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Allison Schmitt Posts Time Faster Than 2019 World Champs Lead-Off in 100 Free

2019 USA SWIMMING PRO SWIM SERIES – GREENSBORO

  • November 6th-9th, 2019
  • Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina
  • 50m (LCM)
  • Prelims at 9:00AM Eastern Time/Finals at 6:00PM Eastern Time (4:00 Eastern for Wednesday timed finals)
  • Psych Sheets
  • Live Stream
  • Live Results

In Thursday’s finals session at the Pro Swim Series stop in Greensboro, American swimmer Allison Schmitt clocked a 54.41 in the 100 free. This swim was faster than that of her lead-off leg in the 400 LCM free relay at the 2019 World Championships this summer, marking a successful season debut for the 29-year old 4-time Olympic champion.

At Worlds, Schmitt split 55.04 on a flat-start relay leadoff leg, and was a little faster a few weeks later at US Nationals with a 54.81 in the individual race. Her time on Thursday marked her best flat-start time in the 100 free since the summer of 2018, where she was 54.24 at US Nationals (the time that earned her a relay spot for Worlds) and a 54.24 a few weeks before at a Pro Swim Series stop.

On Thursday, Schmitt finished 2nd in that race behind fellow Rio Olympian Simone Manuel, who won in a time of 53.44 – a good early-season marker for her as well. That swim was on par with her first swim of the 2018-2019 season, which was a 53.38 at Winter Nationals (now known as the U.S. Open).

Schmitt currently holds the American Record in the 200 LCM freestyle (1:53.61) set back in the summer of 2012.

Schmitt returned to competition in 2018 after a 20 month break due to her battle with depression in order to take care of her mental health and well-being. In 2019, which was her first World Championship team since 2011, Schmitt helped lead Team USA qualify for the final heats in the 4×100 and 4×200 free relays with her prelims swims as well as earned herself a 14th place finish in the individual 200 LCM free. She continues to train with her long-time coach Bob Bowman, now based out of Arizona State University.

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Ol' Longhorn
5 years ago

Geez, big fan of Schmitty for continuing to come back after disappointments and wish her well, but we’re still talking about slow times. Natalie Coughlan was 53.4 twelve years ago. She’s still easily make the top 6 of our relay.

ALEXANDER POP-OFF
Reply to  Ol' Longhorn
5 years ago

I think some of the young uns might change that. There will be surprises come trials.

swimgeek
Reply to  Ol' Longhorn
5 years ago

…This is a sleepy meet in November, and it’s a good swim for Schmitty. Nobody is saying 54-mid is going to be good for the 4×100 relay in Tokyo

Ol' Longhorn
Reply to  swimgeek
5 years ago

It’s a sleepy meet in November with Trials in 7 months. Take a look at times that Ledecky and Manuel are doing. This isn’t as “sleepy” a meet as you think it is. There’s no way at age 30 she’d going to do her best time ever in the 100 free to make the team. Fortunately for her, she’s better at the 200, are women are even worse at the 200 than they are at the 100.

ERVINFORTHEWIN
Reply to  Ol' Longhorn
5 years ago

she will be good at the 200 in 7 months ….1.56 High

SCHMITTY 2020
5 years ago

Is Schmitty now sponsored by TYR?

ERVINFORTHEWIN
Reply to  SCHMITTY 2020
5 years ago

yes

Troyy
5 years ago

The USA Swimming DB say Schmitt’s PB is 53.87 while the bio here says 53.28. I’m thinking the bio is wrong?

Yozhik
Reply to  Troyy
5 years ago

53.87 is correct. She was never faster than Franklin who hold American record at 53.34.

Dbswims
Reply to  Yozhik
5 years ago

American Record? Pretty sure thats Manuel’s 52.04 from worlds.

Jim C
Reply to  Dbswims
5 years ago

I assume he meant Franklin held the record.

Yozhik
Reply to  Jim C
5 years ago

Yes, that is what I meant. Thank you Jim for correcting my grammar mistake. If people want to understand each other language difference is never a problem.

USA
Reply to  Jim C
5 years ago

Franklin never held the AR, that was Amanda Weir at 53.02

ERVINFORTHEWIN
Reply to  USA
5 years ago

correct

Yozhik
5 years ago

Good job Allison: $2000 in one session being second twice behind super swimmers who cover at highest level all Freestyle events. Her sprint result was actually close to her personal best. Unfortunately it can’t be said about her 400. I hope that she still has a lot of stamina for 200 race.
It will be fair to call her 1:53.61 not only American record but a world record as well. No way Pellegrini was ever able to swim that fast without assistance of high-tech suit.

Luigi
Reply to  Yozhik
5 years ago

You don’t know that, Yozhik. It is not Federica’s fault if those suits were legal at the time of her peak. But she is no Paul Biedermann …

Yozhik
Reply to  Luigi
5 years ago

Yes, it is my supposition. But you have to agree with me that if she didn’t have any advantage swimming in such a suit she wouldn’t use it. Her suit record is only 0.63 sec faster than Schmitt’s textile one. Do you think that high-tech suit gave her so little advantage? That is less than 0.6%. I can’t give you reference to particular research but from different discussions I got an impression that the effect was more significant than that. Of course it is in average and in each individual case the improvement of performance was different. But still I don’t think it was that little.

Corn Pop
Reply to  Yozhik
5 years ago

In 2019 Pellegrini was world champ in 1.54.2 . . She was also world champ in 2017 in 1.54.8 . The evidence is she is holding her own as worlds best & actually improving .

Yozhik
Reply to  Corn Pop
5 years ago

I don’t know what you mean by “best”. Sometimes best and fast isn’t the same.

Corn Pop
Reply to  Yozhik
5 years ago

Double world champ 2017-19 beats 2012 .

Jim C
Reply to  Yozhik
5 years ago

I remember reading an estimate of 0.7s per 100m as the advantage based on an article from 2011.

Luigi
Reply to  Yozhik
5 years ago

Yozhik, you misread me. I do not deny that the supersuit helped, why should I? It is a solid fact. All I am saying is, we do not know how much it helped (it did not help everyone the same way) and Federica never got a chance to prove herself without the suit in those 2009 WC; so, we do not know whether she would have swam in 1:53 or 1:54-something. I believe that 2009 was a peak year for her (regardless of suit) based on: age; time difference from next competitor (almost 2 secs); stamina (at the time she swam the 200, the 400 and the relay’s 100 free); her being reigning Olympic champ, a feat she never repeated.… Read more »

Yozhik
Reply to  Luigi
5 years ago

Ok, accept your arguments and let’s stop this discussion peacefully at this point. Both 1:52.98 and 1:53.61 are greatest achievements in the history of this event and there is no much sense in comparing them. Let’s consider them incomparable for the sake of respect to swimmers who did it.

Yozhik
Reply to  Luigi
5 years ago

Also, same as me you don’t know that 2009 season was her peak. What is the basis for such statement. Her peak, no matter how strange it may sound, was this season at age of 31. And that is outstanding achievement. Only Schmitt, Ledecky and Sjostrom were faster and only once.

swimgeek
5 years ago

Big 200 tomorrow – go Schmitty

Heyitsme
5 years ago

Looking good for her chances in 2020! Hope she stays dropping time throughout the season and performs well at trials.

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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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