2024 NSW State Open Championships: Day 3 Finals Live Recap (original) (raw)

2024 NEW SOUTH WALES STATE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS

WOMEN’S 200 BUTTERFLY – FINAL

GOLD – Abbey Connor, 2:06.59
SILVER – Brittany Castelluzzo, 2:09.34 & Bella Grant, 2:09.34

18-year-old Abbey Connor of USC Spartans ripped a big-time personal best en route to capturing 200m fly gold.

Connor stopped the clock in 2:06.59, beating her previous PB of 2:07.61 from last year’s Australian World Championships Trials by over a second.

Connor opened in 1:00.72 and brought it home in 1:05.87 to easily defeat the field. Brittany Castelluzzo and Bella Grant tied for runners-up. Both touched in 2:09.34 as the only other sub-2:10 swimmers in the field.

Connor is now the 9th-best Australian 200m fly performer in history and ranks 5th in the world this season. Additionally, her monster PB undercuts the Aussie Olympic Qualification Tmie of 2:07.72 which bodes well for what the teen may produce at June’s Trials,

MEN’S 100 BUTTERFLY – FINAL

GOLD – Matt Temple, 50.61
SILVER – Shaun Champion, 51.97
BRONZE – Ben Armbruster, 52.50

National record holder Matt Temple did not disappoint in this men’s 100m butterfly, ripping a time of 50.61 for the win.

24-year-old Temple of Marion split 23.87/26.74 en route to putting up the 4th-quickest time of his career. His PB remains at the blistering 50.25 he logged at December’s Japan Open to become the 5th-best performer in history.

Top 5 Men’s LCM 100 Butterfly Performers All-Time

  1. Caeleb Dressel (USA) – 49.45, 2021
  2. Kristof Milak (HUN) – 49.68, 2021
  3. Michael Phelps (USA) – 49.82, 2009
  4. Milorad Cavic (SRB) – 49.95, 2009
  5. Maxime Grousset (FRA) – 50.14, 2023
  6. Matt Temple (AUS) – 50.25, 2023

Behind Temple this evening was 24-year-old Shaun Champion who turned in a time of 51.97 for his 5th outing under the 52-second barrier.

Bond’s Ben Armbruster also landed on the podium in 52.50 for bronze while Cody Simpson settled for 4th in 52.78.

The Swimming Australia-mandated Olympic QT sits at a stiff 51.17 which means all but Temple have their work cut out for them at June’s Trials.

WOMEN’S 50 BREASTSTROKE – FINAL

GOLD – Sienna Toohey, 31.34
SILVER – Tara Kinder, 31.64
BRONZE – Mia O’Leary, 31.70

Although no woman broke the 31-second barrier in this women’s 50m breast, 15-year-old Sienna Toohey registered a personal best of 31.34 to grab the gold.

That sliced .21 off the teen’s previous career-quickest 31.54 from last month’s NSW Country Championships and represents a new Aussie Age Group Record.

Her performance is par for the course at this competition, as Toohey already notched a personal-best 1:07.97 in Friday’s 100 breast final that scared Leisel Jones‘ legendary national age group record (1:07.49) from 2000 and placed 2nd behind Jenna Strauch (1:07.59), who’s absent from the 50 breast today.

MEN’S 200 BREASTSTROKE – FINAL

GOLD – Matt Wilson, 2:09.87
SILVER – Joshua Collett, 2:13.13
BRONZE – Angus Menzies, 2:13.49

25-year-old Matt Wilson, a former world record holder in the men’s 200m breast, got to the wall well ahead of the pack to top the podium.

SOSC’s Wilson touched in 2:09.87 as the sole swimmer under 2:13, splitting 1:01.70/1:08.17 in the process.

That’s a solid effort from Wilson who has had a series of down years since the 2020 Olympic Games. It’s his first foray under the 2:10 barrier since Tokyo.

His personal best 2:06.67 from 2019 stood as the world record for just under 24 hours at that year’s World Championships until Russian Anton Chupkov dropped it down to 2:06.12 in Gwangju.

Wilson checks in as the 16th-ranked swimmer in the world this season.

Collett’s 2:13.13 represents a new lifetime best for the 20-year-old Bond swimmer, overtaking his previous PB of 2:15.23 from last summer’s Australian Trials.

WOMEN’S 200 FREESTYLE – FINAL

GOLD – Mollie O’Callaghan, 1:54.76
SILVER – Ariarne Titmus, 1:55.81
BRONZE – Lani Pallister, 1:55.92

Reigning world record holder Mollie O’Callaghan busted out a winning time of 1:54.76 to earn gold in this stacked women’s 200m free final.

The 19-year-old St. Peters Western star beat the pack by over a second, as 400m free world record holder Ariarne Titmus settled for silver in 1:55.81.

As fast as MOC’s time was this evening, her season-best remains at the 1:54.36 she scorched at December’s Queensland Championships. Worldwide, only Olympic silver medalist Siobhan Haughey of Hong Kong has been faster in 1:54.08.

MOC ripped the world record of 1:52.85 at the 2023 World Championships.

As for Titmus, the 23-year-old teammate of MOC under coach Dean Boxall scored a new season-best of 1:55.81. That undercut the 1:55.99 she posted at the QLD Championships. She maintains her position of 8th in the world rankings.

She owns a lifetime best of 1:53.01 from her runner-up finish at last year’s World Championships behind O’Callaghan.

Bagging bronze was Lani Pallister who just put her hat in the ring big-time for a coveted slot on the women’s 4x200m free relay.

21-year-old Pallister threw down a mark of 1:55.92 to clock her first-ever performance under the 1:56 barrier. She split 56.95/58.97 to earn a medal ahead of Kaylee McKeown who placed 4th in 1:56.06 after her triple event lineup during this morning’s heats.

McKeown’s time also represents a lifetime best, just a hair under the versatile swimmer’s previous PB of 1:56.14.

MEN’S 50 FREESTYLE – FINAL

GOLD – Thomas Nowakowski, 22.09
SILVER – Matt Temple, 22.37
BRONZE – Jamie Jack, 22.45

Nothing crazy happened in the men’s splash n’ dash as no competitor dipped under the 22-second threshold.

USC Spartan Thomas Nowakowski kept his pole position, earning gold in a nearly identical time as this morning. He was 22.10 in the AM and 22.09 tonight.

Off his 100m fly victory, Temple snagged silver in 22.37. St. Peters Western’s Jamie Jack rounded out the podium in 22.45.

For Temple, that’s a new lifetime best, crushing his previous PB of 22.72 from 2 years ago.

18-year-old Flynn Southam posted 22.52 as the 4th-place finisher after earning gold in the 200m free on night 2.

WOMEN’S 200 IM – FINAL

GOLD – Kaylee McKeown, 2:08.84
SILVER – Isabella Boyd, 2:13.77
BRONZE – Gina McCarthy, 2:15.63

Just a handful of events after the 200m free, McKeown raced her way to gold in the women’s 200m IM. This marks the 22-year-old’s 5th race of the day after her morning triple and earlier final.

McKeown touched in 2:08.84 as the victor, with Isabella Boyd the next-closest finisher well back in 2:13.77.

McKeown’s personal best rests at the 2:07.19 nabbed at last year’s Sydney Open to become the #2 Australian in history behind national record holder Stephanie Rice. Her season-best sits at the 2:07.54 produced at December’s Queensland Championships.

MEN’S 400 IM – FINAL

GOLD – William Petric, 4:14.07
SILVER – Brendon Smith, 4:19.58
BRONZE – Marco Soesanto, 4:24.35

The top two finishers out of the heats maintained their positions in this men’s 400m IM, led by 19-year-old William Petric.

Nunawading’s Petric stopped the clock in 4:14.07 to blast the field by over 5 seconds, one which included Australian national record holder Brendon Smith.

Smith settled for silver in 4:19.58 and Marco Soesanto upgraded from his 4th seed to bag bronze in 4;24.35.

Smith’s best time stands at 4:09.27 from 2021 while Petric’s result this evening checks in as a personal best. Entering these championships, the teen’s PB rested at the 4:14.48 from December.

Smith is also the reigning Olympic bronze medalist from Tokyo where he notched 4:09.27 as his one and only outing ever under the 4:10 barrier.

WOMEN’S 50 BACKSTROKE – FINAL

GOLD – Kaylee McKeown, 27.25
SILVER – Ainsley Trotter, 28.05
BRONZE – Elizabeth Gan – 28.61

World record holder McKeown completed her trifecta of events, doubling up on her 200m IM gold with a victory in this 50m back sprint.

McKeown touched in 27.25 to get to the wall nearly a full second ahead of the field. Ainsley Trotter notched 28.05 for silver and Elizabeth Gan hit 28.61 for bronze.

McKeown’s World Record stands at 26.86 from last year. 16-year-old Trotter of Bond shaved .04 off of her previous career-quickest 28.09 from April of last year.

MEN’S 100 BACKSTROKE – FINAL

GOLD – William Yang, 54.88
SILVER – Lewis Blackburn, 55.32
BRONZE – Se-Bom Lee, 55.88

In another solid swim coming back from back surgery last year to remove a benign tumor on his spine, William Yang topped the men’s 100m back podium in a time of 54.88.

The 25-year-old notched the sole sub-55-second result of the field with Lewis Blackburn capturing silver in 55.32 and Se-Bom Lee also on the podium in 55.88.

Yang’s PB rests at the 53.59 put up in 2019 while Blackburn was much closer to his PB of 55.11 from 2022. Lee improved from his 5th seed from the morning heats.

In This Story

Ariarne Titmus
Brendon Smith
Kaylee McKeown
Lani Pallister
Matt Wilson
Mollie O'Callaghan

About Retta Race

Former Masters swimmer and coach Loretta (Retta) thrives on a non-stop but productive schedule. Nowadays, that includes having earned her MBA while working full-time in IT while owning French 75 Boutique while also providing swimming insight for BBC.

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