The short drive from Carmel, Indiana, to Lucas Oil Stadium was the easy part for Aaron and Alex Shackell. The brother-sister combination grew up in a swimming pool, dreaming of the day they would make a U.S. Olympic team. They couldn't have scripted a better start than Saturday night.
Aaron Shackell reacts after winning the Men’s 400 freestyle finals heat Saturday, June 15, 2024, at the US Swimming Olympic Trials in Indianapolis . Aaron Shackell reacts after winning the Men’s 400 freestyle finals Saturday, June 15, 2024, at the US Swimming Olympic Trials in Indianapoils. Aaron Shackell swims during the Men’s 400 freestyle finals heat Saturday, June 15, 2024, at the US Swimming Olympic Trials in Indianapolis .
Alex Shackell fully anticipated the move as she watched her brother competing from the warm-up pool while her parents watched the unbelievable evening play out from the stands.Aaron Shackell became the first American to qualify for the Paris Games by winning his race with a time of 3 minutes, 45.46 seconds — just minutes after his younger sister finished second in the first heat of the women’s 100 butterfly to qualify for Sunday’s final.
“My mom is probably crying,” Alex Shackell said. “He has all these interesting celebrations, so I knew he would do something.”Their father, Nick, was an All-American at Auburn who made England’s 1996 Olympic team. Their mother, Ali, also was an All-American swimmer at Auburn and all three of their children are among the 1,007 swimmers who qualified for the nine-day meet in Indianapolis.
Alex Shackell finished second in her heat with a time of 56.78 seconds. Only three swimmers in that event went faster — Olympic favorites Torri Huske and new world-record holder Gretchen Walsh and Regan Smith.“I went down to the warm-up pool and they wanted to drug test me,” she said. “I asked if I could watch my brother.”
And he put on a show, edging out Kieran Smith by three-tenths of a second. Smith was a member of the American Olympic team in Tokyo.
2024 Paris Olympic Games IN State Wire Torri Huske S Indianapolis Indiana Kieran Smith Sports
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