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Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick<\/p><\/div>\n

Derivaux, who just completed her freshman year at Haddonfield High School and is one of only eight 14-year-olds at the meet , was seeded 31st in the IM. She went from a seed time of 4:49.32 to 4:45.23, a massive drop that was enough to leave her thoroughly pleased when she left the pool.<\/p>\n

Somehow, though, it got better.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, I just wanted to try my best and just leave it all in the pool,\u201d she said. \u201cI wanted to drop time, like going 4:45 is amazing for me. But I feel like I have more left for tonight. And I really want to see what I can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Derivaux\u2019s time beat everyone in the fourth heat of six. Only Lilla Bognar, Leah Hayes<\/strong> and Leah Smith<\/strong> (age 29, just about twice as old as Derivaux) beat her time in the first circle-seeded heat.<\/p>\n

So Derivaux sat in the ready room locked in on Heat 6. Watching intently, she did the calculations \u2013 yes, Katie Grimes<\/strong> and Emma Weyant<\/strong> would beat her. Lucy Bell,<\/strong> too. But if fourth place in that heat slowed down just a little bit. Or if fifth fell off \u2026<\/p>\n

The board showed Megan van Berkom<\/strong> fifth in the final heat in 4:45.73, Derivaux into the final eight by a clear half-second.<\/p>\n

Somehow, after all of that, she had to corral the emotions and go out and swim again. She was slightly slower than her seed in the 100 back, going 1:02.02 for 34th place, still an improvement relative to her seed of 48th.<\/p>\n

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A 14-year-old just made finals in the #SwimTrials24<\/a> 400 IM \ud83e\udd2f<\/p>\n
Jersey Wahoos’ Audrey Derixaux, one of the eight 14-year-olds at this meet, posted a 4:45.23 to win her heat and become the eighth seed for tonight’s final.@TeamUSA<\/a> | \ud83c\udfa5: @NBCOlympics<\/a> & @peacock<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/DuOaBM4s4S<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 USA Swimming (@USASwimming) June 17, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n