14-year-old Lubo Liu-Tchorbadjiyski Clocks 49.79 100 Back at IL FMC HSC Speedo Grand Challenge

2025 IL FMC HSC Speedo Grand Challenge

• November 21-23, 2025
• FMC Natatorium, Westmont, IL
• SCY (25 yards)
• Results

New Tier Aquatics’ Lubo Liu-Tchorbadjiyski highlighted the Illinois Speedo Grand Challenge, with a massive 100 backstroke performance that has now slotted him among the fastest ever to swim the event in the boys’ 13-14 age group.

Liu-Tchorbadjiyski, 14, came into the meet with a best time in the 100 back of 51.95 from just three weeks earlier at the IL PAC Fall Classic. He bested that time in prelims, dropping down to 51.07 to qualify 6th for the ‘A’ final. Liu-Tchorbadjiyski was the youngest ‘A’-finalist by two years.

He would not stop there, scraping more than a second off of that newly minted best time to finish 4th in 49.79, the 9th fastest in the boys’ 13-14 age group this season, and the 33rd fastest all time in the 13-14 age group.

Liu-Tchorbadjiyski also leaped up in the all-time 13-14 national age group rankings in the 100 free; his 9th place prelims performance of 45.79 demolished his previous best time of 48.52 from February, earning him a share of a four-way tie for the 42nd fastest performer in 13-14 NAG history. Liu-Tchorbadjiyski went on to finish 8th in the ‘A’ final, stopping the clock in 46.06.

Other Notable Performances:

• 15-year-old Grace Koenig-Song surged to the girls’ 100 breast win in 1:01.17. A few weeks later, she would swim her best time of 1:00.57 at the Speedo Winter Junior Championships – West, tying her for the 46th fastest ever in the 15-16 age group.
  • She also added a win in the 50 breast, in 28.85, and a very tight win in the 200 IM, outpacing Lulu Flynn by .26 seconds in 29.11.
• Luke Vatev took the win in the boys’ 100 back in 48.34, the sixth-fastest time of his career.
  • Vatev’s best sits as the 7th fastest in the 15-16 NAG history in 46.52.
• The top three in the boys’ 50 fly were separated by just two tenths of a second.
  • Aidan Kaplan (21.49), London Rising (21.60), and Ethan Chung (21.69) each battled for the top spot; nobody else in the event swam under 22 seconds.