Kevin Kyi Sets New National Age Group Record in the 11-12 50m Back

This weekend at the VAST Summer Sprints meet, Kevin Kyi set a new National Age Group Record in the boys’ 11-12 50 LCM backstroke. Kyi swam the event in 28.41 to take down the 28.49 set by Seth Beer all the way back in 2009.

This is Kyi’s first National Age Group Record. He dropped three quarters of a second from his previous personal best, a 29.26 from the Hyack Festival Youth Cup at the end of May.

Earlier this spring, Kyi made our Weekly Wonders of Age Group Swimming list by setting a pair of backstroke meet records at the 9th Annual Dick LaFave Long Course Kickoff.

Kyi is coached by Tommy Cunningham at King Aquatic Club. King has a monster age group program that is home to National Age Group record holders Tyler Lu (11-12 SC 200 back) and Ethan Dang (10&u LC 100 breast, 11-12 LC 100 breast, 11-12 200 breast, 11-12 SC 50 breast, 11-12 SC 100 breast, 11-12 SC 200 breast).

The King Aquatic Club relays also hold NAGs in the 13-14 boys’ LC 200 medley, the 15-16 boys’ LC 200 medley, the 17-18 girls’ LC 200 medley, the 17-18 girls’ LC 400 medley, the 15-18 boys’ LC 200 free relay, the 11-12 boys’ SC 200 medley, the 13-14 boys’ SC 200 medley, and the 13-14 boys’ SC 400 medley.

Beer, incidentally, is now a member of the baseball team at Clemson, where there is no longer a swim team, after swimming, playing baseball, and playing football in high school. He was a starter for the ACC Champion Tigers after graduating high school early and enrolling in college in January, and this season has blossomed into one of the top pro prospects in the country in a different sport.