Swimming

2024 Aquatics GB Olympic Trials: Day 6 Prelims Recap

By

on

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

2024 AQUATICS GB SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS (OLYMPIC TRIALS)

We’ve made it to the final day of action at the 2024 Aquatics GB Olympic Trials. After 5 intense days of competition, the most competitive domestic event of the men’s 200m freestyle headlined the morning heats, with the men’s 200m back, women’s 100m breast and women’s 100m free also on the agenda.

Tonight’s finals will bring the quickest heat of the women’s 800m free as competitors put everything they have in the pool to make the nation’s Olympic squad for Paris 2024.

5 of the top 10 best-ever British 200m backstroke performers were among this morning’s field, led by Olympic medalist Luke Greenbank.

26-year-old Greenbank produced a time of 1:57.35 to hold over a second advantage over Birmingham’s newly-minted 100m backstroke national record holder Oliver Morgan.

Morgan hit 1:58.89 while Carnegie’s Jonny Marshall rounded out the top 3 in 1:58.93.

Both Morgan and Marshall fired off big-time personal bests in the 100m sprint with Morgan establishing a new national record of 52.70. Marshall settled for silver in that race with a PB of 53.03 and Greenbank settled for 3rd in 53.82.

Greenbank’s 200m back national record rests at 1:54.43 from the 2021 European Championships. The Aquatics GB Olympic selection standard sits at 1:57.28 so the top tier of tonight’s final is already within striking distance of that benchmark.

Men’s 200m Back Top 8:

  1. Luke Greenbank (Loughborough) – 1:57.35
  2. Oliver Morgan (Birmingham) – 1:58.89
  3. Jonny Marshall (Carnegie) – 1:58.93
  4. Brodie Williams (Bath) – 1:59.43
  5. Charlie Brown (Loughborough) – 1:59.59
  6. Matthew Ward (Bath) – 1:59.98
  7. Cameron Brooker (Bath) – 2:00.89
  8. Jack Skerry (Bath) – 2:00.95

The women’s 100m breaststroke national record of 1:06.21 set by Molly Renshaw in 2021 is in serious jeopardy, as evidenced by a statement-making performance by Angharad Evans in the heats.

Evans, a former Georgia Bulldog in the NCAA, fired off a time of 1:06.27 to put her competitors on notice en route to earning the pole position. That performance shaved .04 off her previous personal best of 1:06.25 from last month’s Edinburgh International.

This rising star has been on an upward trajectory for several months. At BUCS in February, Evans produced a swim of 1:06.65 to get under 1:07 for the first time. That erased her previous PB of 1:07.27 notched at December’s Rotterdam Qualification Meet. Before that effort, the Stirling athlete had never broken the 1:08 barrier.

But other women are gunning for Olympic qualification, including 200m breaststroke gold medalist here Kara Hanlon and 50m breast national record holder Imogen Clark.

Hanlon clocked 1:07.11 and Hanlon registered 1:08.94 to throw their hats into the Olympic qualification ring. The women will all be chasing the selection standard of 1:06.31.

Women’s 100m Breast Top 8:

  1. Angharad Evans (Stirling) – 1:06.27
  2. Kara Hanlon (Edinburgh) – 1:07.11
  3. Imogen Clark (Derby Excel) – 1:08.94
  4. Sienna Robinson (Loughborough) – 1:08.93
  5. Lilly Booker (Loughborough) – 1:09.33
  6. Anna Morgan (Edinburgh) – 1:09.46
  7. Amy Crowley (Cardiff) – 1:09.48
  8. Leah Schlosshan (Leeds) – 1:09.78

Loughborough’s Anna Hopkin is seeking to qualify for Paris in a second event, leading the women’s 100m free with a quick 53.68 this morning.

Hopkin already qualified in the 50m free and her effort in this longer sprint already falls within .13 of the Aquatics GB-mandated Olympic standard of 53.55. She’s been as fast as 52.55 in her career, the national record she put on the books at the 2020 Olympic Games. There in Tokyo, she ultimately placed 7th in 52.83.

Surprisingly, Bath’s Freya Anderson appeared, capturing the 3rd seed in 55.01 behind Repton’s Eva Okaro.

Anderson originally said her racing here in London was doubtful as she is recovering from mono (glandular fever). She bowed out of the 200m free earlier in the competition but dove in for the 100m, most likely because the number of discretionary Olympic picks is threatening her Paris qualification. Look for a follow-up post on this situation.

As for 18-year-old Okaro, she dropped out of the 100m fly final last night to focus on this 100m free, with relay selection also on the line.

Okaro clocked 54.60, already just .04 off her lifetime best of 54.56 put up just last month in Sheffield.

Lucy Hope who qualified for the women’s 4x200m free relay already, as well as 400m IM and 200m free champion here Freya Colbert lurk as the respective 6th and 7th seeds.

Women’s 100m Free Top 8:

  1. Anna Hopkin (Loughborough) – 53.68
  2. Eva Okaro (Repton) – 54.60
  3. Freya Anderson (Bath) – 55.01
  4. Isabella Hindley (Loughborough) – 55.12
  5. Abbie Wood (Loughborough) – 55.34
  6. Lucy Hope (Stirling) – 55.40
  7. Freya Colbert (Loughborough) – 55.44
  8. Evelyn Davis (Stirling) – 55.51

One of the most competitive events on the planet is the men’s 200m free and the domestic players here in Great Britain are among the best-ever. The race will come down to the touch, with the top 4 fastest Brit performers in history battling each other for the title, individual qualification and 4x200m free relay qualification.

Tonight’s final is a must-watch race, with Olympic champion Tom Dean in lane 4 for the main event. Dean notched the top seed in 1:46.47, leading a quartet of sub-1:47 swimmers. He owns the national record in 1:44.22, which took him to the top of the podium in Tokyo.

Flanking him for tonight’s final will be Millfield’s 100m free champion here Matt Richards and Stirling’s Jack McMillan. Richards hit 1:46.64 and McMillan logged 1:46.79.

James Guy (1:46.90) and Duncan Scott (1:47.18) made it to tonight’s final as did 400m free winner here Kieran Bird (1:47.17). Scott took silver behind Dean at the 2020 Olymipc Games in a PB of 1:44.26 to rank as the #2 GBR man ever.

The QT stands at 1:45.96, a threshold under which Dean, Scott, Richards and Guy have all delved in their careers.

Great Britain’s Top 5 Men’s LCM 200m Freestyler Performers All-Time

  1. Tom Dean – 1:44.22, 2020 Olympic Games
  2. Duncan Scott – 1:44.26, 2020 Olympic Games
  3. Matt Richards – 1:44.30, 2023 World Championships
  4.  James Guy – 1:45.14, 2015 World Championships
  5. Robbie Renwick – 1:45.99, 2009 World Championships

Men’s 200m Free Top 8:

  1. Tom Dean (Bath) – 1:46.47
  2. Matt Richards (Millfield) – 1:46.64
  3. Jack McMillan (Stirling) – 1:46.79
  4. James Guy (Millfield) – 1:46.90
  5. Kieran Bird (Bath) – 1:47.17
  6. Duncan Scott (Stirling) – 1:47.18
  7. Luke Turley (Bath) – 1:47.26
  8. Joe Litchfield (Loughborough) – 1:47.76

Missing out on the top 8:

9. Max Litchfield (Loughborough) – 1:48.01
10. Cameron Kurle (Millfield) – 1;48.64
11. Charlie Hutchison (Loughborough) – 1:48.79
12. Jacob Whittle (Bath) – 1:48.84
13. Evans Jones (Stirling) – 1:49.01
14. Alexander Painter (Millfield) – 1:49.29

SwimSwam: 2024 Aquatics GB Olympic Trials: Day 6 Prelims Recap

Related Items

You must be logged in to post a comment Login