2022 Speedo Winter Junior Championships West Recap

Beach Cities took two swimmers to Austin Texas last week for Winter Juniors and it was an incredible week of racing! Bella Brito and Madie Malone were our 2 lone swimmers at Winter Juniors. After arriving on Tuesday and watching some incredibly fast relays on Wednesday, the girls were ready to race on Thursday! I am incredibly proud of both girls, they represented BCS with pride, they were receptive to feedback and they walked away with many valuable lessons. I can't wait to see what they can do as we continue with our short course season!

Bella Brito
Bella had a full slate of events in Texas and she came to race. Of the 6 events she swam in she qualified for finals in 5 of the 6 events, and 3 of those finals were A finals! On the first night of finals, Bella had the 200 IM where she went under 2:00 minutes for the first time this season narrowly missing a best time. Bella’s 2nd night was her first A final in the 100 Breast where she finished 5th overall. Bella saved the best for last! On her final day of racing, Bella made A final in the 100 Fr and the 200 Br, she had the 100 Fr first, and about 15 minutes later she was up racing the 200 Breast. In the 200 Breast, she came 2nd overall finishing behind Olympic Gold medalist Lydia Jacoby! Bella your future is bright and I am so proud of you, your future is bright! Let’s turn that silver medal into Gold!

Madie Malone
This was Madie’s first Winter Jr’s, and she was entered in the 50, 100, and 200 Freestyle. After arriving on Tuesday, and watching incredibly fast swimming Wednesday night, Madie was ready to go with her 50 Fr, followed by the 200 fr the next day and the 100 Fr on the final day. Madie was right on her best times for all three events. Although Madie didn’t walk away with new best times, she walked away with valuable lessons and her head held high. Madie was a fantastic teammate and was ready to learn at finals, where she got to watch multiple NAG records fall and some impressive racing. I am incredibly proud of Madie and how she carried herself all week long, and I am excited to see what she can do during the rest of the short course season, with the valuable lessons you learned in Texas!