At the tail end of a summer filled with big international meets, the World Junior Championships are just around the corner. The championships will be in Singapore and take place from Aug 25th to the 30th. The team is currently scheduled to reassemble on August 20th to travel to Singapore for the Championships.
The young man who at age 16 tied Michael Phelps at US Nationals in the 200m breastroke will be at it again in Singapore. Reece has been an absolute monster the past year, dropping time nearly every time he swims and most recently getting down to 2:11.3 and 1:01.0 in the 200 & 100 breast, the events he will be competing in at World Jr Champs.
The ceiling for this young man, more so than perhaps many others, is anyone’s guess. Standing at a walloping 6’8″, Reece is still very much a raw talent who just keeps improving through hard work and dedication in the pool. As many discussed going into Nationals, we will also once again get to witness the Andrew vs. Whitley showdown, getting to see the 2 most lethal 18&under breastrokers in the country go head-to-head, this time (for the first time) on the international stage.
As we all know, anything is possible for breastroke phenom Reece Whitley when he dives in the pool.
I think by now Reece merits one of those photos for the “In This Story” above the comments (like the one for Michael Andrew).
Go get ’em Reece!
And own the turns this time!
He is one of the most exciting swimmer to follow ! Go Reece
Predictions for Whitley:
100 Breast: 1:00.67 3rd
200 Breast: 2:10.59 2nd
4×100 Medley Relay: USA 1st, Whitley swims breaststroke and splits 1:00.04
I think he is 15 years old. (not 16)
Yes– he has a January birthday.
don’t forget Carsten Vissering for “most lethal” 18 and under breaststroker
Vissering is a close 3rd IMO at the moment, but I think MA and Reece will blow by him this year.
First – good luck to Reece and the rest of the U.S. team. Second, I think Reece, Vissering, and Andrew all have plenty of room for gaining strength and form to improve their breaststroke and I’d expect to see all three in the finals at Olympic Trials next summer. I’m looking forward to seeing how Carsten swims after a year with Salo and the other Trojan Coaches.