MALIBU—Swimmer Jordan Wilimovsky is the first man to qualify for the 2020 US Olympic team. Wilimovsky was the only American who placed in the top 10 in the men’s 10km open water event at the FINA World Championships in Gwanju, South Korea on Tuesday, July 16. He only needed to place in the top 10 at the World Championships to qualify for 2020.  He successfully finished in fifth place, only 5.1 seconds after the winner. 

Jordan joins two other open water swimmers, Haley Anderson and Ashley Twichell, who also qualified for the USA Olympic team.

Wilimovsky grew up swimming in Malibu and was a member of the Palisades-Malibu YMCA swim team in 2004. He graduated from Malibu High School in 2012 and later attended Northwestern University graduating in 2016. While majoring in political science, he broke swimming school records in events like the 1650 meter freestyle. 

The 2020 Olympics will be Wilimovsky’s second trip to the Olympics, after he competed in the 2016 Rio Olympic games. He finished in fourth place in the 1500 meter event and fifth place in the 10k event in Rio. The open water swimming event became an official event in 2008. Wilimovsky’s performance in Rio was the best American performance of all time. 

The open water swimming event will take place in Tokyo Bay on August 5 and August 6, 2020. 

Written By Alexandra White