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2024 SEC Championships: Day 2 Prelims Scratches – #1 Bella Sims Out of 500, In 2 IM as #74

Braden Keith
by Braden Keith 19

February 21st, 2024 College, News, SEC

2024 SEC CHAMPIONSHIPS

Day 2 Prelims Heat Sheet

The thrilling rematch of the Georgia Invite’s 500 freestyle is going to have to wait. After dueling up and down the pool for 20 lengths last November, Florida first-year Bella Sims has scratched out of the 500 and will not square off against Georgia’s Rachel Stege.

Sims, who held down the top seed with her 4:32.53 from the aforementioned meet, is also the top seed in the 4oo IM (4:01.47), 200 fly (1:54.05), and 200 back (1:51.15). Interestingly, it appears that Sims will swim the 200 IM on Day 2 of the SEC Champs.

The Florida freshman, who is also the #24 seed in the 100 free (49.20) and the #2 seed in the 200 free (1:43.04), a race she just broke the SEC record in by virtue of her 1:40.90 lead-off, has opted to appear in the very first heat of the 200 IM. Entered with No Time, Bella Sims will swim in lane three in the first of eight heats.

Joining Sims in the 200 IM is fellow Gator Isabel Ivey. In her first SEC Champs, Ivey enters as the top seed in the event (1:54.18) but will have not only Zoie Hartman and Josephine Fuller to worry about but also Sims.

To focus on the 200 IM and other events like the 100 fly(50.60) and 200 free(1:43.03) where she is the top seed, Ivey has scratched out of this morning’s 50 free, where she was the #7 seed (22.29).

Outside of the two Gators, the only other top eight to scratch an event this morning is Georgia’s Ian Grum. Grum’s scratch makes some sense as he is the #2 seed in the 400 IM (3:40.41), and he holds down the 4th seed in the 200 fly (1:43.24) and 200 back (1:38.88).

All Top-24 Scratches

 

 

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WV Swammer
8 months ago

She is going to absolutely body that first heat dear lord

Bill Lumberg
8 months ago

i’d like to see conference and NCAA’s in LCM during an olympic year. Better prep

bob
Reply to  Bill Lumberg
8 months ago

I agree.At least in olympic years, but if I was in charge it would be lcm whenever possible in any year.I,m Canadian and we just had our usual menu of local clubs invitationals and provincials this week.Most of our clubs operate in 25m pools with exposure to 50m only when they travel to big meets in the city.So when they travel to the city for provincials it drives me crazy to see the host cut the pool in half and make it a 25m meet.For what?The ultimate goal is the Olympics which will always be 50m.I think it must be very beneficial to get as much 50m practice as possible.I had 3 of my kids as swimmers who trained in… Read more »

This Guy
Reply to  Bill Lumberg
8 months ago

Only a handful of these swimmers will be participating in the Olympics and 95% of these swimmers are at the pinnacle meet of their careers. Training specifically for this. Dont change it up for anything else.

You could argue for SCM but I’m totallly against LCM. Short course is what NCAA swimming is all about

Long Strokes
8 months ago

Bella Sims is a generational talent. Go Bella!

ArtVanDeLegh10
Reply to  Long Strokes
8 months ago

She’s good but generational talent might be a stretch.

RMS
Reply to  ArtVanDeLegh10
8 months ago

Not really. She’s very versatile and can swim pretty much anything. Winning Olympic silver at 16 on a relay is also very impressive.

Caleb
Reply to  RMS
8 months ago

“Generational talent” is so overused it doesn’t mean much, but it *should* mean a talent that comes along once a generation. i.e Phelps, Ledecky, Milak, McIntosh (it looks like)

Tanner-Garapick-Oleksiak-McIntosh
Reply to  Caleb
8 months ago

Seeing the term generational talent being used so much now is like watching a rerun of Oprah. Instead of saying “ you win a prize and you win a prize it’s you are generational and you are generational and everyone wins a generational tag.

Kachow
Reply to  ArtVanDeLegh10
8 months ago

Considering she could win all but maybe 3 events at SECs I’d says she’s a generational talent.

doe
Reply to  Kachow
8 months ago

Gretchen Walsh is way better.

Virtus
Reply to  doe
8 months ago

Sims was better in high school and has Walsh levels of potential

ArtVanDeLegh10
Reply to  Kachow
8 months ago

I guess we have a different opinion of what a generational talent is.

Being the best swimmer in a conference isn’t generational to me.
Being extremley versatile isn’t generational to me.

Breaking NCAA records and winning individual medals at the Olympics at a young age is what a generational talent does. It’s unlikely she’ll ever break an NCAA record, win an individual Olympic Gold, let alone break a WR.

Caleb
Reply to  ArtVanDeLegh10
8 months ago

Wont be shocked if she breaks an NCAA record along the way

ArtVanDeLegh10
Reply to  Caleb
8 months ago

What NCAA record do you think she has the best chance at breaking – maybe the 2 back?

Sean
8 months ago

Anyone know Bella’s PB in the 2 IM?

swimmer
Reply to  Sean
8 months ago

152.73

Austinpoolboy
Reply to  Sean
8 months ago

Cool move. Gather data pre NCAA.

About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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