Caeleb Dressel, Bobby Finke and Katie Ledecky finished first in their respective events to punch their tickets to the FINA World Championships.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida closed out the Phillips 66 International Time Trials with a bang as three Gators qualified for the FINA World Championships on the final day of competition.
In another stacked event for Florida, three Gators were in the finals of the 800M freestyle as Bobby Finke, Tyler Watson and Brennan Gravley all competed in the event. Finke would sweep the distance events at the meet after placing first in the 800M free with a new U.S. Open record of 7:43.32, overtaking Zane Grothe’s previous record of 7:44.57 set in 2018. With this victory, Finke qualified for two events in the 1650M free and the 800M free.
In Watson’s third final of the meet, he would finish in fifth in the 800M free with a time of 7:56.44. Gravley, who also competed in the 400M IM and 1650M free finals, placed 14th in the event with a time of 8:09.93.
Caeleb Dressel once again provided the fastest time in the world this year, this time in the 50M freestyle, with a first-place mark of 21.29 to qualify for Budapest in the event. In addition, Dressel also posted the fastest time in the world in the 100M free and swam a U.S. Open record in the 50M fly, qualifying for four events at the FINA World Championships (50M fly, 100M fly, 50M free, 100M free).
Adam Chaney and Macguire McDuff also competed in the 50M free B Final. Chaney would finish fourth in his heat and 12th overall with a time of 22.68, while McDuff was close behind with a time of 22.70 to place fifth in the heat and 13th overall.
Competing in his fourth event of the Phillips 66 Time Trials was Kieran Smith, who previously qualified for the FINA World Championships in the 200m and 400M freestyle. Smith was able to put up a time of 1:59.83 in the 200M IM A Final to finish eighth.
Volunteer Assistant Coach Katie Ledecky continued to dominate at the meet as she won went a perfect 4-for-4 in her events, winning the 1500M freestyle with the top time in the world this season of 15:38.99. The only one to go under 15:40 in the event, Ledecky defeated the next swimmer by almost 14 seconds. Ledecky closes out the time trials with event wins in the 200M, 400M, 800m and the 1500M free.
Elise Bauer competed in the 1500M free and put together a solid outing with a time of 16:33.48 to finish in sixth, while Tylor Mathieu was right behind as she placed 10th with a mark of 16:38.52. Natalie Hinds also competed in her fourth event of the meet, putting up a time of 24.97 to finish seventh in the 50M free A Final.
Dillon Hillis and Katie Mack also competed for the Gators on the final day of competition in the prelims, with Hillis finishing 25th in the 200M Individual Medley with a time of 2:05.53 and Mack placing 27th in the 50M free, touching the wall in 25.96.
Finals Times:
Women’s 1500M Free (Timed Finals)
* Katie Ledecky – 15:38.99 (1st place)
* Elise Bauer – 16:33.48 (6th place)
* Tylor Mathieu – 16:38.52 (10th place)
Men’s 200M Individual Medley – A Final
* Kieran Smith – 1:59.83 (8th place)
Men’s 800M Free (Timed Finals)
* Bobby Finke – 7:43.32 (1st place)
* Tyler Watson – 7:56.44 (5th place)
* Brennan Gravley – 8:09,93 (14th place)
Women’s 50M Free – A Final
* Natalie Hinds – 24.97 (7th place)
Men’s 50M Free – A Final
* Caeleb Dressel – 21.29 (1st place)
Men’s 50M Free – B Final
* Adam Chaney – 22.68 (4th in heat; 12th overall)
* Macguire McDuff – 22.70 (5th in heat; 13th overall)
*Bold indicates qualification for FINA World Championships
Preliminary Times:
Men’s 200M Individual Medley
* Kieran Smith – 1:59.60*
* Dillon Hillis – 2:05.53
Women’s 50M Free
* Natalie Hinds – 25.16*
* Katie Mack – 25.96
Men’s 50M Free
* Caeleb Dressel – 21.71*
* Adam Chaney – 22.55^
* Macguire McDuff – 22.67^
* A Final
^ B Final
& C Final
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