SwimMAC’s Michael Chadwick dropped over a second off his lifetime-best in the 100 free to pick up the win on night 4 of the Speedo Sectional in Athens.
Chadwick blasted a 48.87 to win the event by nearly a second, landing just a tenth outside of the top 25 times in the world this year.
That’s a monster drop for Chadwick, a rising junior at the University of Missouri. Chadwick had only been under 50 seconds once in his career prior to today, a 49.91 from the June Mare Nostrum meet in Canet, France. Chadwick went 49.38 in prelims this morning, then cracked the 49-second barrier at night.
That time makes Chadwick the second-fastest American this year, and only .02 behind Olympic gold medalist Nathan Adrian.
It also vaults Chadwick into the conversation for a potential relay spot on Team USA next summer. The top 6 finishers in the 100 free at the 2016 Olympic Trials will make the Olympic team, and in 2012, a 48.88 was the final time to make the team – .01 slower than what Chadwick went tonight.
Georgia Bulldogs continued to swim well overall in their home city. Annie Zhu won the women’s 200 breast in 2:30.95, and her teammate Nic Fink made it an Athens Bulldog Swim Club sweep with a 2:13.56 win in the men’s event.
Fink will contest that event along with the 100 breast at the World Championships next month.
Club Wolverine 18-year-old Hannah Moore won the women’s 200 back, going 2:12.89 to win by over a second. Cardinal Aquatics’ Grigory Tarasevich represented Louisville as the winner of the men’s race, going 1:59.26.
The night’s opening event went to yet another NCAA swimmer, North Carolina Tar Heel Lauren Earp. Earp was 56.00 to touch out Club Wolverine’s Ali Deloof (56.15) for the win.
SwimAtlanta’s Rachel Muller, part of the NC State Wolfpack, won the women’s 1500 free in 16:54.06. The men’s event went to Club Wolverine’s PJ Ransford, a fast-rising 18-year-old, in 15:17.65.
Lakeside Swim Team swept the relay events on the night. The Lakeside girls went 1-2 in the 400 medley relay, getting a 1:10.5 breaststroke split from Kennedy Lohman and a 1:02.16 fly leg from Asia Seidt to go 4:13.94. The boys team went 3:53.21, with Lee Bradley going 54.87 on fly.
Full results available on Meet Mobile.
Nick Soedel should be in contention for a relay spot also.
Cool to see sometimes a good surprise from a college swimmer that almost nobody has seen coming.
Great time drop. Even if there’s still much work to do, that’s promising for the olympic trials.
They know how to train sprinters at SwimMAC!
Gotta give some credit to Mizzou too. The sprint coach, Andrew Grevers, is an awesome person and coach.
Pretty sure Mark Gangloff is coaching Chadwick at Missouri!
That s the great about swimming:there is always one name coming from nowhere to crash predictions.We will have to keep the eyes open, because the scene can change until Rio.
If he can go 48 again when it counts next year at Trials, he’s got a real shot at making top 6.
Verterans:
Adrian
Feigen
Ervin
Lochte
Phelps
Grevers
Dwyer (but I don’t think he has enough speed)
Newcomers:
Chadwick
Dressel
Conger
Stubblefield
Murphy
Ryan, Towsend, Phillips were all 49.3 or lower last year.
40 Men were sub 50 last year.