2024 Winter Junior Championships – West
- December 11-15, 2024
- Austin, Texas
- Prelims: 9:00 am (CT) / Finals: 5:00 pm (CT)
- SCY (25 yards)
- Meet Central
- How to Watch
- Psych Sheet
- Live Results
- Live Stream
- Prelims Recap: Day 1
- Finals Recap: Day 1 | Day 2
17-year-old Madi Mintenko began her individual event slate at the 2024 Winter Juniors Championships — West with an lifetime best in the girls’ 500 freestyle. Mintenko clocked 4:36.66 to win the event, a 2.94 second drop that moves her up to 20th all-time in her age group for American girls.
(Note: Canada’s Summer McIntosh is listed under the 17-18 girls rankings on USA Swimming)
Mintenko’s previous lifetime best stood at 4:39.24 from March 2023 at the Austin Speedo Sectionals. The high school senior and UVA commit opened her race tonight faster than her previous best, splitting 52.98 compared to 53.25. From there, she continued to out-split her pace from her previous lifetime best on all but a single 50. She also kept herself sub-29 seconds on each 50, which she didn’t do in March almost two years ago.
Earlier this year, Mintenko qualified for the 2024 Junior Pan Pacific Championships. There, she won silver in the 200-meter and 400-meter freestyles, swimming a lifetime best in the former (1:58.02). She also swam on the gold medal-winning 4×100 freestyle and 4×200 freestyle relays, helping the United States team win the medal table with 21 golds and 44 medals overall. Her 400 freestyle lifetime best is a 4:07.53 from the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials.
Mintenko has a busy slate at the Winter Juniors Championships. She swam prelims of the 500 freestyle, 200 IM, and 50 freestyle this morning, qualifying for the ‘A’ final in all three events. Her 200 IM (1:58.73) and 50 freestyle (22.52) prelims swims were lifetime bests. She scratched out of the 200 IM, but will still race the 50 freestyle later this evening. She’s also entered in the 100 fly, 200 free, 100 back, 200 back, 100 free, and 200 fly at this meet.
