17-Year-Old Katie Grimes Uses Epic Kick To Become First American To Qualify For 2024 Olympics During Incredible Photo Finish

Katie Grimes isn't even old enough to vote, but she is already the first American to qualify for the 2024 Olympics. The 17-year-old swimming phenom is not only the first, she is the youngest— again!

Grimes, a Las Vegas-native, became the youngest member of the U.S. Olympic team for the 2020 Summer Olympics when she made the team at 15. Katie Ledecky went so far as to call her the "future" of swimming in the U.S. after she qualified by finishing second in the 800-meter freestyle.

Katie Ledecky and Katie Grimes.(Photo by Li Ying/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Although Grimes finished fourth in her Olympic debut, which was disappointing, there is plenty of time for her to get on the podium. Her first opportunity is already set!

Grimes won a bronze medal in the open-water 10-kilometer event at the Word Swimming Championships in Fukuoka, Japan on Saturday. All three medalists at Worlds earn Olympic berths.

Bronze medallist Katie Grimes of the USA poses during the medal ceremony for the women's 10km open water swimming event during the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka on July 15, 2023. (Photo by Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP) (Photo by YUICHI YAMAZAKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Thus, Grimes qualified for Paris next summer!

The battle for third place was incredible. However, what Grimes did during the race might be even cooler.

She hit the field with the swimming version of a spin move.

As the competitors were battling it out in the Hakata Bay, Grimes efortlessly spun from freestyle to backstroke back to freestyle without missing a beat. The speed that she maintained while pulling off the move and taking a peek at the pack behind her was remarkable!

Every single second ended up being crucial. Had her spin move slowed her down at all, the result may have changed.

Katie Grimes won by less than a second!

Grimes barely out-touched Dutchwoman Sharon van Rouwendaal and Brazilian Ana Marcela Cunha— gold medalists at the last two Olympics. The race came down to one tenth of a second after two hours and two minutes in the water!

Open-water swimming typically favors experience more than the pool. Grimes flipped that narrative on its head.

I knew it was a photo finish, so I was a little anxious waiting for those results. I was in a little bit of shock because (making the 2024 Olympic team) was such a big goal of mine. I just didn't think it was going to come this soon.

Grimes will have other opportunities to make Team USA, potentially in the 800-meter and 1,500-meter freestyle, as well as the 400-meter individual medley. Those spots will open up next summer at the U.S. Olympic Trials.