By David Rieder.
He was totally overshadowed by Caeleb Dressel, but Kristof Milak put up one of the most impressive performances of this year’s FINA World Championships in Budapest. The Hungarian captured silver in the men’s 100 fly behind Dressel, establishing a new Junior World Record with his time of 50.62.
Only seven other men have ever been faster than Milak, and he’s 17 years old. He dropped eight tenths in the 100 fly at World Championships—sounds pretty good, right? Well, Milak still has some unfinished business that he can take care of this week at the FINA World Junior Championships in Indianapolis. (More on that below.)
Along with Milak, Japan’s Rikako Ikee and Suzuka Hasegawa, Russia’s Kliment Kolesnikov and the United States’ Regan Smith all swam in individual finals in Budapest, and all will again be in action in Indy.
As many of the world’s top 18-and-under swimmers converge, here’s five of the most interesting races to watch.
Women’s 100 Back
Regan Smith swam only the 200 back in Budapest, but she will be busy all week in Indianapolis, with the 50 and 100 back as well as the 50 and 100 fly also on her plate, plus relays. And aside from the 200 back, she’s the favorite in exactly none of those other events.
Regan Smith — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
In the 100 back, Russia’s Polina Egorova holds the top seed at 59.62, followed by Smith in 59.70 and Mongolia’s Normun Saintur in 59.72. All three have been under 1:00, and all three were born in 2000 or later.
Smith, in fact, was born Feb. 9. 2002, mere months before Natalie Coughlin became the first woman to break 1:00. Breaking that barrier has become routine—11 did so at the World Championships—but it was only a decade ago that Coughlin, Kirsty Coventry and Laure Manaudou were the only women who had ever swum that fast.
Now, three at the World Junior Championships enter swum times in the 59-range, and Canada’s Taylor Ruck and the USA’s Grace Ariola could both end up getting down that low with excellent swims. The race for gold will be fun, but do appreciate just how far this event has come—and how fast these teenagers have gotten.
Men’s 200 Breast
Nicolo Martinenghi did not join the impressive ranks of 18-and-under finalists at the World Championships, but he came close—painfully close, as a matter of fact. He was ninth in the 100 breast in 59.41, and two days later, he again finished ninth in the 50 breast in 27.01. In the 50, he missed the final by just five hundredths of a second.
He’s undoubtedly the favorite for both events in Indy, but he’s entered in the 200 breast as well. Just a sprinter? Maybe not, as he’s seeded third in 2:11.63. World Juniors will be an excellent test of Martinenghi’s ability in the four-lap race against some quality competition.
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Australia’s Zac Stubblety-Cook and Russia’s Evgenii Somov have each swum 2:10s in the past, and seeded just behind Martinenghi are promising Americans Daniel Roy and Reece Whitley. The match-up of different strategies—for instance, Martinenghi’s early speed vs. Roy’s strong finish—should be fascinating to watch.
Oh, and one other thing about the 200 breast. The winner at this meet two years ago in Singapore was Russia’s Anton Chupkov, who swam a meet-record time of 2:10.19. Well, in the past two years, he’s improved a bit. Last month, he swam the second-fastest time ever (2:06.96) and won a World title.
Of all the event winners from Singapore, Chupkov was the only one who went on to capture the senior-level World title this year.
Women’s 100 Fly
There’s not likely to be a whole lot of drama in the women’s 100 fly. Barring some massive upset, defending champion Rikako Ikee will again win gold easily. Penny Oleksiak, the World Junior Record-holder, is in Indianapolis but will only compete on relays for Team Canada.
Rikako Ikee — Photo Courtesy: Adrian Seetho/Singapore Swimming Federation
It’s also very likely that Ikee will win the 50 fly, 50 free and 100 free as well. The 17-year-old already holds three World Junior Records (50 free, 50 fly, 200 IM), so expecting her to star at a meet like this is far from a bold prediction.
But this event is the one where she seems poised to do damage on an international level. Ikee finished sixth in the 100 fly in Budapest, but she’s actually ranked fourth in the world with her top time of 56.89. She’s also six years younger than any of the ladies (Sarah Sjostrom, Emma McKeon and Kelsi Worrell) ranked in front of her.
After a busy year of top-level racing, Ikee may not be in top form in Indy, but she won’t have to be at that level to win gold. At her best, Ikee is already one of the best in the world, regardless of age.
Men’s 200 Fly
Remember the teaser about Kristof Milak having some unfinished business? Well, here we go. As impressive as was his 100 fly at Worlds, Milak did not get to swim the 200 fly with 2015 World Champion Laszlo Cseh and 2016 Olympic silver medalist Tamas Kenderesi representing Hungary in the event.
Kristof Milak and Caeleb Dressel — Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA
One month before Worlds, however, Milak had blasted a 1:53.79 in the 200 fly at the European Junior Championships, breaking the World Junior Record by a second and a half. That time still ranks fourth in the world, and it ended up being quicker than the bronze medal-winning time from Budapest.
Well, in Indy, Milak will have his shot at the 200 fly at a global event. Plenty of fans had never heard of him before World Championships, before he won silver in the 100 fly ahead of the likes of Joseph Schooling.
But it would be no surprise if Milak turned out be just as good as the 200 as he has become in the 100, and strong performances in Indy and throughout 2018 could have him heading to the next senior-level World Championships as a medal favorite in that event, too.
Women’s 200 Free
World Juniors will feature plenty of swimmers who have turned themselves into budding stars over the last year, but only one swimmer entered in an individual event has already won an Olympic medal. That would be Taylor Ruck, who has in fact won two.
Ruck broke out two years ago in Singapore, where she won gold in both the 100 and 200 free. In Rio, she was a key leg of Canada’s bronze medal-winning 400 and 800 free relay teams. But a rough Trials this fall knocked her off the World Championships team altogether.
Taylor Ruck — Photo Courtesy: Swimming Canada/Kevin Jarrold
Just a rough meet? Her strong performances throughout the summer lend support to that theory, and Ruck will have a chance to cast aside all doubt in Indy. She’s entered in the 100 back, but it’s the 200 free that’s clearly her best event.
Ruck holds the meet record in the 200 free at 1:57.87, and at the Olympics, she posted a monster relay split of 1:56.18. At the Short Course World Championships last December, Ruck picked up a bronze in the 200 free, finishing less than seven tenths behind gold medalist Federica Pellegrini.
Even though she was not at Worlds this year, Ruck still looks like a big part of the future for a talented team of Canadian women.
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