{"id":614406,"date":"2025-06-12T09:19:47","date_gmt":"2025-06-12T16:19:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=614406"},"modified":"2025-06-12T09:20:39","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T16:20:39","slug":"u-s-nationals-brings-generational-change-to-american-mens-backstroke-field","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/u-s-nationals-brings-generational-change-to-american-mens-backstroke-field\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Nationals Brings Generational Change to American Men\u2019s Backstroke Field"},"content":{"rendered":"

U.S. Nationals Brings Generational Change to American Men\u2019s Backstroke Field<\/strong><\/p>\n

With one announcement after another, change seemed inevitable for American men\u2019s backstroke this summer.<\/p>\n

First Hunter Armstrong<\/strong> revealed a near retirement<\/a> that would at least lead regrouping this summer. Then Ryan Murphy<\/strong> took a step back from competition<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Its status as the world\u2019s premier male backstroke program already imperiled<\/a>, U.S. Nationals would have to bring new talents to the fore. It\u2019s for a team that looks much different than the male backstroke contingent we\u2019ve grown accustomed to.<\/p>\n

The U.S. is sending five different men<\/a> to the 2025 World Championships to swim backstroke this year: Quintin McCarty<\/strong> and Shaine Casas<\/strong> in the 50<\/a>; Tommy Janton<\/strong> and Jack Aikins<\/strong> in the 100<\/a>; Aikins and Keaton Jones<\/strong> in the 200<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Quintin McCarty; Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick<\/p><\/div>\n

It\u2019s an unprecedented contingent in several ways. First, it\u2019s the most individuals the U.S. has ever sent, given a dearth of multi-event qualifiers. The U.S. sent three to the shoe-horned Worlds in 2024, with NCAA competition taking precedence. The number was four at every Worlds from 2011-23. (Selection priority for the 50 has changed over time, formerly limited to one dedicated qualifier and an extra swim for another athlete qualified in a different event, which factors in.)<\/p>\n

Of the five headed to Singapore, Janton, McCarty and Jones are Worlds debutants. Jones swam the 200 at the Paris Olympics.<\/p>\n

That sense of opportunity was clear to swimmers in Indianapolis this week.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think you hear the names Ryan Murphy, Shaine Casas, Hunter Armstrong, all these guys are people that you grew up swimming for,\u201d McCarty said. \u201cYou are that guy trying to be on the next Team USA. And I think with a little bit of a later development, I’m really excited about where I’m headed, just moving forward and striving on, hopefully to be the next guy for Team USA who can step up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three newcomers is an oddity: From 2003-24, just 16 different individuals represented American men\u2019s backstroke in 12 editions of the World Championships. Of the two holdovers, Aikins swam only at 2024 Worlds. Casas has one previous Worlds backstroke swim, in the 200 in 2023.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just consistency but excellence. An American man medaled in every backstroke event at the Olympics for seven straight editions of the Games. In 14 medal events from Atlanta in 1996 to Tokyo in 2021, American men earned 12 gold and 21 total medals. The 200 back in Paris was the first since the 200 back in Barcelona 32 years prior without an American on the medal stand.<\/p>\n

The men powering that history are pillars of American male swimming. Seven-time Olympic medalist Aaron Peirsol,<\/strong> still the world-record holder in the 200. Matt Grevers,<\/strong> owner of six medals. Murphy with his nine (five gold). Ryan Lochte<\/strong> (12 medals, six gold). Tyler Clary.<\/strong> Even Armstrong, a late bloomer who has collected seven Worlds golds and 15 total Worlds medals to go with three Olympic medals.<\/p>\n

The new group has traveled unique paths. Janton came out of Lane 1 in the final to win. Worlds is by far his biggest international meet, eclipsing the World University Games. All for a swimmer who didn\u2019t have a college season, with Notre Dame\u2019s men\u2019s team suspended for the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI swam with a couple of my teammates and we were able to get to it,\u201d Janton said. \u201cThe ones who were there held ourselves accountable. I really had a lot of faith in the coaching staff.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCarty doesn\u2019t even call himself a backstroker so much as an all-purpose fast man \u2013 \u201cI’m just a swimmer,\u201d he said. \u201cI love it all.\u201d The Colorado Springs native didn\u2019t love it as much when a back injury forced him to redshirt as a freshman, spending four months out of the water. He returned in the fall of 2023, making NCAAs in the 50 and 100 free as a freshman. He also anchored a pair of American record relays, the 200 medley and 200 free, for NC State.<\/p>\n

When an injury befell Aiden Hayes<\/strong> this year, McCarty swapped to backstroke.<\/p>\n

\u201cBraden<\/strong> (Holloway<\/strong>, NC State coach) came up to me and was like, all right time to see if we can do any backstroke with you,\u201d McCarty said. \u201cSo I just started training backstroke in October again, really got excited about it. Ended up doing some 50s throughout the collegiate season, had a pretty good one at NCAAs, and now guess I’m doing 50 backstroke for Team USA, which is really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCarty finished 13th in the 100 back (after qualifying ninth) at NCAAs, to go with eighth in the 50 free and 19th in the 100 free. He blasted a 20.24 leadoff, fastest in the field, in the 200 medley relay, and he led off the Wolfpack\u2019s 400 medley relay that finished ninth at NCAAs despite setting an American record<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The change in American men\u2019s backstroke may prove to be about quantity and quality. Murphy won bronze in the 100 back in Paris, but Armstrong failed to make the final. Jones finished fifth in the 200, Murphy missing the final in 10th. The old guard\u2019s replacement at times has seemed overdue.<\/p>\n

Casas ranks third in the world in the 50 back with a 24.23 from the TYR Pro Swim Series, while McCarty\u2019s 24.34 ranks fourth. Nine swimmers have been quicker in 2025 than the 53.00 that Janton used to win the 100. Aikins (1:54.25) and Jones (1:54.85) set the first and third fastest times in the world in the 200.<\/p>\n

The new faces have put themselves in a position to be the next wave of American male backstroke dominance. Now it\u2019s a matter of showing it in Singapore.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

U.S. Nationals Brings Generational Change to American Men\u2019s Backstroke Field With one announcement after another, change seemed inevitable for American men\u2019s backstroke this summer. First Hunter Armstrong revealed a near<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8367,"featured_media":613221,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,122077,7],"tags":[136142,70619,71204,112820,110276,127920,25269,72300,126930],"class_list":["post-614406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-americas","category-usa","tag-2025-us-national-championships","tag-2025-world-aquatics-championships","tag-hunter-armstrong","tag-jack-aikins","tag-keaton-jones","tag-quintin-mccarty","tag-ryan-murphy","tag-shaine-casas","tag-tommy-janton"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nU.S. Nationals Brings Change to American Men\u2019s Backstroke<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"With one announcement after another, change seemed inevitable for American men\u2019s backstroke: First Hunter Armstrong, then Ryan Murphy\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/u-s-nationals-brings-generational-change-to-american-mens-backstroke-field\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"U.S. Nationals Brings Generational Change to American Men\u2019s Backstroke Field\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"With one announcement after another, change seemed inevitable for American men\u2019s backstroke: First Hunter Armstrong, then Ryan Murphy\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/u-s-nationals-brings-generational-change-to-american-mens-backstroke-field\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Swimming World\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SwimmingWorld\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T16:19:47+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T16:20:39+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/tommy-janton-USA-Swimming-Nationals-2025-1776-Edit.jpg\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"750\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Matthew De George - 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