Multiple records fall to close out Phillips 66 National Championships
Katie Ledecky blew out her competition at the Phillips 66 National Championships on Saturday at IU Natatorium.
Ledecky put on a dominant performance in the women’s 1500-meter freestyle, finishing in first place with a time of 15:29.64. Katie Grimes was in second place with a time of 15:58.34.
It has been a busy week for Ledecky. On Tuesday, she won the 800 freestyle. The following day, she placed second in the 200 freestyle. She bounced back on Friday with a victory in the women’s 400 freestyle. And then on Saturday, she added another win.
Ledecky has already accomplished so much in her career. She is a swimming legend, having appeared in three Olympics and won seven Olympic gold medals. Even now, though, she is still motivated to elevate her skills.
“I love the training every day,” Ledecky said. “I just love trying to push myself and try to do things in training I’ve never done before and hope that carries over to races. And, yeah, just enjoying the day-to-day, just keeps me motivated to come to these meets and try to enjoy the meets and put together great races. It’s really satisfying to be able to put together some good races and feel good in the water.”
Abbey Weitzeil sets record
Weitzeil set a new U.S. Open record in the women’s 50 freestyle with a time of 24 seconds. She took first place on Saturday, with Gretchen Walsh finishing second.
Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, she placed second in the 100 freestyle.
Weitzeil is a two-time Olympian and four-time Olympic medalist, which includes a gold in 2016.
Bobby Finke continues impressive week
Finke set the U.S. Open record in the men’s 800 freestyle with a time of 7:40.34.
“I didn’t really know where I was," Finke said. "But I could just like see my teammates like just waving on the side, telling me to go. And I’m like, I got to be on pace for something.”
It was another high-level performance in what has been an impressive week for Finke. On Tuesday, Finke set a U.S. Open record in the 1500 freestyle with a time of 14:42.81, winning the event.
“I wasn’t too sure what I was out at," Finke said about that 1500 performance. "At about the 800, I was going to try and look back at the board somewhere in there but then I realized the swimming part of me was on the side I was breathing so if I wanted to, I was going to have to really work and realized it wasn’t worth it. After the race, I saw my splits and realized I died a bit at the end.”
Then on Thursday, he placed third in the 400 IM, before churning out a record-setting performance Saturday.
Finke showed out in the Tokyo Olympics, winning gold in both the 800 and 1500 freestyle events.
IU’s Mariah Denigan gains meaningful experience
Ledecky stole the show in the women’s 1500 freestyle on Saturday. But a notable local storyline was that IU swimming’s Mariah Denigan placed sixth in the event with a time of 16:19.02.
Denigan competed in the 800 freestyle earlier in the week. Then went back to Bloomington to train before returning for Saturday’s race.
Denigan has completed two seasons at IU.
“The first year was definitely a learning curve,” Denigan said. “I went through a little bit of a back injury and it’s just freshman, real-life things that you’re not really used to when you’re a club swimmer. And then my second year was amazing. The team culture at IU is absolutely incredible. All the girls are like sisters to me… It’s just a great atmosphere for training and I love every single one of my coaches, as well.”
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Multiple records fall to close out Phillips 66 National Championships
