Reported by Lauren Neidigh.
WOMEN’S 200 BACK:
- Pro Swim Series Record: 2:07.16- Meagen Nay, Santa Clara 2011
- Pool Record:
2:07.14- Missy Franklin (Colorado Stars), 2011
- GOLD: Taylor Ruck, 2:06.36
- SILVER: Federica Pellegrini, 2:11.28
- BRONZE: Jade Hannah, 2:11.49
Candian junior standout Taylor Ruck knocked half a second off her best time to dominate this race in 2:06.36. Ruck flipped in 1:01.67 for the early lead, pulling further ahead as she moved through the race and took down Missy Franklin’s Pool record. That would have been a new Junior World Record for Ruck, knocking 4 tenths off the former mark set by Australia’s Kaylee McKeown, but won’t count as such since she turns 18 before the end of 2018. Italian star Federica Pellegrini used her closing speed to out-touch Jade Hannah for the silver. SwimMAC’s Sinclair Larsonswam to 4th, clipping 2 tenths off her best in 2:12.60.
The 200 free LC is a very taxing race, a unique combination of speed and stamina, and being the best in the world at it for 2 olympic cycles is much more difficult than it is for other events. Thorpe got very close in 2000 and 2004 (silver and gold) and so did VDH (viceversa), i.e. two of the finest freestylers that ever graced the pools. Federica is unique in her having been elite in the event for so many years, battling against younger contenders – but the double Olympic gold eluded even her. All in all, I believe she deserves to go down as the best 200 free specialist of her age.
LUIGI, do you know when Federica Pellegrini began to race wearing high-tech suit? Has she already used it winning her gold Olympic race 1:54.82 ?
Also what are your criteria to define best 200 free specialist? Is it a longevity of being in major finals?
I have some doubts that she’s swum ever faster than Allison Schmitt. She has 6 entries in 25 best performances list and 4 of them were done in high-tech suit. Katie Ledecky has 7 and Sarah Sjostrom has 6. What makes you to think that she is superior of them.
Maybe it is the number of high rewards? She is also not dominant with that and in this case we have to… Read more »
It’s very simple, I don’t factor in time, but races won. Schmitt, Ledecky and Sjostrom have been faster than her in textile, no question about it. But she has been consistently on the podium of internationally relevant races (Olympics and WC) for 13 years. 13 years! It’s an eternity, in middle-long distances.
Also, it’s not her fault if, at the peak of her abilities, she was wearing the magic suit: everyone else was doing it. So we’ll never know what time she would have swam in 2008 and 2009 without the supersuits.
As to your question, she wore a Jaked suit in both Bejing 2008 and Rome 2009, I believe it was called the J01 but I think… Read more »
Thank you.
@BOB:
“…I guess the real outlier was her failing to deliver in an international final …”
😀 if you like conspiracy theories then there is the one:
After being well ahead of Pellegrini at last turn BOTH Ledecky and McKeon slowed down significantly swimming the slowest last lap than any other finalists in this race. It was the worst finish of Ledecky ever at this distance. Federica Pellegrini soon after swimming her second best time in textile suit suddenly announced her retirement. Retirement, but not from competitive swimming. From this particular event only. 😀
I’m trying to think of when the 200 free was ever a marquee event for women with a consistently dominant figure. There have been no Mary Ts, Caulkins, Egerszegi’s, Coventry’s, Soni’s, Evans’, etc. who have been phenomenally and consistently dominant in the event. 13 different winners in the last 13 Olympics. Maybe it’s just a “tweener” event for women that’s just really hard to do based on body type or something.
You can make that argument for men as well though. No man has won the event at the Olympics twice. And while you have folks like Phelps or Thorpe who dominated the world stage for a period of time (both bookended their Olympic gold with world golds and WRs in there), it capped off at about 4ish years. Arguably Pelligrini has been as dominate given that she won an Olympic gold and back to back worlds and a WR in there. I think the difference is that both Thorpe and Phelps had the relays to keep them in the spotlight as 200 freestylers longer. Ultimately, the 200 free is just a rough event if swum correctly (I think rougher than… Read more »
I think the conclusion you’ve made is very true. If one looks at top 10 performances at W200FR then each four swimmers (Pellegrini, Schmitt, Ledecky and Sjostrom) who contributed to this list have records from only one particular year.
Pellegrini: #1,#3,#10 – all in 2009
Schmitt: #2, #8. – all in 2012
Ledecky: #4, #9 – all in 2016
Sjostrom: #5, #6, #7 – 2015, 2016
Only Sjostrom showed consistency and reliability. Variations of her three results are within 0.26sec interval. Looking under this angle this is she who should be called the queen of this event.
The results of all other swimmers are sporadic
Pellegrini: 1:52.98 – 1:53.67 – 1:54.47
Schmitt: 1:53.61 – 1:54.40
Ledecky: 1:53.73 – 1:54.43
Hello! Its obvi Pellegrini! Shes medaled every year at worlds since like 07. She the current world record holder and defending world champion…its her!
Is there anybody left who is capable of great times in this distance and likes to do so? Sjostrom’s is out. Pellegrini is out. Ledecky avoids it in NCAA. McKeon also doesn’t look happily in this direction. Only teenagers left. But what do they know about this insidious event.
We won’t need to talk about anyone else when Ruck goes 1:52 in the next couple years, with Ikee and Ledecky not far back. Possibly Oleksiak as well.
Also: CLAIR TUGGLE 2020!!!
Do you really believe in that 1:52 by Taylor Ruck. As soon as she gets the taste of glory being a great sprinter she will give up on 200 free unless there would be no competition and there will be an easy kill. It is so different from everything else. In the best case scenario she will go Franklin’s footsteps: great but not the best freestyle sprint, record at 200BK and 1:54.8 at 200 free.
the relay oppurtunities and podium chances alone would be enough for her to keep it in her tool bag for another quad or two I imagine.
As of now Clair Tuggle is better at 400LCM . She would rather incline toward 800 from there than toward 200. Her current ranks: 400 – #37; 800 – #56, 200 – around #90.
Gotta agree with the teenagers being the best bet. For sjostrom, while I’m slightly disappointed I won’t be seeing some great times from her, it’s hard to argue with the results for her sprints and I think we’d all rather see more 51s than a 1:53 from her. Pellegrini I think made the right choice, cap off a fantastic career with her win and leave on top. As for ledecky, we’ll have to wait and see if 2017 was more of an outlier year (due to personal changes) or the start of an actual decline- we’ll have a much better picture of her future in this event after pan pacs I think. Mckeon still seems solid tho. But mainly the… Read more »
I wouldn’t call Ledecky’s last year 1:54.6 an outlier. It is still way to go for all listed by you teenagers. Her Pac-12 times this year showed that she hasn’t slowed down compare to last year. But you are right that strong belief after Rio that she is after world record in this event is not that strong now.
True, I guess I forgot she was that fast last year. Still not as good as 2016 but obviously a fast time. I guess the real outlier was her failing to deliver in an international final for the first time. If she goes under 1:54.5 this year I think it’s safe to say she’s in a good position. I sincerely hope she’s able to get back to 1:53 Rio form. I’m actually very excited for this year of swimming (Katie ledecky and in general) despite being the off year.
Me too.