2021 VA PRVT A3 May Qualifier
- May 21-22, 2021
- Christiansburg Aquatic Center, Christiansburg, VA
- LCM (50m)
- PDF Results
- Meet Mobile Results: “PRVT A3 May Qualifier”
2016 Olympian Santo Condorelli was in action last week at the PRVT A3 May Qualifier in Christiansburg, Virginia, putting up some very strong times – including a season-best 48.90 in the 100 freestyle.
Condorelli, 26, first clocked 49.12 in the prelims before taking two tenths off in the final, improving on his 49.07 done in early April.
Condorelli, who now represents Italy internationally but has previously donned both the American and Canadian flags on the world stage, also produced times of 22.54 in the 50 free and 52.86 in the 100 fly – falling shy of his respective season-bests of 22.29 and 52.30.
Since racing at the Italian Championships at the beginning of April, Condorelli has been training with Pinnacle Racing and coach Sergio Lopez Miro in Virginia. Lopez tells SwimSwam that Condorelli “has been doing very well and seems on the right path to swim very well.”
Having failed to meet the Italian Olympic qualification standards in Riccione, Condorelli is eyeing June’s Sette Colli Trophy – which will be the last chance for Italian swimmers to qualify for the Olympic team.
Condorelli will need to post a time of 21.70 (50 free), 48.20 (100 free) and 51.50 (100 fly) to individually make the Olympic team in one of those events, while showings of 48.57 and 51.96 would be good enough for relay slots in the latter two races.
So far, Alessandro Miressi (47.45) is the lone Italian men to eclipse the individual standard in the 100 free, and Federico Burdisso (51.39) is the only one to do so in the 100 fly. No one has been under the 50 free marker.
Perhaps the most promising aspect of Condorelli’s racing last weekend, particularly in the 100 free, was his splitting. He’s always been known to take the race out very fast—including leading the 2016 Olympic final at the 50 before finishing fourth—but Condorelli showed great back-end speed in both of his swims.
In the prelims, he split 24.01/25.11, and then in the final he was 23.83/25.07. Compare that to his swims at the Italian Championships: 22.88/26.19 in the prelims, and then 22.79/26.36 in the final. If he can add in a bit of speed with taper and maintain the back-half, he’ll be in good shape.
When swimming his personal best time of 47.88, done in that 2016 Olympic final representing Canada, Condorelli split 22.22/25.66.
OTHER MEET HIGHLIGHTS
- Alex Evdokimov threw down times of 1:01.62 and 2:15.91 in the men’s 100 and 200 breast – he’ll be a contender to final in both events at the upcoming Olympic Trials. Evdokimov has been 1:00.47 and 2:12.10 in the two events this season.
- Farida Osman, who represents Egypt internationally, topped the women’s 50 free with a time of 25.75, having been as fast as 25.10 this season at the U.S. Open in November.
- 2016 Olympic gold medalist Joseph Schooling raced the men’s 200 fly for the first time this season, clocking 2:07.01 in the final, and also went 1:08.72 in the 100 breaststroke.
- Spanish native Carles Coll Marti, a rising sophomore at Virginia Tech, put together a very strong 200 IM in a time of 2:02.17, taking off almost three seconds from his previous best (set in the prelims).
- Emma Atkinson, who is coming off a historic fourth-place finish in the 200 backstroke at the Women’s NCAA Championships as a freshman for Virginia Tech, raced the 200 free (2:03.05) and 100 back (1:02.35), both her first times racing those events this season. Atkinson owns best times in those events of 1:59.82 and 1:01.37, respectively.
- Two more notable names who were also first-years this past season with the Hokies were Chase Travis and Caroline Bentz. Travis posted a solid 16:40.49 in the women’s 1500 free, marking her fastest swim in the event since December of 2019. Bentz raced the women’s 50 free (25.93), 100 free (56.58), 50 back (29.12) and 200 IM (2:19.35), establishing lifetime bests in all but the medley, where she was 2:18.63 at the U.S. Open in November.
The king of swimming fast when it doesn’t count
His best time was at the Olympics???
At his best he could make Itlay a medal threat in 4x100free… they had a 48.3 at euros and got 3rd, only 0.3 behind the UK. And Miressi was also notably slower than he went later in the meet (47.7 and later 47.4). It’s a long shot but if he gets back to his 47.8 flat-start form then honestly they suddenly get in the fight for bronze, right?
I just knew the comments about Santo and Joe would be brutal
I wish him well. Italy could have a great 4×100 free (bronze, maybe?)
Looking like Schooling won’t even make semis. Yeesh.
When I saw Joseph Schooling’s times my jaw dropped
Yeah, but he gets to keep avoiding military service. So there’s that.
Joe schooling, with those times even qualify him for TAGS?
This might be controversial but I think if Joe had not won gold in rio, I think he would still be one of the best butterflyers in the world right now.
That spiked his confidence and then Dressel beating him 2 years in a row at NCs and dropping a 42.8 in 2018 likely crushed his confidence.
When you’re so dominant and on top of the world your first 2 years and are suddenly being passed, it can be hard
No that seems right. Sometimes athletes reach their ultimate goal, and let off the gas. That may have been the case for Joe
He also may look at dressel and say “yeah I’m good, no need to train myself to death to get 2nd”
May we was swimming breast for the event 🤔🤔🤔
He ate too much Milo
We were close to seeing Dean Farris chase Santo around the world….glad that didn’t happen.