Former Blue Devil standout Piotr Safronczyk took second in the 100 short course meters breaststroke Friday at the Polish Swimming Nationals, rounding out an impressive showing in the event this week.
Safronczyk, who entered the meet seeded 24th in the 100 breaststroke, qualified for the event semifinals as the third seed after dropping over two seconds for a time of 1:01.00. In the semifinals, he clocked 1:00.30 to move up to the second seed for Friday evening’s final. The final saw him touch at 1:00.18 to finish second in the field of eight swimmers.
A native of Bialystok, Poland, Safronczyk was a graduate student member of the Duke program during the 2011-12 season after previously competing at the Div. II level for two seasons at the University of Bridgeport in in Bridgeport, Conn. He was a key contributor for the Blue Devil men in the breaststroke lane, capturing the 2012 ACC title in the 100 breaststroke and garnering All-ACC honors at the 100 and 200-yard distance. Safronczyk was a member of the 200 medley relay team that broke an ACC and program record and guided the 200 and 400 medley relays to a pair of podium finishes at the conference meet. He capped his year at Duke by claiming honorable mention All-America accolades with a 15th-place performance in the 100 breaststroke at the 2012 NCAA Championships. Safronczyk joined teammate Ben Tuben in becoming the first Blue Devil men’s swimmers to achieve All-America status and score at an NCAA Championship meet in over 30 years.
Safronczyk remains the school record holder in the 100 breaststroke at 52.99.
This release was provide to SwimSwam courtesy of Duke Swimming and Diving.