Wednesday, July 19, 2023
Emerging Talents: Looking Back on the 18&Under Performances at Phillips 66 National Championships
When the dust settled after five days of close finishes and blazing times at the 2023 Phillips 66 National Championships, one glaring takeaway became clear: The young stars of the sport are quickly coming to the forefront.
The times posted at the meet sent eight 18 & Under swimmers to represent the U.S. to the upcoming 2023 World Aquatics Championships. That feat is not where the accolades stop, as 10 National Age Group Records also went down throughout the competition.
One of the most jaw-dropping performances came from Pleasanton Seahawks’ Luka Mijatovic, who bested four 13-14 National Age Group records. The first of his records came via a 1:50.60 performance in the 200-meter freestyle. He would go on to set new age group marks in the 400m freestyle with a 3:55.74 in prelims, and again with a 3:53.19 in the evening’s finals. His final record-setting performance of the meet came via an 8:02.44 in the 800m freestyle.
Mijatovic wasn’t the only one to record three National Age Group Records at the meet, as Thomas Heilman broke the 15-16 age group records in the 100m butterfly (twice) and had a historic 200m butterfly. His prelims time of 51.78 in the 100m butterfly broke his own record that he set at last year’s Junior Pan Pacific Championships, and then he followed it up with another record in finals with his 51.19. Arguably his most impressive time of the meet was his 1:54.54 in the 200m butterfly, which broke a 22-year-standing record set by Michael Phelps. Heilman’s performances made him one of just two 18 & Under men on the U.S. roster for the 2023 World Aquatics Championships.
Fellow National Junior Team member Maximus Williamson also left the competition with multiple National Age Group Records. Williamson’s 15-16 age group records were courtesy of his 1:47.62 in the 200m freestyle and 1:58.65 in the 200m IM.
Jonny Kulow’s 48.47 performance in the 100m freestyle broke the previous record (set by Jack Alexy in 2021) and made him the first American male in the 17-18 age group to go under 48.5.
A complete look at the top 18 & Under finisher at the Phillips 66 National Championships in each event:
Note: Club affiliate is as of the time of swim.
To view the full results of the 2023 Phillips 66 National Championships, click here.
The times posted at the meet sent eight 18 & Under swimmers to represent the U.S. to the upcoming 2023 World Aquatics Championships. That feat is not where the accolades stop, as 10 National Age Group Records also went down throughout the competition.
One of the most jaw-dropping performances came from Pleasanton Seahawks’ Luka Mijatovic, who bested four 13-14 National Age Group records. The first of his records came via a 1:50.60 performance in the 200-meter freestyle. He would go on to set new age group marks in the 400m freestyle with a 3:55.74 in prelims, and again with a 3:53.19 in the evening’s finals. His final record-setting performance of the meet came via an 8:02.44 in the 800m freestyle.
Mijatovic wasn’t the only one to record three National Age Group Records at the meet, as Thomas Heilman broke the 15-16 age group records in the 100m butterfly (twice) and had a historic 200m butterfly. His prelims time of 51.78 in the 100m butterfly broke his own record that he set at last year’s Junior Pan Pacific Championships, and then he followed it up with another record in finals with his 51.19. Arguably his most impressive time of the meet was his 1:54.54 in the 200m butterfly, which broke a 22-year-standing record set by Michael Phelps. Heilman’s performances made him one of just two 18 & Under men on the U.S. roster for the 2023 World Aquatics Championships.
Fellow National Junior Team member Maximus Williamson also left the competition with multiple National Age Group Records. Williamson’s 15-16 age group records were courtesy of his 1:47.62 in the 200m freestyle and 1:58.65 in the 200m IM.
Jonny Kulow’s 48.47 performance in the 100m freestyle broke the previous record (set by Jack Alexy in 2021) and made him the first American male in the 17-18 age group to go under 48.5.
A complete look at the top 18 & Under finisher at the Phillips 66 National Championships in each event:
| WOMEN | MEN | |||
| TIME | ATHLETE (CLUB/COACH) | EVENT | ATHLETE (CLUB/COACH) | TIME |
| 25.19 | Caroline Larsen (Foxjets Swim Team/Lloyd Larsen) | 50 Free | Jonny Kulow (Sun Devil Swimming/Bob Bowman) | 21.87 |
| 53.73 | Bella Sims (Sandpipers of Nevada/Ron Aitken) | 100 Free | Maximus Williamson (Lakeside Aquatic Club/ Jason Walter) | 48.91 |
| 1:55.26 | Claire Weinstein (Sandpipers of Nevada/Ron Aitken) | 200 Free | Henry McFadden (Jersey Wahoos/Paul Donovan) | 1:47.02 |
| 4:03.25 | Bella Sims (Sandpipers of Nevada/Ron Aitken) | 400 Free | Rex Maurer (Rose Bowl Aquatics/Coach) | 3:48.18 |
| 8:20.28 | Jillian Cox (Longhorn Aquatics/Carol Capitani) | 800 Free | Luke Whitlock (Fishers Area Swimming Tigers) | 8:00.79 |
| 15:58.34 | Katie Grimes (Sandpipers of Nevada/Ron Aitken) | 1500 Free | Luke Ellis (Sandpipers of Nevada/Ron Aitken) | 15:17.92 |
| 28.49 | Berit Berglund (Carmel Swim Club/Chris Plumb) | 50 Back | Will Modglin (Zionsville Swim Club/Eric Meyer) | 25.23 |
| 58.59 | Claire Curzan (Alto Swim Club/Greg Meehan) | 100 Back | Daniel Diehl (Cumberland YMCA/Brian Dowling) | 54.02 |
| 2:06.35 | Claire Curzan (Alto Swim Club/Greg Meehan) | 200 Back | Daniel Diehl (Cumberland YMCA/Brian Dowling) | 1:56.04 |
| 31.19 | Piper Enge (Bellevue Club Swim Team/Abi Liu) | 50 Breast | Andy Dobrzanski (Sun Devil Swimming/Bob Bowman) | 28.04 |
| 1:07.87 | Kaelyn Gridley (Duke/Brian Barnes) | 100 Breast | Joshua Chen (Texas Ford Aquatics/John McGough) | 1:01.91 |
| 2:29.41 | Piper Enge (Bellevue Club Swim Team/Abi Liu) | 200 Breast | Josh Bey (Highland Hurricanes Swim Club/Nick Castillo) | 2:14.84 |
| 25.74 | Claire Curzan (Alto Swim Club/Greg Meehan) | 50 Fly | Jonny Kulow (Sun Devil Swimming/Bob Bowman) | 23.43 |
| 56.61 | Claire Curzan (Alto Swim Club/Greg Meehan) | 100 Fly | Thomas Heilman (Cavalier Aquatics/Gary Taylor) | 51.19 |
| 2:07.95 | Alex Shackell (Carmel Swim Club/Chris Plumb) | 200 Fly | Thomas Heilman (Cavalier Aquatics/Gary Taylor) | 1:54.54 |
| 2:10.42 | Leah Hayes (Fox Valley Riptides/Nancy Hooper) | 200 IM | Maximus Williamson (Lakeside Aquatic Club/ Jason Walter) | 1:58.65 |
| 4:33.80 | Katie Grimes (Sandpipers of Nevada/Ron Aitken) | 400 IM | Gio Linscheer (University of Florida/Anthony Nesty) | 4:18.74 |
Note: Club affiliate is as of the time of swim.
To view the full results of the 2023 Phillips 66 National Championships, click here.