Bold truth: the 2025 U.S. Open in Austin is shaping up to be a pivotal meet with room for surprise and breakout performances.
Here’s a clear, comprehensive rewrite of all key details, expanded where helpful for beginners and newcomers, while preserving every essential fact from the original.
Overview
The 2025 U.S. Open is scheduled to begin this evening in Austin, Texas. The four-day competition runs through Saturday and takes place at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center, using long-course meters (LCM, 50 meters).
Event timeline and coverage
- SWIMSWAM’s previews provide in-depth analyses of entrants and psych sheets. For a full entry breakdown, read the meet preview at SwimSwam, which highlights headline swimmers and the loaded field.
- For a snapshot of the top storylines to watch, see SwimSwam’s feature on five key angles for the championships.
- Psych sheets (preliminary seed times) are available to review the expected lineups and seedings. The official psych sheet link is provided below for reference.
- Live results are streamed as the meet unfolds, allowing fans to follow times and placings in real time.
Start times and scheduling
Preliminary sessions begin each day at 9:00 a.m. local time. Finals follow at 6:00 p.m., with one exception: Wednesday’s distance session starts earlier at 4:00 p.m. local time. The table below shows converted start times for major global and domestic locales:
City — Prelims — Finals
Austin, Texas (Central Time) — 9:00 a.m. — 6:00 p.m.
New York, USA (Eastern Time) — 10:00 a.m. — 7:00 p.m.
Los Angeles, USA (Pacific Time) — 7:00 a.m. — 4:00 p.m.
Chicago, USA (Central Time) — 9:00 a.m. — 6:00 p.m.
London, United Kingdom (Greenwich Mean Time) — 3:00 p.m. — 12:00 a.m. (midnight)
Sydney, Australia (Australian Eastern Daylight Time) — 2:00 a.m. (next day) — 11:00 a.m. (next day)
Tokyo, Japan (Japan Standard Time) — 12:00 a.m. (midnight) — 9:00 a.m. (next day)
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Gulf Standard Time) — 6:00 p.m. — 3:00 a.m. (next day)
How to watch
All sessions, including prelims and finals, are streamed via the USA Swimming Network. In addition, the finals on Thursday and Friday will be broadcast on Peacock. The schedule below outlines which sessions are available on which platform:
Dec 3 — Day 1 Finals: USA Swimming
Dec 4 — Day 2 Prelims: USA Swimming; Day 2 Finals: Peacock; Day 2 Finals: USA Swimming
Dec 5 — Day 3 Prelims: USA Swimming; Day 3 Finals: Peacock; Day 3 Finals: USA Swimming
Dec 6 — Day 4 Prelims: USA Swimming; Day 4 Finals: USA Swimming
Event schedule by day
Day One (Timed Finals)
- Women’s 1500 Freestyle
- Men’s 1500 Freestyle
Day Two (Prelims & Finals)
- Women’s 50 Backstroke
- Men’s 50 Backstroke
- Women’s 400 Freestyle
- Men’s 400 Freestyle
- Women’s 200 Individual Medley
- Men’s 200 Individual Medley
- Women’s 50 Breaststroke
- Men’s 50 Breaststroke
- Women’s 50 Freestyle
- Men’s 50 Freestyle
Day Three (Prelims & Finals)
- Women’s 100 Butterfly
- Men’s 100 Butterfly
- Women’s 400 Individual Medley
- Men’s 400 Individual Medley
- Women’s 100 Breaststroke
- Men’s 100 Breaststroke
- Women’s 100 Backstroke
- Men’s 100 Backstroke
- Women’s 200 Freestyle
- Men’s 200 Freestyle
Day Four (Prelims)
- Women’s 50 Butterfly
- Men’s 50 Butterfly
- Women’s 200 Backstroke
- Men’s 200 Backstroke
- Women’s 200 Breaststroke
- Men’s 200 Breaststroke
- Women’s 100 Freestyle
- Men’s 100 Freestyle
- Women’s 200 Butterfly
- Men’s 200 Butterfly
Day Four Distance Session
- Women’s 800 Freestyle (Early Heats)
- Men’s 800 Freestyle (Early Heats)
Day Four Finals
- Women’s 800 Freestyle (Fastest Heat)
- Men’s 800 Freestyle (Fastest Heat)
- Women’s 50 Butterfly
- Men’s 50 Butterfly
- Women’s 200 Backstroke
- Men’s 200 Backstroke
- Women’s 200 Breaststroke
- Men’s 200 Breaststroke
- Women’s 100 Freestyle
- Men’s 100 Freestyle
- Women’s 200 Butterfly
- Men’s 200 Butterfly
Important note on the 800 free finals
Only the fastest seed in both the women’s and men’s 800 freestyle events will swim in the finals session. All remaining heats will swim in slowest-to-fastest order, alternating between women and men, starting at a designated time. The start time will be set so that the second-fastest seeded men’s 800 free heat finishes about 75 minutes before the evening finals begin.
Additional context and tips for fans
- If following specific swimmers or events, keep an eye on psych sheets for seed positions, as these can change with final entries.
- Live results and streaming availability may vary by platform and region; checking the official pages ahead of each session helps ensure access.
- For those new to long-course meters, note that starts, turns, and pacing strategies differ slightly from short-course meters. Watching early morning prelims can give a sense of who is carrying momentum into finals.
Sources and references
- Meet previews and storyline pieces provide deeper context on entrants and expectations.
- Psych sheets and live-result links are included for readers who want to study seedings and follow times in real time.
If this recap sparks new questions about athletes, event formats, or viewing options, feel free to ask. Would you like a quick glossary of terms used in major swimming meets or a simplified watch-guide tailored to your time zone?
