By Sam Blacker on SwimSwam
Relays are sometimes an art unto themselves, especially at NCAAs, where every point and place matters. Tactics are radically different for an individual event – you do not start at the same time as the swimmers around you, and there is one huge risk added in: the takeover.
Safe starts can be key for some teams. The Texas men played it safe on the 400 free relay this year, assured of the overall title, provided they did not DQ themselves, but the Cal women (200 medley) and Louisville women (200 free) pushed it a little too far this year as they tried to eke out maximum possible points.
However, being even just a tenth faster per swimmer on the takeover can result in a gain of three-tenths gain over the course of the relay – more than the gap between 8th and 11th in the men’s 200 medley relay this year (a 10-point difference).
A swimmer who can optimize their takeover while also being consistently safe is a big plus for any relay. It can be an easy way to shave off those tenths of a second, potentially resulting in a much-needed points boost.
We have collated data from every DI NCAA meet this decade and identified who the best takeover-ers are. Some names are familiar – Chris Guiliano and Jonny Kulow have been two of the most prolific – but others may not be.
Swimmers Who Average Under 0.10 Seconds On Takeovers At NCAAS, 2021-2026 (min. 3)
Rank Swimmer Total Relay Splits Relay Takeovers under 0.10 seconds Average Takeover Time 1 Dominic Toledo Sanchez 3 3 0.00 2 Ben Denman-Grimm 3 2 0.04 2 Pawel Uryniuk 3 3 0.04 4 Chris Guiliano 7 6 0.05 4 Umitcan Gures 5 5 0.05 4 Flynn Crisci 4 3 0.05 4 Braden Samuels 3 3 0.05 4 Finn O’Haimhirgin 4 4 0.05 9 Claire Jansen 6 5 0.06 9 Michal Chmielewski 5 4 0.06 9 Sarah Snyder 3 2 0.07 9 Eloise Williamson 3 2 0.07 9 Rasmus Hanson 3 2 0.07 9 Hudson McDaniel 3 2 0.07 9 Tyler Sesvold 3 3 0.07 9 Max Edwards 3 2 0.07 17 Alex Moderski 5 4 0.08 17 Luke Nebrich 3 2 0.08 17 Darden Tate 6 4 0.08 17 Logan Robinson 5 3 0.08 17 Wesley Ng 4 3 0.08 17 Luigi Riva 3 2 0.08 23 Julia Wozniak 6 3 0.09 23 Seth Miller 5 4 0.09 23 Derek Maas 9 6 0.09 23 Macguire McDuff 7 5 0.09The fastest swimmer with at least three takeovers this decade is Pitt’s Dominic Toledo Sanchez, who averaged 0.00 seconds across his three splits at the 2023 NCAA Championships. He was -0.02 on the 800 free relay, 0.00 on the 400 free relay, and 0.01 on the 400 medley relay, gaining a 100% record and a 0.00 average (technically -0.003).
Ben Denman-Grimm and Pawel Uryniuk have the second-fastest averages of anyone with at least three takeovers at NCAAs this decade at 0.04 seconds. Chris Guiliano is just behind at 0.05 seconds, and he has seven takeovers compared to the three takeovers of the men above him.
The only swimmer with more takeovers than Guiliano who still manages to average under 0.10 seconds is Derek Maas, who swam for Alabama. He has swum flying legs on nine relays this decade for the Crimson Tide, with six of them coming in at 0.10 seconds or better, for an average of 0.09 seconds.
Claire Jansen is the top woman, with an average of 0.06 seconds across her six flying relay splits. Sarah Snyder and Eloise Williamson are just behind her on 0.07 seconds, with Julia Wozniak making it four women to do so.
Swimmers With At Least 5 Takeovers 0.10 Seconds Or Better At NCAAS, 2021-2026
Rank Swimmer Total Relay Splits Relay Takeovers 0.10 Seconds Or Better Average Takeover Time 1 Jonny Kulow 15 7 0.12 2 Chris Guiliano 7 6 0.05 2 Derek Maas 9 6 0.09 2 Carles Coll Marti 15 6 0.16 5 Claire Jansen 6 5 0.06 5 Macguire McDuff 7 5 0.09 5 Teresa Ivan 9 5 0.12 5 Olivia Bray 9 5 0.13 5 Chloe Stepanek 13 5 0.13 5 August Lamb 11 5 0.13 5 Eric Friese 10 5 0.13 5 Michael Eastman 10 5 0.14 5 Umitcan Gures 5 5 0.05Chris Guiliano may have six takeovers that were 0.10 seconds or better, but Jonny Kulow, who he teamed up with on the U.S. men’s 4×100 free relay at the 2025 World Championships, has one more. Kulow’s do come from an additional eight swims, with the Sun Devil swimmer having 15 flying splits. He does still average 0.12 seconds across those swims, however.
Guiliano and Maas are joined by Carles Coll Marti on six takeovers under 0.10 seconds, with Coll Marti matching Kulow’s total number of flying splits. Claire Jansen again is the top woman with five from six, but is joined by Teresa Ivan (5 from 9), Olivia Bray (5 from 9) and Chloe Stepanek (5 from 13).
Swimmers Who Are 0.10 Seconds Or Better On Takeovers More Than 50% Of The Time At NCAAs 2021-2026 (min. 3)
Rank Swimmer Total Relay Splits Relay Takeovers 0.10 Seconds Or Better Average Takeover Time Percentage Of Splits 0.10 Seconds Or Better 1 Dominic Toledo Sanchez 3 3 0.00 100 1 Umitcan Gures 5 5 0.05 100 1 Finn O’Haimhirgin 4 4 0.05 100 1 Pawel Uryniuk 3 3 0.04 100 1 Braden Samuels 3 3 0.05 100 1 Tyler Sesvold 3 3 0.07 100 7 Chris Guiliano 7 6 0.05 85.71 8 Claire Jansen 6 5 0.06 83.33 9 Michal Chmielewski 5 4 0.06 80 9 Alex Moderski 5 4 0.08 80 9 Seth Miller 5 4 0.09 80 12 Flynn Crisci 4 3 0.05 75 12 Wesley Ng 4 3 0.08 75 12 Patrick Dinu 4 3 0.1 75 12 Cooper Scharff 4 3 0.1 75 12 Evgenii Somov 4 3 0.1 75 12 Baturalp Unlu 4 3 0.11 75 12 Matthew Klinge 4 3 0.16 75 19 Macguire McDuff 7 5 0.09 71.43 20 Derek Maas 9 6 0.09 66.67 20 Darden Tate 6 4 0.08 66.67 20 Lainy Kruger 6 4 0.11 66.67 19 Liam Bell 6 4 0.12 66.67 19 Ben Denman-Grimm 3 2 0.04 66.67 19 Sarah Snyder 3 2 0.07 66.67 19 Eloise Williamson 3 2 0.07 66.67 19 Rasmus Hanson 3 2 0.07 66.67 19 Hudson McDaniel 3 2 0.07 66.67 19 Max Edwards 3 2 0.07 66.67 19 Luke Nebrich 3 2 0.08 66.67 19 Luigi Riva 3 2 0.08 66.67 19 Natalie Kan 3 2 0.1 66.67 19 Jeremy Kelly 3 2 0.1 66.67 19 Dean Jones 3 2 0.1 66.67 19 Miriam Sheehan 3 2 0.11 66.67 19 Justin Grender 3 2 0.11 66.67 19 Laurel Eiber 3 2 0.12 66.67 19 Noah Henderson 3 2 0.12 66.67 19 Vlad Dubinin 3 2 0.12 66.67 20 Sohib Khaled 3 2 0.16 66.67 41 Logan Robinson 5 3 0.08 60 41 Jack Forrest 5 3 0.1 60 41 Elizabeth Sowards 5 3 0.13 60 41 Teresa Ivan 9 5 0.12 55.56 41 Olivia Bray 9 5 0.13 55.56There are six swimmers who have both a minimum of three takeovers and a 100% ratio of takeovers at 0.10 seconds or better. Umitcan Gures of Harvard leads the way with five from five, one more than Utah’s Finn O’Haimhirgin who went four from four. Four swimmers have gone three from three. Guiliano and Jansen are once again near the top, with Jansen’s 83.33% nearly 17% better than the next-best woman, Florida’s Lainy Kruger.
When the margins for victory are razor-thin, as they were in the 400 free relay at the men’s 2023 NCAA Championships, takeovers can be the key. That race was decided by a single hundredth, with Florida taking the win in 2:44.07 to Cal’s 2:44.08, both under NC State’s longstanding NCAA record.
The third swimmers for each team touched just 0.11 seconds apart, Florida leading in 2:03.02 to Cal’s 2:03.13. Destin Lasco was near-perfect on his takeover for Cal at 0.05 seconds, but so too was Florida’s Macguire McDuff at 0.08 seconds.
At the end of the race just a single hundredth separated the pair, with Florida taking the win in 2:44.07. If McDuff had been 0.10 seconds on his takeover – still absolutely elite – Florida would have lost. Having a man who had split under that four times already at NCAAs, and had a 2/3 ratio of doing so on takeovers, ended up being the difference.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: NCAA Championships: Who Are The Takeover Kings & Queens?
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