With six Olympians and some exciting young swimmers competing at the Short Course Grand Prix in San Antonio, Texas this past weekend (Nov. 10-12), swimming fans were not disappointed.
Combining for a total of 11 Olympic medals and five world records, the “Texas Trio” of Brendan Hansen, Aaron Peirsol, and Ian Crocker headlined the competition at the Palo Alto College Natatorium. The three Olympians, all standout swimmers at The University of Texas, continue to train in Austin in preparation for the 2007 World Championships this March in Melbourne, Australia and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China.
On Saturday night, Peirsol won the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:35.68, touching out teammate Crocker. Hansen cruised to victory in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:57.75.
“My goal for this meet has been to get back into racing shape and to just have fun,” Hansen said. “We are in the middle of our intense training season right now, so this has been a nice break from the normal routine.”
Joining Hansen, Peirsol, and Crocker were fellow Olympians Margaret Hoelzer, Tara Kirk, and Allison Wagner.
Hoelzer won the 200-yard backstroke Friday night with a time of 1:54.67 and finished the meet on Sunday night by winning the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 54.00. Kirk easily won the 100-yard breaststroke Sunday with a time of 1:00.25.
Cullen Jones, who won the 50-meter freestyle at the U.S. National Championships in August and was a member of the world-record setting 400-meter free relay team at the Pan Pacific Championships two weeks later, is one of the brightest young stars of American swimming.
Jones won the 50-yard freestyle Saturday night with a time of 19.19.
While there were few surprises in the performances turned in by the Olympian and National Team favorites, 16-year-old Jessica Rodriguez of Texas Aquatics was arguably the most valuable swimmer of the meet by winning three individual events, the 200-yard freestyle, the 200-yard individual medley, and the 400-yard individual medley.
Swimming fans in San Antonio were treated to some great performances from the top competitors in the world.
Hansen is the Swimmer of the Year for 2006 after he broke his own world records in both the 100 and 200-meter breaststroke events this past summer. He is the first U.S. swimmer in 33 years to own the world record in both breaststroke events.
Peirsol, a two-time Olympian, won gold in both the 100 and 200-meter backstroke at the 2004 Olympics. He is also the current world-record holder in both events.
Crocker is the current world-record holder in the 100-meter butterfly and is the only person to ever swim the event under 51 seconds.
I love coming here for all of my swimming news. Thanks!
Posted by: Will | November 27, 2006 at 11:23 AM
Nice pics of Brendan & Aaron. Way to go Team USA!
Posted by: Will | November 13, 2006 at 04:52 PM