2023 British Championships – Day 1 Finals Live Recap

2023 BRITISH SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, April 4th – Sunday, April 9th
• Prelims at 9:30 am local (4:30 am EDT)/Finals at 6:00 pm local (1:00 pm EDT)
• Ponds Forge, Sheffield
• LCM (50m)
• World Championships Qualifier
• World Championships Selection Criteria
• Draft Entries
• Live Results
• Livestream

Racing is underway in Sheffield as we get into day one finals at the British Swimming Championships. The first day of racing will start off with the women’s 50 breaststroke and the men’s 50 backstroke. The women’s 200 freestyle and the men’s 400 free will follow before we round out the session with the women’s 200 IM and men’s 100 breast.

Women’s 50 Breaststroke

• British Record: 30.02 – Imogen Clark (2022)

Podium:

1. Kara Hanlon – 30.50
2. Sienna Robinbson – 31.46
3. Angharad Evans – 31.72

Imogen Clark is the British record-holder in this event, having swum a 30.02 last year at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. She came into this meet as the top seed and had lane four for the final. Clark stopped the clock at a 30.09 to get within 0.07 seconds of her national record. Clark, however, was disqualified shortly after the race ended, leaving the gold medal for Kara Hanlon.

Luckily for Clark, this isn’t a selection event as it’s not an Olympic event and the 50 breaststroke spots for the World Championships this summer will likely be decided based on the 100 breaststroke results.

Kara Hanlon‘s winning time of 30.50 was a new best time and was also a new Scottish record in the event. The former mark was Corrie Scott‘s 30.64 from the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Hanlon now holds the long course Scottish record in both the 50 and 100 breaststrokes.

Hanlon had a PB of 30.99 heading into this meet, meaning that she has now shaved nearly half a second off her time with this swim. Sienna Robinson got under 32 for the second time today when she swam a 31.46 to take the silver medal and Angharad Evans notched a 31.72 for bronze.

Men’s 50 Backstroke

• British Record: 24.04 (2009)

Podium:

1. Oliver Morgan – 24.84
2. Sebastian Somerset – 25.21
3. Cameron Booker – 25.23

Oliver Morgan had an electric middle of this race, powering ahead of the rest of the field in this 50-meter race. Morgan was the only man here to crack 25 seconds, winning his first British title ever with a 24.84. Morgan came into the meet with a time of 25.40 from July 2022 and he got down to a 25.07.

Morgan said after the race that he only started really training within the past couple of years when he started University. This performance for Morgan bodes well for his effort in the 100 backstroke tomorrow where he will go up against Britain’s premiere backstrokers to vie for a spot on the World Championships team.

Morgan is entered in the 100 back with a 54.70 as the seventh seed, just under a second slower than top seed Luke Greenbank. Morgan swam against many of the men he’ll face in the 100 backstroke here including silver medalist Sebastian Somerset and bronze medalist Cameron Brooker.

Somerset hit a 25.21 here, racing in Sheffield a few weeks after wrapping up his NCAA season where he represented the Championships title-winning Cal Bears. Somerset out-touched Cameron Brooker by just 0.02 seconds as Brooker came into the wall with a 25.23 for bronze.

Scott Gibson was just a fraction of a second away from medalling in this event, hitting a 25.30 for fourth place and Matthew Ward rounded out the top five with a 25.37.

Women’s 200 Freestyle

• British Record: 1:55.44 – Joanne Jackson (2009)
• World Championships Qualifying Standard: 1:55.86

Podium:

1. Freya Anderson – 1:55.89
2. Abbie Wood – 1:57.21
3. Lucy Hope – 1:58.03

After several years of throwing down 1:56s in the 200 freestyle, Freya Anderson managed to get under 1:56.00 for the first time. Anderson posted a new best time of 1:55.89 to earn the gold medal in this event. While she was just 0.55 seconds off the British record in this event, Anderson narrowly missed the World Championships qualifying standard of 1:55.86.

Anderson’s proximity to the standard, however, and the fact that she was under the consideration standard, means that she could still be added to the team in this event. Anderson swam her way to a 12th place finish in this event at Tokyo 2020, posting a 1:57.10 for Britain in the semi-final. She nearly got a medal at World Champs last year, hitting a 1:56.68 in the final for fourth place.

Abbie Wood may be known more for her breaststroke and medley prowess, but she is also a solid 200 freestyler. Wood held a best time of 1:57.48 before this meet and she got under that in the final with a 1:57.21 for silver. Wood might not get an individual spot on the team based on that swim, but it could be enough for a relay spot if Britain qualifies in the 4×200 free.

Lucy Hope has also swum under 1:58 before in the 200 free, having hit a 1:57.65 in 2021. That time was within reach tonight but Hope came a bit short, swimming a 1:58.03 for the bronze medal. Medi Harris slightly beat her best time of 1:58.97 with a 1:58.59 for fourth place.

Men’s 400 Freestyle

• British Record: 3:43.75 – James Guy (2015)
• World Championships Qualifying Standard: 3:44.06

Podium:

1. Luke Turley – 3:48.31
2. Kieran Bird – 3:48.61
3. Charlie Hutchinson – 3:52.41

Luke Turley got off to an early lead in the 400 free and quickly put a few meters of distance between himself and the field. Turley held the front position for the entire race but faced a last-minute bid from Kieran Bird who charged on the last 50, vying for the gold.

Bird came up just short of the win and touched 0.30 seconds behind victorious Turley’s 3:48.31 with a 3:48.61. Bird’s morning time of 3:54.26 made him the top seed in the event heading into the final and his lifetime best of 3:46.00 was likely in his sights.

Turley was entered as the top seed heading into the meet, however, with a 3:48.50, which was also his best time from the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Turley swam for England at those Games, placing 5th in the final. Turley got a new PB in the final but was still 4 seconds above the British qualifying standard.

Turley and Bird had a sizeable gap ahead of the field at the end of this race as the next man to finish was Charlie Hutchinson in a 3:52.41. Hutchinson took bronze, shaving a few seconds off the 3:54.53 he came into British Trials with.

William Bell touched in fourth place with a 3:52.98 and Tyler Melbourne-Smith was fifth in a 3:53.19.

Women’s 400 IM

• British Record: 4:31.33 – Hannah Miley (2009)
• World Championships Qualifying Standard: 4:36.00

Podium:

1. Freya Colbert – 4:35.50
2. Katie Shanahan – 4:36.74
3. Leah Schlosshan – 4:46.40

At the halfway mark, Katie Shanahan held a narrow lead over Freya Colbert, splitting a 2:11.31 to Colbert’s 2:12.28. They continued to race each other on the breaststroke leg and Colbert took over the lead by the 250. Colbert touched in a 3:31.15 and Shanahan was at a 3:32.12.

Colbert managed to pull off the win in the end and extended her lead on the final 100, ending 1 with a 4:35.50 for the gold. Colbert’s time got her under the World Championships qualifying cut of 4:36.00. That’s a huge best time for Colbert who came into the British Championships with a 4:39.80 from her swim at the Commonwealth Games.

Colbert is now the British champion and she’s the first person to swim faster than the selection standard in any event at this meet. Katie Shanahan touched with a 4:36.74 to miss the standard and take the silver medal. Shanahan also chopped some time off her PB here (4:39.37), which came from the Commonwealth Games as well.

Shanahan will need to rely on the secondary standards in order to get added to the World Championships roster in this event.

The leading duo beat the rest of the field by roughly 10 seconds as Leah Schlosshan came into the wall with a 4:46.40 for bronze and Amber Keegan hit a 4:46.60 for fourth.

Men’s 100 Breaststroke

• British Record: 56.88 – Adam Peaty (2017)
• World Championships Qualifying Standard: 58.93

Podium:

1. James Wilby – 59.94
2. Gregory Butler – 1:00.03
3. Archie Goodburn – 1:00.20

The world record holder and two-time Olympic champion in this event, Adam Peaty, pulled out of this meet last week and won’t attempt to race at World Championships this summer. In his absence, James Wilby swam to victory in the 100 breaststroke. Wilby threw down a 59.94 to dip under one minute and claim the gold medal.

Wilby has a best time of 58.46 and came fourth last summer at the World Championships with a 58.93 last summer. He wasn’t able to reach the 59-second range tonight, however, and missed the World Championships cut of 58.93. As is the case with most other champions tonight, Wilby will need to wait for confirmation that this swim is fast enough to get nominated.

Wilby and Peaty have been dominant forces in this event over the past few years, but our other medalists here seem to be a part of the up-and-coming generation. Gregory Butler took the silver medal with a 1:00.03 and Archie Goodburn was right behind him with a 1:00.20 for bronze.

Butler swam a time of 1:00.50 during the heats and Goodburn was even faster with his 1:00.35 for top seed out of prelims. They both improved upon their times in the final, each nearly cracking 1:00 for the first time. Butler’s 1:00.03 in the final was just 0.01 seconds quicker than his entry time and PB of 1:00.03 from this meet last year.