Matt Sates Rips 1:56.34 Personal Best In 200 Fly, Hits QT For Fukuoka

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

2023 ACROPOLIS SWIM OPEN

• Friday, May 5th – Sunday, May 7th
• Athens Olympic Aquatic Center, Athens, Greece
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Site
• World Championships/2024 Olympic Games Qualifier
• Day 1 Recap/Day 2 Recap
• Results
• Livestream

While competing on day three of the 2023 Acropolis Swim Open in Athens, Greece, Matt Sates of South Africa produced a big-time personal best en route to winning the men’s 200m fly.

Sates fired off a time of 1:56.34 to reap gold, hitting a new meet record in the process. he topped the podium in one of only two sub-2:00 efforts of the field, as Greek swimmer Andreas Vazaios secured silver in 1:59.24.

As for Sates, the 19-year-old split 26.30/29.35 (55.65)/1:00.69 to score his first 200m fly result ever under the 2:00 barrier. Entering this competition, the former Georgia Bulldog’s lifetime best rested at the 2:02.83 he logged in September of 2019 at that year’s African Junior Championships.

Sate’s 1:56.34 new career-quickest mark now renders the teen South Africa’s 4th fastest performer in history.

Top 5 South African Men’s LCM 200 Butterfly Performers All-Time

1. Chad Le Clos – 1:52.96, 2012
2. Sebastian Rousseau – 1:54.51, 2009
3. Ethan Du Preez – 1:56.15, 2021
4. Matt Sates – 1:56.34, 2023
5. Dylan Bosch – 1:56.92, 2014

Sates also now ranks 10th in the world this season in the men’s 200m fly and his outing dipped under the World Aquatics ‘A’ cut of 1:56.71 needed for this summer’s World Championships.

Sates has had a somewhat rocky season thus far, missing out on automatic qualification in several of his key events at the South African National Championships in April. Although that competition was the primary qualification pathway to Fukuoka, the nation’s selection procedures do indicate that athletes can qualify based on rankings.

At Nationals, Sates produced times of 3:55.48 in the 400m free, 4:34.74 in the 400m IM, 1:59.95 in the 200m IM and 49.20 in the 100m free. He did earn silver behind Chad Le Clos in the 100m free, with his time of 51.91 getting under the World Aquatics ‘A’ standard for this summer’s World Championships.

Since those Nationals, Sates improved his 200m IM to 1:58.77 here at this Acropolis Open while he notched a 400m IM result here of 4:17.71. Even swimming the 20om fly earlier in tonight’s session, Sates was able to drop his 400m free time down to 3:52.10 this evening.

SwimSwam: Matt Sates Rips 1:56.34 Personal Best In 200 Fly, Hits QT For Fukuoka