arena Swim of the Week: Julian Smith Becomes Fourth Swimmer To Go Sub-50 In Men’s 100 Breast

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Disclaimer: Swim of the Week is not meant to be a conclusive selection of the best overall swim of the week, but rather one Featured Swim to be explored in deeper detail. The Swim of the Week is an opportunity to take a closer look at the context of one of the many fast swims this week, perhaps a swim that slipped through the cracks as others grabbed the headlines, or a race we didn’t get to examine as closely in the flood of weekly meets.

University of Florida senior Julian Smith entered rarefied air last week at the UGA Fall Invitational, becoming just the fourth swimmer in history to break the 50-second barrier in the men’s 100 breaststroke.

Smith clocked a time of 49.98, breaking Caeleb Dressel‘s SEC and Florida Record of 50.03 while moving into #4 all-time in the event.

 

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In the historical rankings, Smith only trails the three men who have combined to win the last six NCAA titles: Ian Finnerty (2018, 2019), Max McHugh (2021, 2022, 2023) and Liam Bell (2024).

All-Time Performers, Men’s 100 Breaststroke (SCY)

1. Liam Bell (Cal), 49.53 – 2024 NCAAs
2. Ian Finnerty (Indiana), 49.69 – 2018 NCAAs
3. Max McHugh (Minnesota), 49.90 – 2022 NCAAs
4. Julian Smith (Florida), 49.98 – 2024 UGA Fall Invite
5. Caeleb Dressel (Florida), 50.03 – 2018 SECs

The performance from Smith marked a significant lifetime best, dropping nearly a full second off his previous PB of 50.94 set at last season’s NCAA Championships where he finished 7th (clocked 51.18 in the final after going 50.94 in the heats).

Prior to last season, his best time stood at 51.34 from the 2023 NCAAs.

Over the past three seasons, he’s progressed both in terms of his opening speed and his closing ability.

Split Comparison

The 22-year-old didn’t just find success in the 100 breast at the UGA Fall Invite, also winning the 100 free (41.71) and 200 IM (1:41.01) with new personal best times, and he also set a lifetime best of 19.00 in the 50 free leading off Florida’s 200 free relay.

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