Missy Franklin knows a thing or two about winning Olympic medals in the pool, and a handful of swimmers have already caught her attention ahead of the 2024 Summer Games in Paris.
The former American phenom has five Olympic gold medals and a bronze to her name. She last competed at the Olympics 2016 and will once again be watching the swimming action from the outside this summer.
Who are the swimmers to watch at the 2024 Olympics in Paris? These three swimmers are already on Franklin’s radar.
Katie Ledecky
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
It’s Katie Ledecky’s world, and we’re all living in it, according to Franklin.
“Obviously, (Ledecky’s) already secured her spot as the greatest the sport has ever seen, so she's going to continue to do amazing things,” Franklin told NBC. “And I think the fact that we get to be living in the era of Katie Ledecky is an honor and a privilege.”
Ledecky’s resume speaks for itself. She has 10 Olympic medals — including seven golds — 26 World Championships Medals and has broken 16 world records in her career.
At just 26 years old, Ledecky is one of the faces of Team USA entering Paris and is poised to add to her trophy case.
Summer McIntosh
While Ledecky is still the woman to beat, a 17-year-old Canadian has already caught up to the Olympic champion in one of her signature events.
Summer McIntosh ended Ledecky’s 13-year undefeated streak in the 800m freestyle, winning a sectional meet in February by nearly six seconds. McIntosh’s 8:11.39 mark also cleared Ledecky’s winning time of 8:12.57 from the Tokyo Olympics, though it’s still shy of Ledecky’s 8:04.79 world record from the Rio Olympics in 2016.
In Franklin’s eyes, that win is just a sign of things to come as McIntosh gears up for her first Olympics.
“I think the biggest name to come out of the Games this summer is going to be Summer McIntosh,” Franklin said. “She is so young and she has been swimming absolutely out of her mind, and I think she is going to have an unbelievable summer.”
Gretchen Walsh
Franklin is also looking out for another first-time Olympian who is tearing it up the collegiate ranks.
Gretchen Walsh out of the University of Virginia won five gold medals at the 2023 NCAA Championships and has been shredding the record books this season. While Ledecky and McIntosh dominate long distances, Walsh has a chance to become the next great American sprinter.
“She's having an unbelievable NCAA season right now, and I'm really excited to see how that's gonna translate over to long course swimming for her,” Franklin said of Walsh. “This would be her first Olympic team, and I think it's going to be an amazing experience for her.”
