ATLANTA – Coming off its fifth consecutive Big Ten Championship, No. 3-ranked Indiana will look to carry out its finest this week on the 2026 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships in Atlanta.
The four-day meet will run Wednesday (March 25) by means of Saturday (March 28) contained in the McCauley Aquatic Center. Final periods will kick off at 6 p.m. ET every night time, preceded by preliminary heats every morning beginning at 10 a.m. ET. Fans can stream the competitors through the ESPN+ digital platform.
FORMAT CHANGES The 2026 championships embody three main format adjustments.
First, the championships is not going to embody ‘B’ finals. Athletes that place ninth by means of sixteenth from preliminaries will nonetheless earn second-team All-American standing however is not going to advance to a second swim, retaining the position they earned within the morning.
Second, relay and 1,650-yard freestyle timed finals will happen throughout the preliminary session. Only the quickest heats of these occasions will swim within the night.
Third, the diving championship finals will break up in two components throughout the night session. Each of the three last nights will comply with this order: two swimming occasions, first three rounds of diving, two swimming occasions, last rounds of diving, relay.
QUALIFIERS Indiana certified 19 athletes (16 swimmers, three divers) for the nationwide meet, the most important roster among the many competing groups. IU could have a consultant in each occasion and a number of rivals in 20 of twenty-two occasions. The Hoosiers have six {qualifications} within the 400-yard IM, 5 within the 100-yard backstroke and 4 apiece within the 500-yard freestyle, 100-yard breaststroke, 200-yard breaststroke and 200-yard IM. Including relays, Hoosiers personal 16 prime 10 seeds and 6 prime 5 seeds of their occasions.
SENIOR TOP SEEDS The two-time reigning champion within the 1,650-yard freestyle, senior Zalán Sárkány is the highest seed within the meet’s opening occasion on Wednesday. While brief course and NCAA Championships expertise are on his aspect, he’ll need to fend off two lengthy course world champions in Florida’s Ahmed Jaouadi and Ahmed Hafnaoui.
An 11-time All-American and two-time NCAA medalist, in addition to an NCAA crew champion throughout his time at Arizona State, senior
Owen McDonald will need to verify particular person champion off the listing. McDonald could have his finest shot within the 200-yard IM as the highest seed coming into the week.
YOUNG GUNS Indiana boasts one of many prime freshman lessons within the nation, qualifying 4 first-year athletes for the nationwide meet.
Josh Bey turned heads together with his Big Ten file, convention champion swim within the 400 IM final month, setting the No. 2 time within the nation with a 3:34.90. Bey initiatives to attain in all three of his occasions, rating No. 6 within the 200-yard breaststroke (1:50.03) and 14th within the 200-yard IM (1:41.68).
Classmate
Noah Cakir will swim the identical program as Bey. Cakir ranks proper behind Bey within the 200 breast in seventh, his 1:50.47 setting a 17-18 National Age Group file on the Big Ten Championships.
Luke Ellis provides Indiana depth within the distance occasions. His 14:43.01 for a Big Ten bronze medal earned the No. 12 time within the nation.
Bloomington native
David Kovacs certified for this week from Indiana’s “Last Chance” meet earlier this month, his 1:39.18 within the 200-yard backstroke rating No. 14 within the nation. Kovacs may even swim the 100 again and 400 IM.
GLUE GUYS Depth separates the high-scoring groups from the sector, and Indiana as soon as once more has it.
Raekwon Noel,
Aaron Shackell,
Kai van Westering,
Travis Gulledge,
Alexei Avakov,
Dylan Smiley,
Toby Barnett and
Miroslav Knedla all rank prime 20 in not less than one occasion and, with a private finest swim or two (or three), can play a mighty function in a excessive crew end.
Most notable, Noel ranks No. 8 within the 200-yard butterfly (1:39.26). Barnett joins Bey and Cakir inside the prime 10 of the 200 breast (1:50.75). And Knedla ranks No. 17 in each the 100 again (44.67) and 200 again (1:39.28).
POINTS ON THE BOARDS Indiana eclipsed 100 factors in diving alone every of the final three seasons. Despite the commencement of nationwide champions
Carson Tyler and
Quinn Henninger, IU nonetheless has loads of alternatives to seize factors on the boards this week.
Senior
Maxwell Weinrich leads the group, hungry to etch his identify within the unparalleled historical past of IU diving. Weinrich was nationwide runner-up on platform to Tyler in 2024 and is a four-time All-American. He’ll dive in all three occasions, joined by sophomore teammates
Joshua Sollenberger (1-meter, 3-meter) and
Aiden Sadler (3-meter).
MEET INFO Wednesday, March 25 – Saturday, March 29 • 10 a.m. ET (prelims), 6 p.m. (finals)
McAuley Aquatic Center • Atlanta, Ga.
Live Results (Swimming):
https://bit.ly/4btUAsd/Meet Mobile (App)
Live Results (Diving):
divemeets.com Live Stream:
ESPN+ SCHEDULED EVENTS (Finals) Wednesday (6 p.m. ET) – 1,650 freestyle, 200 medley relay, 800 freestyle relay
Thursday (6 p.m. ET) – 100 butterfly, 400 IM, 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, 200 freestyle relay, 1-meter springboard
Friday (6 p.m. ET) – 100 backstroke, 200 breaststroke, 500 freestyle, 50 freestyle, 400 medley relay, 3-meter springboard
Saturday (6 p.m. ET) – 200 IM, 100 freestyle, 200 butterfly, 200 backstroke, 400 freestyle relay, platform
INDIANA SWIMMING AND DIVING QUALIFIERS 2026 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships Alexei Avakov – 100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke
Toby Barnett – 100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke, 200 IM
Josh Bey – 200 breaststroke, 200 IM, 400 IM
Noah Cakir – 200 breaststroke, 200 IM, 400 IM
Luke Ellis – 500 freestyle, 1,650 freestyle, 400 IM
Travis Gulledge – 50 freestyle, 100 breaststroke
Miroslav Knedla – 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke
David Kovacs – 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke, 400 IM
Mikkel Lee – 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle
Owen McDonald – 200 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 200 IM
Raekwon Noel – 100 backstroke, 100 butterfly, 200 butterfly
Aiden Sadler – 3-meter
Zalán Sárkány – 500 freestyle, 1,650 freestyle, 400 IM
Aaron Shackell – 200 freestyle, 500 freestyle, 200 butterfly
Dylan Smiley – 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 100 breaststroke
Joshua Sollenberger – 1-meter, 3-meter
Maxwell Weinrich – 1-meter, 3-meter, platform
Kai van Westering – 200 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke
Luke Whitlock – 500 freestyle, 1,650 freestyle, 400 IM
200 freestyle relay
400 freestyle relay
800 freestyle relay
200 medley relay
400 freestyle relay
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