Solely 5: The Occasions The place One Nation Owns Three of Historical past’s Prime-5 Performers
When conducting some analysis for an upcoming mission, an attention-grabbing statistic emerged. Of the 17 particular person occasions contested on the worldwide stage, solely 5 function a trio of top-five performers from the identical nation. It wasn’t a shock that the USA accounted for 4 of the trifectas, however the different nation was a little bit of a shock. Tunisia is the opposite nation that may declare a top-five triumvirate.
Loads of international locations can declare a pair of top-five historic performers, however getting that third swimmer slotted within the higher echelon of the all-time rankings proved to be a tougher activity. Of the 5 occasions that match the factors, solely the ladies’s 100 butterfly has three lively athletes – People Gretchen Walsh, Torri Huske and Regan Smith.
As for Tunisia, the Northern African nation doesn’t have a deep historical past within the sport, however its distance-freestyle repute has definitely grown since Ous Mellouli starred throughout the first decade-plus of this millennium. Mellouli sits No. 2 all-time within the 800 freestyle, and is adopted by countrymen Ahmed Jaouadi, the reigning world champ within the occasion, and Ahmed Hafnaoui, the 2023 world titlist.
The boys’s particular person medley occasions are headlined by two of swimming’s best names. Whereas Michael Phelps stays the No. 2 performer of all-time within the 400 IM, he nonetheless sits at No. 3 within the 200 IM, an occasion through which he captured 4 Olympic gold medals. In the meantime, in a reversal of locations, Ryan Lochte nonetheless holds the No. 2 place within the 200 IM and is third within the longer medley.
Here’s a record of the 5 occasions which have one nation claiming three of the five-fastest performers in historical past:
Girls’s 100 Butterfly (United States)
1. Gretchen Walsh – 54.603. Torri Huske – 55.525. Regan Smith – 55.62
Males’s 800 Freestyle (Tunisia)
2. Ous Mellouli – 7:53.273. Ahmed Jaouadi – 7:36.884. Ahmed Hafnaoui – 7:37.00
Males’s 50 Backstroke (United States)
2. Hunter Armstrong – 23.713. Justin Ress – 23.924. Shaine Casas – 24.00
Males’s 200 Particular person Medley (United States)
2. Ryan Lochte – 1:54.003. Michael Phelps – 1:54.164. Shaine Casas – 1:54.30
Males’s 400 Particular person Medley (United States)
2. Michael Phelps – 4:03.843. Ryan Lochte 4:05.184. Chase Kalisz – 4:05.90
