World Championships: Hayley Peirsol Comes Out on Top of 1,500 Free Prelims

By John Lohn

MELBOURNE, Australia, March 25. CAPPING the second morning of preliminary action were the heats of the women's 1,500 freestyle. Out of that 50-minute timeframe, the fans who remained in the stands were treated to some quality swimming, particularly by American Hayley Peirsol. The silver medalist at last summer's Pan Pacific Championships, Peirsol clocked 16:02.82, incredibly fast for a prelim in the metric mile.

One of only three women in history to break the 16-minute mark – all from the United States – Peirsol made a statement that she intends on winning gold. If that scenario unfolds, it could coincide with her old brother, Aaron, taking another crown in the 100 backstroke. Both event finals are scheduled for the third night of competition.

Peirsol was followed in qualifying by Japan's Ai Shibata, who touched the wall in 16:05.92. Meanwhile, Kate Ziegler, the reigning world champ, was third in 16:07.71. Ziegler owns history's third-fastest time, a 15:55.01 that won Pan Pacs in 2006 and sits behind only two Janet Evans performances, including the world record of 15:52.10, on the books since 1988.

Denmark's Lotte Friis was the surprise fourth qualifier, behind a mark of 16:09.39, and Spain's Erika Villaecija was fifth in 16:09.40. The sixth and seventh positions went to France's Laure Manaudou (16:12.16) and Switzerland's Flavia Rigamonti (16:19.33). The eighth place for the final was secured by Chile's Kristel Kobrich in 16:22.18. While Manaudou only qualified sixth, the champion from the 400 freestyle will be a major player in the championship final and should crack 16 minutes.

Click Here to view event results PDF file.

Check back for an updated story on this event as our team of Senior Writer John Lohn and CEO Brent Rutemiller, on the scene at Rod Laver Arena, provide in-depth coverage, along with radio and TV segments.

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