2021 US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wednesday, December 1 – Saturday, December 4, 2021
- Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, NC
- LCM (50m)
- Meet Info
- Meet Central
- Psych Sheets
- Live Results (Omega)
A pair of Olympic gold medalists earned wins on the opening night of the 2021 US Open in Greensboro, as Katie Ledecky and Bobby Finke walked away victorious in the 800 freestyle.
Women’s 800 Free
- Katie Ledecky, 8:12.81
- Leah Smith, 8:23.78
- Sierra Schmidt, 8:34.80
Ledecky won the women’s event in 8:12.81, just three-tenths off of her Olympic-winning time from the summer and a new US Open Record, lowering her 8:14.59 set in 2019.
Leah Smith recorded her fastest swim in two years to take second in 8:23.78, and Sierra Schmidt was third in 8:34.80.
Race Video:
Men’s 800 Free
- Bobby Finke, 7:54.07
- Charlie Clark, 7:54.40
- Tommy-Lee Camblong, 8:01.33
Finke used his patented closing speed to win the men’s race in a time of 7:54.07, using a blistering 27.20 last 50 to overtake Ohio State’s Charlie Clark (7:54.40), who made a big move late and fell just shy of the win.
Race Video:
Read full recaps of both races from the opening night of action in Greensboro here.
The first full day of competition is already underway, with Ledecky and Finke both entered to swim the 400 free on Thursday. Check out the Day 2 Prelims Live Recap here.
Chai the teenager out of SoCal (FAST) splits a 56 on the last 100.
Is it just me or does Ledecky’s stroke look 1000x more smooth than it did at the Olympics?
it looks really nice
Yes indeed, long, smooth and high in the water. To me, it looked like she was using her legs a little more throughout the race, tho not with the turbo kick that comes at the end.
She’s less upright again, getting her head submerged briefly after the breath, which I think has been key to her stroke.