Swimming

17-Yr-Old Alessandro Ragaini Unleashes 1:45.83 200 Free At Italian Trials

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By Retta Race on SwimSwam

2024 ITALIAN OLYMPIC TRIALS

We entered the penultimate day of action at the 2024 Italian Olympic Trials, with a pair of teenagers wowing the crowds in Riccione.

We already reported how 17-year-old Sara Curtis clocked a new Italian national record in the heats of the women’s 50m freestyle. The ace logged a result of 24.56 to establish the new national benchmark while also producing a new European Junior Record.

Tonight’s men’s 200m freestyle final saw another teenager put up fireworks, as 17-year-old Alessandro Ragaini busted out a lifetime best of 1:45.83 for gold.

Ragaini upset national record holder Filippo Megli who settled for silver while Giovanni Caserta rounded out the the podium in 1:46.88.

Ragaini’s time tonight represented his first-ever foray under the 1:46 barrier, skipping the 1:47-zone entirely.

Entering these Olympic Trials, Ragaini’s personal best rested at the 1:47.24 he notched as lead-off on the Italian boys’ 4x200m free relay at last year’s World Junior Championships. He also earned silver in the individual event there in Netanya in 1:47.28.

This morning, Ragaini dropped that PB down to 1:47.12 to establish a new Italian Junior Record.

Flash forward to tonight, however, and Ragaini unleashed splits of 25.17/26.49/27.15/27.02 to come within .16 of Megli’s senior national record of 1:45.67 from 2019.

Ragaini’s outing qualifies for this summer’s Olympic Games, clearing the Italian Swimming Federation-mandated selection standard of 1:45.89.

Just like that, the teen ranks 9th in the world this season.

2023-2024 LCM Men 200 Free

SunwooKOR
HWANG

09/27
1:44.40
2 Maximillian
GIULIANI		 AUS 1:44.79 12/12
3 Danas
RAPSYS 		LTU 1:44.96 02/12
4 Lukas
MARTENS 		GER 1:45.21 02/12
5 Luke
HOBSON		 USA 1:45.26 02/13
6 Zhanle
PAN 		CHN 1:45.28 09/27
7 Hojoon
LEE 		KOR 1:45.56 09/27
8 Thomas
NEILL		 AUS 1:45.78 12/10
9 Rafael
MIROSLAW		 GER 1:45.84 02/13
10 Duncan
SCOTT		 GBR 1:45.86 02/13

View Top 31»

For perspective, Ragaini’s new PB of 1:45.83 would register as a new National Age Group Record for 17-18-year-old American men. It would overwrite Olympic legend Michael Phelps’ PB from that age group of 1:45.99 from 2003.

Ragaini ranks as the 4th-fastest Italian in history in this men’s 200m free event.

Top 5 Italian Men’s LCM 100 Freestyle Performers All-Time

  1. 1:45.67 – Filippo Megli, 2019
  2. 1:45.70 – Marco De Tullio, 2022
  3. 1:45.77 – Stefano Ball0, 2021
  4. 1:45.83 – Alessandro Ragaini, 2024
  5. 1:46.29 – Emiliano Brembilla 2009

SwimSwam: 17-Yr-Old Alessandro Ragaini Unleashes 1:45.83 200 Free At Italian Trials

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