Olympic Swimming Results 2012: Matt Grevers Makes Big Splash

Matt Grevers proved in the 100-meter backstroke preliminary heats that he is definitely one of the favorites to win Olympic gold, but also had another surprise for Team USA.

Grevers kicked off his best event with a heat-leading 52.92 in the 100 back, a solid .3 seconds ahead of China's Feiya Cheng.

He'll compete in the second heat of the semifinals alongside teammate Nick Thoman, looking to secure one of the middle lanes in the finals.

Grevers also caused a little bit of controversy in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay for Team USA, but it's the good kind.

The noted backstroke swimmer, who is also on the 4x100-meter medley relay team, posted the fastest split for the Americans in the qualifier for the freestyle relay, 47.54.

Grevers swam with James Feigen, Ricky Berens and 36-year-old Jason Lezak, who likely swam for the last time in the Olympics. All three posted splits in the 48-second range.

Team USA also has Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Nathan Adrian and Cullen Jones in the mix for the finals, but Grevers time, second only to Australia's James Magnussen (47.35) opens the possibility that he may swim in the finals.

All in all, Grevers showed two very impressive performances for Team USA and has set himself up nicely for 100 back gold and potentially a spot on the 4x100 free relay final team.