An all-time classic Men's 100m Freestyle final brought the house down on a night at the British Swimming Championships that also saw both Daniel Jervis and Laura Stephens book their place on the plane to Fukuoka this summer.
After a couple of outstanding swims for Jervis and Stephens that saw them secure World Championship qualification times - of which more later - day three at Ponds Forge was rounded off by a stunning sprint finale, as Repton’s Lewis Burras got the touch in a hotly-contested Men’s 100m Freestyle final that ultimately finished with three athletes going under the Worlds consideration time.
The 23-year-old went out just under half-a-second quicker than his closest competitor, Matthew Richards, at the halfway stage. However, this gap visibly began to decrease as advances from the Millfield man and University of Stirling’s Duncan Scott - so strong down the back 50m - saw the race go right to the wire.
It was Burras who did enough to edge out his competitors though – his time of 47.99 a single one hundredth better than Scott’s 48.00 and three hundredths quicker than Richards’ 48.02 – as all of the medal-winning athletes went under the consideration time of 48.05.
The result is testament to the fast-moving evolution of the event in Britain, as preparations continue ahead of Worlds in July and the subsequent Olympic Games next summer.
Burras spoke fondly of all of his competitors in that final, and gave some inspirational words for the future.
“Going into this meet, we had five people who could get on that podium and win that event. In the callroom, everyone was really relaxed and looking forward to the moment. I managed to get on board with that, I said 'I'm nervous, this is going to hurt the last 20m, but I'm doing it with my peers, my competitors', and what a lucky position I'm in to have raced in the fastest ever British 100m Freestyle final. This relay is really exciting now," he said.
“There's no ceiling for us, and why put a ceiling on it? We know what the ultimate glory is in our sport, and why can't we dare to go for it, why can't we dare to dream?”
Earlier in the night, Swim Wales High Performance Centre man Jervis secured a Worlds qualifying spot in the Men’s 1500m Freestyle, as the 26-year-old led from the front in a dominating swim to open the third finals session at Ponds Forge.
It was close to a personal best swim for the Welshman – a tight battle with Loughborough University’s Toby Robinson down the first 400m moving into Dan shaking off the pressure to settle into a solid rhythm as he pushed for a place on the team in Fukuoka.
Consistently repping under 60 seconds per 100 metres, Jervis always looked in control of the race, and the attention turned from the consideration time to the qualification time as he got closer to the finish.
The crowd roared him home as the bell rang for the final two lengths, and he responded by putting in a swift finish to give him a time of 14:46.95, which is exactly a second off the British record held by fellow Welshman David Davies and took him inside that crucial Worlds qualification mark.
Robinson did enough to take a clear silver medal, and Swansea University’s Nathan Hughes was the best of the rest as he took the bronze.
After his 2022 season was ended prematurely following illness before the Commonwealth Games, the British title and Worlds qualification meant even more to Dan.
“It's great. I'm really relieved, I'm really happy. I've put my heart and soul into this year, as everyone does, as I do every year - but this year it meant so much more, because I felt like I was at rock bottom, it was horrible but I knew I had people there for me and I am so grateful," said the Olympic finalist.
“That's why I've mentioned my mum and dad, that's why I got emotional because it means a lot. It was very hard for the opportunity to be taken away from me [at the Commonwealth Games in 2022]. I feel as if this was a bounceback, that was only my third 1500m of the year, so I'm really happy with that!”
Laura Stephens, meanwhile, continued her impressive season as she defended the British title and went under the qualification time in the Women’s 200m Butterfly.
The Loughborough Performance Centre athlete put in a textbook performance to take the victory and clock a new PB – fending off a challenge from Millfield's Emily Large, who stayed on her feet throughout the race, to book her place in Japan this summer.
Despite not having the best of starts, the 23-year-old got to the first turn in front of the chasing pack, before her and Large both broke away as the race developed.
Stephens did enough to keep Large at bay as the race drew to a close, but the latter athlete finished well herself, as her time of 2:07.33 put her inside the consideration mark. Keanna MacInnes claimed bronze.
Stephens went all the way though, and touched in a time of 2:06.62 to round off the women’s action for the day. She spoke about her feelings on the race and how this impacts her moving forward.
“I was very surprised with the swim this morning, to look up and see a 2:07, I've never done that in a morning swim. That was a big confidence boost that I took into the final tonight, I knew I could just enjoy it and hopefully move it on, and I did that, so I can't complain!" she said.
“This gives me loads of confidence. I feel like I'm in such a different place than I was last season or any of the seasons before that. I'm so happy, I'm enjoying training, I'm enjoying racing again, I feel like I've got my motivation back and I'm just looking to keep that going all season and through into next year as well.”
Anna Hopkin was another athlete who put herself in contention for her third successive World Championships appearance, as a near all-time best performance gave her the British title and a consideration time in the Women’s 50m Freestyle.
The Loughborough Performance Centre athlete had the best start of the field to take half-a-body length out of her competitors at the halfway stage, before her strong windmill stroke helped her to a clear victory.
Bristol Henleaze’s Rebecca Guy got to the wall for silver in a time that was just under a tenth of a second ahead of Sevenoaks’ Eva Okaro, with the European Junior medallist settling for the bronze.
Speaking after the race, Hopkin was happy with her performance, and she gave some insight into how her training will develop as she moves towards the international calendar this summer.
“I was really happy with that. The qualifying time was a tough one, but getting under that consideration time, it puts me in the mix, and that's by far the fastest I've been at this point of the season, so that gives me a lot of confidence moving forward," said Anna.
“With the 50m, it often builds through the season just because you start doing a lot more power-based stuff towards the end of the year. I'm hoping the 100m will be in a good place after that, and hopefully both will keep getting quicker throughout the season.”
Charlie Hutchison took his first ever British title as he got the edge of City of Cardiff’s William Ryley and Carnegie’s Mark Szaranek in the final of the Men’s 400m Individual Medley.
Szaranek took a slender lead after the butterfly leg – his superior start and turn making the difference down the first 100m.
Hutchison then made a move of his own on the backstroke leg to put himself a couple of body lengths ahead of the competition. Despite pressure from the chasing athletes either side, the 2002-born athlete held his own to maintain a similar lead with 100m to go.
Late charges from Szaranek and Ryley on the freestyle leg provided a tense finish, but Hutchison did enough to hold on for the gold – finishing with a season’s best time.
Acknowledging what was clearly a front-ended tactical swim, the gold medallist gave his thoughts on the race and where he goes from here.
“I wanted to go faster, I wanted that PB but that’s the fastest I’ve been in 4 years. I’ve been grafting away and I’m now back to where I was. I believe I’m faster than I was tonight, maybe next time my body will know what to do," he said.
For the full results, as well as information about the coming days, check out our “What’s On?” page.