Courtesy: Ohio State Athletics
COLUMBUS, Ohio – As the 2022 FINA World Championships kick off this weekend in Budapest, Hungary, eight members of the Ohio State swimming and diving program will be in attendance. Those representing their respective countries include swimmers Alex Axon (Canada), Hunter Armstrong (United States), Charlie Clark (United States), Ruslan Gaziev (Canada) and Kristen Romano (Puerto Rico), divers Lena Hentschel (Germany) and Ciara McGing (Ireland), and director of swimming and diving Bill Dorenkott (United States).
Buckeyes at 2022 FINA World Championships
- Hunter Armstrong (Swimming, United States) – Armstrong qualified for the World Championships after an outstanding showing at the Phillips 66 International Team Trials in April. He broke the 50m backstroke world record in a time of 23.71 to book his ticket to Budapest. He went on to lower four school records at the meet. Armstrong will race the 50 and 100 backstroke and in the 4×100 freestyle relay.
- Charlie Clark (Swimming, United States) – Clark joins Armstrong competing for USA Swimming in Budapest, racing the 800 and 1500 freestyle. He qualified at April’s world team trials with second-place, school record finishes in both the 800 and 1500 freestyle. Clark also lowered the 400 freestyle Ohio State record at the trials.
- Ruslan Gaziev (Swimming, Canada) – At the 2022 Bell Canadian Swimming Trials, Gaziev won the 200 freestyle in a school-record time of 1:4.44 to punch his ticket to the World Championships. He broke another school record with a second-place finish in the 100 freestyle to qualify in both races.
- Ciara McGing (Diving, Ireland) – McGing is one of two Irish divers who will be competing at the World Championships this month. She makes her World Championship debut on the 10m platform after setting the Irish record on the board in February. She scored a 319.25 at the Big Ten Championships to best her previous national record of 307.
- Kristen Romano (Swimming, Puerto Rico) – Romano is one of 11 athletes representing the Puerto Rican Swimming Federation in Budapest. This will be her world championship debut in the 50m pool. She previously competed at the FINA Short Course World Championships in December of 2021. Romano is set to race the 200 backstroke and 200 and 400 medley.
- Lena Hentschel (Diving, Germany) – An incoming freshman diver for the Buckeyes, Hentschel will compete on the 3m board both individually and with a teammate in the synchronized event. She is the 2020 Olympic bronze medalist in the 3m synchro and previously won gold at the 2018 FINA Diving Grand Prix in the 3m synchro.
- Alex Axon (Open water, Canada) – Axon, who is an incoming freshman for the Buckeyes, will represent Canada in open water racing in Budapest. He is slated to race the 5km. He has previously raced at the 2018 FINA Open Water World Junior Swimming Championships and won the 1.5 km and 5 km races at the 2019 BEST FEST Open Water Swimming Festival.
- Bill Dorenkott (Assistant coach – Swimming, United States) – Dorenkott is one of five assistant coaches for USA Swimming at this year’s World Championships. The appointment marks his fourth time coaching with Team USA on an international trip coaching staff.
Schedule of Events
The 19th FINA World Championships begin Saturday, June 18 and conclude Sunday, July 3. Swimming will race June 18-25 with prelims starting at 3 a.m. EST and finals at noon EST. Diving begins June 26, with the women’s 10m being contested June 26-27, the 3m springboard contested July1-2 and 3m synchro held July 3. Open water racing also starts on the June 26 with the 5km race on the 27th.
The full schedule of events can be found HERE.
How to Watch
Preliminary heats can be streamed on the FINA website. Swimming finals will be broadcast on the NBC Sports/Olympic Channel. More information on how to watch can be found HERE.
