(L-R) Gunnar Bentz, Jimmy Feigen, Blake Pieroni and Clark Smith participate in a medal ceremony at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Swimming at CenturyLink Center on July 3, 2016 in Omaha, Neb.
Five swimmers have been selected to Rio 2016 U.S. Olympic Swimming Team, bringing the roster to a full complement of 47 athletes for the August competition in Brazil.
Added to the roster at the completion of the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials for Swimming in Omaha, Nebraska, were Cierra Runge, Gunnar Bentz, Jimmy Feigen, Blake Pieroni and Clark Smith. Feigen earns his second Olympic appearance, while the other four will be competing in their first Olympic Games.
The five swimmers were added to the Olympic Team by virture of their placement in either the 100- or 200-meter freestyle events at the recently concluded 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials for Swimming in Omaha, Nebraska, and will be available to compete in the 4x100 or 4x200 freestyle relays.
Runge, 20, won gold in the 4x200 relay at the 2015 FINA worlds. A silver medalist in the 400 freestyle at 2014 Pan Pacific championships, she earned her Pan Pacs berth by winning silver in 400 free and 800 free at the 2014 nationals championships. She was a four-time medalist at the 2013 junior world championships, including gold in the 4x200 relay. She placed fifth in the 200 freestyle at the Olympic Trials to selection to the team. After competing as a freshman at the University of California Berkeley, she sat out the 2015-16 season to train for Rio. She has announced that she will transfer to the University of Wisconsin after the Olympic Games.
Bentz, 20, won four medals at the 2013 FINA junior world championships, including golds in the 200 and 400 individual medley. His fifth-place finish in the 200 freestyle at Trials earned him a spot on the Olympic team. He won a silver in the 4x200 and bronze in the 200 individual medley at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games. A rising junior at the University of Georgia, as a freshman Bentz won a bronze medal in the 400-yard individual medley at the 2013 NCAA championships.
Feigen, 26, swam in the preliminary heats of the 4x100 relay at the London 2012 Olympic Games, earning a silver medal. The former Texas Longhorn won a pair of silver medals at the 2013 world championships, in the 100 freestyle and as part of the 4x100 team. He placed fifth in the 100 freestyle at the Olympic Trials.
Pieroni, 20, earned selection to his first Olympic Team by placing sixth in the 100 freestyle final. A bronze medalist in the 200 individual medley at the 2015 national championships, he was a two-time silver medalist (100 and 200 freestyle) at the 2014 Junior Pan Pacific championships and was part of the bronze medal in the 4x200 at the 2013 FINA junior world championships. A rising junior at Indiana University, he earned five All-America honors at the 2016 NCAA championships and was named first-team All-Big Ten.
A rising senior at the University of Texas, Smith won the 500-yard freestyle at the 2015 NCAA championships. He holds NCAA and American records in the 1,000 freestyle with a time of 8:33.93. A three-time All-American, his time of 14:31.29 in the 1,650 free set school and Big 12 conference records. His parents, John and Tori Smith, both swam at Texas, and his mother was a member of the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Team. He placed sixth in the 100 freestyle final to earn selection to the team.
