Race video above courtesy Sodertorn a-grupp.
2016 SWEDISH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
- July 6 – July 10, 2016
- Norrköping, Sweden
- Competition Website
- Psych Sheets
- Live Results
- Results
- Link to Competition Facebook Page
The two fastest 200 meter freestylers in the world this season have both swum a National Championship race within the last week: first came a 1:54.88 from Katie Ledecky at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska; and on Wednesday, Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom swam a 1:54.34 at the Swedish National Championships in Norrköping to best her swim.
Those two are the top-ranked 200 freestylers in the world, though Ledecky’s season best of 1:54.43 came from the Arena Pro Swim Series meet in Austin in January.
While the two swimmers had similar times, they way they got there was very dissimilar. Sjostrom, who tends to be more of a sprinter, was much shorter off the walls than her American counterpart, whose specialty is the distance freestyles.
Despite having a greater distance to cover above water, Sjostrom took far fewer strokes than did Ledecky. While the race videos aren’t perfect, here were our hand tallies of each swimmer’s pulls, by 50:
- Ledecky: 38 39 42 42 = 161
- Sjostrom: 32 36 37 40 = 145
Note: these are pulls, so for number of stroke cycles, divide by 2.
Ledecky has the endurance to be able to maintain a high turnover longer than does Sjostrom, but it’s atypical to see a distance swimmer have a shorter stroke.
Neither swimmer had much doubt about their chances at their respective national championship meets, aside from the prestige that comes with such an event even a month out from the Olympics, so it’s fair to assume both swimmers were at a similar point in their training.
The difference in techniques makes the pending battle between the two, which will depend on Sjostrom’s confirmation of an entry in this race, all-the-more intriguing for Rio, especially if they wind up side-by-side in the final.
2015-2016 LCM Women 200 Free
LEDECKY
1.53.73
| 2 | sarah SJOSTROM | SWE | 1.54.08 | 08/09 |
| 3 | Federica PELLEGRINI | ITA | 1.54.55 | 06/26 |
| 4 | Emma McKEON | AUS | 1.54.83 | 04/10 |
| 5 | Katinka HOSSZU | HUN | 1.55.41 | 11/06 |
It is fair to assume that Katie and Sarah are not at a similar point in their training. Except for the 200 free, their event schedules and their training are so difference that the very concept of being at a similar point in their training makes little sense.
Lefecky is one of the toughest & most gritty swimmers I’ve ever seen – Possibly only outdone in the likely field by Pellegrini who really is a predator when it comes to racing.
However, as I said 2 years ago. If Sjöström has a go at the 200 – You really want to be ahead of her at 150. She really loves back-ending her races, as these splits indicate; 56.5/57.7 – That’s really, really metronomic & controlled. She could well be the ‘unknown’ quantity… Anything from a 1.53low blast to a 1.56 blowout really wouldn’t surprise me.
Yes, I feel that Ledecky could lose this race if she doesn’t start pacing her races better.
Seems like 200 free is shaping up to be an epic bloodbath with a deep talented field for both men and women in Rio this summer.
I don’t think Katie was really tapered for the trials – I think she goes 1:52+ at Olympics
optimism to a point is a good thing. Beyond that is tabloid.
While I’d agree she may not have been fully rested at trials (her kick definitely didn’t seem to be there), a sub 1:53 for KL in Rio is hard to envision. At trials she split 55.8/59.0 in the 200. I could see her coming home a bit faster (say, 58.5) but that means she’d have be out 54.4 on her feet and her standalone 100 time at trials was 53.99.
There’s no bigger KL fan than me but I think she’d be doing really well to be 1:53.5 in Rio.
Don’t count out Pellegrini! Her consistency in this event is unmatched. 3 woman race IMO
It does seem as if Ledecky’s strokes were shorter this year.
Ledecky was 1:54.88 in Omaha! Her 1:54.43 came from Austin.
Hope SS beats KL at Rio.
No way!
You must not be American
She won’t. Pellegrini will