The Return of the Queen: Alia Atkinson Racing For the First Time Since Historic World Title

Alia Atkinson

Photo Courtesy: Azaria Basile

Commentary by Jeff Commings

TUCSON – Alia Atkinson is back in the racing pool starting tomorrow at the Arena Pro Swim Series, two months after winning a historic short course world title in the 100 breaststroke.

Atkinson won that title over the favored Ruta Meilutyte with a 1:02.36, tying Meilutyte’s world record. But perhaps more significantly, it made her the first black woman to win a world swimming title, and Jamaica’s first swimming world champion.

Because Atkinson lives and trains in southern Florida, she is likely immune to the newfound status she’s getting in her home country. It would be great if Atkinson were put on an equally high pedestal as Jamaica’s track stars, but a world championship gold medal is not likely to do that. Only Olympic gold will make Atkinson the superstar that swimming in the Caribbean needs to get its children of color excited about the sport.

This weekend will be the next step in that journey. Atkinson always performs well in these meets, often posting times that remain competitive through the spring and early summer. We live in an era when professional swimming is enticing most of our top athletes to swim fast more than once or twice a year, and Atkinson has responded to that with not only some large paydays, but times that establish her as one of the best breaststrokers in the world.

Though Atkinson is making some major inroads in the 100 breaststroke, I would like to see her performing well on the world stage in the 200 breast. You will remember that Atkinson won the 200 breast NCAA title in 2010, and I think she has the potential to join the growing group of swimmers under 2:20, or at least right on that barrier.

I will admit it is difficult for me to look beyond the color of Atkinson’s skin when I talk of potential for Olympic medals. The thought of seeing a black woman on the medal stand accepting a medal for swimming at the Olympics is an exciting one. She would not be the first (Enith Brigitha and Lia Neal have stood on previous Olympic podiums), but her presence could punctuate the message that swimming is a sport for people of all colors and backgrounds.

Knoxville, TN - December 7, 2013: Women's 200 Breaststroke Winner Alia Atkinson during the 2013 AT&T Swimming Winter National Championships on December 7, 2013 in Knoxville, Tennessee at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center. Photo By Matthew DeMaria/Tennessee Athletics

Photo Courtesy: Matthew DeMaria/Tennessee Athletics

Back to this week’s meet in Orlando. I’m excited to see how Atkinson fares against Breeja Larson, who also had much success representing Texas A&M. Unfortunately, these two won’t race together in the 100 breast at the world championships, as Larson qualified for the U.S. team in only the 200 breast. But this could be a great matchup this week nonetheless. The last time these two raced each other was in Mesa last April, and Atkinson scorched a 31.19 in her first 50 on the way to a 1:07.50. That would be a very fast time for anyone in mid-February, but Atkinson has the potential to do it. She won the 100 breast in Orlando last year with a 1:07.15. Larson rarely gets below 1:08.5 during an in-season meet, but if I’m sure she’s looking to earn as much money as possible this week to pay for her upcoming wedding, so look for her to challenge Atkinson as much as possible.

The American swimming community doesn’t know Atkinson well, simply because she is not American. But I hope she gains some sort of notoriety this week in the wake of her world title. She deserves it, and I hope she knows it could be just the beginning.

ORLANDO ARENA PRO SWIM SERIES PSYCH SHEET

Swimming World’s Tiffany Elias and Annie Chandler will be in Orlando as part of our complete coverage of the Arena Pro Swim Series in Orlando. Click here to visit the event landing page for video interviews!

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Dunc1952
Dunc1952
9 years ago

Great article; I’ve always found it very interesting the both Alia and Breeja were Aggies, even though their eligibilities didn’t overlap and that even though she was an NCAA winner in college, Alia has inexorably continued to improve, from Olympic final and into SCM World champ/record..
Questions:
1. “Larson rarely gets below 1:08.5 during an in-season meet, ,,,” — She’s already been a still world leading 1:07.33 at the Austin stop on the Arena Pro Swim Series (that’s hard to type still).

2. “These two are likely to race in the final of the 100 breast at the world championships, …” Breeja qualified for Kazan in the 200 Breast, but not the 100, where Jessica Hardy and Micah Lawrence tied for the 100 spots at 1:06.51 at Nationals and are still listed on the Kazan roster found at the USA Swimming website as of today. Was this just an oversight or is Jessica or Micah dropping out of the 100, potentially opening a spot for Breeja? I knew Micah broke her leg, but I’ve not gotten the impression from published information that her injury will keep her from Russia.

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