--- title: Why Swimmer Alex Walsh Was Disqualified at Paris Olympics description: U.S swimmer Alex Walsh was disqualified from the 200-m individual medley at the Paris Olympics even though she finished third canonical: https://time.com/7007422/alex-walsh-disqualified-swimmer-paris-olympics/ author: Alice Park article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2024-08-03T21:42:39.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:50:22.357Z article:section: Sports og:title: Why Alex Walsh Was Disqualified Despite Finishing Third og:description: The swimmer made an inappropriate turn from backstroke to breaststroke, according to USA Swimming og:url: https://time.com/7007422/alex-walsh-disqualified-swimmer-paris-olympics/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt406a5180675b3157/698a5991457a525012d6a99e/alex-walsh-disqualifed-medley-paris-olympics.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: SWIMMING-OLY-PARIS-2024 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why Alex Walsh Was Disqualified Despite Finishing Third twitter:description: The swimmer made an inappropriate turn from backstroke to breaststroke, according to USA Swimming twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt406a5180675b3157/698a5991457a525012d6a99e/alex-walsh-disqualifed-medley-paris-olympics.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Why U.S. Swimmer Alex Walsh Was Disqualified Despite Finishing Third > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. ## Video: U.S. Swimming Ends Paris Olympics on Top—Just Barely [Watch (HLS stream): U.S. Swimming Ends Paris Olympics on Top—Just Barely](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/27pBY2jZ.m3u8) (1:05)  _Published 2024-08-05. After nine days of racing at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the U.S. swim team managed to top both the medals count and gold tally in the pool. But the crucial golds didn’t come until the very last day._  by [Alice Park / Nanterre, France](https://time.com/author/alice-park/)  ## Alice Park / Nanterre, France Senior Correspondent Aug 3, 2024 9:42 PM UTC  Alex Walsh of the U.S. reacts after competing in the final of the women's 200-m individual medley swimming event at La Defense Arena in Nanterre, France, on August 3, 2024. Alex Walsh of the U.S. reacts after competing in the final of the women's 200-m individual medley swimming event at La Defense Arena in Nanterre, France, on August 3, 2024.Oli Scarff–AFP/Getty Images  by [Alice Park / Nanterre, France](https://time.com/author/alice-park/)  ## Alice Park / Nanterre, France Senior Correspondent Aug 3, 2024 9:42 PM UTC U.S. swimmer Alex Walsh, who seemed to be on the way to winning the women’s 200-m individual medley but finished third, was disqualified. Walsh was leading until the last 25 m of the final freestyle lap but was out-touched at the wall by [Canada’s Summer McIntosh](https://time.com/7005173/summer-mcintosh-paris-olympics-swimming-400-im/) and fellow teammate Kate Douglass. But Walsh, who won a [silver in the event in Tokyo](https://time.com/6083866/summer-olympics-medals-by-country-tokyo-2021/), was disqualified for an inappropriate turn from backstroke to breaststroke, according to USA Swimming. The transition is a tricky one that’s been the topic of much debate among swim officials. According to the international swimming federation FINA, the same rules for each stroke apply in a medley race, and for backstroke “the swimmer must touch the wall while on the back.” In the individual medley, that has to happen before the swimmer moves into the next stroke, which is the breaststroke that’s swum face down. On Saturday, when Walsh touched the wall to finish her backstroke leg, her stomach faced the bottom of the pool, resulting in the disqualification. **Read More:** [_'Tough Day at the Office.' Caeleb Dressel Breaks Down in Tears After a Pair of Disappointing Swims_](https://time.com/7007253/caeleb-dressel-crying-paris-olympics/) There are multiple ways that swimmers choose to make the backstroke-to-breastroke transition—touching the wall while still on the back and then pulling their knees in to their chest to push off the wall while on their stomach; going deeper and doing a backflip like a gymnast and flipping around to the stomach; and the final, riskier option known as the crossover turn. The crossover can be done in two ways—in the first, the swimmer touches the wall on their side, after the last stroke on the back but making sure not to rotate past 90 degrees. With this option, the swimmer touches the wall, leaving the arm extended and rotating to get on their stomach all while maintaining contact with the wall, for the breaststroke. In the second version, the swimmer turns to the side stretching out a hand to push the wall behind them while remaining mostly on their back and not rotating past 90 degrees, which would result in a disqualification. Then the swimmer pulls the forehead to the knees to turn and face the direction from which they came to start the breaststroke. Walsh’s younger sister Gretchen is also competing in the Paris Games. She won gold in the 4x100-m mixed medley relay and silver in the 100-m butterfly and the [4x100-m freestyle relay.](https://time.com/7004477/swimming-medals-400m-freestyle-paris-olympics/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7007422/alex-walsh-disqualified-swimmer-paris-olympics/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7007422/alex-walsh-disqualified-swimmer-paris-olympics/"},"headline":"Why U.S. Swimmer Alex Walsh Was Disqualified Despite Finishing Third","datePublished":"2024-08-03T21:42:39.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:50:22.357Z","description":"She made an inappropriate turn from backstroke to breaststroke, according to USA Swimming","url":"https://time.com/7007422/alex-walsh-disqualified-swimmer-paris-olympics/","keywords":["2024 Paris Olympics","sponsorshipblock"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt406a5180675b3157/698a5991457a525012d6a99e/alex-walsh-disqualifed-medley-paris-olympics.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alice Park / Nanterre, France"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt406a5180675b3157/698a5991457a525012d6a99e/alex-walsh-disqualifed-medley-paris-olympics.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"SWIMMING-OLY-PARIS-2024","caption":"SWIMMING-OLY-PARIS-2024","creditText":"Oli Scarff–AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/2024-paris-olympics/","name":"2024 Paris Olympics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/7007422/alex-walsh-disqualified-swimmer-paris-olympics/","name":"Why U.S. Swimmer Alex Walsh Was Disqualified Despite Finishing Third"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"U.S. Swimming Ends Paris Olympics on Top—Just Barely","description":"After nine days of racing at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the U.S. swim team managed to top both the medals count and gold tally in the pool. 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