Abbey Weitzeil
Abbigail "Abbey" Weitzeil (born December 3, 1996) is an American competition swimmer specializing in sprint freestyle. A multiple time Olympic medalist, she won a gold medal in the 4x100-meter medley relay for swimming in the preliminary heats and a silver medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay at the 2016 Rio Olympics. At the 2020 Summer Olympics she won a silver medal in the 4x100-meter medley relay and a bronze medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay, swimming in the final of both events. She is the American record holder in the 50-yard freestyle and is part of the American Record in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay.
Early life and education
Weitzeil grew up in Santa Clarita, California. She attended Saugus High School, where she was a four-time CIF Champion in swimming and set national records in the 50 yard and 100 yard freestyle.[2]
Weitzeil attended University of California, Berkeley from 2016 to 2020 and swam collegiately for the California Golden Bears. In her senior year at California, Weitzeil was the winner of the Honda Sports Award, given to the nation's top female collegiate competitor in swimming and diving.[3][4]
Swimming career
2014
Speedo Winter Junior National Championships
At the 2014 Speedo Winter Junior National Championships in Federal Way, Washington, Weitzeil set the American Record in the 100-yard freestyle. Her record time of 46.29 bested the previous record held by Simone Manuel by 0.33. She set the record while swimming lead off for Canyons Aquatic Club's 4x100 Freestyle relay. Weitzeil became the 17th teenager to hold the record in that event. This was the first American Record ever set at a Junior National event.
International Debut & Pan Pacifics
At the 2014 Phillips 66 Nationals, the selection meet for the 2014 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships and 2015 World Championships, Weitzeil qualified for both meets by finishing fifth in the 50-meter freestyle and fourth in the 100-meter freestyle. At the Pan Pacific Championships, her first international swimming competition, Weitzeil finished 10th in the 100-meter free. She also won silver as a member of the 400-meter free relay alongside Simone Manuel, Missy Franklin, and Shannon Vreeland, splitting 53.81 seconds on her leg.[5]
2014 World Swimming Championships
Later that year, Weitzeil went on to win one gold and two silver medals at the 2014 World Short Course Championships.
2015 World Championships
At the 2015 World Championships, she won a gold medal in the 4x100-meter mixed freestyle relay and a bronze in 4x100-meter freestyle relay. She swam in the preliminary heats for both relays.
2016
2016 American Short Course Championships
At the 2016 American Short Course Championships in Austin, Texas Weitzeil set the American Record in the 50 yard Freestyle with a time of 21.12. The previous record held by Lara Jackson was a 21.27 and was set during the "super suit" era.
2016 US Olympic Trials
Weitzeil qualified for her first Olympics by sweeping both the 50- and the 100-meter freestyles at the 2016 US Olympic trials. In the 100-meter freestyle, she won with a time of 53.28 seconds, 24 hundredths of a second ahead of second-place finisher Simone Manuel. She also finished first in the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 24.28.[6]
2016 Summer Olympics
| 2016 Summer Olympics | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
4×100 m medley relay | 3:53.13 |
 |
4×100 m freestyle relay | 3:31.89 (AM) |
On the first night of the swimming portion at the Olympics, she won a silver medal as part of the 4×100-meter freestyle relay along with Manuel, Dana Vollmer, and Katie Ledecky in 3:31.89, which was a new American Record. Her split of 52.56 was the fastest among her team. She also swam in the preliminary heats of the 4x100-meter medley relay and received a gold medal when the team won in the finals. In her individual events, Weitzeil finished seventh in the 100-meter freestyle with a time of 53.30 and missed qualifying for the final of the 50-meter freestyle.
2020
When the COVID-19 pandemic briefly resulted in the 2020 Summer Olympics being cancelled before venues could be secured for July 2021, Weitzeil did not stop her training. She commuted to different pools that were open to remain on track for the Olympics which ended up being postponed to 2021.[7]
2021
2020 Summer Olympics
| 2020 Summer Olympics | ||
|---|---|---|
|
4x100 m medley relay | 3:51.73 |
 |
4×100 m freestyle relay | 3:32.81 |
Weitzeil made the US Olympic swim team in two individual events for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, the 50-meter freestyle and the 100-meter freestyle.[8][9] She also made the team in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay.[9]
On day two of competition, Weitzeil swam in the final of the 4x100-meter freestyle relay, spitting the fastest 100-meter swim of any of the swimmers on the American relay with a 52.68.[10] She and her relay teammates won the bronze medal with a relay time of 3:32.81 in the final.[11][12][13] Weitzeil became the first University of California, Berkeley athlete to win a medal at the 2020 Olympics in any sport.[14]
In her first individual race at the 2020 Olympics, the prelims of the 100-meter freestyle on day five of competition, Weitzeil ranked eleventh for all prelims heats with her time of 53.21 and advanced to the semifinals.[15] In the semifinals of the event, Weitzeil lowered her time to a 52.99 and qualified for the final ranked seventh overall.[16][17][18] Weitzeil swam the freestyle leg of the 4x100-meter mixed medley relay in the prelims heats on day six, participating in the first swimming race in the history of the Olympic Games that men and women competed in the same event.[19] She helped the relay finish ranked second overall and advance to the final.[19][20]
In the final of the 100-meter freestyle on day seven, Weitzeil placed eighth.[21] Later the same day, Weitzel ranked seventh in the prelims of the 50-meter freestyle with her time of 24.37 and advanced to the semifinals.[22] In the semifinals of the 50-meter freestyle on day eight, Weitzeil swam a personal best time of 24.19 and advanced to the final ranked fourth overall.[18][23]
On the final day of competition, Weitzeil placed eighth with a time of 24.41 in the final of the 50-meter freestyle.[24][25] For each of her individual events, the 50 meter and 100 meter freestyle, Weitzeil was the highest ranking female American swimmer and the only one to make it to the final of each event.[18] In the final of the 4x100-meter medley relay she swam the freestyle leg of the relay and won the silver medal in the event with her finals relay teammates Regan Smith, Lydia Jacoby, Torri Huske, as well as the swimmers who had swum on the prelims relay.[24][25][26]
International Swimming League
Weitzeil was selected for Team LA Current as part of the 2021 International Swimming League.[27]
2021 World Short Course Championships
| 2021 World Championships | ||
|---|---|---|
|
4×100 m freestyle | 3:28.52 |
|
4×50 m freestyle | 1:34.22 |
|
4×50 m medley | 1:43.61 |
|
4×50 m mixed medley | 1:37.04 |
|
4×200 m freestyle | 7:36.53 |
|
100 m freestyle | 51.64 |
Weitzeil entered to compete in a mix of individual events, which included the 100-meter individual medley, 50-meter freestyle, and 100-meter freestyle, for the 2021 World Short Course Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates in December.[28]
In the final of the 4×100-meter freestyle relay on the first day of competition, Weitzeil substituted in for Torri Huske, and helped win a gold medal in a time of 3:28.52 which tied the relay team from Canada.[29] The tie between the United States and the Canada relay teams was the first time in the history of the FINA World Short Course Championships that two teams tied for the gold medal in the event.[30] On the second day, Weitzeil ranked fourth overall in the prelims heats of the 100-meter freestyle, qualifying for the semifinals with her time of 52.81 seconds.[31] In the evening, Weitzeil won a silver medal in the 4×50 meter medley relay in 1:43.61, anchoring the relay with a time of 23.10 seconds.[32][33] Later in the same session, Weitzeil qualified for the final of the 100 meter freestyle ranking fifth in the semifinals with a 52.29.[34] For her third and final event of the evening, Weitzeil anchored the 4×50 meter mixed freestyle relay in 23.17 seconds, contributing to the 1:29.04 for a fourth-place finish.[33][35]
On day three, Weitzeil swam a 59.44 in the prelims heats of the 100 meter individual medley, qualifying for the semifinals ranking eighth.[36] Later in the day she won a bronze medal in the final of the 100 meter freestyle, finishing less than half a second behind silver medalist Sarah Sjöström of Sweden with a time of 51.64 seconds.[37][38] For her second event of the evening Weitzeil placed ninth in the semifinals of the 100 meter individual medley with a time of 59.00 seconds and did not qualify for the final.[39] Weitzeil concluded her competition on day three with the final of the 4×50 meter mixed medley relay, where she split a 23.21 to help achieve a 1:37.04 and earn the silver medal.[40] In the morning prelims on day five, Weitzeil qualified for the semifinals of the 50 meter freestyle with a time of 23.69 seconds and ranking third overall.[41] For the semifinals, Weitzeil ranked fourth and qualified for the final with a 23.63.[42] Wrapping up her day five events, Weitzeil won a silver medal as part of the 4×200 meter freestyle relay, splitting a 1:54.31 for the second leg of the relay to contribute to the final time of 7:36.53.[43]
Day six of six days of competition, Weitzeil anchored the 4×50 meter freestyle relay with a 23.62 in the prelims heats, contributing to a time of 1:35.88 and number one ranking heading into the final.[44] She split a 23.59 leading-off the 4×50 meter freestyle relay in the final, helping win the gold medal in a time of 1:34.22.[45][46] In her second event of the evening, Weitzeil swam a 23.58 and placed fifth in the final of the 50 meter freestyle.[47] For the final event of the championships, Weitzeil anchored the 4×100 metre medley relay with a 51.06, the fastest freestyle split out of all relays in the final by over two-tenths of a second, to contribute to a fourth-place finish in 3:47.68.[48]
Personal best times
Long course meters (50 m pool)
| Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 m freestyle | 24.00 | 2023 USA Swimming Championships | Indianapolis, IN, USA | July 1, 2023 | sf | [18] |
| 100 m freestyle | 52.99 | 2020 Summer Olympics | Tokyo, Japan | July 29, 2021 | sf | [18] |
Legend: sf – semifinal
Short course meters (25 m pool)
| Event | Time | Meet | Location | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 m freestyle | 23.44 | 2021 International Swimming League | Naples, Italy | September 18, 2021 | AM |
| 100 m freestyle | 51.26 | 2020 International Swimming League | Budapest, Hungary | November 10, 2020 | AM |
| 50 m breaststroke | 30.91 | 2020 International Swimming League | Budapest, Hungary | October 16, 2020 | |
| 50 m butterfly | 25.35 | 2021 International Swimming League | Naples, Italy | September 19, 2021 | |
| 100 m individual medley | 58.59 | 2020 International Swimming League | Budapest, Hungary | October 25, 2020 |
Records not set in finals: h – heat;
Awards and honors
See also
- List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women)
- List of World Swimming Championships (25 m) medalists (women)
- List of United States records in swimming
References
- ^ "Abbey Weitzeil". Archived from the original on July 30, 2016.
- ^ "Abbey Weitzeil". Cal Bears. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
- ^ Weitzeil, Mikey (April 14, 2020). "Abbey Weitzeil Wins Honda Sport Award for Swimming". Swimming World News. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- ^ "Cal's Abbey Weitzeil Named Honda Sport Award Winner for Swimming & Diving". CWSA. April 14, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- ^ "Abbey Weitzeil Bio". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
- ^ Albano, Dan (July 3, 2016). "Abbey Weitzeil finishes a double at Olympic swimming trials". The Orange County Register. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
- ^ Gallegos, Danielle (August 15, 2020). "Saugus High alum sets sights on 2021 Olympic goals". The Santa Clarita Valley Signal. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Roster". USA Swimming. June 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ a b Giordano, Katie (June 23, 2021). "Meet the U.S. Olympic Swimming Team for Tokyo". NBC Olympics. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
- ^ Lepesant, Anne (July 24, 2021). "Tokyo Relay Splits: Emma McKeon Blasts 51.35; Simone Gamble Pays Off For USA". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ^ Ekert, Kelley (July 24, 2021). "Team USA finishes third in 4x100m freestyle relay, Australia wins gold". WNBC. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ^ Miller, Devon (July 25, 2021). "Saugus Swimmer Abbey Weitzeil wins Bronze Medal At Tokyo Olympics". The Valley Post. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
- ^ Alvarenga, Emily (July 26, 2021). "SCV Native Abbey Weitzeil Wins Bronze Medal at Tokyo Olympics". SCV News. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
- ^ Curtis, Jake (July 24, 2021). "Cal at the Olympics: Abbey Weitzeil First Golden Bear to Get a Medal". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ^ Sutherland, James (July 28, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 5 Prelims Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
- ^ Lepesant, Anne (July 28, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 5 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
- ^ "Team USA Olympic recap for Wednesday, July 28". The Santa Clarita Valley Signal. July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Omega Timing; Atos (August 1, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: Swimming Results Book" Archived August 7, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. International Olympic Committee. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ a b Goodman, Eric (July 29, 2021). "Watch the first mixed-gender swimming race in Olympics history". NBC Olympics. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
- ^ Anderson, Jared (July 29, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 6 Prelims Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
- ^ Pollard, James (July 29, 2021). "Ryan Murphy, Lilly King, Annie Lazor Medal for US Swimming". NBC 10. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
- ^ Anderson, Jared (July 30, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 7 Prelims Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
- ^ Sutherland, James (July 30, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 7 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ a b Sutherland, James (July 31, 2021). "Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Day 8 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ a b Curtis, Jake (August 1, 2021). "Cal at the Olympics: Ryan Murphy, Tom Shields Get Gold; Abbey Weitzeil Gets Silver". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ "Saugus High Alumna Abbey Weitzeil Anchors Relay Team to Silver". SCV News. August 2, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ Penland, Spencer (August 1, 2021). "ISL Season 3: Free Agency Period Closed After 36 Free Agent Signings In July". SwimSwam. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- ^ "2021 FINA Short Course World Championships Roster". USA Swimming. October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 16, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 4x100m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ Moss, Bonnie (December 16, 2021). "U.S. Women Win Gold on First Day of 2021 FINA World Championships (25m)". USA Swimming. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 17, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 100m Freestyle Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 17, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 4x50m Medley Relay Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ a b Moss, Bonnie (December 17, 2021). "Casas' Gold Leads Way for U.S. on FINA World Championships (25m) Night Two". USA Swimming. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 17, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 100m Freestyle Semifinals Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 17, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Mixed 4x50m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 18, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 100m Individual Medley Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 18, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 100m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ Careem, Nazvi (December 18, 2021). "Hong Kong's Haughey storms to second gold at Worlds". South China Morning Post. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 18, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 100m Individual Medley Semifinals Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 18, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Mixed 4x50m Medley Relay Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 20, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 50m Freestyle Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 20, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 50m Freestyle Semifinals Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 20, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 4x200m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 21, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 4x50m Freestyle Heats Results Summary". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 21, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 4x50m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ Sagendorph, Kyle (December 21, 2021). "U.S. Wraps with 30 Medals, Team of the Meet Honors at 2021 FINA World Championships (25m)". USA Swimming. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 21, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 50m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ FINA (December 21, 2021). "15th FINA World Swimming Championships 2021 Abu Dhabi (UAE): Women's 4x100m Medley Relay Final Results". Omega Timing. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
- ^ Ortegon, Karl (February 13, 2021). "SwimSwam's Top 100 For 2021: Women's #40 — #31". SwimSwam. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
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External links
- Abbey Weitzeil at World Aquatics
- Abbey Weitzeil at SwimRankings.net
- Abbey Weitzeil at the International Swimming League
- Abbey Weitzeil at Olympics.com
- Abbey Weitzeil at Olympedia
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