2016 GEORGIA TECH MEN’S LC COLLEGIATE INVITATIONAL
After an incredible NCAA Championship meet running Wednesday through Saturday, many of the swimmers got right back up on Sunday to swim in the single session long course invitational. The long course time trial is put into place to give swimmers an opportunity to race long course while they are still in their taper after right after NCAAs, and to help the Americans who don’t yet have Olympic Trials cuts earn those.
This meet is also FINA-sanctioned for Olympic qualifying, so many international swimmers who don’t have a specific Olympic Qualifying meet through their countries took advantage of the taper.
Among those was Kristian Gkolomeev of Greece, the 3rd-place finisher at NCAAs for Alabama in the 50 free. He threw down a very fast 21.90 in the long course race on Sunday, just off his personal best of 21.87 swum at the 2015 World Championships in Kazan. That swim ranks as the 8th-fastest swimmer in the event since last year’s World Championships. American Nathan Nile of Gardner-Webb, who was 34th in the 50 at NCAAs, went 23.10 to clear the Olympic Trials cut of 23.29.
In total, 13 American swimmers earned new Olympic Trials cuts.
In the 100 fly, three men earned the standard of 54.79 for the first time, with Ryan Coetzee leading the way in 53.93. Also making it was Steven Tan (54.36) and Blake Atmore (54.68). Tadas Duskinas of Lithuania had the fastest 100 fly in the time trial, going 53.55.
In the 100 breaststroke Jeremiah Bohon was the only one to make the standard for the first time, hitting the cut of 1:03.69 right on the nose. International swimmers Peter Stevens (Slovenia), Dustin Tynes (Bahamas), and Roman Trussov (Kazakhstan) all swam very fast. Stevens led the way in 1:01.28, followed closely by Tynes (1:01.56) and Trussov (1:01.92). Stevens finished 2nd in the 100 breaststroke at NCAAs, while Trussov was 15th and Tynes 25th.
In the 100 back two men got under the standard for the first time, with Jonathan Boland (56.60) and Zach Switzer (57.19) both getting under (or right on in Switzer’s case) the standard of 57.19. South Africa’s Christopher Reid had a fantastic swim touching in 54.13. Reid was 21st in the 100 back at NCAAs.
Four men got under the 50.69 standard in the 100 free, with Andrew Henry (50.32), Bowen Becker (50.41), Paul Fair (50.61), and Alex Gray (50.63). Richard Bohus of Hungary (49.44) and Laurent Bams of the Netherlands (50.25) both had good swims as well.
Zach Harting was the only qualifier in the 200 IM, squeaking under the standard of 2:05.09 in 2:04.92. Norbert Szabo of Hungary (2:02.24), Uvis Kalnins of Latvia (2:02.96) and Ching Lim of Malaysia (2:04.48) also had good swims.
15th place finisher in the NCAA 200 back Robert Owen had already made the Olympic Trials standard, but still competed in the time trial going a personal best 1:57.96. That ranks him 17th in the world in the current season in the event.
NCAA 100 breaststroke 6th place finisher Devon Nowicki earned the standard in the 200 breast going 2:18.20, just getting under the 2:18.39 standard. Nils Wich-Glasen of Germany (2:12.30) had a fast swim. Wich-Glasen would have been an A-finalist in this event at NCAAs but he was disqualified.
Bence Kiraly of Hungary also had a good swim in the 200 free, going 1:50.53, a new personal best.
Results can be found on Meet Mobile.
Truly I tell you, this Greek kid of Bulgarian descent is well suited for long course, more than most of his opponents in NCAA, and is going to do well in Rio
He has quite a story too. I hope he does good.
Z, weirdly the week you ask news about Matt McLean, USA swimming does an article about him on its website.
Big shoulder injury since 2014 and tries to come back in time for trials.
http://usaswimming.org/ViewNewsArticle.aspx?TabId=0&itemid=13526&mid=14491
I’m surprised more swimmers didn’t take advantage of this considering that they were tapered. Would have been nice to see what all these record breakers did the day after in LCM.
It was a tiring whirlwind three day meet and many have classes to worry about in the coming week. Some may have wanted to spend Easter with family/friends. Unless they were relatively local or needed a trials cut there wasn’t really that much of an incentive to stick around on a holiday.
Robert Howard may have missed his 100fr at the Auburn dual meet, but he did not miss it today. 50. for the kid
He is living in Columbia, SC and training with Coach Bernardino at USC. Unfortunately he has spent a good bit of time injured….. So I’m not sure if he is going to be at “fighting weight” for trials, but we shall see.
Just a quick question- sorry off topic, but is matt mclean still swimming?
i don’t think so
Bit from the usa swimming interview from 3/25/16:
“With Trials almost three months away, McLean said he knows there’s still time for things to come together as they have in the past for him to swim at a very high level and make the 2016 Olympic team.”
Robert Howard from Alabama also got up in a time trial and the end of the session to go 50.59 after swimming just off the cut in the main heat.
Robert Owen had the swim of the time trial. 1:57.9 for a 200 back is playing with the big boys in the 200 back. Making a Trials cut is nice but really, it is no more of a big a deal than making a nationals cut. Be honest, how selective is it that there are 1500 swimmers with Trials cuts? USA swimming is using the easy standards to put people in the stands and the hotels.
The problem is that they keep dropping those cuts, and keep ending up with more swimmers who qualify. Those times were decided on 4 years ago when (for example) 2:05.09 was a reasonable cut for the 2IM (was 2:06.7 for the 2012 trials and only ~40 swimmers met that standard at OTs).