2024 RICHMOND SUPER SECTIONAL
- May 16-19, 2024
- LCM (50 meters)
- Richmond, VA
- Psych Sheets
- Livestream
- Results on MeetMobile: “2024 EZ LC Speedo Super Sectional”
Thomas Heilman kicked off the Richmond Super Sectional with a 100-meter freestyle victory on Thursday night in 50.08, his best time so far this season.
The 17-year-old Olympic hopeful clocked his fastest 100 free since the 2023 U.S. Trials last June (49.20), when he cleared the Olympic Trials standard of 49.99. Heilman, a Virginia commit (’25), has been as fast as 49.06 back in 2022.
The butterfly specialist is also entered in the 100 fly on Friday, 200 fly on Saturday, and 50 free on Sunday. Heilman was the youngest member of Team USA’s 2023 World Championship squad last summer at 16 years old, nearly winning a medal with his 4th-place finish in the 200 fly (1:53.82).
Heilman beat rising Virginia Tech sophomore Brendan Whitfield in the 100 free (50.17) by less than a tenth of a second. Whitfield, 19, was about half a second slower than his personal-best 49.57 from last June.
Emily Thompson clocked a new lifetime best in the women’s 200 IM en route to the win in 2:14.94, taking a few tenths off her previous-best 2:15.30 from March. The 18-year-old Greater Somerset County YMCA standout is headed to Stanford this fall.
Quest Swimming 15-year-old Emerson Callis placed 2nd in the women’s 200 IM with a time of 2:17.39, not far off her personal-best 2:16.76. The U.S. Trials qualifying time sits at 2:16.09.
Rising Princeton junior Mitch Schott took the men’s 200 IM title in 2:00.95. The 19-year-old shaved almost half a second off his previous-best 2:01.42 from last July. Virginia commit (’24) David King claimed 2nd place in the 200 IM with a personal-best 2:03.03, dropping almost half a second off his previous-best 2:03.52 from last month.
Fellow Virginia commit (’24) Anna Moesch reached the wall first in the women’s 100 free at 54.61. The 18-year-old owns a lifetime best of 54.33 from back in 2022.
Rising Stanford junior Kayla Wilson also finished under the Trials cut in the 100 free (55.79) with a runner-up showing in 55.77. The 20-year-old has been as fast as 54.78 back in 2022.
Sara Czirjak barely missed her best 100 breaststroke time on her way to the victory in 1:10.81. The 16-year-old blazed a personal-best 1:10.74 last month, within half a second of the Trials cut (1:10.29).
Brown commit (’24) Max Moore finished just a tenth short of the Trials standard in the 100 breast with his win in 1:02.29. He dropped three tenths off his previous-best 1:02.59 from last month, but it wasn’t quite enough to get him under the Trials cut of 1:02.19. In close pursuit of Moore were 20-year-olds Ethan Maloney (1:02.46) and Jack Grandy (1:02.49).
It seemed like Heilman was popping PBs and breaking NAGs every meet for a while but has been quite lately. Is that indicative of him being in an even bigger block of work than usual for OTs?
No, the records are just much harder and he aged up recently
He said in an interview last Fall that he had just started doing doubles for the first time, so I think he’s more broken down in-season than he had ever been prior to that.
Max Moore got the OT cut in prelims, 1:02.14
The gods favor him
red is the God’s color