30 American athletes to watch at the 2024 Paris Olympics

19. Katie Grimes
Swimming

It’s always impressive to see teenagers dominate on the biggest stage, but Katie Grimes takes it to an entirely different level. The 15-year-old was the youngest member of Team USA at the Tokyo Olympics. Now a legal adult, Grimes is older and wiser, and frankly, better than she was her last time out. 

Grimes was the first individual athlete to qualify by name for the Paris Olympics. She came incredibly close to the medal stand in her first Olympic attempt, finishing fourth in the 800 meter freestyle. She was a full second behind third place, and she was almost seven seconds off the lead, but that’s because she was in the pool with the ridiculous Katie Ledecky.

In Paris, Grimes is expected to compete in the 400m individual medley, the 10km open-water race, and the 1,500m freestyle. She has been excelling in endurance events, which bodes well since she’ll likely avoid Ledecky at those events. She’s considered the future of the sport when some of the current stars age out of the pool. 

Finishing fourth has Grimes motivated to leave Paris with hardware. She knows about pressure, as she was able to win the 2023 World Championships 10km open-water event by tenths of a second. This is a two-hour race that came down as close as humanly possible. She knows about the Olympic experience, as well. Sure, an Olympics with a crowd will be different, but the cadences will remain mostly the same. She’s ready to become the present of women’s swimming, and some big finishes will help.