Darian Townsend highlighted a short-but-sweet Masters meet Sunday at Phoenix Country Day School, breaking two long course Masters world records formerly held by Olympians.
Townsend, in training to represent Team USA at the Pan American Games this summer, posted a 50.81 in the 100 free. That was just three hundredths faster than the world record swum in 2009 by German Olympian Stephan Kunzelmann. He finished it off with a 1:51.91 in the 200 free, which beat the 1:53.15 swum in 2009 as well by Australian Olympic medalist Daniel Kowalski.
Townsend’s swims will be ratified as Masters world records, but not as U.S. Masters Swimming national records. The USMS national record in the 100 free stands at 48.71, swum by Anthony Ervin at last summer’s USA Swimming national championships, while Townsend holds the USMS record in the 200 free with a 1:49.34, also from the USA Swimming nationals last August. USMS records can be set by any registered Masters swimmer at any sanctioned competition, while FINA world records can only be broken in sanctioned Masters competitions. This loophole has created several USMS records that are faster than the FINA world records.
Wanted to offer a little clarification because the record rules can be confusing. FINA world records can be set in USA sanctioned meets that also have a Masters sanction. Most USA meet directors are happy to allow the addition of a USMS sanction when it’s requested. The Grand Prix meet in Mesa was granted a dual sanction last year, but Nathan and Anthony didn’t have the documents prepared to apply for their records in time. Hopefully, some of the red tape gauntlet will be simplified and every legitimate world record will be recognized in the future.
If the persons who made up these dumb rules were the ones who had to figure out how to explain them every time someone sets a record, they would probably change the rules.