Three Hoosiers took to the pool during the opening day of the 2020 Olympic Trials at the CHI Health Center on Friday.
Qualified U.S. swimmers will compete in Wave I of Trials, in a wildcard bid to reach Wave II of the event and race to become a member of the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team. The four-day Wave I Trials competition will feature many of the country’s rising talent, with the top two swimmers of every event moving to Wave II.
The Wave II eight-day Trials competition serves as the sole qualifier for pool swimmers on the U.S. Olympic Team for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Athletes will earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team roster at each of the eight finals sessions.
100m BACKSTROKESenior Jacob Steele claimed a spot in Wave II of the Olympic Trials by winning the A Final of the 100m Backstroke with a personal best time of 55.23. He out-touched Nathaniel Stoffle (55.28) to secure the victory after making up massive ground on the halfway turn.
He nabbed the top seed for the A Final out of the prelims after dropping his seed time to 55.46 and winning the seventh heat.
Sophomore Anna Freed narrowly missed her personal best in the B Final of the 100m Backstroke with a time of 1:02.67 to place t-12th. She used a strong back 50m to win the second heat of the prelims earlier in the day in the 100m Backstroke with a time of 1:02.88. She finished 11th to earn her second swim.
100m FREESTYLERecent graduate Griffin Eiber finished 25th in the preliminary rounds of the 100m Freestyle with a time of 51.30.
FINAL RESULTSMEN’S 100m FREESTYLE25. Griffin Eiber – 51.30
WOMEN’S 100m BACKSTROKEt-12. Anna Freed – 1:02.67 (1:02.88 in Preliminary Heats)
MEN’S 100m BACKSTROKE1. Jacob Steele – 55.23 (55.46 in Preliminary Heats)
The 2020 Olympic Trials will continue with three more events (200m Freestyle, 100m Breaststroke, 400m IM) on Saturday morning. The preliminary heats will begin at 11 a.m. ET with the finals commencing at approximately 8 p.m. from the CHI Health Center.
