Thomas Heilman

Not to be confused with Thomas Heilmann.

Thomas Heilman
Personal information
National teamUnited States
Born (2007-02-07) February 7, 2007 (age 17)[2]
Virginia, U.S.
Height6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesButterfly, freestyle, individual medley
ClubCavalier Aquatics[1]
Medal record
Men's swimming
Representing  United States
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
World Championships (LC) 1 0 0
Junior Pan Pac Championships 3 3 0
Total 4 3 0
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2024 Paris 4x100 m medley
World Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place 2023 Fukuoka 4×100 m medley
Junior Pan Pac Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Honolulu 100 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2022 Honolulu 4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2022 Honolulu 4×100 m medley
Silver medal – second place 2022 Honolulu 100 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place 2022 Honolulu 200 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place 2022 Honolulu 4×200 m freestyle
U.S. Open Championships
Silver medal – second place 2021 Greensboro 100 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Greensboro 200 m butterfly

Thomas Heilman (/ˈhaɪlmən/ HYLE-mən; born February 7, 2007)[3] is an American competitive swimmer. He is a world junior record holder in the long course 4×100 meter freestyle relay. He is also a 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships gold medalist in the 100 meter butterfly, 4×100 meter freestyle relay, and 4×100 meter medley relay, and a silver medalist in the 100 meter freestyle, 200 meter butterfly, and 4×200 meter freestyle relay. He placed within the top two spots for the 100 and 200 meter butterfly in the Olympic Trials and will be swimming those events in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Background

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Heilman attends Western Albemarle High School in Crozet, Virginia and trains with the swim club Cavalier Aquatics.[1][4][5] He has an older brother, Matthew, who is a competitive swimmer as well.[4] On October 21, 2023, Heilman committed to swim for the University of Virginia beginning in Fall 2025.[6]

Career

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2021–2022

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By the start of 2022, Heilman had amassed over ten National Age Group records, fastest times ever swum by an American swimmer under 18 years of age and bracketed into age groups, including setting a record of 53.27 seconds in the 100 meter butterfly, which broke the former record that had been set by Michael Andrew.[1][4] In December 2021 alone, he set fourteen National Age Group records in a time span of 11 days.[7] At the 2022 USA Swimming International Team Trials, held in Greensboro, North Carolina, he qualified for the United States roster for the 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in the 50 meter freestyle, 100 meter butterfly, and 200 meter butterfly.[8][9] Following his addition to the team roster, he was announced as a nominee for the "Boys Rising Star of the Year", a High School Sports Award by USA Today.[5] The following month, in August at the 2022 Junior National Championships, he won the 100 meter freestyle with a time that made him the first 15-year-old male American swimmer in history to swim the race faster than 50 seconds.[10]

2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships

2022 Junior Pan Pac Championships
Gold medal – first place 100 m butterfly 51.98 (CR, NAG)
Gold medal – first place 4×100 m freestyle 3:15.79 (WJ, CR)
Gold medal – first place 4×100 m medley 3:36.65 (CR)
Silver medal – second place 200 m butterfly 1:56.52
Silver medal – second place 100 m freestyle 49.34
Silver medal – second place 4×200 m freestyle 7:15.18

The first day of competition at the 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, contested in Honolulu at the Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center, Heilman won the silver medal in the 200 meter butterfly with a personal best time of 1:56.52, which ranked him as the fourth-fastest American 15 to 16 years of age in history in the event, behind Michael Phelps, Luca Urlando, and Andrew Seliskar.[11][12][13] The second day, he ranked first in the preliminaries of the 100 meter freestyle with a personal best time of 49.06 seconds.[14] His time set a new National Age Group record for the boys 15-16 age group, lowering the former mark set by Caeleb Dressel in 2013 at 49.28 seconds by over two-tenths of a second.[15] In the evening final, he won the silver medal with a time of 49.34 seconds, finishing 1.11 seconds behind gold medalist Flynn Southam of Australia.[13][16][17] The start of the race was delayed from the initially set start time due to heavy rain, competition was conducted at an outdoor pool.[17] With a split of 1:47.98 for the second leg of the 4×200 meter freestyle relay later in the same finals session, he helped win the silver medal in a time of 7:15.18.[17][18]

On the third morning, Heilman swam a 52.75 in the preliminary heats of the 100 meter butterfly, qualifying for the final ranking second behind Jesse Coleman of Australia.[13] He edged out Jesse Coleman in the final by 0.25 seconds to win the gold medal in a Championships record and personal best time of 51.98 seconds.[19][20] His time marked the fastest time ever swum by a male American swimmer in the 15–16 age group, lowering the former National Age Group record of 52.40 set by Luca Urlando.[20][21] Later in the session, he led-off the 4×100 meter freestyle relay with a 49.14 to help win the gold medal in a world junior record and Championships record time of 3:15.79.[22][23][24] Sprinting to a finish in a time of 23.05 seconds in the preliminary heats of the 50 meter freestyle on the fourth and final day, he qualified for the b-final ranking first, 0.17 seconds ahead of fellow American and second-ranked Daniel Diehl.[13][25] He withdrew from competing in the b-final prior to the start of the race.[13] Splitting a 51.71 for the butterfly portion of the 4×100 meter medley relay, he contributed to a new Championships record of and gold medal-win in 3:36.65.[13][26][27]

2022 Swimming World Cup

For his first FINA Swimming World Cup, Heilman chose a home-country debut, entering to compete in the 100 meter freestyle, 200 meter freestyle, and the 50 meter, 100 meter, and 200 meter butterfly events at the 2022 Swimming World Cup in Indianapolis.[2] Day one of three, he placed eighteenth in the morning preliminary heats of the 100 meter butterfly with a personal best time of 51.68 seconds, not qualifying for the evening final.[28] The second day, he started off with a rank of twenty-second in the 100 meter freestyle with a personal best time of 48.32 seconds, which was 0.05 seconds behind twenty-first ranked fellow American Hunter Armstrong and 1.71 seconds behind first ranked Kyle Chalmers of Australia.[29] Later in the same session, he ranked twelfth in the preliminary heats of the 200 meter butterfly, 4.40 seconds slower than first ranked fellow American Trenton Julian with a personal best time of 1:55.44.[30]

On the third and final day, Heilman placed thirteenth in the 50 meter butterfly with a personal best time of 23.34 seconds, which was 0.40 seconds behind eighth-rank final qualifier Matthew Temple of Australia.[31] Later in the morning, he placed thirty-second in the 200 meter freestyle with a personal best time of 1:48.75.[32]

2022 Winter Junior National Championships

Day two of the East edition of the 2022 Winter Junior US National Championships, held in December in Greensboro, Heilman won the 200 yard individual medley with a boys 15–16 National Age Group record time of 1:41.71.[33][34] The following day, he won the 100 yard butterfly with a boys 15–16 National Age Group record time of 44.67 seconds that was almost one second faster than the former record of 45.62 seconds set by Luca Urlando approximately four years earlier.[34][35] He finished his individual events off with a National Age Group record for the same age group on day four of four, this time winning the 200 yard butterfly and lowering the former record of 1:40.91 from Luca Urlando by 0.05 seconds with a personal best time of 1:40.86.[36][37]

2023

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Competing at the 2023 Virginia High School Class 4 State Championships in February as a sophomore, Heilman won individual titles in the 50 yard freestyle, with a 19.69, and the 100 yard butterfly, with a 46.06, which contributed to a win for the men's team of his school Western Albemarle.[38] In March, he lowered his personal best time in the 100 yard freestyle to a 42.61 from his former personal best of 42.96 attained on a relay lead-off leg at the 2022 Winter Junior National Championships.[34][39]

2024

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Heilman competed in the Olympic trials in the 100 and 200 meter butterfly events.[40] He received first place in the latter event with a time of 1.54.50.[41] In the 100 meter butterfly, Heilman got second place and a time of 50.80. This time beat the prior age group time in the event set by Michael Phelps by 0.03 seconds.[42]

International championships

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Meet 50 freestyle 100 freestyle 100 butterfly 200 butterfly 4×100 freestyle 4×200 freestyle 4×100 medley
PACJ 2022 WD 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 1st place, gold medalist(s)

Personal best times

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Long course meters (50 m pool)

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Event Time Meet Location Date Notes Ref
100 m freestyle 49.06 h 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships Honolulu, Hawaii August 25, 2022 [14]
200 m freestyle 1:50.34 2022 Speedo Junior National Championships Irvine, California August 4, 2022 [43]
100 m butterfly 51.19 2023 USA Swimming Championships Indianapolis, Indiana June 29, 2023 NAG
200 m butterfly 1:53.82 2023 World Championships Fukuoka, Japan July 26, 2023 NAG
Legend: NAG – National Age Group record (boys 15–16);
Records not set in finals: h – heat; sf – semifinal; r – relay 1st leg; rh – relay heat 1st leg; b – B final; † – en route to final mark; tt – time trial

Short course meters (25 m pool)

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Event Time Meet Location Date Ref
100 m freestyle 48.32 h 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup Indianapolis, Indiana November 4, 2022 [29]
200 m freestyle 1:48.75 h 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup Indianapolis, Indiana November 5, 2022 [32]
50 m butterfly 23.34 h 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup Indianapolis, Indiana November 5, 2022 [31]
100 m butterfly 51.68 h 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup Indianapolis, Indiana November 3, 2022 [28]
200 m butterfly 1:55.44 h 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup Indianapolis, Indiana November 4, 2022 [30]

Legend: h – preliminary heat

Short course yards (25 yd pool)

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Event Time Meet Location Date Notes Ref
100 yd freestyle 42.61 2023 Virginia Swimming Championships Richmond, Virginia March 5, 2023 [39]
200 yd freestyle 1:34.10 r 2022 Winter Junior US National Championships Greensboro, North Carolina December 7, 2022 [34]
100 yd butterfly 44.67 2022 Winter Junior US National Championships Greensboro, North Carolina December 9, 2022 NAG [35]
200 yd butterfly 1:40.86 2022 Winter Junior US National Championships Greensboro, North Carolina December 10, 2022 NAG [36][37]
200 yd individual medley 1:41.71 2022 Winter Junior US National Championships Greensboro, North Carolina December 8, 2022 NAG [33]
400 yd individual medley 3:43.63 2023 Virginia Swimming Championships Richmond, Virginia March 3, 2023 [44]
Legend: NAG – National Age Group record (boys 15–16);
Records not set in finals: h – heat; sf – semifinal; r – relay 1st leg; rh – relay heat 1st leg; b – B final; † – en route to final mark; tt – time trial

World records

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World junior records

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Long course meters (50 m pool)

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No. Event Time Meet Location Date Age Status Ref
1 4×100 m freestyle 3:15.79 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships Honolulu, Hawaii August 26, 2022 15 years, 200 days Current [22][23][24]

Awards and honors

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  • USA Today, High School Sports Awards, Boys Rising Star of the Year, nominee: 2021–2022[5]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Martin, Lisa (January 6, 2022). "Crozet Swimming Phenom Sets National Records". The Crozet Gazette. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  2. ^ a b FINA (November 1, 2022). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2022: Indianapolis (USA): Entries Book". Omega Timing. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  3. ^ "HEILMAN Thomas". Olympics.com. 2024. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Reider, David (January 4, 2022). "Thomas Heilman A Rising Star After National Age Group Record Blitz". Swimming World. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c USA Today (July 27, 2022). "Meet the nominees for All-USA Today HSSA Boys Rising Star of the Year". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  6. ^ "Thomas Heilman, the No. 1 Recruit in High School Class of 2025, Commits to Virginia". October 21, 2023.
  7. ^ Penland, Spencer (December 11, 2021). "Thomas Heilman Swims 1:42.77 200 Fly to Break 14th 13-14 Boys NAG in 11 Days". SwimSwam. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  8. ^ "USA Swimming Announces Rosters for 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships and Mel Zajac Jr. International Swim Meet". USA Swimming. May 16, 2022. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  9. ^ "2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships U.S. Roster – Version 2". USA Swimming. 2022. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  10. ^ Hudtloff, Marty (August 19, 2022). "Record-breaking performance from Cavalier Aquatics swim team at 2022 Junior National Championships". WVIR-TV. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  11. ^ USA Swimming (August 24, 2022). "Day 1 Finals | Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships". YouTube. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  12. ^ Penland, Spencer (August 24, 2022). "15-year-old American Thomas Heilman Blasts 1:56.52 200 Fly For Jr Pan Pacs Silver". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  13. ^ a b c d e f Hy-Tek (August 25, 2022). "2022 Jr Pan Pacific Swimming Championships: Results". swmeets.com. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  14. ^ a b USA Swimming (August 25, 2022). "Day 2 Prelims | Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships". YouTube. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  15. ^ Lohn, John (August 25, 2022). "Thomas Heilman Shatters NAG Record (15–16) Of Caeleb Dressel in 100 Freestyle". Swimming World. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  16. ^ USA Swimming (August 25, 2022). "Day 2 Finals | Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships". YouTube. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  17. ^ a b c Sagendorph, Kyle (August 26, 2022). "U.S. Grabs One Relay, Three Individual Titles on Junior Pan Pacs Night Two". USA Swimming. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  18. ^ De George, Matthew (August 25, 2022). "Junior Pan Pacs: Day 2 Finals – Flynn Southam Outduels Thomas Heilman in 100 Free". Swimming World. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  19. ^ USA Swimming (August 26, 2022). "Day 3 Finals | Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships". YouTube. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  20. ^ a b Gibbs, Robert (August 26, 2022). "15 Year-Old Thomas Heilman Becomes Youngest US Swimmer Ever To Go Sub-52 100 Fly". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  21. ^ Lohn, John (August 26, 2022). "Thomas Heilman Blasts NAG (15-16) Record in 100 Butterfly at Junior Pan Pacs; Goes Stunning Sub-52". Swimming World. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  22. ^ a b Lohn, John (August 26, 2022). "United States breaks World Junior Record in 400 Freestyle Relay at Junior Pan Pacs". Swimming World. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  23. ^ a b Penland, Spencer (August 27, 2022). "U.S. Breaks Boys 4×100 Free Relay World Junior Record (3:15.79), Diehl Splits 48.6". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  24. ^ a b Sagendorph, Kyle (August 27, 2022). "U.S. Captures World Junior Record in 4x100 Free Relay at Junior Pan Pacs". USA Swimming. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  25. ^ USA Swimming (August 27, 2022). "Day 4 Prelims | Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships". YouTube. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  26. ^ USA Swimming (August 27, 2022). "Day 4 Finals | Junior Pan Pacific Swimming Championships". YouTube. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  27. ^ Penland, Spencer (August 28, 2022). "Heilman Throws Down 51.71 Fly Split As U.S. Breaks 4×100 Medley Jr Pan Pac Record". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
  28. ^ a b FINA (November 3, 2022). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2022: Indianapolis (USA): Men's 100m Butterfly Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  29. ^ a b FINA (November 4, 2022). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2022: Indianapolis (USA): Men's 100m Freestyle Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  30. ^ a b FINA (November 4, 2022). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2022: Indianapolis (USA): Men's 200m Butterfly Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  31. ^ a b FINA (November 5, 2022). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2022: Indianapolis (USA): Men's 50m Butterfly Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  32. ^ a b FINA (November 5, 2022). "FINA Swimming World Cup 2022: Indianapolis (USA): Men's 200m Freestyle Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
  33. ^ a b Lohn, John (December 8, 2022). "Thomas Heilman Takes Down NAG Standard Of Michael Andrew In 200 Individual Medley". Swimming World. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  34. ^ a b c d "2022 East Speedo Winter Junior Championships: Results". USA Swimming. December 10, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  35. ^ a b Lohn, John (December 9, 2022). "Thomas Heilman Destroys 15-16 NAG In 100-Yard Butterfly As He and Scotty Buff Go Sub-45". Swimming World. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  36. ^ a b Gibbs, Robert (December 10, 2022). "Thomas Heilman, Only 15, Gets Third 15-16 NAG Record This Week With 1:40.86 200 Fly". SwimSwam. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  37. ^ a b Lohn, John (December 10, 2022). "Thomas Heilman Snares Third NAG Record Of Winter Juniors-East; Latest Mark Arrives In 200 Butterfly". Swimming World. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  38. ^ Harvey, John (February 18, 2023). "Western Albemarle boys swimming and diving team wins its sixth straight state championship". The Daily Progress. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  39. ^ a b Keith, Braden (March 6, 2023). "15-Year-Old Nathan Szobota Breaks Virginia LSC Record in 1000 Free to Close Sr Champs". SwimSwam. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
  40. ^ Martin, Lisa (June 7, 2024). "Crozet Swimmers Head to the Olympic Trials". Crozet Gazette. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  41. ^ De George, Matthew (June 20, 2024). "U.S. Olympic Trials: Thomas Heilman, Luca Urlando Seal 200 Fly Spots". Swimming World Magazine. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  42. ^ Pagkalinawan, Jordan (June 23, 2024). "Olympic swimming trials: 17-year-old Thomas Heilman breaks 100m record once held by Michael Phelps". CBS Sports. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  43. ^ FINA (August 4, 2022). "2022 Speedo Junior National Championships: Men's 200m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
  44. ^ Keith, Braden (March 3, 2023). "16-Year-Old Thomas Heilman Swims 3:43 in the 400 IM on Friday at Virginia LSC Champs". SwimSwam. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
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