2016 MARIA LENK TROPHY OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Friday, April 15th – Wednesday, April 20th
- Olympic Aquatics Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Prelims 9:30am local/8:30am EDT; Finals 5:30pm local/4:30pm EDT
- Brazilian Olympic Selection Criteria
- Maria Lenk Start List
- Meet Schedule
- Real-Time Results
- Qualifiers After Day 5
Tonight, world record holding sprinter Cesar Cielo was beaten out by both Bruno Fratus and Italo Duarte in the 50 free, missing his chance to qualify for Brazil’s Olympic team.
Cielo clocked 21.91 in the event, improving his prelims time by .08, but it just wasn’t enough. Fratus’s spot on the team was very safe going into the event due to his 21.50 from the Brazil Open, but he kicked it in and won anyway, swimming 21.74. Meanwhile, Duarte finished in 21.82, improving his Brazil Open time and edging out Cielo.
Tonight’s swim was Cielo’s final chance at making an individual event in his home Olympics, after he dropped out of the Brazil Open in December and scratched the final of the 100 free earlier this week.
Cielo, the most successful Brazilian swimmer in history, may have a chance at a relay spot, if the Brazilian Swimming Federation (CBDA) decides to take pity on him. Brazil’s qualification guidelines outline that the country can enter relay-only swimmers provided that they have made the ‘B’ standard for their leg of the relay, which Cielo certainly has.
Brazil’s fourth place finish in the 400 free relay in Kazan has guaranteed their relay’s spot in Rio. However, if the CBDA adds Cielo onto the team as a relay swimmer, he will have to compete, unlike in past years, when relay-only swimmers were allowed to serve as alternates. This means that the Brazilian coaches will have to weigh the risks of missing the ‘A’ final when selecting their final Olympic roster.
I’m Brazilian, and we are really sorry that our hero can not participate in the Olympiad here. However, I believe that all Brazilian swimmers will have a bit of Cielo’s time to compete and will bring many medals 😉
Honest? That is the last word i would ever associate with this man. He betrayed honest swimmers!
Brazilians tend to be pretty emotional people, in sport and life. My half-brother is Brazilian, so I have a pretty good read on these things. Cielo obviously wore his emotions on his sleeve, whether pre-race intensity, post-race celebration, or valedictory address (as we see in the interview). We saw similar shows of sadness when BRA was demolished by GER in the World Cup semi in 2014, both players and fans.
Look at the influence of Cielo in sprinting and in swimming, both in Brazil and world-wide. So many sprinters today copy his pre-race ritual: the intense eyes, the red slap-marks on the chest. Sprinters can be fiery people anyway, but look at his Olympic celebrations. As an Olympic Champion and… Read more »
Former cheater who won gold medals when he should’ve been suspended. Good news and I know that some former(and current) competiters won’t lose sleep this.
I’m really glad that this cheater won’t swim in Rio. And i am definitely not going to miss cheater’s crocodile tears.
I think this is a portent of things to come. I suspect the US OT’s will have similar shockers. Time will tell.
Cielo dropped the relay spot so this might be his retirement. This year schoeman kitajima maybe Phelps swimmers who marked an era will step down for good
He gets to light the torch!!!!