FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — Defending their championship crown, California emerged victorious in the 800-yard freestyle relay at the NCAA men’s swimming and diving championships on Wednesday evening. Following the initial day of competitions, the Golden Bears are in a tightly contested second place, trailing Texas by just two points in the overall team standings.
California’s team achieved a remarkable time of 5:59.75, setting new records for both the NCAA and the US Open. This milestone comes one year after they clinched the title with a time of 6:02.26, marking their first victory in this category since 1986. Texas, demonstrating a strong performance, finished second with an impressive time of 6:00.08, improving their previous record by over three seconds.
The Texas Longhorns commenced the championships with their program’s best-ever 200 medley relay, clocking in at 1:20.28. Initially, it seemed Florida had claimed the victory with what appeared to be a new NCAA record of 1:20.05. However, upon review, the Gators were disqualified due to an early departure by their anchor, subsequently awarding Texas the first place.
California’s relay team, comprising Björn Seeliger, Yamato Okadome, Dare Rose, and Jack Alexy, secured third place in the 200-yard event with a school record time of 1:20.76.
Thursday promises to bring more excitement at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatics Center with four swimming finals and a diving final on the schedule.