Sandpiper Luke Ellis Clocks 14:49.79 1650 Free, #3 15-16 U.S. Performer Of All-Time

2022 SPEEDO WINTER JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS – WEST

• December 7-10, 2022
• Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center, Austin, Texas
• Short Course Yards (25 yards), Prelims/Finals
• Prelims at 10 a.m. ET, Finals at 6 p.m. ET
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheet
• Storylines to Watch
• Live Results
• Live Stream
• Day 4 Finals Live Recap

At this year’s rendition of Winter Juniors, most of the spotlight was on the Sandpipers of Nevada girls and their prowess in mid-distance and distance freestyle, with names like Bella Sims, Katie Grimes, and Claire Weinstein making headlines for their historic swims. However, on the last day of the meet, 16-year-old Luke Ellis showed that the boys’ side of the club could be successful as well, even without the presence of arguably their best male swimmer Ilya Kharun.

Ellis swam a 14:49.79 to win the boys’ 1650 free race by nearly four seconds, becoming the third-fastest performer of all-time in the U.S. 15-16 age group. His time marked his first swim under 15 minutes, and a massive drop from his previous best time of 15:20.31 (which was altitude-adjusted to a 15:09.31).

At last year’s Speedo Winter Juniors — West meet, Ellis swam a 15:21.67 to finish eighth overall.

Race video courtesy of USA Swimming.

Men’s 1650 Free All-Time Top Performers, U.S. 15-16 Age Group:

1. Liam Custer, Sarasota Sharks — 14:37.86 (2020)
2. Sean Grieshop, Nitro Swimming— 14:45.60 (2014)
3. Luke Ellis, Sandpipers of Nevada — 14:49.79 (2022)
4. Matthew Hirschberger, Nation’s Capital Swim Club — 14:51.81 (2014)
5. Jeff Kostoff, Pellcan Swim Club — 14:52.39 (1982)

As one of the fastest milers ever for his age, Ellis has immediately become one of the top swimmers in the high school class of 2025. In fact, his ttime from Sunday would have scored at last year’s NCAA championship and placed him 14th overall.

In addition to the 1650 free, Ellis also set best times in the 500 free (4:22.23), 200 back (1:46.17), and 400 IM (3:47.68) at Winter Juniors.

During Ellis’ 1650 free race, Ellis showed extremely strong closing speed, descending his race after the 1300-yard mark. He swam his final 100 yards in a blistering 51.38 seconds, dropping down to a 25.05 on his last 50. In fact, Ellis’ final 100 was just 0.23 seconds slower than Bobby Finke‘s 51.14 from when he set his American record time of 14:12.08, which is extremely impressive considering that Finke is one of the best closers in history.

Splits: