U.S. Nationals: Regan Smith Overtakes Katharine Berkoff to Clinch 100 Back Title for Fifth Straight Year
Through the first three days of the meet, Regan Smith had achieved her expected World Championship spots but not with her usual dominance. She faded down the stretch of the 200 butterfly final, with Caroline Bricker coming from behind to steal the national title. She surged into second place in the 200 backstroke final but was never competitive with winner Claire Curzan. In the 50 back, Smith lost her American record to Katharine Berkoff.
In her final individual swim of the meet, though, Smith got her victory in the event that has become her best. The 23-year-old dominated the women’s 100 back national final, marking the fifth consecutive year in which she has touched first in the event at the U.S. selection meet. She never seriously challenged her world record but did book another date with Australian rival Kaylee McKeown, the swimmer who edged out Smith for gold at the Paris Olympics and the 2023 World Championships.
Smith had to grapple with a spirited challenge from Berkoff, who had a slight lead at the 50-meter mark as she flipped under world-record pace. But Smith’s underwater dolphin kicks put her ahead of the pack. Berkoff tried to fight back, but Smith kept her tempo all the way to the wall.
The final time was 57.69, two tenths slower than the 57.46 Smith clocked at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Series last month for the top time in the world this year. Berkoff claimed second in 58.13, grabbing the third spot in the world rankings. Berkoff has won bronze in the 100 back at the Paris Olympics and 2023 World Championships.
“I used to get really stressed about the 100 backstroke,” Smith said. ” But I really think as I’ve gotten older, I’ve really figured out my race strategy for it and how to have easy speed going out so I don’t die as badly coming back, because I have died so bad. I’ve gotten passed by Kaylee so many times internationally because I just lose steam in the last 20 years.
“I came into tonight knowing that I had an incredible field around me but also trusting myself and knowing what I’m capable of because of what I’ve been able to do in season. It was just about being patient on the first 50, really trying to nail the turn. I didn’t nail the turn, but I knew that I would have the closing speed, and I worked out.”
The rest of the field was a display of American depth in the 100 back. Leah Shackley and Claire Curzan tied for third place, with both swimmers clocking 58.60. Shackley was just off her season-best of 58.53, which ranks fourth globally, while Curzan moved to fifth. Phoebe Bacon, fifth in 58.80, now occupies the sixth spot in the global rankings.
“Every year, there’s two new amazing girls who are coming up and dropping time left and right and going times that would medal at international competitions, and they don’t get the opportunity to go and compete internationally, because we’re just that good. It’s very special and motivating,” Smith said. “I don’t know where all this talent keeps coming from. I think it’s something as a country, we should be really proud of.
Claire Curzan, Regan Smith & Katharine Berkoff (left to right) — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Smith is on her way to her fifth long course World Championships despite spending large chunks of the past year “taking a big fat mental break and physical break.” Her incredible performance during the Olympic summer saw Smith reclaim the 100 back world record and then win five Paris medals, three individual silvers plus two relay golds.
After that, though, came a gradual return to serious training. Smith took to travel throughout Asia on the World Cup circuit and spend time with friends. Double practices and Saturday morning workouts were optional as she focused on nourishing her long-term relationship with the sport, rather than forcing all-in training and experiencing mental fatigue later on in the cycle.
Even during her stretch giving less than 100% intensity, Smith put together plenty of fantastic swims, most notably at the Short Course World Championships in Budapest. She swept the 50, 100 and 200 backstroke at that meet, setting short course meters world records in all three distances. “I was incredibly pleasantly surprised,” Smith said in December of her haul. “But also, when I think about it logically, it makes complete sense. I don’t need to be in insane shape to swim 100 backstroke. I don’t need to be swimming 8k practices every day to swim for 54 seconds.”
Racing in this long course championship has included its bumps, particularly with Smith’s ability to maintain her paces for 200-meter races. “I think I’ve honestly spent like, a combined six weeks of really intense aerobic training, and so I was prepared for the meet to go something like this,” Smith said. “It’s definitely humbling, and I think it lights a little bit of a fire underneath me.’
But even as Berkoff surpassed Smith in the 50 back, Smith was only a tenth behind her personal-best time, and now she has come through with a familiar-looking race in the 100 back.
Smith has the long game in mind, already openly targeting a third Olympics in 2028. That was the impetus behind allowing herself an slow-paced return to normal training. But still, she heads back to the World Championships in position for another thick stack of medals.
Her current world rankings for 2025 are second in the 200 fly behind Summer McIntosh, third in the 200 back behind McKeown and Curzan and sixth in the 50 back. As for this two-lap backstroke race, Smith sits first, although McKeown could change that when she races at Australia’s selection meet next week.
“It’s okay if this happened because I spent this year doing what I did, and I think it’s also good practice to not be super hard on myself when things don’t go the way that I’d want them to, even if I spent all year kind of preparing for something like this to happen,” Smith said. “I’m just gonna choose to focus on the positives, especially because it’s 2025 and not 2028.”
