Rylee Erisman Blasts NAG (15-16) Record in 200 Freestyle; Takes Down Iconic Katie Ledecky Standard
Rising American star Rylee Erisman took down an iconic National Age Group (NAG) record while racing at the East site of the United States Winter Juniors on Friday night. Competing at the historic Indiana University Natatorium, Erisman clocked 1:40.93 in the 200-yard freestyle to establish an NAG in the 15-16 classification. Erisman’s time easily topped the previous standard in the event, the 1:42.03 of Katie Ledecky from 2013.
A multi-time gold medalist at last summer’s World Junior Championships, Erisman (Laker Swim) was expected to challenge several age-group records in Indianapolis, but to take more than a second off a Ledecky mark is stunning. En route to her record performance, Erisman was out in 23.46 at the 50-yard mark and made the turn at the midway point of the race in 48.91. She touched in 1:15.06 at 150 yards and finished out her effort with a closing split of 25.87.
Erisman won the event by more than four seconds and it was her third indvidual victory of the meet, complementing previous triumphs in the 50 freestyle (21.95) and 500 freestyle (4:34.60). Erisman is already the NAG record holder in the 100 freestyle, but based on her form in Indy, she appears poised to break her record in that event on Saturday. Erisman owns the mark at 46.69.
Ahead of making the trip to Indianapolis for Winter Juniors, Erisman announced she was reclassifying to the Class of 2026 and committing to compete for Cal-Berkeley, where her brother (Ryan) is a freshman. Obviously, Erisman will have an immediate impact for the Golden Bears – in both individual events and as a relay contributor.