U.S. Olympic Trials: Carson Foster Rallies for Victory in 200 IM; Shaine Casas Realizes Olympic Dream

U.S. Olympic Trials: Carson Foster Rallies for Victory in 200 IM; Shaine Casas Realizes Olympic Dream

One guy was already bound for the Olympic Games. The other was down to his last chance. Together, Carson Foster and Shaine Casas will represent the United States in the 200-meter individual medley next month in Paris.

The Trials champion earlier in the week in the 400 individual medley, Foster rallied on the freestyle leg to claim a medley sweep, winning the event in 1:55.65. But Casas’ second-place showing was equally satisfying, as he attacked the front half of the race and relied on guts down the stretch to become an Olympian for the first time. Casas checked in with a mark of 1:55.83, which was a little more than a second clear of Kieran Smith (1:56.97) and Chase Kalisz (1:57.17).

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The second seed in the 100 butterfly, Casas scratched that event during the morning prelims, evidence that the 24-year-old was placing his complete focus on the 200 IM. The decision was a gamble, as it removed a safety net of sorts.

“It was a no-brainer for me,” Casas said of scratching the 100 fly. “Focus on my true shot or risk and go through the rounds with another event. I know I’m good at it, just historically speaking. I have some good times. But at the end of the day, you have to be able to adapt and do what you need to do in that moment. That’s kind of what separates great competitors. They can decipher what they need to hit right now and be realistic.”

Casas also gambled with his strategy, as he pushed an insane pace on the first two legs. Casas covered the opening butterfly leg in 23.79, which was more than a second under world-record pace, and he came through the midway point in 52.68, still .80 under world-record pace.

In front of Foster by 1.13 seconds at the 100-meter mark, Casas gained additional ground on the breaststroke leg, as he split 33.88 to the 34.27 of Foster. But on the freestyle leg, Foster continually closed on Casas, and eventually moved ahead just before the wall. Foster punctuated his race in 27.57, compared to the 29.27 of Casas. Still, the work Casas did during the opening half of the final provided cushion over Smith and Kalisz.

Casas has been an enigma over the years. The owner of immense talent, he has had a variety of chances to emerge as global medalist in several events, doing so in the 200 backstroke at the 2024 World Championships. But subpar performances on the big stage have not been uncommon, and with his Olympic dream hinging on one race, there was uncertainty as Casas climbed the blocks. To his credit, Casas trusted his training, maintained belief and adopted a breakneck approach to the biggest race of his life.

“I think I’m going to remember that race for the rest of my life,” Casas said. “It wasn’t my best race. It wasn’t even my fastest race. But that race represented my entire life’s work. I can’t really put into words what that meant to me. It wasn’t even about me. It was about my mom, my grandparents, my family, everyone who supported me and pushed me even when I felt like I couldn’t keep going. Without them, that would’ve never happened. I can confidently say I would not be where I am without my family, my friends and teammates and that support system I have.”

Foster endured heartache at the last edition of the Olympic Games, where he finished third in the 400 IM after being passed by Jay Litherland on the freestyle leg. This time around, Foster has solidified his status as his country’s top IMer and will head to the Olympics as a strong medal threat in both medley disciplines. While this summer will mark Foster’s first chance at Olympic hardware, he owns four medals in the medley events from the World Championships.

The medals for the 200 medley were presented by 28-time Olympic medalist Michael Phelps, who earned four consecutive gold medals in the event from 2004-2016.

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