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Peru’s Sam Bello has verbally committed to the Indiana Hoosiers’ class of 2025.
Extremely excited to announce my verbal commitment to swim at the University of Indiana!!! I am so thankful for my amazing family, friends and everyone who has supported me in and out the pool and cannot wait to spend the next years with the best team at the best school!!! GO HOOSIERS 🔴⚪️
TOP TIMES (LCM / SCY conv.)
- 200 free – 2:03.93 / 1:49.24
- 400/500 free – 4:17.92 / 4:48.64
- 800/1000 free – 8:51.80 / 10:13.07
- 1500/1650 free – 17:44.14 / 17:18.47
Bello is one of Peru’s top freestylers; her 400 free is only tenths from the national record, and her 800 free is only a couple seconds off the national mark. She’s represented Peru on the international stage several times, first competing at the 2017 World Junior Championships in the 200/400/800/1500 free, and she placed 20th in the 1500 with a lifetime best 17:44.14.
More recently, Bello raced at the 2019 Pan American Games, where she placed ninth in the 400 free (4:17.92) to just miss the A-final. Making that A-final was American and IU ’25 commit Mariah Denigan; the two will be teammates starting next fall in Bloomington.
Indiana is led in distance by seniors Maria Heitmann (1:45.7/4:40.2) and Josie Grote (1:46.5/4:41.0/16:15) and junior Maggie Wallace (4:44.5/16:08). Bello should overlap one season with Wallace.
Bello joins the following swimmers in IU’s class of 2025 on the women’s side:
| Anna Peplowski |
| Bre Crawford |
| Catherine Minic |
| Elyse Heiser |
| Emma Shaughnessy |
| Kabria Chapman |
| Kacey McKenna |
| Katie Carson |
| Mariah Denigan |
| Sydney Turner |
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It is ironic that Sam Bello will be swimming for Indiana University as her father Juan Bello, swimming for the University of Michigan, competed numerous times against Indiana University’s Mark Spitz, the all time gold medal winner in a single Olympics until that record was surpassed by Michael Phelps. I worked at a sorority house at Michigan with Juan in the 1960s.
Any relation to Juan Bello, the former Peruvian NCAA champ who swam for Michigan?
It’s his daughter
Dang, I’m not the smartest person on earth, not even close, but if this was a “Final Jeopardy” question, I would have bet the house on it!
I went to the University of Michigan with Juan Bello. We were on the kitchen crew together at a sorority house in 1967-68. I’m kinda surprised Samatha will be going to Indiana University given that her father beat Indiana University’s Mark Spitz several times when he was at Michigan. I actually saw evidence of this at the Johnny Bello Swim Center in Lima in 2007. Is Samantha swimming for Peru in the 2021 Olympics?
Awesome! Sam, we look forward to having you at Indiana University, located in the paradise called “Bloomington, Indiana.” You will thrive and greatly improve swimming with the greatest teammates under the watchful eye of the GOAT, Head Coach Ray Looze. #rayloozegoatcoach, #iuclassbyitself, #gohoosiers