Bobby Finke vs. Daniel Wiffen Make Distance Events Can’t-Miss Spectacles at Pro Series
On the fourth day of competition at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Daniel Wiffen made history. Behind a European-record performance in the 800-meter freestyle, the Irishman became the first male swimmer from his country to claim Olympic gold. In the silver-medal position was American Bobby Finke, who became the first men’s champion of the event three years earlier at the Tokyo Games.
The distance stars will see each other again this week.
Wiffen and Finke are scheduled to clash in the 800 freestyle and 1500 freestyle at the USA Swimming Pro Series stop in Westmont, Illinois, which will be held from Wednesday through Saturday at the FMC Natatorium. Enhancing those events will be the presence of Australian Sam Short, a former world champion in the 400 freestyle and the silver medalist in the 800 freestyle at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka.
While the 1500 freestyle will be raced as a timed-finals event, the 800 freestyle will be contested in a prelims-finals setup. Throughout the Pro Series, USA Swimming is conducting select events at each leg in a manner that reflects their format in major international competition, thus the two rounds of the 800 free. In Westmont, the 100-meter events will be held using a prelims-semifinals-final approach.
Unlike global competitions or selection meets, midseason events like the Pro Series often feature athletes racing at different points in their training. While some swimmers might be positioned to produce fast times, others could be worn down and unable to generate anything close to personal bests. With distance swimmers, who widely require heavy workloads, they are most frequently off top times. Based on that knowledge, the Wiffen-Finke-Short clashes might lack fireworks.
So be it.
Regardless of what flashes on the scoreboard, we should celebrate the moments when a trio of stars – representing three countries – get together to race. The fact that opportunity will present itself in Westmont is a positive for the sport. Fans in attendance can lend their support, while age-groupers can be motivated to reach the next level.
Finke has been the best distance swimmer in the world over the past five years, evident in his four Olympic medals between the Tokyo and Paris Games. After sweeping the distance events at the Tokyo Games, Finke repeated as Olympic champ in the 1500 free in Paris, with that effort complemented by his silver medal in the 800 free. Meanwhile, Wiffen has been training at Cal and will be accompanied by a resume that includes a pair of world titles. Then there is Short, who has excelled from the 400 freestyle through the 1500 free, while upholding his homeland’s rich distance history.
Who knows what the winning times will be in Westmont? With a little luck, maybe one of the events will produce a tight finish, even if the overall time isn’t stunning. The bottom line is that the distance-freestyle events will be headlined by three of the sport’s premier performers, and any time several guys at that ability get together, you can’t look away.
