Swim of the Week is brought to you by arena, a SwimSwam partner.
Disclaimer: Swim of the Week is not meant to be a conclusive selection of the best overall swim of the week, but rather one Featured Swim to be explored in deeper detail. The Swim of the Week is an opportunity to take a closer look at the context of one of the many fast swims this week, perhaps a swim that slipped through the cracks as others grabbed the headlines, or a race we didn’t get to examine as closely in the flood of weekly meets.
Pleasanton Seahawks swimmer Tim Wu continued his steady rise last weekend at the George Haines International meet in California, resetting his best time down to 1:50.74 in the 200 free.
Wu, 15, came into the meet with a best time of 1:50.94, set on March 1 at the Marin Sectionals. On the weekend, he went 1:51.01 in the prelims of the 200 free and then 1:51.22 in the final, placing 3rd behind Luca Urlando (1:48.34) and Pleasanton teammate Luka Mijatovic (1:49.79).
A few days later, Wu took on the 200 free again in a time trial, clocking 1:50.74 for a new lifetime best by two-tenths. The performance slots him into 7th all-time among 15-year-old boys in the United States, while Mijatovic’s swim ranks him 4th.
All-Time Performers, 15-Year-Old Boys’ 200 Freestyle (LCM)
- Maximus Williamson (North Texas Nadadores), 1:48.21 – 2022 Junior Pa Pacs
- Ian Crocker (Portland Porpoise Swim Club), 1:49.48 – 1998 U.S. Summer Nationals
- Dare Rose (Scarlet Aquatics), 1:49.65 – 2018 Junior Pan Pacs
- Luka Mijatovic (Pleasanton Seahawks), 1:49.79 – 2024 George Haines International Meet
- Thomas Heilman (Cavalier Aquatics/Piedmont Family YMCA), 1:50.34 – 2022 U.S. Junior Nationals
- Carson Foster (Mason Manta Rays), 1:50.44 – 2017 U.S. Junior Nationals
- Tim Wu (Pleasanton Seahawks), 1:50.74 – 2024 George Haines International Meet
- Trey Freeman (Baylor Swim Club), 1:51.00 –2016 NAC Long Course Invite
- Oliver Rowe (Nitro Swimming), 1:51.25 – 2022 U.S. Junior Nationals
- Gunnar Bentz (Dynamo Swim Club), 1:51.41 – 2011 U.S. Junior Nationals
Wu, who will turn 16 this summer, also moves into 29th all-time in the boys’ 15-16 age group.
In the time trial, he was presumably aiming for the Olympic Trials cut of 1:49.99, falling just three-quarters of a second shy.
He also swam a best time of 3:57.56 in the 400 free at the George Haines meet, ranking him 20th all-time among 15-year-old Americans and 79th all-time in the 15-16 age group.
Coming off his sophomore year at Dougherty Valley High School, Wu placed 3rd in the 100 fly (47.51) and 4th in the 200 IM (1:47.04) at the CIF State Championships earlier this month.
Follow arena USA on Instagram here.
About arena
arena has revolutionized the world of aquatic sport through insightful collaboration with world class athletes and the development of cutting edge competitive swimwear since 1973. Today, this spirit of collaboration and innovation lives on through a continuous evolution of advanced materials and Italian design that improves the performance, style and expression of all those who chose arena. From leading the lanes to living in style, arena is dedicated to providing all swimmers with the tools they need to express themselves, feel confident, win and achieve more. Because in arena, you can.