2021 Australian Swimming Trials

The 2021 Australian Swimming Trials was a sports event that was held from 12 to 17 June 2021 at the

Olympic Qualification criteria

Australia can select a maximum of 56 swimmers (26 of each sex, with up to 18 for relay only swimmers) for the Olympic team. To qualify, a swimmer must reach the allotted Olympic Qualifying Time (OQT) and finish in the top 2 positions in the "A" final. Following the end of the qualification period,

• Information retrieved from Swimming Australia.^[2] and from Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Qualification.

Paralympic Qualification criteria

Qualification requirements to be included in the Paralympic team is decided upon different classifications based on the degree of impairment an athlete experiences relative to an able-bodied swimmer's speed and performance. The three impairment groups at the Paralympic Games for swimming are physical, vision and intellectual.^[3] In addition, strokes and events are classified under "sport classes" that have a prefix letter and number. At the 2021 trials, qualification is selected based on a points system rather than time. Swimmers earn points based on how close they are to the world record in their respective qualification. This system is called the Multi-Class Point Score.

Event key

There are three swimming sport class prefixes for swimming strokes:

• S is for freestyle, butterfly and backstroke events.
• SB is for breaststroke
• SM is for
  individual medley
  events.

As well as swimming strokes, they are also divided into ten different categories:^[4]

• S1/SB1: swimmers who may have tetraplegia or some form of loss of muscular power in their legs, arms and hands. These swimmers would regularly use a wheelchair.
• S2/SB1: swimmers who may have limited function in their hands, trunk and legs and mainly rely on their arms to swim.
• S3/SB2: swimmers who have leg or arm amputations, have severe coordination problems in their limbs or have to swim with their arms but don't use their trunk or legs.
• S4/SB3: swimmers who have a function in their hands and arms but can't use their trunk or legs to swim or they have three amputated limbs.
• S5/SB4: swimmers who have
  hemiplegia, paraplegia
  or short stature.
• S6/SB5: swimmers who have short stature or arm amputations or some form of coordination problem on one side of their body.
• S7/SB6: swimmers who have one leg and one arm amputation on the opposite side or paralysis on one side of their body. These swimmers have full control of their arms and trunk but variable function in their legs.
• S8/SB7: swimmers who have a single amputation or restrictive movement in their hip, knee and ankle joints.
• S9/SB8: swimmers who have joint restrictions in one leg or double below-the-knee amputations.
• S10/SB9: swimmers who have minor physical impairments, for example, loss of one hand.
• S11/SB11: swimmers who have severe
  blindness
  , they are required to wear blackened goggles to compete. They use tappers when competing in swimming events.
• S12/SB12: swimmers who have a moderate visual impairment and have a visual field of fewer than 5 degrees radius. They are required to wear blackened goggles to compete. They may wish to use a tapper.
• S13/SB13: swimmers who have a minor visual impairment and have high visual acuity. They are required to wear blackened goggles to compete. They may wish to use a tapper.
• S14/SB14: swimmers who have
  intellectual impairment
  .

Key:   Highlighted swimmers achieved the qualification conditions to be included in the Olympic team in that respective event.
Legend: WR – World record; CR – Commonwealth record; OC – Oceanian record; NR – Australian National record; ACR – Australian All Comers record; Club – Australian Club record; MR – Meet record Q – Olympic Qualification

Olympic trials results

Men's

Women's

Paralympic trials events

Men's

Event	First		Second		Third
50 m freestyle S3, S5, S7-S10, S12-S13	Braeden Jason (S14) Jacob Templeton (S13) Rowan Crothers (S10) William Martin (S9) Matthew Levy (S7)	24.60 (839 points) 24.61 (838 points) 23.98 (901 points) 25.38 (846 points) 28.65 (844 points)	Oscar Stubbs (S13) Tom Gallagher (S10) Timothy Disken (S9)	25.15 (785 points) 24.44 (851 points) 25.80 (805 points)
100 m freestyle S7-S8, S9-S10, S14	Ricky Betar (S14) Braedan Jason (S12) Rowan Crothers (S10) William Martin (S9) Ben Popham (S8) Mathew Levy (S7)	52.28 (820 points) 53.27 (873 points) 52.16 (920 points) 55.16 (809 points) 57.37 (902 points) 1:02.55 (770 points)	Jack Ireland (S14) Tom Gallagher (S10)	53.24 (777 points) 53.86 (843 points)
200 m freestyle S1-S5, S14	Ricky Betar (S14)	1:56.16 (920 points)	Jack Ireland (S14)	1:59.02 (855 points)	Liam Schluter (S14)	2:00.29 (828 points)
400 m freestyle S6-S13	Tom Gallagher (S10) Brendan Hall (S9) Ben Popham (S8)	4:10.62 (853 points) 4:15.89 (932 points) 4:35.15 (835 points)	Lewis Bishop (S10) Alex Tuckfield (S9) Jesse Aungles (S8)	4:31.75 (669 points) 4:16.13 (929 points) 4:46.58 (745 points)	Harrison Vig (S9)	4:18.94 (899 points)
50 m backstroke S1-S5	Grant Patterson (S3)	58.02 (385 points)
100 m backstroke S1-S2, S6-S14	Benjamin Hance (S14) Jacob Templeton (S13) Jeremy McClure (S13) Timothy Hodge (S9) Jesse Aungles (S8)	57.56 (1091 points) 1:01.50 (783 points) 1:13.70 (740 points) 1:02.20 (953 points) 1:07.94 (794 points)	Ricky Betar (S14) Brendan Hall (S9)	1:01.05 (915 points) 1:05.36 (822 points)	Harrison Vig (S9)	1:06.08 (795 points)
50 m breaststroke SB1-SB3	Ahmed Kelly (SB3) Grant Patterson (SB2)	54.48 (662 points) 1:01.66 (554 points)
100 m breaststroke SB5-SB14	Jake Michel (SB14) Rick Pendleton (SB9) Timothy Disken (SB8) Blake Cochrane (SB7) Matthew Levy (SB6) Ahmed Kelly (SB3)	1:04.35 (1028 points) 1:12.17 (698 points) 1:11.30 (830 points) 1:17.26 (786 points) 1:23.57 (835 points) 1:56.90 (713 points)	Lachlan Hanratty (SB14) Joel Mundie (SB6)	1:15.89 (627 points) 1:47.00 (398 points)
50 m butterfly S1-S2, S6-S14	Joel Mundie (S7) Henrik Krogius (S5)	33.48 (611 points) 45.26 (338 points)
100 m butterfly S7-S14	Benjamin Hance (S14) Hugh Gillham (S10) William Martin (S9)	57.67 (842 points) 58.89 (802 points) 57.76 (1061 points)	Alex Saffy (S9) Liam Schluter (S14)	1:00.27 (934 points) 58.60 (803 points)	Timothy Hodge (S9)	1:00.67 (915 points)
150 m individual medley SM2-SM4	Ahmed Kelly (SM3)	3:00.70 (697 points)	Grant Patterson (SM3)	3:06.18 (637 points)
200 m individual medley SM5-SM14	Liam Schluter (SM14) Hugh Gillam (SM10) Timothy Hodge (SM9) Jesse Aungles (SM8) Matthew Levy (SM7)	2:14.99 (856 points) 2:19.69 (727 points) 2:15.25 (964 points) 2:27.44 (856 points) 2:36.35 (896 points)	Joshua Alford (SM14) Alex Saffy (SM9) Joel Mundie (SM7)	2:19.18 (781 points) 2:22.45 (825 points) 2:57.00 (617 points)

Women's

• Information retrieved from Swimming Australia.^[6]

Records

During the 2021 Australian Swimming Championships the following records were set.

World records

Event	Name (Previous)	Time (Previous)	Year	Location	Name (New)	Time (New)	Difference
Women's 100 m backstroke[e]	Regan Smith	57.57	2019	Gwangju, South Korea	Kaylee McKeown	57.45	-0.12

Commonwealth records

Event	Name (Previous)	Time (Previous)	Year	Location	Name (New)	Time (New)	Difference
Men's 200 m breaststroke	Matthew Wilson	2:06.67	2019	Gwangju, South Korea	Zac Stubblety-Cook	2:06.28	-0.39
Women's 200 m freestyle	Ariarne Titmus	1:54.27	2019	Gwangju, South Korea	Ariarne Titmus	1:53.09	-1.18
Women's 400 m freestyle	Ariarne Titmus	3:58.76	2019	Gwangju, South Korea	Ariarne Titmus	3:56.90	-1.77
Women's 200 m backstroke	Kaylee McKeown	2:04.31	2021	Sydney, Australia	Kaylee McKeown	2:04.28	-0.03

Australian records

Event	Name (Previous)	Time (Previous)	Year	Location	Name (New)	Time (New)	Difference
Men's 100 m butterfly	Andrew Lauterstein	50.85	2009	Rome, Italy	Matthew Temple	50.45	-0.40
Men's 400 m individual medley	Thomas Fraser-Holmes	4:10.14	2013	Adelaide, Australia	Brendon Smith	4:10.04	-0.10
Women's 800 m freestyle	Ariarne Titmus	8:15.70	2019	Gwangju, South Korea	Ariarne Titmus	8:15.57	-0.13
Women's 1500 m freestyle	Jessica Ashwood	15:52.17	2015	Kazan, Russia	Maddy Gough	15:46.13	-6.04
Women's 100 m butterfly	Emma McKeon	56.18	2017	Budapest, Hungary	Emma McKeon	55.93	-0.25

Olympic and Paralympic Team

For the Olympic team, up to 56 athletes will be selected and finalised on 17 June 2021. The following table includes athletes who were placed in the top 2 in the finals within the OQT, considered for relay events or selected as part of additional FINA selection. The Paralympic team is selected differently from the Olympic team and is based on a points system rather than just time.

Olympic team

Paralympic team

Controversy

Days before the event, Madeline Groves, a dual silver medallist at the 2016 Summer Olympics withdrew from the trials as "a lesson to all misogynistic perverts in sport". Groves' withdrawal and comments drew considerable media attention and concerns from Swimming Australia President Kieren Perkins.^[7][8] On June 12 at the start of the trials, Swimming Australia announced that they were setting up an independent panel to investigate issues relating to the experiences of girls and women in the sport.^[9]

Broadcast

The trials marked the second time Amazon Prime Video broadcast the event via its streaming platform. Grant Hackett, Nicole Livingstone, Annabelle Williams and Giaan Rooney alongside Matt White and Jon Harker were announced as the commentators for Amazon Prime Video on 18 May 2021.^[10] The commentary team was also joined by former Olympic medallists James Magnussen and Jodie Henry as poolside interviewers.

See also

• Swimming at the 2020 Summer Olympics
• Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics
• Australia at the 2020 Summer Paralympics
• 2020 Summer Olympics
• 2020 Summer Paralympics

Notes