2023 EUROPEAN JUNIOR SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Tuesday, July 4th – Sunday, July 9th
- Sports and Recreational Center “Milan Gale Muškatirović”, Belgrade, Serbia
- Prelims at 10am local (4am EDT)/Finals at 5pm local (11am EDT)
- LCM (50m)
- Meet Central
- Entries
- SwimSwam Preview
- Live Results
- Livestream
- Day 1 Prelims Recap |Day 1 Finals Live Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Recap | Day 2 Finals Live Recap
- Day 3 Prelims Recap | Day 3 Finals Live Recap
- Day 4 Prelims Recap | Day 4 Finals Live Recap
- Day 5 Prelims Recap | Day 5 Finals Live Recap
Bulgaria’s Petar Mitsin and Romania’s Vlad Stancu enjoyed an epic showdown in the 800-meter freestyle on Saturday night as both 17-year-olds finished under the previous European Junior Championships meet record, broke their own national records, and clocked top-20 times globally this season in the process.
Mitsin passed Stancu just before the midway point of the race and touched in 7:47.45, shaving over eight seconds off his previous-best 7:55.59 from May.
For reference, Mitsin’s new lifetime best would be a U.S. boys’ 17-18 national age group (NAG) record ahead of Larsen Jensen‘s 7:48.09 from 2003. His time tonight also would have snuck into the World Championships A-final last year by .01 seconds. This season, Mitsin ranks 11th in the world.
Mitsin is now the new owner of the meet record, crushing the 7:51.20 that Turkey’s Yigit Aslan posted in 2021 by nearly four seconds. He’s just four seconds away from the world junior record that Italy’s Lorenzo Galossi set last year.
BOYS 800 FREESTYLE – FINAL
- World Junior Record: 7:43.37, Lorenzo Galossi (ITA) 2022
- European Junior Record: 7:43.37, Lorenzo Galossi (ITA) 2022
- European Record: 7:39.27, Gregorio Paltrinieri (ITA) 2019
Championship Record: 7:51.20, Yigit Aslan (TUR) 2021- 2022 European Junior Champion: Lorenzo Galossi (ITA) 7:52.04
PODIUM:
- GOLD: Petar Mitsin (BUL) 7:47.45 *European Junior Championships Record
- SILVER: Vlad-Stefan Stancu (ROU) 7:49.68
- BRONZE: Kuzey Tuncelli (TUR) 7:52.39
Stancu put up a super strong swim in his own right, clocking 7:49.68 to take more than four seconds off his own Romanian national record of 7:54.02 from this same competition last year, where he also earned silver. He now ranks 20th in the world this season.
Turkish 15-year-old Kuzey Tuncelli added bronze to his collection in 7:52.39 after already having grabbed gold in the 1500 freestyle in meet-record time (14:58.89). Stancu placed 2nd in 15:00.51, lowering his own Romanian record by nearly five seconds and earning his first Paris 2024 Olympic ‘A’ cut.
It’s the second Bulgarian record of the meet for Mitsin, who also took gold in the 200 free with a new national standard of 1:46.50.
Boundless Waters: Petar’s Triumph
In the land of waters, where dreams arise,
A young swimmer emerged, with determined eyes.
From Bulgaria’s shores, Petar Mitsin his name,
A beacon of talent, a rising flame.
In the depths of the pool, he found his grace,
With each stroke, he carved a swift-paced race.
The 800 meters, a challenge untamed,
Where legends are born and records reclaimed.
Petar dove in, the water embraced,
Heart pounding fiercely, his focus encased.
Beside him, Vlad Stancu, a Romanian force,
A rival of strength, matching him course by course.
Stroke after stroke, they battled through waves,
Their arms slicing the water, creating brave graves.
Breathless and… Read more »
Petar is your muse. Some swimmers are like that.
He could probably make it as a model too besides his swimming.
He’s young so many more races (and poems) to come.