Incerti Puts Hand Up for World Championship Selection

Nicholas Brown and Katherine Downie won medals on night four of the 2017 Australian Swimming Championships in Brisbane, whist a fourth place effort from Zac Incerti in the men’s 100m free has placed him firmly in selection calculations for a World Championships spot.

Billed as the race of the meet leading into the Championships, the men’s 100m free pitted 18 year-old Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers against mate and rival Cam McEvoy – holder of the Australian record and title.

The final lived up to its hype, with McEvoy retaining his domestic bragging rights, winning in 47.91sec to post the first sub 48sec swim for the year. Chalmers for his part, was not far behind, touching home in 48.20 with both men under World Championship qualifying time.

UWA West Coast Swimming Club member Zac Incerti set a new personal best of 49.03 for fourth place, to all but secure a 4x100m relay spot, when the Dolphins take on the world’s best at the FINA World Championships in Budapest next July.

Should Incerti receive his Australian swim team membership, it will be his first major team selection, representing a significant career milestone for the 20 year-old athlete trained under the guidance of Mick Palfery.

21 year-old talent Nicholas Brown produced a gutsy swim in the final of the men’s 200m fly to take a bronze medal behind national champion David Morgan and silver medallist Grant Irvine.

Brown employed an aggressive race strategy in an attempt dethrone his more credentialed rivals, a decision that looked as though it might pay ultimate reward when he turned first at the 150m mark. A tiring final 25m however, saw the former Youth Olympic medallist touch home in 1:58.43min, behind Morgan’s qualification time of 1:55.70.

London Paralympian Kat Downie earned her first medal of the Australian Championships, taking bronze in the final of the women’s 200m IM multiclass.

Downie was quickest through the water, touching home in 2:35.44 for 810 points, with gold going to Lakeisha Patterson (867) and silver to Tiffany Thomas Kane (841).

Rio Paralympian Guy Harrison-Murray swam in the final of the men’s 50m free MC, returning an eighth place finish on 755 points from a time of 25.43.

The 2017 Australian Swimming Championships conclude today from the Sleeman Swimming Centre in Brisbane.