2018 SOUTH AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Trujillo, Peru
- Wednesday, November 7 – Sunday, November 11, 2018
- LCM
- Live results
With just 8 races to go on Sunday, Brazil has secured their spot on the top of the medals table in the pool swimming portion of the 2018 South American Championships. With 5 more wins in 10 events on Saturday, Brazil took a commanding lead over Argentina in the medals table.
But the biggest news wasn’t the races they won; rather, it was one of the races they lost. The Argentinian women upended Brazil by .16 seconds in the 800 free relay, which broke a streak of at least 8-straight South American titles for the women (we were unable to locate results prior to 2002, but the streak was likely longer). The team of Delfina Pingiatello, Virginia Bardach, Delfina Dinni, and Andrea Berrino combined for a 2;09.83, while Brasil took 2nd in 8:09.99.
While Brazilian anchor Gabrielle Roncatto had the fastest split of the field (2:00.98), Argentina’s depth, including three 2:01s, won the day.
The rising Argentine team had another big swim on the day – 26-year old Virginia Bardach won the women’s 400 IM in 4:43.82, which made for a South American 3-peat for her. Her older sister Georgina holds the National Record in the event
Other Day 4 Winners:
- Brazil’s Daynara de Paula won the women’s 100 free in 56.41, beating-out her countrymate Trevisa Raurich, who is 11 years younger. Raurich took 2nd in 57.26. de Paula would double up on the day, later winning the 50 fly in 27.05.
- Breno Correia doubled up on his win in the 200 free with a 49.19 in the 100 free. This race was another Brazilian 1-2.
- Argentina’s first of 3 gold medals on the day came when Andrea Berrino won the women’s 50 backstroke in 28.98. Venezuelan 16-year old Maye Escalante took 2nd in 29.44.
- Brazil’s Guilherme Guido topped one of the most experienced medal stands of the meet so far when he won the men’s 50 back in 25.01. The 31-year old beat Charles Hockin (29 years old, 25.70) and Colombia’s Omar Pinzon (29 years old, 25.99). Guido’s winning time is a new Championship Record.
- Ben Hockin, older brother of Charles, won the men’s 50 fly in 23.90. That returns him to the top of the podium in the event after winning in 2014 but finishing 2nd to Argentina’s Santiago Grassi in 2016. Grassi took just 3rd this year, albeit in almost the same time (.02 slower) than he used to win in 2016.
- Ecuador’s Tomas Peribonio, who attended college in the US at South Carolina, won the men’s 400 IM in 4:22.79. His win was the first gold medal for Ecuador at this year’s meet, which extends a 3-year run with at least 1 event win for his country at the South American Championships.
- Brazil finished the day with a win in the men’s 800 free relay, which they dominated by almost 11 seconds. The team was anchored by Correia in 1:48.62. That swim broke the Championship Record in the event.
Medals Table After Saturday, November 10th
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Brazil (BRA) |
21 | 16 | 6 | 43 |
| 2 |  Argentina (ARG) |
9 | 12 | 11 | 32 |
| 3 |  Paraguay (PAR) |
1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 4 |  Colombia (COL) |
1 | 2 | 9 | 12 |
| 5 |  Ecuador (ECU) |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 |  Chile (CHI) |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 |  Venezuela (VEN) |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 8 |  Peru (PER)* |
0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 9 |  Bolivia (BOL) |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (9 nations) | 24 | 24 | 24 | 72 | |
