Swimming

UC-San Diego Gains In-State Commitment from US Open Qualifier Bekzhan Yessengeldy (2024)

May 9, 2024

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Opting to stay in the sunny climes of southern California, San Diego native Bekzhan Yessengeldy has committed to swim for the University of California – San Diego for this upcoming fall semester.

I am honored and grateful to announce my verbal commitment to swim and study at UCSD! Thank you to all my coaches at NCA, CSTE, and RSD, as well as my teammates who supported me. I also wanted to acknowledge my family for being there for me since day one. Go Tritons!

Yessengeldy attends Canyon Crest Academy and recently competed for the school at the 2024 CIF—San Diego Section Division 1 Championships. The senior took on his bread-and-butter high school events, the 200 IM and 100 breast. He was the top seed in each event after prelims and had set a new personal best in the 200 IM at 1:48.62, but was unable to replicate that success as he was disqualified in finals. However, Yessengeldy shrugged off that disappointment to win the 100 breast at the end of the meet— with his time of 55.53 eclipsing his former PB of 55.68 from March of 2024.

The Canyon Crest Acadamy San Diego swimmer enters this weekend’s CIF State Championships as the #9 seed in the 100 breast. Last year, as a junior, he tied for 17th (56.71) in the 100 breast, just missing out on making finals. He did get a second swim, however, as the tie for first alternate had to be broken, which he won in a then-new PB of 56.14. In addition to the 100 breast, Yessengeldy potentially could factor into all three of his school’s relays, of which the 200 Medley is seeded highest at 19th.

Outside of high school swimming, Yessengeldy swims for Rancho San Dieguito and recently competed at the Fran Crippen Swim Meet of Champions. At the long course meet, he set new personal bests in the 100 free (55.60), the 200 free (2:00.89), the 200 fly (2:15.81), and the 200 IM (2:06.86), where he finished in 6th place behind Destin Lasco’s 2:02.04.

Best SCY Times

100 Breast – 55.53
200 Breast – 2:00.19
200 IM – 1:48.62
400 IM – 3:58.14

UC San Diego is a Division I Mid-Major program that competes in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation and is helmed by head coach Marko Djordjevic. At the most recent championships, the Tritons finished fifth out of seven teams with 444 points. When Yessengeldy steps on campus this fall, he will have an immediate impact at the conference level.

His personal bests in the breaststroke and IM events would safely qualify him into the B-final or higher in all four events. Notably, in the 200 breaststroke, his PB of 2:00.19 would have placed him 6th in prelims, while his 100 breast (55.53) would have been just outside of the A-final, as 8th place was 55.19 and 9th was 55.59.

Yessengeldy will join a strong training group. UC San Diego placed three swimmers, Jake Reuter, Luke Pusateri, and Colton Milne, into the A-final of the 200 breast. Of the three, only Pusateri is a senior, so the Tritons return at least two of their A-finalists. Reuter was the highest placed amongst the trio; he finished 4th in a time of 1:59.68.

Joining Yessengeldy next fall are Filip Kurial, Aiden Griffith, Hunter Cehelnik, Jacob Cairns, Jack O’Shaughnessy, and Jacob Wang, all of whom also call California home. Of the group, Yessengeldy will likely do much of his training with Griffith, who is a 3:55 400 IMer and has PBs of 55.84 and 2:00.58 in the breaststroke events.

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