ROCHESTER, Michigan, February 9. CLUB Wolverine's Peter Vanderkaay chipped away at his 500-yard freestyle American record Saturday night at the Michigan Open, held on the campus of Oakland University. Vanderkaay, who will be featured along with the rest of his siblings in the March issue of Swimming World, clocked a time of 4:08.54. That performance undercut his 4:08.60 set on March 23, 2006 in Atlanta, Ga.
Vanderkaay's American record is the second already this year for Club Wolverine swimmers, as Erik Vendt recently established a national standard in the 1000-yard freestyle at the Long Beach Grand Prix. Undoubtedly, Bob Bowman's troops have started the Olympic year in stylish fashion.
A member of the United States 800 free relay that won gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and set a world record last year at the World Championships in Melbourne, Vanderkaay has been on a roll. Last summer, he won the 400 free at the United States Nationals and also posted the globe's second-fastest time of 2007 in the 200 free.
Next week, Vanderkaay is slated to compete at the Missouri Grand Prix, the first major long-course tuneup of 2008. The meet is expected to feature 20 Olympians and certainly will be a stage for early statements in an Olympic year.