PARIS -- With an abundance of established, household names, as well as a plethora of up and coming stars, Australia's long-standing love affair with the pool is expected to continue at the 2024 Olympic Games.
So, who are the swimmers to keep an eye on in Paris? And who are the ones most likely to deliver medals? ESPN's Jake Michaels runs through Australia's best hopes, in alphabetical order:
Kyle Chalmers
Events: Men's 100m freestyle; relay events.
Only four men in history have won multiple 100m Olympic freestyle races. That is the select group Chalmers is looking to join in Paris, though the Australian would be the only one of the quintet to achieve the feat without his wins coming in back-to-back Games.
Chalmers burst onto the scene in Rio with gold in swimming's blue-riband event. He then settled for silver, behind Caeleb Dressel, three years ago in Tokyo.
At the Australian trials last month, Chalmers stopped the clock in 47:75 seconds to book his ticket to a third straight Olympic Games. China's world record holder Zhanle Pan is the man to beat in the event, but you just cannot count out Chalmers on the big stage.
The 26-year-old will also swim for Australia in the 100m freestyle, 100m medley, and 100m mixed freestyle relays.
Cameron McEvoy
Events: Men's 50m freestyle.
The men's 50m freestyle is one of the few races Australia has never won gold in at Olympic level. But that could very well change if McEvoy brings his best to the one-lap splash-and-dash.
Once better known for his 100m and 200m swims, the 30-year-old McEvoy now focuses primarily on the 50m distance and looms as a genuine gold medal chance in Paris.
Last year, McEvoy won gold at the world championships in Fukuoka with a time of 21:25. He then missed out on gold at the world aquatic championships in Doha by 0.01s. Since then McEvoy has gone quicker again, posting a season-best 21.13 that would have been good enough for silver three years ago in Tokyo.
"I'm hitting some PBs in the water [and] swimming as fast as I ever have in training, which is giving me a massive confidence boost at this stage in my prep," said McEvoy on the eve of the Games.
Emma McKeon
Events: Women's 50m freestyle; 100m butterfly; 100m freestyle relay.
Australia's most decorated Olympian will be looking to add to her tally of 11 medals at the Games -- including five gold -- in what will be her Olympic swansong, as confirmed in April.
The Dolphins veteran won gold in both the 50m and 100m freestyle races in Tokyo three years ago, but will not be defending the latter title after narrowly missing out on qualification at the Australian Swimming Trials in Brisbane last month.
READ: Australia's humble champion Emma McKeon ready for final Olympic chapter
Instead, McKeon's individual focus will be on the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly. Having said that, her best times across both races this season wouldn't have her close to medal contention.
McKeon's best chance of more Olympic hardware will come in the 100m freestyle relay. Her sixth-fastest qualifying time good enough to earn a spot in the team for the heat swims.
Kaylee McKeown
Events: Women's 100m, 200m backstroke; 200m individual medley; relay events.
McKeown was one of the transcendent stars of the Tokyo Games three years ago with individual gold in the women's 100m and 200m backstroke. But that might have only just been the beginning as she looks primed for an even greater performance in Paris.
The 23-year-old will start favourite to defend both backstroke titles, though she faces stiff competition in the form of 22-year-old American Regan Smith, who recently snatched away McKeown's world record in the 100m distance.
The most intriguing part of McKeown's program will be the 200m individual medley. The Australian may be relatively new to the event, but it didn't stop her from posting a 2:06.63 -- the fastest time anyone has managed in 2024 -- at the Australian Trials. That time would have won gold in Tokyo by almost two seconds!
McKeown will also be called upon to swim the 100m backstroke leg in Australia's medley relay and mixed medley relay. Keep your eyes on her as she looks to become the first Australian athlete to reach six Olympic gold medals. It's not out of the question.
Mollie O'Callaghan
Events: Women's 100m, 200m freestyle; relay events.
Paris for O'Callaghan could very well be what Tokyo was for Ariarne Titmus. The 20-year-old from Logan City, who was part of two women's relay teams that won Olympic gold three years ago, will contest six events at the upcoming Games.
O'Callaghan is a great chance for the top step of the podium in both of her individual events: the 100m and 200m freestyle. Both races she won at the 2023 world championships in Fukuoka, including setting a world record time of 1:52.85 in the 200m. That mark has since been bettered by Titmus, who looms as her greatest rival for gold over the four-lap distance.
So far in 2024, O'Callaghan boasts the third-quickest 100m time and second-fastest 200m time.
Australia's women will be tough to beat in the 100m and 200m freestyle relays, and O'Callaghan shapes to be a major player in both races. She will also feature in the 100m medley and 100m mixed freestyle relays.
Samuel Short
Events: Men's 400m, 800m & 1500m freestyle.
Short burst onto the scene at last year's world championships in Fukuoka, winning an epic gold in the 400m freestyle, before filling out his medal set with silver in the 800m, and bronze in the 1500m.
Paris will be Short's first Olympic appearance and the 20-year-old is in the frame for medals in all three distances once more. His best chance for gold will come in the eight-lap race, with only German Lukas Martens and Dolphins teammate Elijah Winnington going quicker than him so far in 2024. With that said, his opportunity to go quicker at the Australian Trials was hampered after picking up a gastro virus on the eve of the event.
"We're putting in some good work ... and some solid sessions and I'm feeling really good. [There's] some fast times," said Short earlier this month at a Dolphins training session in Canet-en-Roussillon. "I'm buzzing ... I'm soaking up every moment here."
Zac Stubblety-Cook
Events: Men's 200m breaststroke.
The reigning Olympic champion in the 200m breaststroke will be hoping to double up in Paris, but the competition looks far stronger than it did three years ago in Tokyo.
China's Qin Haiyang smashed Stubblety-Cook's world record at last year's world championships with a blistering time of 2:05.48. American Matthew Fallon and Japan's Ippei Watanabe also loom as genuine gold medal chances in the event.
Stubblety-Cook's qualifying time of 2:07.40 at the Australian Trials will need to come down significantly if he's to challenge for the top step of the podium once again, but it's tough to write him off after that epic swim to gold three years ago.
Ariarne Titmus
Events: Women's 200m, 400m & 800m freestyle; 200m freestyle relay.
Australia's most famous swimmer stunned the world three years ago in Tokyo, taking down American icon Katie Ledecky to claim Olympic gold in the women's 400m freestyle. Titmus then doubled up a few nights later with gold in the 200m.
Titmus and Ledecky will again square off in Paris, but this time there are a few more faces who will be looking to spoil the party. Canadian teen star Summer McIntosh will challenge Titmus in both races, while fellow Australian Mollie O'Callaghan will likely be her greatest rival in the 200m.
READ: Why Titmus 'the Terminator' is primed to top Tokyo tally
Titmus' favoured event remains the 400m freestyle, a distance she continues to hold the world record in with a time of 3:55.38 set at last year's World Championships. Having said that, she also recently took hold of the 200m world record after posting a 1:52.23 at the Australian Trials in Brisbane last month.
The 800m race will once again feature on Titmus' Olympic program. She will also play a lead role in the women's 200m freestyle relay that's favoured to win gold for Australia.
Elijah Winnington
Events: Men's 400m & 800m freestyle; 200m freestyle relay.
Paris is a chance at redemption for Winnington. The Australian qualified for the Tokyo Olympic team with the fastest 400m time in the world, but he would ultimately miss out on a medal after swimming a disappointing final.
Since then, Winnington has gone from strength to strength. He won gold in the 400m at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest and took silver earlier this year on the same stage, though Dolphins teammate Sam Short did not contest the latter event.
Like Short, Winnington is a legitimate gold medal hope in the 400m and in the frame for a medal in the 800m distance. He will also feature in the 200m freestyle relay squad spearheaded by Maximillian Giuliani and Thomas Neill.