Andrei Minakov Swims 49.11 100 Free To Conclude 2022 Speedo Grand Challenge

2022 SPEEDO GRAND CHALLENGE

• May 27 to 29, 2022
• LCM (50m)
• Woollett Aquatic Center, Irvine, California
• Live Results under “2022 Speedo Grand Challenge” on MeetMobile

On the final day of the 2022 Speedo Grand Challenge, the men’s and women’s 200 breast, 100 back, 200 fly, 800 free, 1500 free, and 100 free were contested. One of the highlights was Stanford swimmer Andrei Minakov winning the men’s 100 free in a time of 49.11. It was well off his best time of 47.57, but a new season-best for him. This race was his first time racing the 100 free long course this season, but he’s swam it quite a few times in short course yards, such as when he finished third in the event at NCAAs in 41.09.

This meet might be one of Minakov’s only long course competitions this season, as his home country of Russia is banned from international competitions such as World and European Championships. He also opted t0 skip the Russian Swimming Championships earlier this year, citing “complicated” circumstances such as training in the United States.

Canadian swimmer Rebecca Smith won the women’s 100 free in a time of 55.54. That’s just slightly slower than her season-best time of 55.21, which she swam in the prelims of Canadian trials this April. Smith is qualified to represent Canada in the 4×100 and 4×200 free relay at World Championships and Commonwealth Games later this year.

Another Stanford Cardinal, Leon MacAllister, swam a best time of 54.28 in the men’s 100 back. That’s an improvement from the 54.64 he swam last July. MacAllister finished 11th in this race at NCAAs. The women’s edition of this race was won by Alex Roberts in 1:02.68, although Taylor Ruck topped the prelims with a time of 1:03.39 before scratching the finals. Ruck will be swimming the 100 and 200 back individually at World Championships this year.

14-year-old Kayla Han swam a massive personal best in the 200 fly, in which she finished second with a time of 2:15.27. That’s over a second improvement from her previous best time of 2:16.68 from this Janurary. UVA commit Maggie Schalow was the only swimmer ahead of Han, winning the event in 2:14.75. The time was just a few tenths off her best time of 2:14.08.

Other Event Winners:

• Women’s 800 Free: Aurora Roghair – 8:48.06
• Women’s 200 Breast: Isabelle Odgers – 2:28.27
• Men’s 200 Breast: Ben Dillard – 2:15.13
• Men’s 1500 Free: Christopher Mykkanen – 16:04.25
• Men’s 200 Fly: David Schmitt – 2:02.26