2019 PRO SWIM SERIES – RICHMOND
- April 10-13, 2019
- Collegiate School Aquatics Center, Richmond, VA
- Meet information
- Psych Sheets
- Live results
- TV/Live Stream Schedule
- Live Stream – USA Swimming (Prelims & Finals)
- Live Stream – NBC Sports (Finals)
- Saturday Finals Heat Sheet
Sprint sensation Michael Andrew upset reigning World, Pan Pac, and U.S. National Champion Chase Kalisz tonight in the finals of the men’s 200 IM at the Richmond PSS in a huge new personal best time of 1:57.49. Andrew’s strategy of sprinting the first three legs of the race and out-splitting everybody else in the field on each of them paid off tonight, despite having the 2nd-slowest closing split in the field.
Andrew opened the race under World Record pace with a blazing 24.50 butterfly split, putting himself nearly a full second ahead of everyone else after just 50 meters. Kalisz almost matched Andrew’s backstroke split, hitting a 29.88 to Andrew’s 29.70, but the lead Andrew built on the fly was more-than-enough to hold a big lead after the backstroke, 54.20 to 55.44, respectively.
Bronze medalist Josh Prenot made up some ground on the breaststroke and was the only swimmer other than Andrew to split sub-34, turning in a 33.73 to Andrew’s 33.29, though by by 150, Andrew had a 2-second lead over his nearest competitor, Kalisz.
Andrew’s final time of 1:57.49 not only rockets him to the 4th-fastest in the world this year, but it would have been fast enough to earn him a place in the championship final at the 2017 FINA World Championships.
In spite of his substantial second-and-a-half margin victory over Kalisz, and 3+ second margin over the rest of the field, Andrew had the 2nd-slowest closing split of anybody on Saturday night: 30.00.
While Andrew’s butterfly split tonight was faster than all the opening splits in the men’s 200 IM at the 2017 World Championships; his freestyle, is a full 1.18 seconds behind the slowest freestyle split of the 2017 final in Budapest. That split belonged to Japan’s Daiya Seto, who turned in a 28.82 over the final 50.
Andrew’s split at 150 was 1:27.49. By comparison, Brazilian Thiago Pereira attempted a similar “fly-and-die” strategy at the 2016 Rio Olympics, blasting through the first 150 in 1:27.37 and making the final turn in 2nd place, only to fade to 7th with a final time of 1:58.02 after a freestyle split of 30.65.
Andrew has a history of taking the 200 IM out fast. When he went his former lifetime best time of 1:59.12 a the Indy PSS in 2017, Andrew’s first 50 butterfly was a 24.83–under WR pace. In prelims this morning Andrew opened in a 24.69–under WR pace. Over the middle 100 tonight Andrew distanced himself from his competition, but still faded (relatively speaking) on the final 50 of freestyle.
If Andrew were able to narrow the gap on the rest of the field (or the rest of the world) over the freestyle split and not loose any of the speed he showed tonight on the first 150, his already world-class 200 IM could transform into a particularly keen event for him, and make him a front-runner for one of the coveted two spots on the 2020 Olympic Team in that event.
Splits comparison:
| Fly | Back | Breast | Free | Total | |
| Michael Andrew – 2017 Indy PSS | 24.83 | 30.10 | 34.23 | 29.96 | 1:59.12 |
| Michael Andrew – 2019 Richmond PSS | 24.50 | 29.70 | 33.29 | 30.00 | 1:57.49 |
2018-2019 LCM MEN 200 IM
LARKIN
1.55.72
| 2 | Daiya SETO | JPN | 1.56.14 | 07/25 |
| 3 | Jeremy DESPLANCHES | SUI | 1.56.56 | 07/25 |
| 4 | Duncan Scott | GBR | 1.56.65 | 04/20 |
| 5 | Shun WANG | CHN | 1.56.66 | 03/28 |
According to Instagram, Sjöström swam a 23.91 in the 50free today
Imagine some 19 year old kid with the following PBs, all LCM (and take your weird and unfounded anti-MA bias out of the equation; just imagine its a random kid you’re hearing about):
50 Freestyle – 21.46
100 Freestyle – 49.87
50 Backstroke – 24.49
100 Backstroke – 53.55
50 Breaststroke – 26.84
100 Breaststroke – 59.38
50 Butterfly – 22.93
100 Butterfly – 51.53
200 IM – 1:57.49
Absolutely world class times in all four 50s & all four 100s (with perhaps the lone exception of the 100 Free, which is still great for a 19 year old) and the 200IM. This is objectively an incredible series of times, possibly the… Read more »
Yeah but, yeah but [insert something about Dressel here] 😉
Ledecky’s last 50 free was faster than MA’s in the 200 IM. I get she’s a power house but… He really needs to work on bringing it home… enough with the 50s time to put more emphasis on 100s and 200s
No one in the world has — or is even close to, across the board —- his best times for the 100 fly (51.5), 100 back (53.5), 100 breast (59.3), 100 free (49.87) that he has. Those are Phelps/Lochte (unsuited) times for a broken 400 IM (obviously they were faster in free, but that’s offset by the breast). So maybe all the 100 guys should start working on their 50’s.
I have no idea what to make of MA, he does not conform to any easy stereotype. He leads a uniquely insular life but shares it openly and cheerfully through his (pretty damned good) YouTube channel. He turned pro at 14 and his parents don’t seem to be actively employed, both huge warning signs, but he seems to lead a grounded and happy family life. His training is worryingly unusual and even faddish but it seems to work for him and clearly has delivered real results. To me, the Michael Andrew Experiment just goes to show that you can’t make snap judgements about people, their choices or their families. I still don’t know where his story is leading but I’m… Read more »
His mother works it was in his vlog
I think the way he did not train with a traditional team or go to college rub some in the wrong way. People get very excited about and speculate how good CD would be in 200IM because he is very good in 2strokes and up there the other two… but hot upset with MA winning with a slow last 50 for his first comp in this event in 2 years.
Yes he did race pace only but some of his set is about 4500. All fast. Not too different from a main set in a traditional workout. Just took out the warm up and cool down.
It works for him and he get to this point and just about to… Read more »
Awesome swim Michael!! I swear that if you just chill on the first 50 you will be the world record holder one day. I know you’re speedy but making up that half a second you lose on the first lap will be cake over the last 150. I promise you.
His rhythm in freestyle beyond a 50 has always looked off. The timing with his breath just doesn’t seem to be there
If he paces that better, could really have room for improvement. I would of never thought MA would be good at any race beyond a 100 but he proved me wrong.
The 200s are now a longer sprint. Most of the guys in yards have shown that and I feel that we will begin to see it rise again in the LC version in the summers to come. He’s just ahead of the curve because pacing wise he’s .9 back of Prime Lochte at the 150 as a 19 year old, he just needs a better 200 free-esqe stroke.
Just watched it. MA looked really really good. I don’t think his Free looked that bad even but his breakout was bad probably due to how hard he had gone to 150 but once he surfaced no one came back on him really. If he can get to 150 with a bit more left and drop 29 flat he has a medal chance. Also I liked his interview. I have never been a fan of the 50s so I hadn’t really paid alot of attention to MA but he is way more than a 50 swimmer and with his performance last summer and this I have definitely noticed him now.