US Nationals Day 2 Finals: Claire Weinstein Chases Down Field to Win Women’s 200 Freestyle
It is pretty common for the elite swimmers in the country to be elite in multiple events.
It is even common to have some of those elite swimmers do multiple events in the same night, whether it be a 100 fly-100 backstroke double, or even a 100 fly-200 free.
But how about the 100 free and 800 free? Unheard of for anyone outside of Katie Ledecky.
But Claire Weinstein accomplished the feat on Day 1 of the U.S. National Championships – having less than a half hour between races. She made the finals of both, then finished second in the 800 to make the World Championship team.
Then on Day 2, she kept the momentum going with a stunning 200 freestyle win.
“I feel good about that race. I am glad I got the win. I was hurting really bad from yesterday. The time isn’t what I wanted, but I am excited to make the team in another event,” Weinstein said. “Today was the most tired I have been for a race at a trials meet, and I think that is a good thing, being tired and challenging myself. I have made the 200 free the past three years now, and I am final to a point of having goals other than just make the team, and that has really helped me.
“This whole day I felt bad and I was telling myself I felt great and gas-lighting myself.”
Weinstein, who made the Paris Olympic team, was hoping to make the team in the 100 freestyle, or at least as a member of the 400 free relay, but was not able to make it into the top six.
So on top of having less than a half hour to prepare physically to race a grueling 800, she had to mentally push past the disappointment of the 100 free.
Then she had to push back from being seventh at the 400 mark.
“The 100 was a side quest for me. I really wanted to make the A final just to prove it to myself that I could do it,” Weinstein said. “I was really happy to make the A final. The 100 and the 800, I have never made the team in either, so I felt like I had nothing to lose. I think I would have been more upset if I scratched the 100 free, then didn’t make the team in the 800. So I found it to be a fun way to challenge myself and it ended up being the hardest thing I have ever done in swimming.”
Weinstein held off a stunning surge in the final 100 from Jillian Cox to get her hand on the wall in 8:19.67, just 19 hundredths of a second ahead of Cox to join Ledecky, who broke the meet record to win in 8:05.76.
“That is the most I have ever had to talk to myself in a race. The first 200, I couldn’t even lift my arms out of the water. I was so close to giving up. I didn’t want to get last and embarrass myself. But as the race went on, I tried to catch up to people and I just kept building,” Weinstein said. “At the 400, I knew I was getting closer and every time I went in and passed, I could feel myself catching up. Once I had a 200 left, I realized I was kind of in the race. I just wanted to see what I could do.”
The strength, both physically and mentally, to finish strong and hold off a hard-charging opponent showed the poise the teenager has. She has been in so many international meets it is difficult to remember she is still just 18 – and she has made the team in open water.
“The pool is always my focus and will always be my focus, but open water is a fun thing to experiment in and challenge myself,” she said. “I have been taking small steps in the right direction over the years. I know I had been a little jealous of people who asserted themselves with a huge swim right away in their careers. But I think taking small steps in the right direction is what has helped me and kept me going in practice. I was just excited to race and that helped me get through last night and today.”
She her comeback speed to finish second to Ledecky in the 800 on Day 1 of US Nationals and win the 200 free, passing Ledecky and most of the field in the final 50.
Torri Huske took the early lead at the 50 mark. She led at the 100 mark, too, though that lead was narrower. She turned at the 150 in the lead as Weinstein and others chased.
Then Ledecky turned it up a notch and tried to chase, but Weinstein, just like in the 800 on Day 1, completed a comeback with a final split of 29.26 and a swim of 1:54.92.
She had the second-fastest third 50 and the fastest final 50 of the race.
Ledecky finished second and will swim the individual event at World Championships after delivering a 1:55.26 at US Nationals.
Huske finished third and made the team on the relay with a 1:55.71 and Erin Gemmell and Anna Peplowski tied for the fourth spot (1:55.82) at U.S. Nationals. The top four go in the 800 free relay, so it will remain to be seen if that tie needs to be handled or if two alternates will go because of roster space.
Bella Sims finished sixth and she could be the other alternate. She finished in 1:57.18 ahead of Simone Manuel (1:57.44) and Isabel Ivey (1:58.06).
