Hesen breaks US 50m record

Ben Hesen might not be going to the Olympics this summer in China, but he still has a lot to be proud of this season. \nOn Saturday, Hesen bested his own American record in the 50-meter backstroke at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials at the Qwest Center in \nOmaha, Neb.\nIU coach Ray Looze was excited about how his swimmers did, Hesen in particular.\n“I think he did a fantastic job,” Looze said. \nHesen’s time of 24.70 seconds in the first 50 meters of a 100-meter backstroke time trial is the second fastest in the world. Liam Tancock of England set the world record for the event in April at \n24.47 seconds.\nThe 50-meter backstroke is not an Olympic event, so even though Hesen does have the second-best time in the world he will not be competing in Beijing because he missed the cut in the 100-meter backstroke.\nDespite setting the American record, Hesen was still disappointed to have not made the Olympic team.\n“I’d be lying if I said I \nwas happy with the results,” he said. \nHesen did come close to qualifying for the Olympics in the 100-meter backstroke, where he finished fifth with a personal best of 53.68 seconds. Aaron Piersol and Matt Grevers took the two qualifying spots in the event with times of 52.89 and 53.19, respectively. \nHesen said the event hosts some of the most talented swimmers in the world, and anyone could have qualified for the team.\nOn the same night Hesen swam in the final of the 100-meter backstroke, two other IU athletes also competed in the final of the women’s 100-meter backstroke. Presley Bard and Leila Vaziri finished fifth and seventh in the \nevent, respectively. \nThe next day, sophomore Amanda Smith also came close to breaking the IU school record in the 200-meter butterfly when she finished 26th in 2:13.83, just two-tenths of a second off the record set by Brittany Barwegen at U.S. national trials last summer. \nLooze said he was happy with the way his 24 swimmers competed at the Olympic Trials showing the strength of the program, which placed 10th at the NCAA meet in April. \n“I think we put a stamp on this meet and showed we are a power to be reckoned with,” \nhe said. \nAt that NCAA meet, Hesen set the second best time in the meet’s history with a victory in the 100-yard backstroke. It also broke a 35-year drought of Hoosiers winning the event since Mike Stamm won it in 1973. \nIn addition to being a talented and hard-working swimmer Hesen has also helped others on the team as the captain this season.\nSophomore Matt O’Brien said he enjoyed having Hesen on the team for his first year and received positive influence from the leader. \n“He was a great captain,” O’Brien said. “He has given me a lot of help along the way.” \nO’Brien also said that getting the chance to see his teammate on such a big stage was very exciting. \n“It’s pretty awesome to see people you train with on TV,” he said. \nSophomore Tyler Lemert said Hesen helped him make the transition from high school to college and dealing with being homesick. \nLemert, who said the backstroke is actually his least favorite event, also watched the Olympic Trials the entire duration of the program and said seeing so many great swimmers and his IU teammate has a positive effect on him. \n“It’s really motivating for me,” he said. \nHesen said he will continue to train with the Hoosiers while he still has another year to finish up his classes at IU.\nDespite the disappointment, Hesen also said he is extremely motivated to get to the top and will try to keep a positive attitude.\n“I still feel I can be the best in the world,” he said. “It just isn’t my time yet.”