Consider that Leah Smith, a legitimate threat to win a medal in Rio, took second in 8:20.18. As soon as Phelps looked up at the scoreboard to confirm his victory, he pounded the water in excitement.
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The Americans’ intention: Don’t swim those times in Rio.
As Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte splashed their way toward the wall, it seemed appropriate that only a fraction of a second would separate them at the finish. To go from then to now in four years, winning events that I was thinking about during that time, it’s just fantastic.
“It’s kind of insane how our races usually work”, said Phelps. The top two finishers will qualify for the U.S. Olympic team.
“I don’t have a good explanation”, Marsh said.
The second Olympic spot in the 100 fly went to Tom Shields, who touched in 51.20 to barely beat out Seth Stubblefield (51.24).
But Phelps cited a notion that is widely held here: the pressure of this event is actually greater than the Olympics, because making the team is such a cut-throat endeavor. “I don’t want to lose my last race on American soil”, he said.
But an examination of times from across the world shows, in many cases, the U.S.is off by more than a few hundredths.
SB Nation said Phelps qualified for three events -100- and 200-meter butterfly and the 200-meter individual medley. Still, both times (8:10.31 and 8:10.91) are among the five fastest times any woman has ever swum in this event.
Phelps edged Le Clos by 0.23 seconds for gold in the London Games in the 100 fly and the two have maintained a healthy competitive streak since.
But the past two trials here haven’t produced a single world record. She is aiming for a double in the 200 and 400 meters.
Chuck Wielgus, executive director of USA Swimming, and Harold Cliff, president of Omaha Sports Commission, said they received virtually no complaints about the event from fans or swimmers. “It’s a much bigger stage”.
“It’s not like a swim meet”, Bowman said. “Now they have that shocking moment, they have to regroup and try to figure out how to make their goal to get on the podium and win medals”. But Australia won 16 with seven golds. He then mounted his starting block on the pool deck in lane 7 for the 100-meter butterfly.
The 2000 Olympic gold medalist in the 50 free, Ervin came back for the 2012 Olympics and now the 2016 Games because he has “unfinished business”. “Michael is a guy who can deal with expectations better than literally anybody in the world”. There are some other people who don’t necessarily latch onto that and they take that as maybe a little bit more anxiety.
Some competitors discovered some of their own foibles here. Beisel had an opportunity to add the women’s 200 back to her Olympic schedule, but she finished seventh in the final at 2:11.12. “But I’m happy that we did everything we wanted to do”. “I came here to be the best of who I am right now, not the best of who I was four years ago”. “I mean, it’s no secret that we’re going to be there towards the end”, warned a defiant Lochte. There will be veteran medal-winners on the team, expected to lead a large haul. Phelps said his lactate readings were high after the IM. She finished in 8 minutes, 10.32 seconds, far off the mark of 8:06.68 she set in January at a meet in Austin, Texas.
The top four qualifiers into the final were all born in the 1980s, including the oldest male swimmer at Trials – 35-year-old Anthony Ervin.
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Well, not quite. He’ll need to go even faster in Rio. “I just think we’re both just loving life and loving what we’re doing”. “That’s it!’?” Adrian said.
