These are our favorite swims from the weekend of September 28-30, 2018:
Shelby Fish, 12, Columbia Aquatics Association (CAA-MD): 50y free (25.66) – Fish took 6/10 off her seed time to break the 26-second barrier for the first time, winning the girls’ 12 50 free at 28th Annual Columbus Day Classic hosted by UMBC/Retriever Aquatics. Fish is 1.25 seconds faster than she was at the same meet last year. She won the 50/100/200 free, was 2nd in the 50 back and 100 IM, and took 3rd in the 50 breast and 50 fly, going PBs in all 7 events.
Trevan Valena, 11, Texas Ford Aquatics (TFA-NT): 500y free (5:01.86) – Swimming at the Battle LAC v. TFA Duel Meet, Valena won the boys’ 11-12 200 free, 500 free and 100 back. His 500 free time was a PB by 4.5 seconds and fully 22.2 seconds faster than at this time of the season last year. In fact, at the same meet in 2017 he went 5:24.06 in the 500 free.
Lance Norris, 15, Rocky Mount Family YMCA (RMY-NC): 500y free (4:33.48) – Norris kicked off the 2018-19 short course season going 6-for-6 at the RMY Fall Invitational: he won all 6 of his individual events (500 free, 200 back, 200 breast, 200 fly, 200 IM, and 400 IM and picked up new PBs in each of them. His 500 free time was 1/10 better than his seed time and 16 seconds faster than at this same meet a year ago (where he swam a then-PB of 4:49.41).
Amy Zhang, 13, North Coast Aquatics (NCA-SI): 100y back (58.69) – Swimming at the MESA-NCA-TMEC Tri Meet, Zhang took .04 off her best 100 back time to win the women’s event by nearly half a pool length. She was 3.6 seconds ahead of last November’s pace (1:02.23). Zhang also won the 100 fly and was 3rd in the 100 breast. She updated her PBs in all three events.
Michael Zhang, 14, Dragon Swim Team (DRAG-PV): 100y breast (1:00.13) – Zhang came in 3rd in the 100 breast at the MAKO Fall Invitational, improving his seed time by 7/10 and going 3.5 seconds faster than he’d been at this meet last year (1:03.65). He dropped 2.8 seconds to win the 200 breast and 4.3 seconds to win the 200 IM. He was also 24th in the 200 free and 38th in the 50 free.
Mauricio Posadas, 14, El Paso Aqua Posse (EPAP-BD): 100y breast (1:02.75) – Posadas took 1/10 off his seed time to win the boys’ 13-14 100 breast at the LCAT Pecan Classic Open, going 3.9 seconds faster than he’d been at the same meet a year ago (1:06.90). He was runner-up in the 200 breast and 400 IM and placed 3rd in the 200 free, 100/200 back and 200 IM. He also picked up new PBs in the 200 free and 400 IM during the weekend.
Mary Shanahan, 12, Hillsborough Aquatic Club (HAC-NC): 100y fly (59.89) – Shanahan cracked the 1-minute barrier in the 100 fly for the first time at the Rock The Block Quad Meet. She took 9/10 off her best time and was 3.4 seconds faster than she’d been in October 2017. She also won the 100 free, 50/100 back and 50 fly and was 5th in the 50 free.
Sophia Corder, 13, Northern Aquatic Club (NAC-NM): 100y fly (1:00.50) – Swimming at LCAP Pecan Classic Open, Corder won the girls’ 13-14 100 fly by nearly half a pool length. She was 2 seconds faster than her entry time and 3.9 ahead of last year’s pace (she went 1:04.35 at same meet last year). She also won the 200 fly (with a PB by 4 seconds, 2:17.53), was runner-up in the 50/100/200 free, 100 back, and 200/400 IM, and placed 6th in the 100 breast. She left the meet with new times in all 9 events.
Reminder: The Weekly Wonders column is a celebration of age-group swimming, where new champions are made every day. Anyone can look up the top swims of the week. That’s not what we’re doing here. If we were only reporting on the week’s top swims we would feature the same handful of athletes every Wednesday. Instead, this is an opportunity to introduce the swimming community to athletes who have made great strides in the context of their own particular swimming worlds. By association, it also celebrates their coaches and their teams. The Weekly Wonders column, therefore, amounts to a pat on the back for a job well done, and hopefully encourages swimmers of all levels to continue to reach from within to get to that next level.
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ABOUT MP
Launched in the spring of 2015, MP designed by Aqua Sphere is a shared vision to develop innovative products that are inclusive and accessible to a broader range of swimmers across the full swimming lifecycle. Combining Aqua Sphere’s global product design expertise and distribution with Michael Phelps’ and Bob Bowman’s experiences at the highest levels of swim performance, the MP brand features technical swim products leveraging proprietary technologies and performance enhancing designs.
ABOUT AQUA SPHERE
Established in Genoa, Italy, in 1998, Aqua Sphere is the premier swimming equipment manufacturer for fitness and recreational swimming, aquatic exercise and triathlons. With the launch of its cutting-edge Seal Mask—the world’s first swim mask, the company set the industry standard and today continues to innovate with a complete range of premium products, including eye protection, swimwear, triathlon wetsuits, footwear, and swim fitness and training accessories. The designs have gained the respect and loyal following of many celebrities and notable athletes, including the world’s most decorated Olympian Michael Phelps, with whom Aqua Sphere is partnering to develop a global brand partnership. Alongside its parent company Aqua Lung and supported by an international distribution network, Aqua Sphere has grown into a worldwide enterprise representing unparalleled design, development and manufacturing expertise, with a global footprint in more than 90 countries. For more information, visit www.AquaSphereSwim.com orhttp://www.Facebook.com/AquaSphereSwim.
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Aqua Lung pioneered the creation of modern diving equipment in 1943 when Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau teamed with Emile Gagnan to develop the first “aqua-lung” that made underwater exploration possible. Today, the brand continues to be the leading global designer and manufacturer of dive and water sports gear. With a deep commitment to quality, research and testing, Aqua Lung has revolutionized the scuba diving experience by setting industry standards for scuba equipment in technology, comfort, safety and design. The company’s rich history as an expert in the dive and water sports industry has led to the demand of Aqua Lung equipment for recreational, technical and military applications in more than 90 countries around the world, under the brand names of Aqua Lung, Aqua Sphere, Apeks, U.S. Divers, and Stohlquist. For more information, visit www.AquaLung.com or http://www.Facebook.com/AquaLungDivers.