US Olympic Swimming Trials 2012: Unknowns with Best Chance for Gold in London

We know popular swimmers like Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Missy Franklin and Allison Schmitt have excellent chances to win gold at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

However, Team USA also has other elite swimmers competing who will make some noise of their own in London. One prime example is backstroke extraordinaire Matt Grevers.

Grevers was just .14 one-hundredths of a second away from setting the world record for the 100-meter backstroke at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, and he was a finalist in two other events.

In addition to Grevers, let's check out other unknown Olympians with a great shot at gold in 2012.

2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials results courtesy of USASwimming.org and Omega Timing.

Caitlin Leverenz, 200-Meter Individual Medley

Caitlin Leverenz won the 200-meter individual medley with a time of 2 minutes, 10.22 seconds.

At age 21, Leverenz is going to her first Olympics after just missing out on the Beijing Games in 2008. During those U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, Leverenz took third place in the 200-meter breaststroke—however she was only 17 at the time, so 2012 has proven to be her year.

Leverenz is also competing at the Olympics in the 400-meter individual medley. She took second place in the finals with a time of 4:34.48 and certainly made up for missing out in 2008.

Now her best shot at gold is in the 200, though, as Leverenz was only off the American record by .88 hundredths of a second. With ample time to make that up before London, Leverenz has a legit shot to not only win gold, but do it in record-setting fashion.

Scott Weltz, 200-Meter Breaststroke

Scott Weltz has one shot and one shot only to make his mark on the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Finishing with a time of 2 minutes, 9.01 seconds when winning the 200-meter breaststroke, Weltz was one second off the U.S. record. After missing out on London with a fourth-place finish in the 100-meter breaststroke, Weltz has the 200 to put all his focus on.

That, in turn, is one of the advantages to competing in just one event. All his energy and effort can be put into one race, which only makes the chances of a greater reward that much better.

Weltz is also just 25 years old, so he's in his prime and will only continue to improve before the 2016 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials. Expect him to make a name in London and become a more well-known swimmer in the immediate future.

Breeja Larson, 100-Meter Breaststroke

Breeja Larson was .63 hundredths of a second away from setting the world record in the women's 100-meter breaststroke.

Much like Scott Weltz, Larson's only shot in London is one event, and she missed out on a second event (200-meter breaststroke) by taking sixth in the finals. Nevertheless, Larson is only 20 years old and is on the brink of dominating her best event.

Even more impressively, Larson's time was at 31.04 seconds after just 50 meters. If she can manage to keep that pace or remain close to it at the Olympics, there's no telling how much Larson can break the world record by.

The scary part is that Larson has yet to hit her prime. Once there, she will begin to dominate at an even higher level through more events.

Matt Grevers, 100-Meter Backstroke

At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Matt Grevers won a silver medal in the 100-meter backstroke.

Fast forward to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, and we saw Grevers not only win the 100 backstroke, but come within .14 hundredths of a second of the world record.

With a career that has gotten overlooked by the success of Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte, Grevers just missed out on making Team USA in the 50- and 100-meter freestyle. Still, expect Grevers to steal the spotlight on the 100-meter backstroke, as that is his forte.

Elizabeth Beisel, 400-Meter Individual Medley

During the 2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, Elizabeth Beisel made it to the finals in four events.

She failed to qualify for London in two events, but won the 400-meter individual medley and finished second to Missy Franklin in the 200-meter backstroke.

Turning 20 years old in August, Beisel has some time before she hits her prime, and this current success will make her much more known. In the 400 medley, Beisel finished with a time of 4 minutes, 31.74 seconds, which was only .62 hundredths of a second away from the American record.

In London, anticipate her to keep improving, as the future is set up quite well.

Katie Ledecky, 800-Meter Freestyle

Michael Phelps was 15 years old when he competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics. There, he took fifth place in the 200-meter butterfly.

At that time, Kathleen Ledecky was just three years old. Now 15, Ledecky, like Phelps, has qualified for the Summer Olympics and did so in the 800-meter freestyle.

With a time of 8 minutes, 19.78 seconds, Ledecky won by more than two seconds and is only 3.56 seconds away from the American record. Easily one of the most inspirational stories for Team USA at the London Games, we have to anticipate Ledecky only getting better from here on out.

America's next great swimmer has an excellent career opportunity, and it'll be interesting to see if Ledecky can match Phelps from an overall perspective.

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