June 27, 2012

OMAHA, Neb. — South Carolina junior Michael Flach had an impressive performance on Wednesday in the preliminaries of the 200 butterfly at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials.

With the event being his strongest, Flach didn’t disappoint as he swam a personal record of 1:58.56 to finish second in his heat and seventh overall to qualify for tonight’s semifinals. A native of Annandale, Va., Flach closed out the race in strong fashion, jumping from fourth to second in the final 50 meters.

The top eight from the semifinals will advance to the finals, which will be held on Thursday night. Only the top two swimmers from the finals will make the U.S. Olympic Team. Flach will be in the second heat of tonight’s semifinal and will be in lane six next to 14-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps.

“Michael jumped on the blocks this morning and dropped almost a full second off of his lifetime best,” South Carolina head coach McGee Moody said. “Where he is right now if he can get a repeat performance tonight and swim another race like he did this morning, that’s going to put him in that championship final. We’ve said all along if you get in that top eight then it’s anybody’s ballgame.”

Two Gamecock women were also in action in the preliminaries, as rising junior Rachael Schaffer and rising sophomore Annika Jonsson competed in the 200 IM. Schaffer had another stellar swim, finishing 29th overall with a time of 2:17.65. Jonsson swam a 2:21.47 to finish 89th, which was much higher than her seed of 129.

Tonight’s session will get underway at 7 CT with NBC providing live coverage until 8 CT. Flach’s heat is scheduled to begin at approximately 7:55 CT. Live results for each event will also be available by clicking here.

Wednesday, June 27
2012 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials
Omaha, Neb. – CenturyLink Center
Day 3 Preliminary Results
Men’s 200 Butterfly
7. Michael Flach 1:58.56 (PR, advances to semifinals)

Women’s 200 IM
29. Rachael Schaffer 2:17.65
89. Annika Jonsson 2:21.47