Former Ohio State swimmer Hunter Armstrong secured a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Saturday while competing on the United States’ 4×100-meter freestyle relay team, helping the Americans finish first in the competition with a combined time of 3:09.28 in front of silver medalist Australia (3:10.35) and bronze medalist Italy (3:10.07)
The win earned Team USA its first gold medal of this summer’s Olympics, and it was in large part due to the efforts of the former Buckeye. With the Americans clinging to a slim lead after the first half of the competition, Armstrong created some extra separation with a blazing 46.75-second split in the third leg — the only swimmer on Team USA to finish with an under 47-second split.
Armstrong’s performance allowed veteran swimmer Caleb Dressel to bring home the gold for the Americans, swimming a 47.53-second split.
Armstrong’s leg was .05 seconds faster than the world record of 46.8 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle, but it wasn’t counted as only the first leg of the relay counts towards the 100-meter record.
This marks the second straight Olympics Armstrong has won gold as a member of Team USA’s relay team. He won his first gold medal during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as a member of the 4×100 medley relay team while swimming backstroke in the competition.
Armstrong, a Dover, Ohio, native and 2021-22 Ohio State Male Athlete of the Year, will have another chance to secure a gold medal in France in the 100-meter backstroke, which begins with qualifying heats and semifinals on Sunday. He is considered an elite backstroke swimmer by experts, a trait he showed off in the past when he finished ninth in the event in the Tokyo games and secured gold at the 2023 Worlds in the 50-meter backstroke.
Armstrong was not the only Buckeye to compete during the first full day of the Olympics on Saturday. Former Ohio State and current Team Canada fencer Fares Arfa defeated three-time defending gold medalist Áron Szilágyi of Hungary in the first round of the men’s sabre competition. The win gave him an eighth-place finish in the event, Canada’s best-ever finish in an individual fencing competition.
Former Ohio State pistol shooter Katelyn Abeln (Team USA) finished 24th in the qualifying round for the 10-meter women’s air pistol, while current Ohio State diver Leah Hentschel (Team Germany)finished sixth in the 3-meter synchronized dive.
Former Ohio State rower Elodie Ravera-Scaramozzino and her teammate Emma Lunatti (France) won their first-round heat of the double sculls, allowing them to advance to the semifinals held on Monday.
