Watch Live: Bilis & Rapšys Ready For 1st Tokyo Qualifying Opportunity

2019 LITHUANIAN WINTER CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Friday, March 1st – Saturday, March 2nd
• Alytus, Lithuania
• LCM
• FINA-approved as Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualifying competition
• Start Lists/Results
• Day 1 Live Stream/Day 2 Live Stream

One of two competitions being held this weekend that are officially on FINA’s list of Tokyo 2020 qualifying meets, the 2019 Lithuanian Winter Championships begin tomorrow, March 1st in Alytus. More than 400 swimmers from Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine and the United Kingdom will be vying for top finishes and racing experience to kick-off their Tokyo qualifying campaign.

Among them is Lithuanian freestyle ace Danas Rapšys, who enters the meet as the top seeded swimmer in the 200m. He holds a personal best 200m time of 1:45.12 and took silver in the event at last year’s Short Course World Championships in Hangzhou. Rapšys took the 400m free crown at that same meet and enters Alytus as the clear top seed in that event as well.

Speedster Simonas Bilis is the man to beat in the 50m freestyle, as the former NC State standout holds a personal best of 21.70. That time was performed in a swim-off in Glasgow at last year’s European Championships, where Bilis snagged a spot for the finals, but wound up finishing off the podium in 5th.

Lithuanians Andrius Šidlauskas, Deividas Margevičius will also compete, as will 2018 European Junior champion Kotryna Teterevkova and 2018 Summer Youth Games gold medalist Agnė Šeleikaitė.

Two-time World University Games medalist Kacper Majchrzak is slated to race this weekend representing Poland, as is 2018 European Junior championships bronze medalist Anna Dowgiert.