Dan Ketchum is Michigan’s Athlete of the Year

ANN ARBOR, MI., October 19. THE University of Michigan Athletic Department has selected Wolverine All-America freestyler Dan Ketchum — a sophomore from Cincinnati — as its Male Athlete of the Year for 2001-02.

Ketchum earned four All-America honors at the 2002 NCAA Championships last March in Athens, GA., giving him seven for his career. He opened with a fifth-place finish in the 500 yard freestyle (4:18.22) before adding a runner-up finish in the 200 yard freestyle with a mark of 1:34.76, just .09 off Florida champ Adam Sioui's winning 1:34.67 — third-best 200 in Gator history. Ketchum holds the Michigan school-record with his 1:34.19 from last spring's Big 10 Championships at Indiana.

He added an All-America honorable mention in the 1650 freestyle with an 11th-place finish and anchored Michigan's 400- and 800-yard freestyle relays, which placed eighth and third, respectively.

Ketchum's efforts helped the Wolverines to ninth in final team standings.

At the Big Ten Championships a month earlier, Ketchum was named Swimmer of the Year after winning the 200 and 500 frees, establishing a Big Ten meet and school record in the former, and placing runner-up in the 200 butterfly.

He also swam on the victorious 800 freestyle relay team which set a Big Ten meet record (6:22.82) and the 400 yard freestyle relay team which set a school-record (2:54.47) while placing runner-up.

Ketchum tied for high-point honors there with 57 while helping the Wolverines to a second-place finish.

During the dual-meet season Ketchum won the 200 freestyle seven times.

In the summer of '01, Ketchum represented the United States at the World University Games in Beijing. He won a silver in the 200 meter freestyle and a bronze in the 800 meter freestyle relay.

Ketchum's 1:34.19 from the Big 10s was fastest nationally last season. He also went a 1:49.42 200 meter free at the U.S. Nationals in Ft. Lauderdale
last August and ranks 24th globally for the year.

Both Ketchum and Sioui will be after the American/NCAA record of 1:33.03 by former Cal great Matt Biondi that has stood the test of time since the '87 NCAAs.

Biondi's swim was done his senior season at the Jamail Texas Swimming Center Pool, coincidentally site of this year's NCAA Championships the final weekend of next March.

Will history repeat itself?

Wolverined coach Jon Urbancek is hoiping so, as is Gator head man Greg Troy, not to mention Ketchum and Sioui.

The latter may be especially motivated inasmuch as he is defending champion and had to swim a long course meet shortly before NCAAs in his native Canada last spring. Sioui then returned to Florida, had to get back into a yards "mode" and then compete at the collegiate championship.

Canada chose its Commonwealth Games team off its spring Nationals held about two weeks before NCAAs. Sioui had to swim there in order to make the plane
to Manchester, site of the Games, which he did with a 1:50.41 seasonal best for the 200.

— Bill Bell

(Phil…fyi..Sioui actually ranked THIRD last season overall as Ketchum's
1:34.19 was first and Texas' Chris Kemp did a 1:34.41 @ NCAAs but he must
have done it in the consols as I have no "p" or "r" after his name which
means it was a finals swim and since the winning time was 1:34.67…Also
Sioui ranks third all-time on Gator list behind Dalbey's 1:33.28 which when
he swam it was second behind Biondi and a guy named Bob Utley has a 1:34.63
from '89 NCAAs that is also faster.)

ANN ARBOR, MI., October 19. THE University of Michigan Athletic Department has selected Wolverine All-America freestyler Dan Ketchum – a sophomore from Cincinnati – as its Male Athlete of the Year for 2001-02.

Ketchum earned four All-America honors at the 2002 NCAA Championships last March in Athens, GA., giving him seven for his career. He opened with a fifth-place finish in the 500 yard freestyle (4:18.22) before adding a runner-up finish in the 200 yard freestyle with a mark of 1:34.76, just .09 off Florida champ Adam Sioui's pace. Ketchum holds the Michigan school record with his 1:34.19 from last spring's Big 10 Championships at Indiana.

He added an All-America honorable mention in the 1650 freestyle with an 11th-place finish and anchored Michigan's 400- and 800-yard freestyle relays, which placed eighth and third, respectively.

Ketchum's efforts helped the Wolverines to ninth in final team standings.

At the Big Ten Championships a month earlier, Ketchum was named Swimmer of the Year after winning the 200 and 500 frees, establishing a Big Ten meet and school record in the former, and placing runner-up in the 200 butterfly.

He also swam on the victorious 800 freestyle relay team which set a Big Ten meet-record (6:22.82) and the 400 yard freestyle relay team which set a school record (2:54.47) while placing runner-up. Ketchum tied for high-point honors there with 57 while helping the Wolverines to a second-place finish.

During the dual-meet season Ketchum won the 200 freestyle seven times.

In the summer of '01, Ketchum represented the United States at the World University Games in Beijing. He won a silver in the 200 meter freestyle and a bronze in the 800 meter freestyle relay.

Ketchum's 1:34.19 from the Big 10s was fastest nationally last season. Both he and Sioui will be after the American/NCAA record of 1:33.03 by former Cal great Matt Biondi that has stood the test of time since the '87 NCAAs.

Biondi's swim was done his senior season at the Jamail Texas Swimming Center Pool, coincidentally site of this season's NCAA Championships the final weekend of March.

Will history repeat itself?

Wolverined coach Jon Urbancek is hoping so, as is Gator head man Greg Troy, not to mention Ketchum and Sioui.

The latter may be especially motivated inasmuch as he was snubbed by Canadian Swimming when it came time to pick his country's Commonwealth Games and Pan-Pac teams. Selection was based on results of a meet held just prior to NCAAs last March and Sioui opted not to compete, prefering instead to remain training in Gainesville.

His decision cost him a spot on the plane to Manchester and Yokmohama but his upset victory at NCAAs was a pretty good "in your face" response.

— Bill Bell

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