SWIMMING: Shocking 50.68 prelim 100 Fly by Maxime Rooney and 4:35.37 U.S. leader for Emma Weyant at Nationals

New U.S. Butterfly star (and national champion) Maxime Rooney

There are athletes and coaches around the world who will read the results of the USA Swimming National Championships at Stanford and begin screaming and pounding the table.

A week after the World Championships were concluded and with the cream of the American team either resting or at the FINA World Cup in Tokyo, U.S. youngsters are still re-writing the world lists in event after event.

The newest shocker came in the morning qualifying, with 21-year-old Maxime Rooney – a five-time medalist at the 2015 World Junior Championships – slashed his best in the 100 m Butterfly from 52.28 to 50.68 and moved to no. 2 on the world list for 2019. That time would have won the Worlds silver behind world-record setter Caeleb Dressel!

Rooney had company in the final, but he maintained his form and out-touched veteran Jack Conger, who made it as far as the semis in this event in Gwangju. Rooney finished in 51.09 with Conger at 51.70, faster than he swam in Korea.

With his amazing prelim time and an equally-impressive 47.61 in the 100 m Free for second to Ryan Held, Rooney is now firmly on the radar as a possible Olympian in 2020.

That was only one of the highlights of Friday’s short program:

● In the women’s 400 m Medley, 17-year-old Emma Weyant won in 4:35.37, fastest by an American this year and now no. 5 on the world list. She beat both members of the U.S. Worlds team in the final: Brooke Forde, whose 4:36.06 for second was a season’s best by three seconds (!), and Ally McHugh, who finished third on Friday, but was also sixth in the Worlds final in this event. Weyant’s time was a lifetime best by five seconds and would have been fourth in Gwangju!

Bobby Finke, 19, collected his second win of the meet, adding the 400 m Medley to his victory in the 1,500 m Free. He trailed 17-year-old Carson Foster for most of the race and was 1.79 seconds behind going into the final leg., But his Freestyle chops were on display and he overtook Foster on the final lap to touch first in 4:13.45, moving him to no. 9 on the year list.

Foster finished second in 4:13.39, setting a World Junior Record, held by American Sean Grieshop from 2016. Now 20, Grieshop finished in firth in 4:15.50. Finke and Foster would have finished 4-6 at the Worlds with these times.

● The women’s 100 m Fly saw Worlds sixth-placer Kelsi Dahlia come back from sixth at the turn to edge Amanda Kendall in the final 15 meters and win another U.S. title, 57.35-57.51. The race also saw the final race in the glittering career of Dana Vollmer. She swam 59.94 in the qualifying to rank 32nd, but retires as the American Record holder at 55.98 from 2012 and she was the London Olympic champion in the event.

The meet continues through Sunday; NBC’s Olympic Channel has coverage on Saturday and Sunday at 8 p.m. Eastern time. Summaries so far:

USA Swimming Phillips 66 National Championships
Stanford, California (USA) ~ 31 July-4 August 2019
(Full results here)

Men

100 m Freestyle: 1. Ryan Held, 47.39; 2. Maxime Rooney, 47.61; 3. Tate Jackson, 47.88; 4. Dean Farris, 48.07; 5. Daniel Krueger, 48.55; 6. Jack Conger, 48.64; 7. Robert Howard, 48.71; 8. Bowe Becker, 49.00.

200 m Free: 1. Elijah Winnington (AUS), 1:46.19; 2. Kieran Smith, 1:46.25; 3. Dean Farris, 1:46.45; 4. Rooney, 1:46.78; 5. Patrick Callan, 1:47.36; 6. Trenton Julian, 1:48.03; 7. Mitch D’Arrigo, 1:48.37; 8. Jordan Pothain (FRA), 1:48.98.

1,500 m Free: 1. Bobby Finke, 14:51.15; 2. Zane Grothe, 14:56.10; 3. Michael Brinegar, 15:00.82; 4. Arik Katz, 15:05.93; 5. Jake Mitchell, 15:11.52; 6. Eric Knowles, 15:13.52; 7. Jack Collins, 15:15.75; 8. Ross Dant, 15:22.06.

200 m Backstroke: 1. Austin Katz, 1:55.72; 2. Shaine Casas, 1:55.79; 3. Clark Beach, 1:57.14; 4. Bryce Mefford, 1:57.39; 5. Zachary Poti, 1:57.40; 6. Carson Foster, 1:58.26; 7. Nicolas Albiero, 1:59.21; 8. Wyatt Davis, 1:59.78.

200 m Breaststroke: 1. Reece Whitley, 2:09.69; 2. Daniel Roy, 2:10.01; 3. Joshua Matheny, 2:11.02; 4. Daniel Cave (AUS), 2:11.22; 5. Craig Benson (GBR), 2:11.27; 6. Caspar Corbeau (NED), 2:11.54; 7. Nicholas Quinn (GBR), 2:11.77; 8. Brandon Fischer, 2:12.15.

100 m Butterfly: 1. M. Rooney, 51.09; 2. Conger, 51.70; 3. Jack Saunderson, 51.76; 4. Held, 52.15; 5. John Shebat, 52.19; 6. Danny Kovac, 52.22; 7. Giles Smith, 52.25; 8. Luca Urlando, 52.31.

200 m Fly: 1. Urlando, 1:54.92; 2. Miles Smachlo, 1:55.94; 3. Albiero, 1:56.05; 4. Trenton Julian, 1:45.09; 5. Bowen Gough (AUS), 1:56.65; 6. Brooks Fail, 1:57.00; 7. Corey Gambardella, 1:57.32; 8. Justin Wright, 1:58.79.

400 m Medley: 1. Finke, 4:13.15; 2. C. Foster, 4:13.39 (World Junior Record; old, 4:4.00, Sean Grieshop (USA), 2016); 3. Jake Foster, 4:15.03; 4. K. Smith, 4:15.17; 5. Sean Grieshop, 4:15.50; 6. Brodie Williams (GBR), 4:16.63; 7. Grant Sanders, 4:18.28; 8. Mark Szaranek (GBR), 4:18.90.

Women

100 m Freestyle: 1. Abbey Weitzeil, 53.18; 2. tie, Gretchen Walsh and Erika Brown, 54.13; 4. Catie DeLoof, 54.28; 5. Natalie Hinds, 54.34; 6. Allison Schmitt, 54.81; 7. Linnea Mack, 54.87; 8. Isabel Ivey, 54.97.

200 m Free: 1. Allison Schmidt, 1:56.97; 2. Paige Madden, 1:57.84; 3. Brooke Forde. 1:57.98; 4. Cierra Runge, 1:58.82; 5. Gabby DeLoof, 1:59.03; 6. Claire Tuggle, 1:59.42; 7. Erica Laning, 1:59.67; 8. Emma Atkinson, 1:59.82.

800 m Free: 1. Ally McHugh, 8:26.04; 2. Sierra Schmidt, 8:27.13; 3. Ashley Twichell, 8:27.36; 4. Kensey McMahon, 8:28.68; 5. Haley Anderson, 8:29.11; 6. Emma Weyant, 8:29.31; 7. Cierra Runge, 8:29.87; 8. Chase Travis, 8:32.46.

200 m Backstroke: 1. Asia Seidt, 2:08.90; 2. tie, Emma Seiberlich and Erin Voss, 2:10.86; 4. Atkinson, 2:10.96; 5. Lucie Nordmann, 2:11.43; 6. Chloe Hicks, 2:11.93; 7. Abi Wilder, 2:12.02; 8. Natalie Mannion, 2:14.63.

200 m Breaststroke: 1. Madisyn Cox, 2:23.84; 2. Abby Arens, 2:25.80; 3. Jenna Strauch (AUS), 2:26.05; 4. Miranda Tucker, 2:26.50; 5. Gillian Davey, 2:26.80; 6. Anna Keating, 2:26.90; 7. Ellie Andrews, 2:29.02; 8. Kate Douglass, 2:29.70.

100 m Butterfly: 1. Kelsi Dahlia, 57.35; 2. Amanda Kendall, 57.51; 3. Aly Tetzloff, 57.70; 4. Torri Huske, 57.80; 5. Claire Curzan, 57.87; 6. Lillie Nordmann, 57.96; 7. Katie Drabot, 58.43; 8. Natalie Hinds, 58.78.

200 m Fly: 1. Regan Smith, 2:07.26; 2. Nordmann, 2:07.43; 3. Dakota Luther, 2:07.76; 4. Olivia Carter, 2:08.22; 5. Megan Kingsley, 2:08.26; 6. Emily Large (GBR), 2:08.39; 7. Drabot, 2:08.56; 8. Taylor Pike, 2:10.68.

400 m Medley: Emma Weyant, 4:35.37; 2. Brooke Forde, 4:36.06; 3. Ally McHugh, 4:38.65; 4. Hannah Miley (GBR), 4:39.00; 5. Cox, 4:29.26; 6. Emma Barksdale, 4:41.49; 7. Kelly Fertel, 4:41.53; 8. Kate Moore, 4:42.23.