2023 WORLD AQUATICS SWIMMING WORLD CUP – BERLIN
- October 6-8, 2023
- Berlin, Germany
- LCM (50 meters)
- Meet Central
- Full Entry List
- Live Results
- Day 1 Finals Recap
- Day 2 Finals Recap
- Day 3 Finals Recap
The 2023 World Aquatics Swimming World Cup concluded its first stop in Berlin yesterday and we saw impressive performances on both the men’s and women’s sides.
Although Aussies Kaylee McKeown, Lani Pallister and Brendon Smith were among the premier racers from down under, an up-and-comer also made waves before the 3-day affair was over.
Racing in the final of the men’s 200m freestyle, 20-year-old Maximillian Giuliani snagged silver, his first elite international podium finish.
Giuliani’s time of 1:46.18 was good enough to finish behind winner Danas Rapsys of Lithuania who won the event in 1:45.75 and ahead of USA’s Kieran Smith who bagged bronze in 1:48.15.
Aussie Giuliani’s performance in Berlin checked in as a new personal best in the 2free event. Entering this World Cup stop, the Tasmanian’s career-quickest rested at the 1:46.23 produced at this year’s U.S. Pro Swim Championships, so he sliced .05 off of that previous performance.
He remains Australia’s 15th-best men’s 200m freestyle performer ever, although many have yet to hear of the budding star.
That’s despite the fact the Miami Swim Club star made the final of the men’s 200m free at this year’s Australian World Championships Trials. There in Melbourne, Giuliani placed 8th in a time of 1:48.05, just missing out on the World Championships squad.
Just one month later, however, Giuliani fired off a 200m free time nearly 2 seconds faster. His aforementioned time of 1:46.23 took the top spot at the U.S. Pro Championships to land the Tasmanian on the map.
“The times I swum in America would have won the 200m free at trials and put me close to making the final at world champs,” Giuliani told The Mercury this past August.
“It was a bit bitter-sweet, but I’m right there now, which is good. I’m stoked to have put it together. I’ve been working on it for a while so it was great to finally convert.”
The silver medal in Berlin is sure to fuel Giuliani’s resolve to make the Aussie squad for the 2024 Olympic Games. With a tightly-packed cluster of performers, including 19-year-old Kai Taylor, veteran Alex Graham and Rackley Olympian Tommy Neill, Giuliani’s trajectory is putting him on the right path to potentially insert himself onto the green and gold’s 4x200m free relay for Paris at the very least.
I had never heard of him until recently. Australia has a pretty solid 4X200 team with established swimmers like Graham, Winnington, Neal and Chalmers but lacks star power in the event. If Giuliani continues to develop along with other up and comers like Southam, Taylor and Short they could become a more potent force.
Until the IOC changes the schedule Short can’t really be used in the 4×2 but he could still be an asset at worlds going forward and I don’t think we’ve seen the best of Neill yet in the 200.
The crew of youngsters Australia sent to the Pro Swim Series finale included enough Aussie wins to remind me of the group they sent to the 2008 Santa Clara International, which included two US Open records by 15yr old
Cate Campbell, which lasted a decade. This crew was not quite as good, but they sure smacked around the homies.
He is also a 48.2 in the 100 free
Certainly has the physicality to be a dominant force in the 100 as well as his 200 prowess.
No question in my mind that he will be in Paris and I think he gets individual swims there as well as the relays.
no individual, it will be taylor and probably someone like southam or graham and in the 100 it will be chalmers and southam
Looking forward to more depth in this 200 free event .. watch out for Flynn Southam as well, hopefully he can improve some more as he’s had a big year already
lol, southam had a big year? this has to be a joke surely….
how is it a joke worlds and junior worlds 2 major meets pretty close together
and he was absolutely horrible in both…his times are hardly internationally relevant.