University of Toronto’s Aleksa Gold Breaks Estonian Record in 200 IM

Estonian-Latvian Spring Meet

• April 3-4, 2021
• Riga, Latvia
• Long Course Meters (50 meters)
• Results (Swim Rankings)
• Results (Live)

21-year old Estonian swimmer Aleksa Gold broke a National Record in the 200 IM over the weekend at the Estonian-Latvian Spring Meet.

While Latvia hosted the event, the Estonians dominated the action in Riga. The event, which replaces Estonia’s national championship event, is a FINA-approved Olympic qualifier.

Gold was the star of the meet on the women’s side, winning 4 individual events. That included the 200 IM, where her swim of 2:18.65 undercut the former National Record of Anna-Liisa Pold, who swam 2:19.46 at the 2009 World Championships in the height of the supersuit era.

Comparative Splits:

Gold’s previous best time was 2:20.55 done in June of 2016.

For Gold, who grew up in Toronto, Canada and swims collegiately at the University of Toronto, that record is not even a primary event nor her best swim of the day. She also won the 50 free (26.07), 100 free (56.03), and 200 backstroke (2:13.93). The 100 free time was also a personal best, though it just missed the FINA “B” standard for the Olympics by .02 seconds.

Her 200 back time was an Olympic “B” standard.

Gold also holds the long course Estonian Record in the 200 back, plus 3 individual short course and 2 long course relay records.

On the men’s side, Daniel Zaitsev swam his first official meet of 2021 and came away with wins in both the 100 free (50.00) and 50 fly (23.64). He swam the fastest time of the day in the 50 free of 22.59, but that came out of the “B” final after he cruised to just an 11th seed in prelims.

That 22.59 in the 50 free is an Olympic “B” standard.

Other top results:

• Latvian teen Arina Sisojeva won the 50 breaststroke in 32.50, matched her lifetime best in the 100 breaststroke in 1:10.61, and won the 200 breaststroke in 2:41.73. Maria Romanjuk of Estonia won the race in 1:10.14,
• Estonia’s Joonas Niine won the men’s 50 breaststroke in 27.95, which is a new best time by .67 seconds, and was 2nd in the 100 breaststroke in 1:03.13 (after a 1:02.98 in prelims). Estonia’s Martin Allikvee won the 100 breaststroke in 1:02.16, which was well-off his personal best.
• Estonia’s Erik Lihhats finished 2nd in the 200 free in 1:53.74, but in prelims he swam 1:52.91 – which qualifies him for the European Junior Championships.