Sean Grieshop and Maxime Rooney Get Taste of the Top Podium Spot at Winter Nationals

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

By David Rieder.

Sean Grieshop and Maxime Rooney each took turns on the top step of the podium at the AT&T Winter National Championships Friday night, neither in any sort of upset fashion. After all, each entered as the top seed in their respective events, Grieshop in the men’s 400 IM and Rooney in the men’s 200 free.

But even so, a National championship is nothing to sneeze at.

“It’s been a dream of mine for a super long time to get my hand on the wall on any big national stage, and it finally came true,” Grieshop said after touching in 3:44.69, just off his lifetime best time of 3:44.30.

Grieshop swam from behind for much of the race before touching out Omar Pinzon and Nate Carr at the end of the breaststroke leg and then pulling away on the freestyle.

“My coach and I really try to train my fly and breast because those are probably my weakest strokes,” Grieshop said. “I knew I had to keep up with [the rest of the field], make sure I wasn’t too far behind going into the freestyle because freestyle definitely is one of my prime strokes, and it definitely helps on the end of the 400 IM.”

Grieshop’s profile has been steadily rising since finishing third in the 400 IM at the 2015 National Championships in San Antonio and then winning the World Junior title in that event a few weeks later. At the Olympic Trials this past summer, he set the world junior record in the 400 IM, clocking 4:14.00 in the event’s prelims. He then he finished fifth in the final behind the quartet of Chase Kalisz, Jay Litherland, Ryan Lochte and Gunnar Bentz.

Since then, Grieshop admits that he’s missed some time in training as he took four recruiting trips to colleges around the country before he settled on the California Golden Bears.

“While I was at Cal, I just knew that was my home,” he said. “It was great getting to bond with the team and see the coaches, and I love the energy that they had. We went to the beach, and I’m a huge surfer!”

But before he heads to the Bay Area for freshman year, Grieshop has designs on doing a lot of training. He won’t rest much for any short course meet, as the only target is next summer’s World Championship Trials in Indianapolis.

Even though the three Bulldogs will all be back to contend for spots on the World Championship team this summer in the 400 IM, Grieshop has designs on leaping at least two: he wants a spot on that team. And he has the confidence that come June, he will be ready to make that leap.

“Definitely winning this 400 IM here helps, just knowing that I have this under my belt,” he said. Getting back into training, a more consistent training schedule and being with a team that really helps me and pushes me.”

As for Rooney, he had tasted the top of the podium before at a National Championships, at that same meet in San Antonio 16 months ago when Grieshop first broke out. Rooney edged out Zane Grothe for the national title in the long course 200 free, 1:47.10 to 1:47.11.

His sights set on the 100 and 200 free at Olympic Trials—and perhaps one of six available relay slots in each event—Rooney did not get into the final of either event, finishing 11th in the 100 free and ninth in the 200, just 0.14 out of the top eight.

In his first swim of the meet in Omaha in the 200 free prelims, Rooney put his foot on the gas at the start, splitting 1:18.85 at the 150—by far the top split in the field—before fading badly on the way home and barely making the semifinals.

Since then, Rooney has relocated cross-country from California to Gainesville, Fla., and a renewed focus on training at the University of Florida has helped him recapture his proper racing strategies.

“I was working hard [before Trials], but I don’t think I was as focused,” Rooney said. “I had a couple distractions last year. Remove those distractions and getting back to focused training helped a lot. I’m doing more than I ever have at Florida, and that’s what I need to be the best I can be right now.”

Rooney has gotten into the weight room for the first time at Florida, the benefits of which he says he can already feel, and he has the benefit of an exceptional freestyle group to train with at Florida with the likes of Mitch D’Arrigo, Jan Switkowski and talented sprinter Caeleb Dressel.

“Practices are very, very competitive,” he said. “Every day, people are getting after it. If you’re not on it, people are going to get on you.”

After posting a 1:33.85 to win the 200 free at Winter Nationals, Rooney called Florida head coach Gregg Troy, who confirmed that his freshman is right where he needs to be at this point in the season. Rooney figures to swim the 200 free, 100 free and either the 500 free or the 200 IM at the NCAA championships this coming March as the Gators look to equal or surpass last year’s third-place finish.

“I love the 200 free. I love the 100 free. But whatever Coach Troy wants me to swim, I’ll do that,” he said.

Big team goals have Rooney’s attention right now, but after the NCAA meet, his focus will return to the long course pool. Just like Grieshop, Rooney figures to be gunning for a spot in Budapest this summer. And with six spots again available in both freestyle events and several of last year’s top contenders not returning, his chances appear legitimate.

Both still have time to go in their teenage years—Rooney does not turn 19 until April and Grieshop not until November—so it figures that both just might see the top of National podiums again before too long.

Video interview with Sean Grieshop:

Video interview with Maxime Rooney:

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