Ten New Faces To Watch At The Australian World Championship Trials in Adelaide
While Australian swimming’s biggest names will converge on the city of Adelaide this weekend for the six-day World Championship Trials, starting Monday, June 9, it will be the next generation that will throw caution to the wind as they look to launch their own dreams.
The short-term goals of this year’s World’s in Singapore and the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow will be front of mind.
But it’s the big dance in Los Angeles in 2028 that is the ultimate goal and there will be a new brand of Olympic hopefuls with their eyes on the ultimate prize.
Those biggest names on show in Adelaide will be led by Olympic champions Kyle Chalmers, Cam McEvoy, Kaylee McKeown, Zac Stubblety-Cook and Mollie O’Callaghan.
Missing will be triple Olympic champion from Tokyo and Paris, Ariarne Titmus who will swap her Speedos for the Channel 9 host broadcaster microphone as she takes a year off from the pool.
And a Trials meet without the recently retired Emma McKeon, Emily Seebohm, the Campbell sisters Cate and Bronte and Brianna Throssell.
But enter the new names with their own hopes and dreams of filling some pretty big shoes as they too arrive in the City of Churches in Adelaide hoping they can be one day anointed in the City of Angels.
Swimming World looks at 10 swimmers to watch when the Trials kick start on Monday:
- Alex Perkins (USC Spartans, Sunshine Coast, QLD; Coach Michael Sage): Exciting butterfly/freestyler who could well force her way into the Australian 4x100m freestyle relay squad and chasing individual spots in the 50 and 100m butterfly events. Has already had a taste of the big time at last year’s World Short Course in Budapest.
- Abbey Webb (Cruiz, ACT; Coach: Shannon Rollason): A 100 and 200m freestyler who cut her teeth for several years in the US with the NC State Wolf Pack. Returned to Australia and despite a disappointing Paris Olympic Trials, produced personal bests at the Tokyo Open in November. In the best of hands under Olympic gold medal coach Shannin Rollason in Canberra and has her sights set on Australia’s premier freestyle relays.
- Bailey Lello (St Peters Western, QLD; Coach Dean Boxall): Linked up with the powerhouse SPW group as he looks to regenerate his career and showed he is on the right track, winning this year’s Australian Open in the 200m breaststroke – sure to keep former Chandler teammate and Olympic champion Zac Stubblety-Cook and Paris Olympian Joshua Yong honest as he too looks to join the top too in his Olympic swim suit.
- Benjamin Goedemans (St Peters Western, QLD; Coach: Dean Boxall): Produced breakthrough swims to win the 800 and 1500m freestyle double at this year’s Australian Open Championships – his sub-15-minute 1500m freestyle of 14:57.75 making him the 11th fastest Australian in history. Another similar time and a top two finish will see him on the plane to Singapore.
- Brittany Castelluzzo (Tea Tree Gully, SA; Coach: Craig Stewart): Arguably one of the most consistent performers in Australian swimming who will contest both the 100 and 200m butterfly and 100 and 200m freestyle as she lines up in her home town trying to make a name for herself. Won the 200m ‘fly at the Australian Open and will be in the mix with Olympians Elizabeth Dekkers (St Peters Western, QLD) and Abbey Connor (USC Spartans, QLD) in what will be an enthralling tussle. Will also keep the girls honest as she chases a spot in the 4x200m freestyle relay.
- Harrison Turner (Nudgee College, QLD; Coach Shaun Crow): A 200m butterflyer who knows he has to produce his best to make the Australian team. Comes in with a personal best of 1:57.07 and he needs a 1:56.03 to make the QT cut. Will also line up in the 100m butterfly and the 100 and 200m freestyle.
- Jamie Jack (St Peters Western, QLD; Coach: Dean Boxall): Surged back from a disappointing Paris Trials Meet to clock personal bests in the 50 and 100m freestyle at the December Queensland Championships before winning the 100m at the Australian open and finishing second to Olympic champion Cam McEvoy in the 50 freestyle. Has posted 21.66 in the 50 and 48.27 in the 100m free. The 22-year-old little brother of Olympic gold medalist Shayna Jack, who is on his way.
- Milla Jansen (Bond, Gold Coast, QLD; Coach: Chris Mooney): A finalist in the 100m freestyle at last year’s Olympic Trials after stand-out swims at the World Juniors and Junior Pan Pacs. Will have a red-hot show in the race for the 4x100m freestyle spots.
- Sienna Toohey (Albury, NSW; Coach; Wayne Gould): This talented 16-year-old from country NSW has a personal best of 1:07.01 in the 100m breaststroke and has her sights set on the World’s QT of 1:06.87 as she goes head-to-head with Olympian and topo seed Ella Ramsay (St Peters Western, QLD)
- Tara Kinder (Melbourne Vicentre, VIC; Coach Craig Jackson): Without doubt the biggest improver in 2025 with her stand-out IM and breaststroke personal bests – from the Victorian and NSW Championships to the Australian Open, highlighted by her 2:23.84 in the 200m breaststroke and her 2:10.05 and 4:37.14 to win the 200/400IM double at the Australian Open.
