2021 POLISH SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- April 28 – May 2, 2021
- Lublin, Poland
- Long Course Meters (LCM)
- Olympic Qualification Meet
- Meet Website
- Live Results
- Day 1 Prelims | Day 1 Finals
- Day 2 Prelims
On day 2 of the 2021 Polish Championships, athletes took to the 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, and 50 backstroke, along with the 4×100 freestyle relay.
Mateusz Chowaniec went into the A final as the top seed in the men’s 200 freestyle, having hit a 1:49.10 in the prelims but wound up falling to 4th place in the finals with a 1:50.04. Chowaniec was beaten by the likes of Kamil Sieradzki who hit a 1:48.59 for the victory.
For Sieradzki, that swim cut more than a second from his PB heading into the meet of 1:49.82. Sieradzki was joined on the podium by Jan Hołub (1:48.98) and Jakub Kraska (1:49.66) for bronze. All four of those men swam faster than the FINA B standard which of 1:50.23 which could make a case for their nomination to the team for the 4×200 freestyle relay considering that the Polish men have qualified for a spot in that event in Tokyo.
At the 2019 World Championships, Hołub, Kraska, Jan Świtkowski, and Kacper Majchrzak swam the event for Poland and threw together a 7:12.01 which was good enough for 11th place.
In the women’s 200 freestyle, Aleksandra Polańska and Dominika Kossakowska each dipped under the 2-minute mark to finish first and second, respectively. Polańska was a 1:59.69 for the gold medal while Kossakowska came in just 0.20 seconds later in a 1:59.89. Both of those finishes were quicker than the 200 freestyle FINA B standard of 2:00.80. Wiktoria Guść joined the duo on the podium with a 2:01.57.
Jan Kozakiewicz swam to victory on day 2 in the men’s 100 breaststroke, hitting a 1:01.09 for the victory, just trailing his morning swim in the event of 1:00.64. Both swims for Kozakiewicz were an improvement upon his best 100 breaststroke time heading into the meet of 1:02.90 but were still short of the FINA A standard and auto-qualifying cut of 59.93.
Rafał Kusto and Dawid Wiekiera joined Kozakiewicz in the top 3 by tying each other for second place, each hitting a 1:01.20.
In the women’s 100 breaststroke, Dominika Sztandera pulled off a solid performance by hitting a 1:08.35 which was more than 3 seconds faster than her morning swim of 1:11.41. Sztandera’s winning swim was enough to out-touch second-place finisher Weronika Hallmann‘s 1:08.80 but was not quite her fastest-ever swim which sits at a 1:07.92 from 2017. Just over a second after Hallmann’s touch, Karolina Piechowicz touched with a 1:10.01 for the bronze medal.
Having set a new 17-year-old Polish record during the 50 backstroke prelims, Ksawery Masiuk lowered in again during the final from a 25.28 to a 25.14. That 25.14 for Masiuk was enough to win the event, beating out national record holder Tomasz Polewka‘s 25.26 for silver and Karol Młynarczyk‘s 25.44 for bronze. Polewka currently holds the Polish record in the event at a 24.71 which he set back in 2017.
Alicja Tchórz managed to back-up her top seed in the women’s 50 backstroke by hitting a 28.12 to take gold, improving upon her 28.63 prelims swim. Tchórz was also a little bit over her own Polish record in the event which is a 27.72 from 2018. Agata Naskręt took the silver medal in a 28.64 while Adela Piskorska was a 28.97 for bronze.
Day 2 of the meet ended as both the men and women contested the 4×100 freestyle relays and both winning teams got within a second of the current national record. On the men’s side, Kacper Stokowski (49.57), Jan Karolczak (50.58), Ksawery Masiuk (50.96), and Bartosz Piszczorowicz (48.61) finished with a 3:19.72 to nearly crack the 2017 Polish record of 3:19.13. As for the women, Kornelia Fiedkiewicz (55.27), Karolina Jurczyk (57.00), Alicia Tchórz (55.49), and Klaudia Naziębło (55.80) were a 3:43.46 to get within a second of the current NR of 3:42.87.
FINA Cuts Hit At 2021 Polish Championships
- Jakub Majerski – 100 Butterfly (51.91)
- Paweł Juraszek – 50 Freestyle (21.72/21.77)