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British Trials - Day 1 & 2 Preview

So British Trials are still over a month away but I am already pretty stoked about it! I’ll be there for three of the evening sessions but will be sure to report back in full here.

Let’s see what’s afoot on the first two days:

Saturday
Women’s 400IM final: World championship silver medallist Hannah ‘worst passport photo ever’ Miley is the obvious favourite here. Her 4.34.22 in Shanghai was miles(y) under the Olympic ‘A’ qualifying time of 4.41.75 so I doubt she’ll have any trouble (her time at trials last year was 4.37). Also she has now won TWELVE National titles. Dude.

But who will get the second spot? My future wife Keri-Anne Payne nabbed it in 2008 with a 4.38 but she has only swum under the ‘A’ time once (just) since the suit ban, at the Commonwealths in Delhi. How about young Siobhan-Marie O’Connor? She’s been impressing a lot of people in the last twelve months and swam a 4.46 at European Juniors despite having the most messed-up taper ever. She seems to be improving steadily, but there might just be too many seconds to drop.

So I think my pick for that extra place is Aimee Willmott - she won the National Youth Champs by 8 seconds in a staggering 4.38.63 last year (setting a new age group record) and won the Flanders Cup last week in a 4.42 untapered. She’ll turn 19 just before trials and looks to be in excellent form.

Men’s 400m free final: The ‘A’ time here will be pretty tough for the British guys and we’re certainly not guaranteed to have two qualifiers in this event.

My favourite to win is my future husband-in-law David Carry (2006 Commonwealth champ). For an ancient lad (i.e. older than me!) Dave has been sticking it out over the last five years, consistently posting times around the 3.47-3.48 mark with and without suits. Last week in Flanders David did a 3.49 untapered but to be honest taper doesn’t seem to make much difference for him!

Our Dave will have close competition from Robbie Renwick (who swam a textile best of 3.48.60 at last year’s Nationals), and perhaps young all-rounder Ieuan Lloyd who swam a PB of 3.51 in Flanders. However I still think two GB dudes under 3.48.92 will be pushing it. What I *do* predict though is that a bunch of kids will make the final, get all overexcited, go out too fast and die on their arses in the last 100.

Sunday
I’ll be at this session, with (hopefully) a front-row seat!

Women’s 100m fly final: This one is impossible to call! Let’s see. We have the European silver medallist, British record holder and general sprinting machine Fran Halsall (textile best 57.40). We have Jemma Lowe who came 6th in this event in Beijing (textile best of 57.43 set last year) AND Ellen Gandy who has come on leaps and bounds in the last year (textile best of 57.55 which got her 5th in Shanghai).

All three girls were in the top end of the world rankings in 2011. Getting two of them under the ‘A’ time of 58.70 will be a piece of piss so instead I would LOVE to see a new British record here, ideally a low 57 or even a 57.0 (let’s save the 56s for July shall we?). OK - Fran to win, Ellen second, a couple of hundredths separating them and Jemma.

Part of me still thinks it’s hilarious that GB women have suddenly got really good at butterfly. I blame this man:

James ‘I’m just off to throw up now’ Hickman

Men’s 100m breast final
This event is not quite as sparkling a prospect HOWEVER recently the lads do seem to be improving on the normally-underwhelming short breaststroke. Mike Jamieson (textile best 60.60) and Daniel Silwinski (textile best 60.75 - set last week!) have a shot at both getting under the ‘A’ time (60.79) if they’re in adjacent lanes and can spur each other on. I fear 200m specialist Kris Gilchrist (textile best 60.99) will be locked out in third whatever happens.

A slim but hilarious outside prospect is James Goddard - he swam 58.22 short course at the World Cup last December (British textile record!) and might think it worth a punt as the 200m IM and 200m back semis aren’t until Wednesday.

Women’s 400m free final
OMG I literally cannot wait for this. Becky has the pedigree, Jo has the experience of holding the world record in this event (and she must have some old scores to settle with it), Jazz must be tired of finishing third all the time and Keri-Anne has absolutely nothing to lose.

The ‘A’ time is 4.09.35 - even Hannah Miley got underneath that last December but with the Olympic schedule as it is I doubt she would take the place in this event if she earned one. Half the other potential finalists weren’t out of NAPPIES when I first raced the 400m free: Anne Bochmann (18) has a textile PB of 4.08.30 that earned her 4th in the Commonwealth Games (ahead of New Zealand’s Lauren Boyle); Eleanor Faulkner (also 18) swam a nifty 4.10.36 untapered in Flanders last week; Hayley Towner (19) hit high 4.10s twice in 2011; Sasha Matthews (20) might be more of an 800 girl but a 4.10 is within her sights.

I honestly think we could see 6 girls going 4.10 or under (certainly all the finalists should be going under the ‘B’ time of 4.19 but ‘whatevs’ to that). I hope Becky will post a 4.02 again like last year and send a warning shot across the bows to Pellegrini, Palmer, Friis and Muffat. I would obviously love to see Jo get back to her best form BUT I think it’s Jazz’s race now - her 4.05 at trials last year would have made the final in Shanghai but it wasn’t to be. My predictions: 1) Becky 2) Jazz 3) Jo. And maybe Caitlin McClatchey somewhere around 6th :)

Days 3 and 4 coming up! At some point!

posted 1 week ago