We are kicking off long course season with some fast swimming. Here are some notable performances from the weekends of April 14-16 and 21-23, 2017.
Casaundra Moses, 13, Springfield Aquatics: 100m back (1:09.35) – Moses dropped 4 seconds to win the girls’ 13-14 100m back at the 2017 RAC AquaHawgs LC Opener. She was 5 seconds ahead of where she was at this time last year. Moses was also runner-up in the 100 free and 3rd in the 100 breast (with a new best time).
Aaron Klym, 11, Wave Aquatics: 200m back (2:32.81) – Swimming at the 10th Annual Dick LaFave LC Kickoff hosted by the South Snohomish County Dolphins, Klym dropped 14.3 seconds and won the boys’ 11-12 200m back. He also won the 50 back, was runner-up in the 50/400 free, 100 back, and 400 IM, and placed third in the 100 fly. Klym was 7-for-7 for the weekend with best times.
Ian Grum, 15, Dynamo Swim Club: 200m back (2:06.24) – Grum improved his PB by 1.9 seconds and was 5.5 faster than he’d been last year at this time when won the B final of the men’s 200 back at the Arena Pro Swim Series Mesa. Grum earned his first Winter Nationals in the event. He also picked up new PBs in the 100/400 free and 400 IM, and snagged his first Winter Juniors cut in the 400 free.
Caleb Babb, 15, Jacksonville Sharks: 100m breast (1:07.97) – Babb won the boys’ 15-and-over 100 breast and 100 fly and was runner up in the 100 free and 200 back at the CFAC LC Kickoff hosted by Edwardsville Swimming. His 100 breast was his lifetime second-best, only .11 off his PB, and fully 5 seconds faster than his time from this period last year.
Jackson Schultz, 16, Severna Park Stingrays: 100m breast (1:09.72) – Swimming at the Carol Chidester Memorial LC Elite Meet at Lejeune Hall in Annapolis, Schultz swam his first sub-1:10, dropping 3.6 seconds, and finished fourth in the men’s 15-and-over 100 breast. He also improved his PBs in the 200 free, 100 back, 200 breast, 100 fly, and 200/400 IM.
Ken Nakatsu, 12, Hawaii Swimming Club: 200m breast (2:47.98) – One of the youngest competitors in the Oahu Senior Meet hosted by Hawai’i Swimming at the Veterans’ Memorial Aquatic Center, Nakatsu dropped time in both his events. He improved his 200 breast by 3.6 seconds (going 18.2 seconds faster than he’d been last spring) and his 200 fly by 1.8 seconds (3.2 faster than last year).
Maddy Burt, 15, Swim Florida: 100m fly (1:03.28) – Swimming at the GCST Spring Invitational hosted by Gulf Coast Swim Team, Burt went her best in-season 100 fly to win the women’s open event. It was her second-best time, and she was 3.3 seconds faster than she’d been at this time last year. Burt finished the weekend with new PBs in the 50/100/400 free and 200 fly.
Maggie Belbot, 12, North Baltimore Aquatic Club: 200m IM (2:27.82) – Belbot won the 50/100 free, 100 breast, 50/100 fly, and the 200 IM at the Carol Chidester Memorial LC Elite Meet. She dropped 1.8 seconds in the 200 IM and was fully 7.5 seconds faster than she’d been in the event last spring. Belbot also earned new times in the 50 free, 50 fly, and 100 fly.
Reminder: The Weekly Wonders column is a celebration of age-group swimming, where new champions are made every day. Anyone can look up the top swims of the week. That’s not what we’re doing here. If we were only reporting on the week’s top swims we would feature the same handful of athletes every Wednesday. Instead, this is an opportunity to introduce the swimming community to athletes who have made great strides in the context of their own particular swimming worlds. By association, it also celebrates their coaches and their teams. The Weekly Wonders column, therefore, amounts to a pat on the back for a job well done, and hopefully encourages swimmers of all levels to continue to reach from within to get to that next level.
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