2022 FINA SHORT COURSE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Tuesday, December 13 to Sunday, December 18, 2022
- Melbourne Sports and Aquatics Centre, Melbourne, Australia
- SCM (25m)
- Prize Money
- Meet Site
- Meet Schedule
- How To Watch
- Meet Roster Index
- Psych Sheets (Updated)
- Live Results
- Day 5 Prelims Live Recap
On paper, Sydney Pickrem should have been the favorite in the women’s 400 IM.
The 25-year-old Canadian owned the best time in the field at 4:23.68, which ranks her as the ninth-fastest performer of all time. Pickrem also boasted the quickest time this season with a 4:26.66. But after scratching the event at the 2021 Olympics, 2021 Short Course Worlds, and 2022 Canadian Trials, history repeated itself at the 2022 Short Course Worlds.
With Pickrem out of the picture this morning, 27-year-old American Leah Smith led all women’s 400 IM final qualifiers with a new lifetime best of 4:30.93.
Shaine Casas‘ decision to scratch the men’s 100 butterfly prelims on the fifth day of Short Course Worlds appears to indicate that he’s focusing his energy on the 200 backstroke as opposed to attempting a tough double on the sixth and final day of the meet. With Casas out of the 100 fly and Michael Andrew ranking 30th in prelims, Team USA didn’t place anyone in tonight’s semifinals.of the event.
Also scratching the men’s 100 fly were Canada’s Finlay Knox and Hungary’s Szebasztian Szabo.
A pair of Chinese swimmers scratched the women’s 100 fly. Yufei Zhang had the fourth-fastest entry time in the field at 55.46 while Yichun Wang was close behind with a 56.57. Their absences in lanes three and five of the fourth women’s 100 fly heat left top overall seed Maggie MacNeil with clear water on either side of her during prelims. MacNeil won her heat but qualified fourth for the semifinals behind Louise Hansson, Torri Huske, and Alexandria Perkins.
Why is anyone surprised at Pickrem scratching? She scratches regularly at almost every meet and has done it for years. You can pretty much count on it. No idea why the national team continues to indulge this. It leaves other swimmers out of the lineup with the hope that Pickrem will actually show up for the races she is entered (and has taken one of the Canadian spots). Brutal all around.