Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Claire Curzan Wins Back-to-Back Races at TYR Pro Swim Series Mission Viejo


 

by USA Swimming

Competition at the 2023 TYR Pro Swim Series Mission Viejo continued Friday with the 200m freestyle, 50m breaststroke, 50m butterfly, 200m backstroke and the 400m individual medley. Claire Curzan (Cary, N.C./Alto Swim Club) took wins in the 50m butterfly and 200m backstroke to pace National Team athletes to six titles on the third day of competition.

Curzan clocked the fifth-fastest time in the world (25.88) with her win in the 50m butterfly. Torri Huske (Arlington, Va./Alto Swim Club) finished second with a time of 26.08 and Abbey Weitzeil (Santa Clara, Calif./California Aquatics) finished third in 26.15.

Just minutes after her win the 50m butterfly, Curzan picked up her second victory of the night in the women’s 200m backstroke in a time of 2:07.78.

“I’m feeling pretty good,” Curzan said. “Definitely a little winded but it was definitely a good double. I was expecting it to be tight so I’m just happy with how it went.”

Rhyan White (Herriman, Utah/University of Alabama) finished second in 2:09.01 and 50m backstroke champion Isabelle Stadden (Blaine, Minn./California Aquatics) finished third in 2:09.87.

Bella Sims (Las Vegas, Nev./Sandpipers of Nevada) claimed her second win at the TYR Pro Swim Series Mission Viejo with her 200m freestyle time of 1:58.44.

“I felt really good,” Sims said. “I thought it was going to be a really good race and when I touched the wall, I was like ‘ooh, that time was not that good’. For where we are in training, it was okay. I’m getting my speed back since we went to the (U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Center) and all the training that has been happening so I have a lot of endurance but I don’t have a lot of speed right now so that will start to come up.”

Gabriel Jett (Clovis, Calif./California Aquatics) claimed his first 2023 TYR Pro Swim Series win in the 200m freestyle with a time of 1:47.54. Michael Cotter (Cary, N.C./Unattached) finished second in 1:48.21 and Jack Dahlgren (Victoria, Minn./Team Triumph) finished third in 1:48.58.

"It was pretty good,” Jett said of his race. “My body is in a pretty tough spot right now. We’re training hard, lifting heavy weights. I was focusing on details, focusing on my underwaters and racing the guys next to me. That was a stacked field. My focus was on the process.”

Lilly King (Evansville, Ind./Indiana Swim Club) picked up her 2023 TYR Pro Swim Series win and her second of this meet with her finish in the 50m breaststroke in a time of 30.09, the second-fastest time in the event this year.

"I feel pretty good,” King said. “Honestly, I was disappointed with the 100 (breaststroke) yesterday. I felt a lot better today.”

With the second tie of the event, Ryan Held (Springfield, Ill./New York Athletic Club) and Youseff Ramadan (EGY) both touched the wall in 23.76 in the 50m butterfly.

“Honestly, I was a little nervous going behind the blocks,” Held said. “The 200 just happened, it felt like one of those situations at a big international meet where you have a semifinal, then you have a final like 20 minutes afterwards, and I think it's a good preparation for that.”

Keaton Jones (Gilbert, Ariz./Swim Neptune) out touched Olympian Ryan Murphy (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla./California Aquatics) in the 200m backstroke, locking a personal best of 1:57.04. Murphy finished in 1:57.50.

“I’m happy with the time,” Jones said. “I’m going to look at my splits and see how the race went but I felt good this morning, thought I could give more. I’m happy for where I’m at. I’m excited for Indianapolis.”

National Junior Team member and fourteen-year-old Kayla Han (La Mirada, Calif./La Mirada Armada) won her first TYR Pro Swim Series event in the 400m individual medley with a time of 4:42.96, touching the wall more than two seconds ahead of the field.

“I’m glad I got first,” Han said. “The race felt pretty good. I don’t remember much of it, but I know it was pretty painful.”

The night closed with David Johnston (Dallas, Texas/Longhorn Aquatics) winning his first 2023 TYR Pro Swim Series event in the 400m individual medley, clocking a 4:17.27.

“I’m feeling pretty tired but a race like that gives me a lot of experience,” Johnston said. “It gives me some data on where I am to move forward. I think I’m in a good spot with my training and it’s just fun to race like that. I would like to be a little faster but I know where I am and what I need to do.”

Competition concludes Saturday at the Marguerite Aquatics Complex. Prelims will start at 9 a.m. PT with finals at 5 p.m. PT, both streaming on www.usaswimming.org/watch.

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