How it Works

From August 9 to 16, the Olympic swimming trials will be held in Indianapolis, with the top two U.S. finishers in each individual event going on to the games in Sydney. Once there, only the first finishing U.S. swimmer in each stroke, at 100 meters, will be tapped for the medley relay finals, the meet's last event. Thus, for a nation like the U.S., where swimmers get plucked from rival swim clubs and thrown together only at the Olympics to form this last-minute relay team, the job, for the chosen four, is to put aside past competitions and get to know one another, fast, both to encourage a sense of group mission and, more tangibly, to nail down the necessary timing for a perfect relay start.

Until the near-end of the Olympic swimming events, it's anyone's guess who will make up this relay, the swimmers being a collection of top-ranked champions and eager contenders, all vying for the same Olympic spots, but with no guarantees.