TAC TITANS INTRASQUAD TIME TRIAL
- July 17-19, 2020
- Triangle Aquatic Center, Cary, North Carolina
- 25y (SCY) pool
- Live Stream
- Results on Meet Mobile: “TAC TITANS July Intrasquad Meet”
Claire Curzan, who has already gone faster than 15-16 NAG records in the 50 free (21.51) and 100 fly (50.03) this weekend, has done it again.
This time, the 16-year-old edged out the 15-16 NAG record in the 100 free, shaving four-tenths of a second off of her old best to go 47.23. Curzan, who took the race out in a 22.4 at the flip, utilized strong underwaters and posted a time better than Gretchen Walsh‘s official NAG mark of 47.49 from 2019.
There was an empty lane to her right (she raced in lane five), but male swimmers populated the other six lanes in the heat. Right now, it’s unknown if Curzan’s swims this weekend will count for NAG records.
Though Curzan has only recently turned 16, and still has the better half of a year until she enters the 17-18 age group, she would rank fifth among 17-18 historical top performers, just .06 behind Missy Franklin (47.17).
In the heat after, 17-year-old Michael Cotter broke 45 seconds for the first time ever, going 44.80.
Curzan wasn’t done yet, though, competing in the 200 fly after taking the 200 breast timed finals to recover and rest. Though she had to really hold tough on the final 50 (30.4), Curzan was out in 53.6 at the 100 and hit the final wall at 1:53.59, a lifetime best by seven-tenths.
Curzan is now the #3 performer in 15-16 history in this race, behind only Regan Smith (1:51.24) and Mary T. Meagher (1:52.99).
CLAIRE CURZAN‘S WEEKEND
- 50 free – 21.51 (-0.26)
- 100 free – 47.23 (-0.44)
- 100 fly – 50.03 (-0.32)
- 200 fly – 1:53.59 (-0.77)
- 100 back – 51.01 (-0.22)
16-year-old Lance Norris took a second off of his old best to win the 200 back with a time of 1:45.78. He’s gone lifetime bests in every race this meet: the 500 free (4:24.19), 200 IM (1:50.81), the 200 free (1:40.07) and now the 200 back. Norris then posted a 2:06.03 for yet another best in the 200 breast two events later.
Second in the 200 back was another 16-year-old, Braeden Haughey, just off of his best at 1:47.92.
16-year-old Charlotte Hook took over seven-tenths of a second off of her old 100 free PR of 50.71 to post a new best of 49.98. She’s had a strong meet this weekend, but her sprints have looked the best, she has hit bests in the 100 and 50 free (22.81). In the 200 fly, Hook posted a time of 1:54.66, just under a second away from her best of 1:53.70. Hook was only out in a 56.79, but she came home in a 29.6/28.1 (57.87) after going out 26.8/29.9.
OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
- Colombian record-holder and Olympian Jorge Murillo clocked a 1:57.87 to easily take the 200 breast. He was just eight-tenths off of his lifetime best of 1:57.01 from March.
- Anya Mostek, who came into the meet with a best of 2:01.06, dropped to a 1:57.21 in the 200 back. She was the highest finisher on the girls’ side. Mostek had been living in Pennsylvania and training with the Phoenixville Branch YMCA through this spring, but she appears to have made the move to the TAC Titans.
- Virginia ’25 commit Caroline Pennington, who has also recently switched clubs (from Badger Swim Club in New York), hit a lifetime best 2:02.92 in the 200 back, a six-plus second drop. She also took almost two seconds off of her 100 free best tonight with a 52.62. This weekend, she’s gone lifetime bests in all of her other events as well: the 200 free (1:52.01), 500 free (4:47.92), 100 back (59.42) and 50 free (24.43).
I only wish my weekend was that good.
Yes, I think the 200 fly time was most impressive/surprising to me. That’s a rare combination.
Unreal. She’s one to be reckoned with at trials. My hats off to her!
Who cares if these times don’t count as NAGs, they’re still incredible and should be recognized as such
Curzan may be the biggest beneficiary of the Olympic delay. If she’s improving this much after pool shutdowns… just wait for 2021. And although she’s a monster dolphin kicker, she translates to LC also.
Agreed, but I think there was an article that siad that she did train somewhere during this whole time
On a tether in her backyard pool in a wetsuit.
https://swimswam.com/claire-curzan-hits-the-backyard-pool-with-wetsuit-to-continue-training/
I don’t know if I’m blind again or if it’s not reported, but did Claire win the overall or her heat? I have to agree with @Missy M that putting a girl in a heat with all boys definitely “CAN” turn up the heat. I say CAN because in 99% of all age group swim meets, the girls are way faster than the boys – especially at 10U and 12U. I do plainly see on the USA Swimming Age Group Records page that the boys hold the faster records in all events but one – but by the slimmest of margins. So, I’m saying that if you put the nation’s #1 girl against the nation”s #1 boy then the boy… Read more »
Curzan is 16.
A solid national level16 year old male will swim faster times than world class open women.
By 12/13 males are faster than females and the gap only grows from there.
If I was going to try and make the 2021 Olympic team, this girl would make me real nervous. Real nervous.
No doubt. But first one out of the gate.
Seriously great swimming!
Surely there is no way they can count the times as records? Isn’t the whole premise of not allowing women to set records in mixed events based on their ability to swim faster when racing men who are faster than them?
Huh?
Drafting
When you draft you actually have to be BEHIND the boys and in many cases she led the pack!
This is true – she won her heat in the 100 free.
I believe that the TAC pool that is known to have a drafting advantage in certain lanes as well.
Lol. While TAC is known for an outside smoke current that could benefit a 50 Free LCM, I’d love the story on how there is a ‘drafting advantage’ for certain lanes, and especially in SCY.
Read the rules
Doubtful they will count. The rules cover events that are swum—100FR Men/100 FR Women. It is a debate between the implicit (there are no mixed gender events other than relays) and the explicit (what the rules literally say). If they do count, look for a large number of mixed events of all strokes as it definitely benefits Women swimmers to have faster men in their heats.
Incredible swims and swimmer.
USA swimming rules clearly state that local meet sanctions can permit seeding by time without respect to age or gender. The Age Group recognition section of the rulebook does not include an exception for records swam by females in mixed heats. FINA but would be an issue, but this is ‘just’ USA swimming rules so nothing in the rulebook prevents it from counting. The debate is if the USA Swimming July meet sanction limitation on times only counting for LSC qualification applies to records or just meet qualification.
I’d be interested in other examples of NAGs set in this kind of format. As I said, the issue is going forward if they do count you will have an awful lot of mixed events in the future as it is obviously helpful. If that’s a good thing, then bring it on.
I’m baffled why they don’t have her swim in a girls-only heat or by herself, when NAG records are at stake. Either they think they’ll count as records or they don’t care about them.
Maybe. On the other hand, her goals are undoubtedly bigger than NAG Records at this point. In a heat of all girls, she would have won by several seconds, which doesn’t sharpen her racing composure when she’s at, for example, the Olympic Trials.
Besides, we still don’t know if the records would have counted even in a heat of all girls.
Gotta agree with Braden. At some point for someone of Claire’s talent, NAGs can’t retain the same allure they do for the rest of us mere mortals. When you start thinking olympics, worlds and are a top ten performer of all time, those have to trump being the fastest 16 year old American girl.
On that we can agree. The NAG is not that important as (1) she will break them eventually anyway and (2) she has bigger fish to fry.
Lol, the NAGs were already hers. At least in two of the races.
The only NAG record that was “at stake” was the 100 free, as she already had the 50 free and 100 fly records before lowering them at this meet. And none of us were really counting on best times at this meet, anyway. This was about having fun and racing. Just about as lowkey as it gets.