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Trofeu Brasil: Gabriel Santos Wins Scintillating 100 Free Final
If there’s one thing you can count on from a Brazilian Championships, it is a deep and unrelenting field of sprinters. In the 100 free at Trofeu Brasil Thursday, the final was just an absolute classic.
When the wash settled, Gabriel Santos was atop an A final where .44 seconds separated the top eight finisher. But the second-fastest time of the night came from the B final courtesy of junior swimmer Guilherme Caribe Santos.
First, Gabriel Santos, who was not a surprising winner after qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics last year in the event. He was second in prelims, but vaulted to the victory by going 48.64. That’s one of four times under the FINA A standard of 48.77, with swims at Trofeu Brasil part of Brazil’s hybrid selection model for the 2022 World Championships.
Second in the final was Marcelo Chierighini, the 31-year-old veteran, who went 48.76. He did most of his damage by going out in 22.71, then held on with the slowest final 50 of the A final.
But … the fastest time of the day was supplied in the morning by Felipe Ribeiro Souza, who went 48.41. he was third at night in 48.79.
But, but … the night’s second fastest time and the third-fastest overall performance of the day came from Guilherme Santos, born in 2003. He was just 11th in the morning, but he sped up to rout the B final in 48.68, nearly quick enough to win.
All that sets up quite the selection conundrum for Budapest. Pedro Spajari, who swam the 100 free at the Tokyo Olympics, finished seventh, with a quickest time of 48.78 that was third in the morning and .01 off the A standard. Breno Correia, who led off the Tokyo 400 free relay that finished eighth, was eighth at night in 49.10.
No other event could quite match the drama of the 100 free. Guilherme Basseto handled the field in the men’s 50 backstroke, grabbing the only spot with a time of 24.90. That’s under the A standard of 25.17 and within shouting distance of the national record set in 2012 by Daniel Orzechowski (24.44).
Second was Gabriel Fantoni in 25.24, followed by Guilherme Guido in 25.37.
Guilherme Costa earned a FINA cut in the men’s 800 free, going 7:52.40 to comfortably win the final. He was 5.3 seconds clear of runner-up Stephan Steverink, who won the 400 individual medley earlier in the week. Costa made the Olympic final in the event last year with a South American record, finishing eighth.
Caio Pumputis won the other men’s event, the 200 breaststroke, in 2:11.12. That’s shy of the A cut of 2:10.32. Second was Evandro Vinicius Silva in 2:11.62.
On the women’s side, Jhennifer Conceicao was denied a third breaststroke title in the 200, though that’s not her favored event. She went 2:33.12 to finish fourth, well behind winner Gabrielle Assis da Silva. Her time of 2:27.82 is shy of the A cut (2:25.91).
Andrea Eliana Berrino won the women’s 50 back in 28.64, again shy of the A mark. The same was true of Stephanie Balduccini in winning the 100 free to add to her 200 free title. Her time of 54.64 is just outside the standard (54.25). She used a superior first 50 to fend off Giovanna Diamante (54.96).
Larissa Oliveira, the Brazilian record holder who swam the 100 free at the Tokyo Olympics, was a distant ninth in 56.36.
