Two-time Olympian Katie Grimes officially announced her commitment to the University of Virginia via Instagram Thursday. Landing a highly coveted recruit is a strong indicator the team should be maintaining its dominance in the years to come as the next generation of Cavalier greats emerge. After hinting at her college plans Wednesday with the caption “Hoo’s ready,” Grimes made her official announcement.
The No. 1 swimmer in the 2024 high school recruiting class, Grimes delayed making her college decision due to focusing on her preparation for the 2024 Olympics. Now, she is a Cavalier — and Virginia’s third 2024 recruit ranked top-five nationally. Even though her fellow top recruits are already competing in their freshman campaigns, the delayed recruitment is worth it for both the defending national champion Cavaliers and a swimmer of Grimes’ caliber.
Born and raised in Las Vegas, Grimes began her career swimming for the Sandpipers of Nevada program. The No. 1 2024 recruit has the top times in the 200-meter freestyle, 500-meter freestyle, 1,000-meter freestyle, 1,650-meter freestyle, 200-meter butterfly and 400 IM events.
Most notably, Grimes made quite the appearance at the 2024 Paris Olympics for the U.S. this summer. At just 18 years old, she became the first female swimmer to compete in both a pool and open water event in a single Olympic Games. After winning a silver medal in the 400 IM, Grimes proceeded to make a 15th-place finish in the open water competition.
While she made a big splash at the 2024 Olympics, Grimes has been making a name for herself for quite some time. When she was 15, Grimes made her national debut at the Olympic Trials in Omaha, Neb. Grimes impressively qualified for the U.S. team by finishing just a second behind the legendary Katie Ledecky. Ultimately, Grimes was the youngest swimmer on the 2021 Olympic Team. She has dominated the junior swimming realm as a three-time silver medalist at the World Championships.
With her broad skill set, Grimes boasts an impressive series of open-water wins. She competed in Doha, Qatar at the 2024 World Aquatics Open Water Championships in February — where she took 15th place. Adding to her ever-growing trophy case, Grimes earned a bronze at the 2023 World Championships in the 10K open water, as well as won the World Junior Open Water Championship in the 7.5K in 2022.
Whether or not the utterly dominant Grimes competes this season, she will reunite with some of her fellow Olympians — and get a close-up look at Virginia’s pursuit of a fifth consecutive NCAA title in March.
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