Ilya Kharun, in the process of switch from Canada, wins U.S. title in 50m butterfly over Caeleb Dressel

Ilya Kharun can’t represent the U.S. internationally until later this year, but he’s already a national champion.

Kharun won the 50m butterfly at the Toyota USA Swimming National Championships in 22.59 seconds, the fastest time ever in a U.S. pool.

Kharun won by 27 hundredths over nine-time Olympic gold medalist Caeleb Dressel, who is the second-fastest man in history in the event.

Kharun, the 2024 Olympic bronze medalist in the 100m and 200m flies for Canada, was born in Montreal while his parents worked as traveling acrobats for Cirque du Soleil. He grew up in Las Vegas.

SWIMMING NATIONALS: Results | Broadcast Schedule

Kharun announced in January that he had begun the process of switching his national representation to the U.S. He has to sit out international meets for a year before he can start competing for the U.S. later this year.

“I’ve lived in America my whole life,” Kharun posted in January. “I’ve never represented a club team outside of USA Swimming. I’ve got a long career left as a swimmer and I’d like to be based at home. And that home is in the USA.”

Nationals continue Thursday with finals live at 9 p.m. ET on Peacock and NBCSN.

Also Wednesday, Anna Moesch won the women’s 200m freestyle in a personal best 1:55.05, one day after breaking her own American record in the 100m free.

Moesch is now the fifth-fastest American in history in the 200m free behind Allison Schmitt, Katie Ledecky, Claire Weinstein and Missy Franklin.

Anna Moesch followed up her American Record in the women’s 100m freestyle a day earlier with her second national title in as many days, winning the 200m freestyle in 1:55.05.

Ryan Erisman, 19, took the men’s 200m free in a personal best 1:45.23, right after his younger sister, 17-year-old Rylee, was runner-up in the women’s 200m free in a personal best 1:55.86.

Ryan Erisman out-touched Patrick Sammon and Mitchell Schott to take home the national title in the men’s 200m freestyle at the USA Swimming National Championships.

Luka Mijatovic, 17, won the men’s 18-and-under final in the 200m free in 1:46.04, just five hundredths off Michael Phelps’ national age group record for 17- and 18-year-olds. Mijatovic’s national age group record for 15- and 16-year-olds — 1:45.92 from last year — is actually faster than Phelps’ 17-18 record.

Last summer, Mijatovic became the youngest U.S. male swimmer at a World Championships since Phelps’ first worlds in 2001.

Josh Bey, a rising sophomore at Indiana, won the men’s 200m breaststroke in 2:07.58, chopping 2.48 seconds off his personal best going into the meet. He now ranks second in the world this year behind Shin Ohashi of Japan (world junior record 2:06.59).

Isabelle Stadden ran away with the women’s 200m backstroke in 2:04.76, winning by 2.32 seconds.

Back in May, Stadden swam 2:04.37 to become the fourth-fastest woman in history behind Australian Kaylee McKeown and Americans Regan Smith and Missy Franklin.

Anna Moesch overcame major injury and missing the national team to become the fastest 100m freestyler in U.S. history.