Allison Schmitt and Melanie Margalis Will Swim in Rio

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Allison Schmitt and Melanie Margalis Will Swim in Rio

Former swim dog Allison Schmitt burns Olympic invite
Allison Schmitt
Photo: Georgia Sports Communications

 
 
Georgia’s impressive showing at the United States Olympic Trials continued on Wednesday as former Lady Bulldogs Allison Schmitt and Melanie Margalis punched their tickets to Rio.
 
 
Georgia now boasts five American team members in Schmitt, Margalis, Chase Kalisz, Jay Litherland and Olivia Smoliga. Gunnar Bentz is expected to be named as well as a relay participant. Georgia also has Canadians Brittany MacLean, Chantal Van Landeghem and Javier Acevedo as well as Finland’s Matias Koski.
 
 
Schmitt, who ended her collegiate career in 2013, came in fourth in the 200-meter freestyle with a time of 1:56.72 to earn a relay position. Schmitt won gold medals in the 200-meter freestyle and on the 4×200-meter freestyle relay at the London Games in 2012 and she holds the American record of 1:53.61.
 
 

Former UGA swimmer Melanie Margalis
Melanie Margalis
Photo by Michelle Tucker Photography

 
 
Margalis, whose collegiate stint ended in 2014, likely earned a relay position as well in the 200-meter freestyle as she touched in 1:57.65. Less than an hour later, however, she made it official with a second-place showing of 2:10.11 in the 200-meter individual medley. Margalis held off the third-place swimmer by 5/100ths of a second to capture the final spot.
 
 
“I love to race,” Schmitt said before the Trials began. “I like to have fun and I’m more of a laid-back athlete than a lot of other athletes. But I love to race and I think that competitive edge helps me every time I dive in the water.”
 
 
In other results on Wednesday:

• Bentz (1:56.46) was fourth, Kalisz (1:56.64) was fifth and Pace Clark (1:56.66) was sixth in the 200-meter butterfly.

• Emily Cameron took eighth in the 200-meter individual medley with a time of 2:14.16.

• Hali Flickinger advanced to the 200-meter butterfly finals with a second-place effort of 2:07.79 in the semifinals.

• Nicolas Fink moved to the finals of 200-meter breaststroke by touching in 2:09.95, good enough for fifth.

The U.S. Olympic Trials will continue on Thursday and will conclude on Sunday.
 
 
 
 
 
 

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