Former Georgia Bulldog Allison Schmitt Smashes 36 Year Old Pan-Am Record
Former Georgia Bulldog swimmer Allison Schmitt sailed into history at the Pan-Am Games, overwhelming a 36 year old record.
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Former Georgia swimmer Allison Schmitt blasted a 36-year-old Pan Am Games record last week while capturing the women’s 200-meter freestyle gold medal at the 2015 Pan-Am Games in Toronto.
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Schmitt timed 1:56.23 to destroy the previous record of 1:58.43 set in 1979 by Cynthia “Sippy” Woodhead.
The effort advanced the former Georgia swimmer to eighth in the world rankings. She won six medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, including gold in the 200-meter freestyle and on the 4×200-meter freestyle relay in London.
Jul 15, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Allison Schmitt of the United States celebrates winning the gold medal in the women s 200m freestyle final during the 2015 Pan Am Games at Pan Am Aquatics UTS Centre and Field House. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports
The same day, rising sophomore Gunnar Bentz swam the third leg of the men’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay that placed second in 7:12.20 and rising sophomore Kylie Stewart came in fourth in the women’s 200-meter backstroke with a time of 2:11.92.
Schmitt anchored the U.S. gold medal winning 4×100-meter medley, while rising Bulldog senior Chantal Van Landeghem anchored the Canada relay squad in the same event, earning a silver medal. Also, rising Bulldog sophomore Gunnar Bentz finished third for the bronze medal in the 200-meter individual medley.
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Schmitt’s U.S. relay squad swam a Pan-Am Games record 3:57.35 in the morning qualifiers. The Americans took nearly a second off that mark in the final with a time of 3:56.53 to secure top spot on the medals podium.
Canada finished second to the U.S. in both the preliminaries and the final. The Canadians were 4.93 seconds back of the Americans in the morning but finished in 3:58.51 – 1.98 seconds back – in the evening. Canada’s evening swim was faster than the Pan Am record entering the day.
Bentz, an Atlanta native, touched the wall in 2:00.04. In addition, Ty Stewart, a rising Bulldog senior from Hattiesburg, Miss., finished fifth at 2:01.83 in the race.
Jul 18, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Katie Meili , Kelsi Worrell , Allison Schmitt and Natalie Coughlin of the United States celebrate after winning the women’s swimming 4x100m medley relay final during the 2015 Pan Am Games at Pan Am Aquatics UTS Centre and Field House. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports