Editorial content for the 2023 World Aquatics Championships is sponsored by FINIS, a longtime partner of Swimming World and leading innovator of suits, goggles and equipment. World Championships: Australia Sets Powerhouse Quartet for 800 Free Relay; Alex Shackell Anchoring for U.S. (Full Lineups) The Australian women are favored for gold in the women’s 800 freestyle relay, and they will deploy the top two 200 freestylers in the world along with the hot hand in relays so far in Fukuoka while the United States seeks a longshot gold medal by frontloading their teenager-laden squad and trusting a rookie to deliver on the end. Click here to view the full lineups for this relay. Australia will lead off with Mollie O’Callaghan, the new world-record holder in the 200 free as of Wednesday, and she will be followed by Shayna Jack. Jack will be swimming her first 200-meter race of the meet, but in four brilliant 100-meter splits, she has gone as fast as 51.53 and helped Australia to win gold in the women’s 400 free relay and mixed 400 medley relay. Brianna Throssell handles the third leg after splitting 1:56.31 in prelims before Ariarne Titmus, the silver medalist behind O’Callaghan in the 200 free, will finish it off. This team is favored for gold and favored to lower the world record of 7:39.59 set by Australia at last year’s Commonwealth Games. Madison Wilson and Kiah Melverton, who each raced in prelims, were part of that squad along with O’Callaghan and Titmus. As for the upset-seeking Americans, the coaching staff has decided on an unusual foursome to try to put a scare into Australia. Erin Gemmell will lead off ahead of Katie Ledecky, Bella Sims and Alex Shackell. Ledecky has been part of the U.S. lineup in this event for a decade, but the other three are teenagers, and only Sims has raced in a senior-level international final before, having anchored the Americans to gold in this relay last year. Gemmell and Shackell earned their spots with swift prelims swims of 1:55.65 and 1:56.05, respectively, and the U.S. coaches chose to stick with those two rather than turning to Claire Weinstein. Weinstein was the U.S. Nationals winner in the 200 free, upsetting Ledecky in a stunning finish, but she struggled mightily in Fukuoka, swimming almost two seconds off her 200 free best time and failing to make the final, so Shackell gets the nod here after a superb morning swim. The Americans hope to build a lead over the first three legs of the relay before tasking Shackell, a 16-year-old better known for her butterfly abilities, to try to hold off Titmus, an extremely tall order. But in a relay where they are not favored, the Americans chose to take a risk. Meanwhile, China is likely the bronze-medal favorite with 1500 freestyle bronze medalist Li Bingjie joining the squad to lead off. A Canadian group missing some of the big names from years past adds Mary-Sophie Harvey on the leadoff leg and Summer McIntosh going second. Great Britain has inserted Freya Anderson to anchor its squad. Anderson and the Netherlands, with Marrit Steenbergen on the end, will each be dangerous on the final leg.
