Camp. Republica Juvelines 1 y 2 – Juniors (Argentina Junior Nationals)
- January 3rd-6th
- Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Long Course Meters
- Live Results Link
18-year-old Argentinian distance star, Delfina Pignatiello, won 4 events at the “Camp. Republica Juveniles 1 y 2 – Juniors” meet (Argentina Junior Nationals) in Buenos Aires, breaking the Argentina Youth Record in both the 100 and 200 free. Youth records are the same as Junior Records, applying to athletes 18 years old and younger.
Pignatiello went 56.88 to win the 17-18 women’s 100 free. That time came in exactly half a second under the previous youth record of 57.38. The Argentina national record sits at 55.56. Pignatiello’s time is also the 19th fastest time in the world this season. Julieta Lema, the former record-holder, came in 2nd and also broke her own record, posting a 57.22.
In the 200 free, Pignatiello went 2:00.61 to break her own youth record of 2:01.83 from 2016. That time sits less than half a second off the Argentina national record of 2:00.09, and is the 7th fastest time in the world this year.
Pignatiello also won the 400 and 800 free at the meet, posting times of 4:09.85 and 8:38.82. Those times rank 2nd and 5th in the world this season. Pignatiello already holds the Argentina youth and senior national records in both events at 4:08.33 and 8:25.22 respectively.
Her national records came from the 2017 FINA World Junior Championships in Indianapolis, where she won the 800 and 1500 free, and got Silver in the 400 free. Her 4:08.33 400 was 30th in the world last year, and although that was not her first sub-4:10 performance, she is the first and only Argentinian woman to break 4:10 in the event. Pignatiello crushed the field in the 800 and 1500 at Jr. Worlds, winning the 800 by 5.4 seconds, and the 1500 by 16 seconds. Her 8:25.22 in the 800 finished out last season 13th in the world, and her 1500 time of 15:59.51 was the 5th fastest in the world along with being only the 4th 18&under woman to break 16 minutes.