2010 YMCA Long Course National Championship Preview

While the YMCA Long Course National Championships are slightly smaller than its spring swim meet counterpart, the meet is more emotional as many YMCA swimmers say goodbye to their club teams with a grand end-of-age-group career before heading off to college and/or swimming retirement. The 2010 YMCA Long Course National Championships take place July 26-30th at College Park, Maryland and will feature some of the nation’s best teenage swimmers, along with the various fun and fan-friendly features that YMCA national championships are known for, including the opening and closing ceremony parade.

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Full Schedule of Swimming Events

Day 1 YMCA LC Nationals Swimming Recap

Day 2 YMCA LC Nationals Swimming Recap

Day 3 YMCA LC Nationals Swimming Recap

Day 4 YMCA LC Nationals Swimming Recap

Day 5 YMCA LC Nationals Swimming Recap

All On-Demand Race Videos and Athlete Interviews are now available. Thanks Maryland, and Thanks for watching fans!  See you in Georgia next year! 

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Day 1 of the 2010 YMCA Long Course National Championship featured the endurance swimmers in the Men's and Women's 1500m Freestyle.  Breann McDowell from Countryside Ralph Stolle YMCA was are champion in the first event of the night edging out Emily Launer in the lane next to her to take the first gold of the meet.  The men showcased a win by 17-year-old Graham Williams over Ty Perkins in a battle to the finish in a time of 16:05.63.  Tune in Tuesday morning at 8AM ET for Day 2, a full day of prelims with finals coverage beginning at 5:30PM ET from College Park, Maryland.

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Day 2 in College Park, Maryland had a packed crowd and lots of excitement as four meet records fell and we watched some great swims.  Finals started out with a win from Danielle Galyer the 14-year-old from South Carolina in the 100m Backstroke.  Then we watched as senior Steven Zimmerman swam to a meet record in the men's 100m Backstroke.  This came right before another meet record fell in a the women's 400m Freestyle by Shelby Fortin in an amzing last 50 that gave her the gold in a time of 4:19.91.  Robby Harder took the men's 400m Freestyle in an upset over defending champion Ty Perkins.  Wilton YMCA swimmer Emily Weir now holds the meet record in the 50m Breaststroke in her prelims race with a time of 32.78 and took gold in the finals, but was unable to break her own new record from the morning.  18-year-old Andrew Guinther had a great kick to get him a gold in the 50m Breast for the men.  Caroline Fore, seeded first, took the "w" in the 200m IM and then UpperMainLine YMCA's Matthew Salig defended his title in the men's 200m IM with an exciting finish. And, in the final individual event of the night, the 50m Freestyle, meet record holder in 2007 Emily Lloyd took this one again for the second year in a row in a time of 25.82.  Her time of 25.74 from last year still stands.  Finally, Tim Squires completely dominated the meet record in the men's 50m Freestyle setting a new time of 23.15 with Josh Davis announcing, "that was such a pretty swim!"  Tune in tomorrow with prelims beginning at 8AM ET and finals at 5:30PM ET.

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Day 3 from Maryland at the site of the 2010 YNats proved to be another edge of your seat, loud meet. With great swims from all YMCA swimmers and very loud cheering sections it was Caarly Muchel that dominated the first event of the night the 800m Freestyle.  Then, shortly after Anne Arundel-MD YMCA's Kendall Farnham took her first YMCA National Championship in the 100m Butterfly in a great time of 1:03.22 to cap her last Y-swim meet as she heads to college in the fall.  Then PSU bound Matthew Salig shined for the second night in a row taking a perfect kick all the way to a solid finish in the Men's 100m Butterfly in a time of 55.49. Wilton CT YMCA's Emily Weir swam herself to another gold, her second, in the women's 200m Breaststroke in a time of 2:36.73. And for the men, it came down to a final look where Eric Ronda looked and lost it to Bill Young in that split second. Bill Young took the victory in this event in a great finish. And, for the final individual events of the night, the 200m Freestyle Shelby Fortin accepted another gold by having an amazing swim in a time of 2:04.74. Pottstown PA YMCA's John Hauser held on to take the men's championship in this event.  That's a wrap for Day 3. Be sure not to miss Day 4 prelims starting at 8AM ET and finals again at 5:30PM ET. Good Luck swimmers!

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Day 4 from the Eppley recreation Center Natatorium at the University of Maryland saw three swimmers take their second individual national championships and two swimmers take their third for the 2010 YMCA Long Course swim meet.  The night started off with the women's 400m IM and a second gold for Caroline Fore in a time of 5:05.22.  Nathan Hart took the men's gold medal in this event over his teammate Bill Young with a time of 4:35.50.  Then, with the loudest cheering section, a swimmer from Anne Arundel MD YMCA, Emily Lloyd, swam to her second gold of the meet in the women's 100m Freestyle.  Sprinter Tim Squires also was a repeat national champion this time in the men's 100m Freestyle taking the "w" back to the Elkins WV YMCA. Justine Ress came out and edged out her competition in the women's 200m Backstroke with a nice skinny kick in a time of 2:18.34 and Countryside Ohio's Steven Zimmerman took the title for the men and is also now decorated with his second gold medal of the meet. Ending the individual events of the night is the 50m Butterfly and Emily Lloyd ended her YMCA career on a high note edging out the 2009 champion and record holder to take her third national championship in a time of 28.02. And then, quickly following the same lead as Lloyd, Upper Main Line's Matthew Salig also decorated himself with a third gold for the meet in an awesome race with a time of 25.48. Great swims all around.  Tomorrow is the final day of the meet so look forward to all the coverage and see you back here at 8AM ET for prelims and finals at 5:30PM ET!  Thanks for being with us!

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Day 5, the final day from the University of Maryland, as next year this meet will be held at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia, brough a meet record, lots of golds, smiles, and even tears from the swimming graduates saying goodbye to their YMCA teams as they head to their respected colleges and universities in the fall.  It was a big night for certain swimmers beginning with Ty Perkins who finally got his gold of the meet in the first event of the night, the men's 800m Freestyle in a time of 8:35.62.  Kendall Farnham took her second championship in the 200m Butterfly and had her mom cheering louder than any other mom in the natatorium as she has lots to be proud of.  Matthew Salig had an outstanding meet going 4 for 4 and capturing his 200m Butterfly gold medal to seal his YNat career.  The youngest in the field, Emily Slabe out-reached her competition to take the close championship in the 50m Backstroke in a time of 30.13.  James Wells set a meet record and delivered his first gold medal of the meet to Countryside Ohio's YMCA in an impressive time of 25.90. And the final individual golds went to Emily Weir, who is headed to UCLA this fall, in the 100m Breaststroke in a great 1:12.09 mark.  We are sure to hear more from here as she took home 3 championships and owns the breaststroke events here.  And, to cap it off Sean Johnson took the men's 100m Breast with a time of 1:05.78 to finish the night.  Congrats to all the swimmers, and a big thank you to the meet staff, officials, cheering parents, and coaches for a successful 2010 YMCA Long Course Championship meet.  If you missed it, check out all the great on-demand races, athlete interviews and coverage from the meet! And, See you next year in Georgia.

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For many YMCA teams, the summer national championships are more important than the spring national championships, because each respective YMCA team trains and competes with each other all summer long. The Long Course National Championships becomes an end-of-season championship meet that everyone can circle on the calandar, train for, and taper for. Unlike spring, when many high school boys are coming off an extended taper from various high school state championships and only have a few weeks of training with their YMCA teams, the summer swimming meet features the true aspect of the “team” as many of these teenagers have spent their entire summers swimming doubles together, training together, hanging out together, and gunning for this championship.

Of course, the YMCA Long Course National Championships are popular not only because of fast swimming, but because of the swimmer-friendly atmosphere. The YMCA prides itself on providing for a fun and relaxed championship atmosphere. For proof of this, look no further than the traditional Opening Ceremony, complete with a team theme and parade. Each team selects a uniform to wear for the parade, oftentimes one that correlates with the overall theme of the meet (in the spring it was “Hollywood”) giving the meet a sort of prom-like atmosphere. Many swimmers swim faster when there is a more relaxed and fun the meet atmosphere. It’s truly a win-win for every swimmer involved.

Parents, friends, and family of the swimmers also get into the fun atmosphere, oftentimes wearing matching team outfits and showing support for the team. While the summer swimming competition is smaller than the spring version, it means that there’s a better opportunity for swimmers to swim in the finals at night and score points for their team. The time standards are also slightly easier to qualify for than the spring championship, resulting in many first-time YMCA National Championship swimmers competing.

Of course, the real story of the meet is that every year it’s the final age group swim meet for many high school seniors. Many of them go on to swim in college and this meet shapes up as a swan song finale to a successful age group career. For others, this is their final meet ever. It is an interesting paradox of swimmers competing for the last time ever, and younger swimmers who are competing in their first “big meet.”

Another fun aspect of the YMCA Long Course National Championships is the ability for swimmers to compete in all four strokes in the 50 meter distance. The meet offers the 50 breaststroke, 50 butterfly, and 50 backstroke as well as the 50 freestyle. This is especially exciting for a few teenage swimmers who wish to concentrate solely on sprint events during a more laid-back summer. To get fired up and swim the 50 breaststroke, butterfly, or backstroke in a championship individual final is an unusual experience for many swimmers. This is one of the draws of the meet.

Be sure to catch the action from the 2010 YMCA Long Course National Championships this July 26th-30th. Swimnetwork will be at the meet providing a live webcast as well as providing poolside athlete interviews. Swimnetwork will also provide blogs and articles from the meet. If you can’t attend, be sure to tune into the live webcast from College Park, Maryland and witness some fun and fast swimming.