Texas Senior Circuit: Ricky Berens Doubles on Second Night
May 23, 2009
The second night of long course meter swimming at the Texas Senior Circuit in College Station witnessed Ricky Berens winning a pair of titles for Longhorn Aquatics.
Men 100 LC Meter Butterfly
1 Berens, Ricky 54.16
2 Walters, Dave 55.24
3 Wang, Andrew 56.05
4 Caskey, Neil 56.29
5 Sacco, Tommy 56.32
6 Jackson, Jonath 56.79
7 Seward, Alex 56.89
8 Loncaric, Boris 57.79
Men 200 LC Meter Freestyle
1 Berens, Ricky 1:51.74
2 Klueh, Michael 1:52.10
3 Walters, Dave 1:54.65
4 Veazey, Caleb 1:55.03
5 Sell, Tyler 1:55.49
6 Rogers, Dale 1:55.75
7 Singley, Wil 1:56.90
8 Barber, Matt 1:57.24
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Texas Senior Circuit Results
Texas Senior Circuit, College Station: Dara Torres Lowers American Record Again
May 22, 2009
Men 50 LC Meter Butterfly
1 Berens, Ricky 25.28
2 Loncaric, Boris 25.48
3 Wang, Andrew 25.52
4 Jackson, Jonathan 25.69
5 Thompson, Matt 25.81
6 Seward, Alex 25.98
7 Reeves, Joseph 26.22
8 Cooper, Tripp 26.66
Men 100 LC Meter Freestyle
1 Berens, Ricky 49.86
2 Weber-Gale, Garrett 50.46
3 Rogers, Dale 50.93
4 Jackson, Jonathan 51.96
5 Walters, Dave 51.99
6 VanRoekel, Ben 52.77
7 Wang, Andrew 53.09
8 Singley, Wil 54.43
May 22, 2009
Longhorn's Ricky Berens topped the men's 50 fly in 25.28, while Aggie Boris Loncaric placed second in 25.48. Longhorn's Andrew Wang touched third in 25.52.-----
Berens earned his second gold of the evening with a 49.86 in the men's event. Longhorn teammates Garrett Weber-Gale (50.46) and Dale Rogers (50.93) placed second and third behind him.
Men 50 LC Meter Butterfly
1 Berens, Ricky 25.28
2 Loncaric, Boris 25.48
3 Wang, Andrew 25.52
4 Jackson, Jonathan 25.69
5 Thompson, Matt 25.81
6 Seward, Alex 25.98
7 Reeves, Joseph 26.22
8 Cooper, Tripp 26.66
Men 100 LC Meter Freestyle
1 Berens, Ricky 49.86
2 Weber-Gale, Garrett 50.46
3 Rogers, Dale 50.93
4 Jackson, Jonathan 51.96
5 Walters, Dave 51.99
6 VanRoekel, Ben 52.77
7 Wang, Andrew 53.09
8 Singley, Wil 54.43
Monday, May 18, 2009
3rd-place finish shows more signs of greatness
By Scott Fowler
Charlotte native Ricky Berens gives the Texas hook 'em horns salute after receiving his third-place medal for the men's 100-meter freestyle Sunday at the Charlotte UltraSwim.
Ricky Berens, the 2008 Olympian who grew up in Charlotte, doesn't get home much.
He swims now for the University of Texas, where he just finished his junior year of college with a three-hour finance exam Friday night.
On Saturday morning, Berens hopped a flight to Charlotte. On Sunday, he finally got a piece of the best Charlotte UltraSwim ever, finishing third in the blazing 100-meter freestyle final that capped the meet.
Berens beat everybody in the field except France's Fred Bousquet (who won) and his 2008 Olympic teammate Michael Phelps. That's pretty darn good for a 21-year-old kid from South Mecklenburg High, and Berens was smiling afterward.
“To be finishing third against them was great,” he said.
The race was more evidence of Berens' potential. He is considered one of the best hopes for the future of American swimming and has a chance to qualify for multiple events at the London Olympics in 2012.
A shorter-term goal this summer: Make the U.S. team that will go to the 2009 world championships in Rome in more than one event.
Berens swam only one event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but he made the most of it. He won a gold medal and helped set a world record in the 4-by-200 freestyle relay. He rode into his junior season in college on a natural high from his time in China.
And then the real world intruded.
“I was kind of disappointed in the way all that went,” Berens said of his collegiate season. “I think I kind of went into the season, coming off the Olympics going, ‘Oh, this is going to be a breeze.' So it was a reality check.”
Berens' standards are very high, for his junior season wouldn't have been a disappointment for most swimmers. He finished third in the nation in the 200-yard individual medley and the 200 freestyle. The Texas men's team couldn't quite catch Auburn for the national championship.
Berens now believes the long stretch from the Olympics through the collegiate season took something out of him. He will begin his senior season at Texas in the fall.
“We've got to get a national championship there before I'm done,” he said.
For this trip home, Berens is combining business with pleasure. He attended his first NASCAR race Saturday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway, the all-star event, and was awed.
“It was incredible,” he said. “Sitting there up close you have such a different perception. You don't think they're going so fast on TV until you see that in person.”
Berens didn't get home from that race (won by Tony Stewart) until about 1 a.m. Sunday, but it didn't affect him for his own race Sunday morning. He won his 100-meter heat in a sizzling time of 49.50, nearly setting a personal best while beating Bousquet. Phelps won his heat in exactly the same time.
Then came the final.
Bousquet and Phelps improved their times from the morning. Berens did not, and that was ultimately the difference.
As far as swimming stardom, Berens is still not there yet. But he's on the cusp.
Charlotte native Ricky Berens gives the Texas hook 'em horns salute after receiving his third-place medal for the men's 100-meter freestyle Sunday at the Charlotte UltraSwim.
Ricky Berens, the 2008 Olympian who grew up in Charlotte, doesn't get home much.
He swims now for the University of Texas, where he just finished his junior year of college with a three-hour finance exam Friday night.
On Saturday morning, Berens hopped a flight to Charlotte. On Sunday, he finally got a piece of the best Charlotte UltraSwim ever, finishing third in the blazing 100-meter freestyle final that capped the meet.
Berens beat everybody in the field except France's Fred Bousquet (who won) and his 2008 Olympic teammate Michael Phelps. That's pretty darn good for a 21-year-old kid from South Mecklenburg High, and Berens was smiling afterward.
“To be finishing third against them was great,” he said.
The race was more evidence of Berens' potential. He is considered one of the best hopes for the future of American swimming and has a chance to qualify for multiple events at the London Olympics in 2012.
A shorter-term goal this summer: Make the U.S. team that will go to the 2009 world championships in Rome in more than one event.
Berens swam only one event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but he made the most of it. He won a gold medal and helped set a world record in the 4-by-200 freestyle relay. He rode into his junior season in college on a natural high from his time in China.
And then the real world intruded.
“I was kind of disappointed in the way all that went,” Berens said of his collegiate season. “I think I kind of went into the season, coming off the Olympics going, ‘Oh, this is going to be a breeze.' So it was a reality check.”
Berens' standards are very high, for his junior season wouldn't have been a disappointment for most swimmers. He finished third in the nation in the 200-yard individual medley and the 200 freestyle. The Texas men's team couldn't quite catch Auburn for the national championship.
Berens now believes the long stretch from the Olympics through the collegiate season took something out of him. He will begin his senior season at Texas in the fall.
“We've got to get a national championship there before I'm done,” he said.
For this trip home, Berens is combining business with pleasure. He attended his first NASCAR race Saturday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway, the all-star event, and was awed.
“It was incredible,” he said. “Sitting there up close you have such a different perception. You don't think they're going so fast on TV until you see that in person.”
Berens didn't get home from that race (won by Tony Stewart) until about 1 a.m. Sunday, but it didn't affect him for his own race Sunday morning. He won his 100-meter heat in a sizzling time of 49.50, nearly setting a personal best while beating Bousquet. Phelps won his heat in exactly the same time.
Then came the final.
Bousquet and Phelps improved their times from the morning. Berens did not, and that was ultimately the difference.
As far as swimming stardom, Berens is still not there yet. But he's on the cusp.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Charlotte UltraSwim Results
100m Free Final
1 Fred Bousquet48.22
1 Michael Phelps49.04
3 Ricky Berens 49.66
4 Tyler McGill49.93
5 Cullen Jones 50.02
6 Davis Tarwater50.51
7 Bobby Savulich50.85
8 Bryan Lundquist50.91
Videos are available at SwimNetwork.
1 Fred Bousquet48.22
1 Michael Phelps49.04
3 Ricky Berens 49.66
4 Tyler McGill49.93
5 Cullen Jones 50.02
6 Davis Tarwater50.51
7 Bobby Savulich50.85
8 Bryan Lundquist50.91
Videos are available at SwimNetwork.
Charlotte UltraSwim Results
100m Free Prelims
1 Michael Phelps 49.50
1 Ricky Berens 49.50
3 Cullen Jones 49.75
4 Fred Bousquet 49.81
5 Bryan Lundquist 50.28
6 Tyler McGill 50.38
7 Davis Tarwater 50.43
8 Bobby Savulich 50.60
More results from the UltraSwim at SwimmingWorldMagazine.
1 Michael Phelps 49.50
1 Ricky Berens 49.50
3 Cullen Jones 49.75
4 Fred Bousquet 49.81
5 Bryan Lundquist 50.28
6 Tyler McGill 50.38
7 Davis Tarwater 50.43
8 Bobby Savulich 50.60
More results from the UltraSwim at SwimmingWorldMagazine.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Fun interview with Study Breaks Magazine
Inside Beijing - UT Olympians
The lighter side of going for gold.
Ever wonder who you're sitting next to on the bus? Is that guy with the non symmetrical, multi-colored hair the next Rod Stewart, or is that quiet girl hiding behind an over-sized backpack and a genetics book going to win a Nobel prize? Would you guess that the normal, somewhat lanky-looking guy standing in front had an Olympic Gold medal in his bag? While the vast majority of 20-year-old college students are desperately trying to figure out “what they want to be when they grow up”, this guy answers, “I’m an Olympic swimmer.”
So, what's life like when you are actually living out your dreams, and not still working towards them? I sat down and talked with Ricky, Scott and David, three members of the UT swimming team that represented the United States globally at the 2008 Summer Olympics, about their experience in Beijing, and what it’s like being serious athletes and normal 20-year-old guys.
Q: How long have you boys been swimming?
Ricky: I started swimming when I was four; my mom was a swimming coach.
Scott: I think I was five. Well, except I almost drowned when I was six. I strapped myself into a boogie board, belly down, and I flipped over and couldn’t unstrap myself. My mom grabbed me just in time—I was turning blue!
David: I never almost drowned, but when I was eight I couldn’t surf the big waves, because I was a really poor swimmer. So I joined the summer league to learn.
Q: How did you end up here at Texas?
Ricky: Eddie Reese was a huge influence. He has coached here at Texas for 30 years, and has created an amazing swimming legend. I also really wanted to get away from North Carolina—there’s absolutely nothing there. Austin is a much better city; there is something different to do every single day.
Scott: I had grown up here in Austin, so in order to get away and have a new experience I went to Michigan for two years. I wanted something new, something that was my own. But… It’s hard to leave Texas, there’s just something about it.
David: Along those same lines, I’d always heard that Texas was the shit. I figured it was the place for me… and no one else would take me!
Q: Can you describe your average day as a student athlete?
Ricky: We start morning practice at 5:30 for an hour an a half. Go to class and are back in the pool from 2:00 to 5:00. Relax, eat dinner, and study.
Q: Do you ever feel that such a rigorous and structured routine has caused you to miss out on other aspects of college life?
Ricky: No, not really. It’s just a different lifestyle.
David: I mean, there’s always going to be beer, but we only have four years to be with a team and achieve something real.
Ricky: Instead of having a lot of drunken nights that we won’t remember, we get gold medals that we can never forget. It’s totally worth the sacrifice.
Scott: And it’s not like we never get to go out and fun. We can’t go out as much, but it makes the times we do all the better.
Q: So do you have time for girlfriends?
David: Well, I have a problem dating girls. I’ve gone through like five or six that only lasted about a week. Except this one A&M girl; she only lasted three days. I’m not a player, I just get bored fast. Scott on the other hand is still into high school girls!
Scott: I’m not even going to respond to that.
Ricky: Unlike my friends, I’m neither slutty nor creepy. I have a girlfriend, and she’s awesome. She swims for UT too, so we have similar schedules. It works really well.
Q: What went through your minds when you found out you would be representing the USA globally?
David: Oh shit! We made the Olympic team. It happened so fast I didn’t really have time to look back on the moment. I was just looking toward what I would have to do in Beijing.
Scott: I won the 200 breast stroke at the qualifying meet in Omaha, Nebraska. Once I hit the wall, I kind of blacked out. I had to see it on camera to believe it. It was unreal.
Q: So, are you and Michael Phelps pretty tight?
Ricky: Oh yea, we are basically best friends. So, apparently Phelps and any of his teammates get free Pizza Hut for a year. So, I call Pizza Hut and explain to them that I won gold with Phelps in the 800 free relay, and they totally didn’t buy it. It was so lame.
Scott: I play a lot of poker with him online. He’s upset with me because I screwed him over in our last poker tournament. That’s the last time we talked…
Q: Besides Phelps, who was the coolest person you each met?
Ricky: The NBA guys came to our session and sat with us.
Scott: Jason Kidd! He was so awesome. He offered me tickets to all of his games.
Ricky: No he didn’t. You were begging him for them.
David: Come on, yes he did; box seats and everything.
Ricky: I still talk to some of the gymnastic girls. They were pretty fun.
David: George Bush Sr. came to our reception. I’m pretty sure I smelled a few cocktails on his breath!
Scott: I met George W. Bush, and he was really nice to talk to in person.
David: You liked talking to his daughter! He and Laura Bush were those awkward people talking in the corner.
Q: Besides hitting on the president’s daughter, what was your favorite part about the whole experience?
Scott: Free McDonald's everyday.
Ricky: Fat ass!
David: For me it was the coming home that was really cool. There were a lot of posters of me in my neighborhood, and the deputy was waiting to greet me at my door.
Ricky: David got a whole day dedicated to him with a parade. It’s an official town holiday.
David: (Laughs) Yea, it’s kind of like Martin Luther King Day.
Ricky: As for my favorite part… I don’t know. The whole experience was just amazing.
Scott: Seriously, Ricky. Douche.
Ricky: Ok, ok. Opening ceremony maybe?
Scott: I think I liked seeing myself on the level of my idols. Signing autographs for little kids who look up to me was a really satisfying experience.
David: (cracks up laughing)
I've also added photos from the Study Breaks Flickr to the Gallery.
The lighter side of going for gold.
Ever wonder who you're sitting next to on the bus? Is that guy with the non symmetrical, multi-colored hair the next Rod Stewart, or is that quiet girl hiding behind an over-sized backpack and a genetics book going to win a Nobel prize? Would you guess that the normal, somewhat lanky-looking guy standing in front had an Olympic Gold medal in his bag? While the vast majority of 20-year-old college students are desperately trying to figure out “what they want to be when they grow up”, this guy answers, “I’m an Olympic swimmer.”
So, what's life like when you are actually living out your dreams, and not still working towards them? I sat down and talked with Ricky, Scott and David, three members of the UT swimming team that represented the United States globally at the 2008 Summer Olympics, about their experience in Beijing, and what it’s like being serious athletes and normal 20-year-old guys.
Q: How long have you boys been swimming?
Ricky: I started swimming when I was four; my mom was a swimming coach.
Scott: I think I was five. Well, except I almost drowned when I was six. I strapped myself into a boogie board, belly down, and I flipped over and couldn’t unstrap myself. My mom grabbed me just in time—I was turning blue!
David: I never almost drowned, but when I was eight I couldn’t surf the big waves, because I was a really poor swimmer. So I joined the summer league to learn.
Q: How did you end up here at Texas?
Ricky: Eddie Reese was a huge influence. He has coached here at Texas for 30 years, and has created an amazing swimming legend. I also really wanted to get away from North Carolina—there’s absolutely nothing there. Austin is a much better city; there is something different to do every single day.
Scott: I had grown up here in Austin, so in order to get away and have a new experience I went to Michigan for two years. I wanted something new, something that was my own. But… It’s hard to leave Texas, there’s just something about it.
David: Along those same lines, I’d always heard that Texas was the shit. I figured it was the place for me… and no one else would take me!
Q: Can you describe your average day as a student athlete?
Ricky: We start morning practice at 5:30 for an hour an a half. Go to class and are back in the pool from 2:00 to 5:00. Relax, eat dinner, and study.
Q: Do you ever feel that such a rigorous and structured routine has caused you to miss out on other aspects of college life?
Ricky: No, not really. It’s just a different lifestyle.
David: I mean, there’s always going to be beer, but we only have four years to be with a team and achieve something real.
Ricky: Instead of having a lot of drunken nights that we won’t remember, we get gold medals that we can never forget. It’s totally worth the sacrifice.
Scott: And it’s not like we never get to go out and fun. We can’t go out as much, but it makes the times we do all the better.
Q: So do you have time for girlfriends?
David: Well, I have a problem dating girls. I’ve gone through like five or six that only lasted about a week. Except this one A&M girl; she only lasted three days. I’m not a player, I just get bored fast. Scott on the other hand is still into high school girls!
Scott: I’m not even going to respond to that.
Ricky: Unlike my friends, I’m neither slutty nor creepy. I have a girlfriend, and she’s awesome. She swims for UT too, so we have similar schedules. It works really well.
Q: What went through your minds when you found out you would be representing the USA globally?
David: Oh shit! We made the Olympic team. It happened so fast I didn’t really have time to look back on the moment. I was just looking toward what I would have to do in Beijing.
Scott: I won the 200 breast stroke at the qualifying meet in Omaha, Nebraska. Once I hit the wall, I kind of blacked out. I had to see it on camera to believe it. It was unreal.
Q: So, are you and Michael Phelps pretty tight?
Ricky: Oh yea, we are basically best friends. So, apparently Phelps and any of his teammates get free Pizza Hut for a year. So, I call Pizza Hut and explain to them that I won gold with Phelps in the 800 free relay, and they totally didn’t buy it. It was so lame.
Scott: I play a lot of poker with him online. He’s upset with me because I screwed him over in our last poker tournament. That’s the last time we talked…
Q: Besides Phelps, who was the coolest person you each met?
Ricky: The NBA guys came to our session and sat with us.
Scott: Jason Kidd! He was so awesome. He offered me tickets to all of his games.
Ricky: No he didn’t. You were begging him for them.
David: Come on, yes he did; box seats and everything.
Ricky: I still talk to some of the gymnastic girls. They were pretty fun.
David: George Bush Sr. came to our reception. I’m pretty sure I smelled a few cocktails on his breath!
Scott: I met George W. Bush, and he was really nice to talk to in person.
David: You liked talking to his daughter! He and Laura Bush were those awkward people talking in the corner.
Q: Besides hitting on the president’s daughter, what was your favorite part about the whole experience?
Scott: Free McDonald's everyday.
Ricky: Fat ass!
David: For me it was the coming home that was really cool. There were a lot of posters of me in my neighborhood, and the deputy was waiting to greet me at my door.
Ricky: David got a whole day dedicated to him with a parade. It’s an official town holiday.
David: (Laughs) Yea, it’s kind of like Martin Luther King Day.
Ricky: As for my favorite part… I don’t know. The whole experience was just amazing.
Scott: Seriously, Ricky. Douche.
Ricky: Ok, ok. Opening ceremony maybe?
Scott: I think I liked seeing myself on the level of my idols. Signing autographs for little kids who look up to me was a really satisfying experience.
David: (cracks up laughing)
I've also added photos from the Study Breaks Flickr to the Gallery.
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