the Americans a finish 1-2 which set the tone for the rest of the morning.
“I really feel like I let the US down in 16, even though I swam a lot faster than here,” Kalisz said. “The United States has a proud heritage of the 400 IM – (Tom) Dolan, Phelps, (Ryan) Lochte. It was my redemption story.
At 27, he knew this could be his last chance to win the four-stroke race, especially after being forced to wait another year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It was tough last year with the Olympics kind of pulled away from us and we really had so many uncertainties as to whether that was going to happen,” Kalisz said. “Five years of preparation for this moment, and it’s not like I’m getting any younger.”
Kalisz and Litherland took a huge break when country favorite Daiya Seto failed to advance to the prelims, making a huge strategic mistake trying to conserve energy for the final.
The Americans took advantage of it. Kalisz broke away in the breaststroke, his best leg, and Litherland rallied on the final freestyle to claim second place.
It turns out the Americans were just getting started.
Smith, who emerged from the obscurity with a decisive performance at the US Trials last month, proved he was no fluke by finishing third in the 400 freestyle behind Tunisian Ahmed Hafnaoui. and Australian Jack McLoughlin.
“I sprinted in the last 50 like it was a free 50,” said Smith. “It was a really fun race.
Japan’s Yui Ohashi won gold in the women’s 400 IM, catching up with Seto’s flop a bit, but two americans were right on his heels.
Olympic rookie Emma Weyant took home silver, while Hali Flickinger, 27, won bronze for her first career medal.
“After we saw (Kalisz and Litherland win medals), we kind of looked at each other and said, ‘It’s our turn,’” Weyant said. “I think that really motivated our team. “
They weren’t finished either.
While no one had a chance to beat the mighty Australians in the 4×100 free relay – indeed, they set the first swimming world record of those games – a quartet anchored by Simone Manuel managed to hang on to third place.
Katie Ledecky was among those who were spurred on by the American performance.
Before swimming for the first time in the 400 freestyle preliminaries, the roommates of Ledecky’s Olympic Village – Manuel, Flickinger and relay swimmers Allison Schmitt and Natalie Hinds – had already set the bar high enough.
“I can really feel the energy,” said Ledecky, a five-time gold medalist who is expected to be one of America’s biggest stars in Tokyo. “Our whole apartment already has something like four medals. We are really excited and really enjoy the experience with each other.
For Manuel, one of the biggest stars of the Rio 2016 Games, it was a particularly poignant medal after his struggle just to be part of the team. He was diagnosed with overtraining syndrome and forced to take an extended break shortly before testing.
Manuel only qualified in one individual event – the 50 freestyle – but the US coaches decided to use her in last place in the relay.
It paid off with another medal.
“I’m always excited and pumped for the relays,” Manuel said. “It’s an incredible experience. I don’t take it lightly.
During Phelps’ record-breaking career, which spanned five Olympics, the Americans have never won more than five medals on day one of the Finals.
Without him, they did better.
Looks like the team is still in good hands.
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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at https://twitter.com/pnewberry1963 and his work can be found at https://apnews.com/search/paulnewberry
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More AP Olympic coverage: https://www.apnews.com/OlympicGames and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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