The competition exists out of three rounds, each with races of up to eight athletes. In the first round, the sixteen fastest athletes qualify for the semifinals. In the semifinals, the eight fastest swimmers advance to the final. The fastest competitor in the final is the winner of the event.
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Thirty-two athletes qualified for the event with Gretchen Walsh as the top favorite for the title and the fastest swimmer in the qualifying world rankings after breaking a new world record at the national trials. All medalists from Tokyo 2020 returned with Margaret MacNeil looking to defend her title, but the American duo of Walsh and Torri Huske lead the rest of the competition ahead of the defending silver medalist Zhang Yufei and the reigning world champion Angelina Koehler. Though she could not defend her titles in the sprint freestyle, Emma McKeon seemed to have a strong contention of climbing the podium in the event and possibly adding a gold to her career haul. Other medal contenders in the field included the 2024 world bronze medalist Louise Hansson, European champion Roos Vanotterdijk, Rikako Ikee, and Erin Gallagher, with Marie Wattel, Lana Pudar, and Anna Ntountounaki as potential outsiders.
