Popovici Slides Into World Rankings With 48.50/1:46.72 Freestyle Combo

2022 ROMANIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

• March 23rd – March 26th
• Bacău, Romania
• LCM (50m)
• Results

Romanian speedster David Popovici was in the water this week, contesting the men’s 100m and 200m freestyle events at the 2022 Romanian Championships.

In the city of Bacău, 17-year-old Popovici posted solid outings in both these bread-and-butter events, putting his name once again in the discussion for possible elite international medals with the 2022 FINA World Aquatic Championships in Budapest on the horizon for late June.

First in the men’s 100m free, Popovici logged a time of 48.50 to get the job done handily, taking gold in the only sub-50 second time of the field. That was after he already punched a 49.86 morning result in the heats earlier that day. (splits are not yet available)

Next in the 200m free, the teen fired off a mark of 1:46.72, hacking about 6 seconds for his relaxed 1:52.82 prelims effort.

In terms of global rankings, Popovici is now positioned as #2 only behind Great Britain’s comeback kid Lewis Burras and his season-best of 48.45.

Top 5 Men’s LCM 100 Freestyle Performers for 2022

1. Lewis Burras (GBR), 48.45
2. David Popovici (ROU), 48.50
3. Katsuo Matsumoto (JPN), 48.57
4. Hwang Sunwoo (KOR), 48.69
5. Alessandro Miressi (ITA), 48.84

As far as the 200m free goes, Popovici also checks in as #2 in the world, with only Japan’s Katsuo Matsumoto having been faster with his 1:46.14 from the Japanese Trials.

Top 5 Men’s LCM 200 Freestyle Performers for 2022

1. Katsuo Matsumoto (JPN), 1:46.14
2. David Popovici (ROU), 1:46.72
3. Danas Rapsys (LTU), 1:46.96
4. Elijah Winnington (AUS), 1:47.19
5. Tenma Watanabe (JPN), 1:47.44

Popovici was a force at the 2020 Olympic Games, making the finals of both the 100m and 200m free at just 17. He placed 7th in the 100m with a time of 48.04 and 4th in the 200m with a monster result of 1:44.68, missing the podium in the longer distance by only 02.

Prior to Tokyo at the European Junior Championships just two weeks before the Olympics, he swept the 50-100-200m freestyle events, posting a huge lifetime best of 47.30 in the 1free.

Popovici’s name is often mentioned alongside two other teenagers in the form of South Africa’s Matt Sates and Korea’s Hwang Sunwoo, both 18. The trio were among SwimSwam’s ‘stealthy six’ to watch for Paris 2024 based on promising performances and proven mettle alongside the big guns on big stages.

This week, Sates is competing as a Georgia Bulldog at the NCAA Championships, already taking the national title in the men’s 500y freestyle. Hwang clocked a time of 48.67 in the 100m free at the Korean Trials, situating himself in the world rankings as well for this year so far.