Chikunova World Record + Golden Age of Distance Swimming

Australian, Hungarian, & Russian Champs + Berlin Open

Author

SWIM NERD
April 24, 2023

Morning, Nerd.

Welcome to the Swimnerd Newsletter where each week we highlight the most interesting stuff going on in swimming. This week...

  • 🌎 Fast Swims Around the World

  • 📰 Swimming Headlines

  • 📜 Set of the Week

  • 🤡 Swimming Meme of the Week

This Week in Swimming is brought to you by...

Swim Bridges are commercial quality kick-out sticks designed to efficiently improve underwater swimming performance. Swim Bridge's all foam design is safe, takes seconds to attach, and has the ability to store on top of your lane lines between uses. Discipline and feedback off the walls has never been simpler - order a sample here!

🏊‍♀️FAST SWIMS AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Men's Distance Deluge

If we learned anything this week, it's that the men's distance events at Worlds are going to be barnburners. Last week we had Dan Wiffen's 3:44/7:44/14:34. This week a whole bunch of the stars of distance swimming fired back.

The biggest fireworks were at the Berlin Open. Lukas Martens had the best overall performance - 3:43.86/7:42.14/14:40.85, with the 800 a world-leader + beating out Wellbrock. This was Martens best swimming since this time last year.

Florian Wellbrock had the best overall swim in the 1500, just nipping Wiffen's old world leader with a 14:34.89 PB & German record. He added a 3:49.30/7:42.99 in his shorter races.

Club teammate of the two Mykhailo Romanchuk went 7:44.27/14:41.39 to fall just behind the two German studs. This 1500 might just be the fastest non-championship meet mile ever, as close behind were 21-year-olds Oliver Klemet in 14:45.89 and Sven Swartz in 14:49.22.

"Down Under," the Australian Swimming Championships also yielded some stellar distance swimming from 19-year-old Sam Short. Maybe best known internationally for nearly missing Commonwealth Games in the 1500 after stopping a lap early but then winning the event at the Games themselves, Short made a mark in a, well, shorter distance event this time, with a 3:42.46 world-leading 400 free. As this meet wasn't Australia's selection meet, we didn't see everybody at full strength, but Eli Winnington was runner-up in 3:46.39. Short also added 7:42.96/14:58.90 efforts in the longer events.

Some other outstanding men's distance efforts this week:

  • Olympic and World Champion Gregorio Paltrinieri, Italy, 3:49.29/7:46.47/14:49.02

  • Jon Jontvedt, Norway, 19 years old, 7:48.97 800

  • Hungarian Nationals - Kristof Rasovszky 3:47.33/7:53.67/14:55.46; David Bethlehem 3:48.33/7:49.59/14:59.65

  • Alek Stepanov, a 19 year old Russian, dropped a spicy 7:42.47 800 free good for 2nd fastest time in the world and Russian record

Many of these swimmers are also Open Water swimmers (Wellbrock/Paltrinieri/Rasovszky went 1-2-3 in Tokyo).

British Swimming's Kevin Renshaw is pumped about Paris:

Speaking of open water...the 2023 Open Water National Championships were held this past weekend in Sarasota, Florida. The event included the 5K and Junior 7.5K races. The men's 5K saw Spain's Carlos Garach lead the majority of the race before an impressive final surge from Brennan Gravley led him to victory for the second year in a row. The Spanish record holder in the 1500, Garach beat Gravley in the 10K.

The women's 5K was won by Sandpipers Katie Grimes, who had also won the Senior 10K event with ease. Claire Weinstein won the Junior 7.5K women's race while Ryan Erisman claimed victory for the men.

What would Team USA do without those Sandpipers from Nevada?

Australian Nationals

The depth of the Aussie women's team was the name of the game on the Gold Coast this week. The 100 free featured 6 women under 54, led by Mollie O'Callaghan's 52.53, with Shayna Jack a hundredth behind. In the 200 free, 6 women broke 1:58 - again O'Callaghan led the way with a 1:55.15, while Ariarne Titmus went 1:55.28, and Jack hit a big PB with a 1:55.37.

Kaylee McKeown took on some "off" events here, finishing just behind those three with a 1:56.88. She also went a 54.54 100 free and, perhaps most relevant to her best races, a 2:24.18 200 breast. In her bread-and-butter events, she hit a 57.90 100 back and 2:08.16 200 IM. I'm looking forward to another round of McKeown/Masse/Smith backstroke matchups come later this summer.

Some of the younger guns popped some impressive times - 17-year-old Flynn Southam split 47.71 in the 400 free relay; 18-year-old William Petric went 2:00/4:17 in the IMs; 19-year-old Kai Taylor went 48.41/1:46.65 sprints; and 20-year-old Tommy Neill took the 200 IM in 1:58.99.

Hungarian Nationals

Scary signs of life from Kristof Milak here - he took wins in the 100 and 200 free (48.40/1:46.68), and unsurprisingly the 100 and 200 fly (50.80 for world #2/1:52.58 for world #1). That 2 fly is only the 10th fastest swim of his career, but is the 15th fastest performance in history. Only Ledecky's 800/1500 swims can claim that kind of historical dominance.

Gabor Zombori also logged some impressive wins after a couple years of quiet - the 20 year old was a mid-distance free star as a junior, but is making waves as an IMer now with 1:58.94/4:14.14 swims.

On the shortest end of things, Sebastian Szabo (the 50 SCM Fly WR Holder) went 21.83 50 free and 22.93 50 flies.

The 2019 world champion in the 200 fly, Boglárka Kapás, won in in 2:08.86.

Benedek Bendegúz Kovács triumphed in the 100 backstroke with a time of 53.67.

Russian Champs

The swim of the week, and probably of the year thus far, came from Kazan. After a head-turning 1:04.92 100 breast, Evgenia Chikunova really dropped jaws with a masterful 2:17.55 200 breast world record. That swim absolutely eviscerated Tatjana Schoenmaker's 2:18.95 standard from Tokyo, and the splits were pristine: 32.13/35.15/35.19/35.08. Just watch this - the bodyline, the kick power, the effortless change of gear:

Other swims of note from the championships:

  • Svetlana Chimrova went 57.34/2:08.09 flies.

  • Ilya Borodin, who missed Tokyo for COVID, posted a sub 4:10 4IM

  • Arina Surkova's 25.30 50 fly win was within reach of Sjostrom's world-leader.

  • Kliment Kolesnikov won his specialties with 24.12/52.54 backs and 21.91 50 free. He also said that if he wasn't a swimmer he wouldn't watch swimming because team sports are far superior in excitement.

  • Vlad Grinev beat out Kliment in the 100 free in 47.97.

  • Ilya Shymanovich didn't go best times, but his 26.32/58.75 sprint breasts won the day.

  • Kirill Prigoda was right behind Shymanovich with a 58.98 100 breast PR, and also popped a 2:07.47 200 breast.

  • Oleg Kostin got DQd in 50 fly prelims, but time trialed a 22.63 later - a Russian record making him the 5th fastest performer in history.

  • Petr Zhikharev went under 51 seconds for the first time in his career in the 100 butterfly, with a time of 50.88, ahead of Andrei Minakov at 51.23 and Mikhaïl Vekovishchev at 51.64.

Berlin Open

The men's distance races were not the only impressive swims here:

  • Angelina Kohler set a new German record with a 57.22 100 fly.

  • Ole Braunschweig did the same in the men's 50 back with a 24.57 swim.

  • 13-year-old Alina Baievych's 2:11.05 200 fly is a new German age record. That's a name to keep an eye on going forward.

  • Rafael Miroslaw went a best time in the 200 free with a 1:45.83 and won the 100 free in 48.52

  • Isabel Gose was only a hundredth off her 200 Free PB with a 1:56.81 victory

  • Florida Gator Eric Friese won the 100 Fly in 51.73

Even More Fast Swims

Other notables on the week:

  • Meiron Cheruti hit a new Israeli 50 free record with a 21.84 PR.

  • Nicholas Lia went a 21.98 to become the first Norwegian under 22.

  • Also from the world of drop-dead sprinting, Florent Manaudou dipped under 22 for the first time since last year's Worlds, his 21.98 approaching the 21.95 he went at that meet.

  • Belgium's Lucas Henveaux, a key part of Cal's NCAA win earlier this spring, swam national records at the Belgian Open with 1:46.31/3:46.59 in his specialty 200/400 frees.

  • At the same meet, Roos Vanotterdijk took home a haul with 5 golds - 25.31/54.56 frees, 28.16/59.87 back, 26.60 fly, the frees and backs all within reach of her own national records from February.

  • Benedetta Pilato qualified for Worlds by going a 30.08 in the 50 Breast

  • Gretchen Walsh went 24.70 in a 50 Free time trial in a training suit while training partner Kate Douglass got up and went a 2:25.0 200 breast.

📰 SWIMMING HEADLINES

Changing Nationalities

Anastasiia Kirpichnikova has changed nationality from Russian to French. Will compete for France in 2024. She's Russia's best distance swimmer ever, posting times of 8:18 and 15:50 in the two long course distance events. She's now a medal threat for France.

Mark Nikolaev, best known as an NCAA scorer for Grand Canyon University and high level ISL sprint backstroker, is also looking to switch sporting nationality, to Australia. He competed at Australian Champs this week. He's been 24.2/53.6 in the 50/100 LCM Backstrokes.

On Friday, Georgia hosted an event to honor Jack Bauerle, the university's legendary swimming coach. Nearly 1,000 former swimmers, friends, and colleagues attended the event. Bauerle's friends and colleagues shared their favorite stories of him.

Despite retiring last year after a 43-year-long career, Bauerle remains an inspiration, coach, and teacher to many.

The University of Georgia has named the pool in Gabrielsen Natatorium after him, where the future swimmers will now compete in his honor.

inside with brett hawke banner logo transparent

BRETT HAWKE CLIPS OF THE WEEK

This week on INSIDE with BRETT HAWKE...

This morning at 8AM EST...

Catch up on all the world's fastest swimming and stories with Brett and Sonny at 8 AM EST on Dive Inside LIVE.

Tomorrow...Episode #313...

Russell Mark is back!

Russell works for the American Swimming Coaches Association (ASCA) and the Israeli swimming team. He discusses his passion for the culture of high performance and how he has developed expertise in this area over his 20-year career.

He emphasizes the importance of creating a positive environment for athletes, stating that "It's not just the X's and O's...it's being everything for an athlete and helping them achieve in all the different ways."

Mark also speaks about how he approaches change within coaching and encourages coaches to make changes based on compelling evidence.

This week's American Swimming Coach Association talk comes from Hall of Fame Coach, Jon Urbanchek.

Coach Urbanchek is known for his successful coaching career spanning over five decades. He coached dozens upon dozens of top-tier swimmers - Dolan, Barrowman, Namesnik, Vanderkaay - among others - while serving as the men's head swim coach for the University of Michigan from 1982 to 2004.

Urbanchek's tenure at Michigan resulted in a NCAA team championship in 1995 where they won every freestyle event thanks to Gustavo Borges & Tom Dolan. He played a crucial role in the development of the "Michigan Method" of training, which focuses on high-volume training, pacing strategies during races, and long aerobic sets to build endurance.

He was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2008.

"Keep it moving!" - Coach Jon Urbancheck

📝 SWIM SET OF THE WEEK

Jon Urbanchek VO2 Max 400 IM Set

10x100 VO2 Max @ 2:00

1 Fly

2 Back

3 Breast

4 Free

🤡 SWIMMING MEME OF THE WEEK

What is your favorite part of, "This Week in Swimming"?

Click on a link to tell us...