Bella Sims, Madi Mintenko Highlight TT Swims At U.S. Trials In Greensboro

2022 U.S. TRIALS – TIME TRIALS

• April 26-30, 2022
• Greensboro, NC
• Greensboro Aquatic Center
• LCM (50m)
• Results on Meet Mobile: “Time Trials – Intl Team Trials”

Amidst the action at the 2022 U.S. International Team Trials meet that wrapped up on Saturday, there were daily sessions of time trial swims scheduled shortly after prelims where athletes had the opportunity to put up some official times while tapered.

The time trials were primarily used by athletes who may have only qualified to swim in one or two events at trials, but we also saw some re-swim races they had already contested in the big meet to try and improve their times.

Bella Sims, who appears to be the only swimmer that qualified for the World Championship team but still raced a time trial, took on the women’s 200 butterfly between sessions on Thursday and delivered a best time of 2:11.42.

That swim improves on Sims’ previous best of 2:13.88, set in January 2020, and ranks her 41st all-time in the girls’ 15-16 age group. That time would’ve stacked up 12th in the trials heats.

Sims, a 16-year-old out of the Sandpipers of Nevada, qualified for the Worlds team in the women’s 800 free relay, placing fifth in the 200 free in a time of 1:57.71. She also reeled off a trio of third-place finishes in the 400 free (4:06.61), 800 free (8:22.36) and 1500 free (16:15.87), all new best times.

Also producing a highly-ranked age group swim during the time trials was Madi Mintenko, who swims for Pikes Peak Athletics.

The 14-year-old swam a time of 56.62 in the women’s 100 free, over two seconds under her previous best (58.74), to move into 25th all-time in the girls’ 13-14 age group. Mintenko also swam a time of 4:22.93 in the 400 free, having set a best of 4:18.62 last July.

Mintenko’s lone event of trials was the 200 free, where she set a best time of 2:02.27 to rank 29th all-time among 13-14s.

OTHER TIME TRIAL HIGHLIGHTS

• Indiana University’s Van Mathias dropped a pair of lifetime bests in the men’s 50 free (22.86) and 100 free (49.99), marking his first time sub-23 and sub-51 (his previous 100 free best was 51.00) in both events. Mathias was a consolation finalist in both the 50 fly (ninth) and 100 fly (10th) at trials.
• Texas A&M’s Olivia Theall went 1:00.30 in the women’s 100 fly, eclipsing the personal best time she set in the prelims of trials of 1:00.35 (placing 23rd).
• Another Aggie, Trey Dickey, set a best time of 2:00.89 in the men’s 200 fly, downing his previous mark of 2:01.44 from August 2021. Dickey placed 12th in the 1500 free and 22nd in the 800 free during the meet.
• OSU’s Amy Fulmer went 55.54 in the individual 100 freestyle at trials, and then was .01 quicker, 55.53, in a time trial. Both neared her lifetime best of 55.41 set last summer.
• Another IU swimmer, Maxwell Reich, went 2:13.56 in the men’s 200 breast, having set a best of 2:12.88 in the trials prelims. That swim earned him a berth in the ‘A’ final, going on to place eighth in 2:15.04.
• 30-year-old Kent Olsen-Stavrakas clocked in at 24.07 in the men’s 50 fly, less than a tenth shy of his best time set in March at the PSS in Westmont (23.98). Olsen-Stavrakas, who swims for the Colorado Stars, finished 16th in the men’s 50 free in 22.95 (going 22.74 in the prelims).