One swimsuit was good enough for Colorado State freshman Breann Fuller to post the 21st-best time nationally in the 100-yard backstroke. This weekend she has a chance to move past all the swimmers who compressed and contorted into two suits early in the season for faster results.
In a move that can be compared to moving the 3-point arc in the middle of basketball season, the swim overseers ruled in December that only one suit can be worn in any race.
“Some of those ahead of Breann made their times before the suit rule,” CSU coach John Mattos said. He said some swimmers layered suits from different manufacturers to maximize water buoyancy and streamline compression.
Fuller, who set the Mountain West backstroke record of 52.95 seconds, will have a brand-new LZR Racer for the NCAA swimming and diving championships in College Station, Texas.
The suit, which looks more like a surfing wet suit than anything in the local rec center pool, was all the rage with record breakers in Beijing last August.
“She could swim as fast without (the LZR),” Mattos said. “That’s what I love about Breann. She’s got this ‘I can do this’ attitude.’ ”
Fuller, a two-time state backstroke champion at Brighton High School, competes today in the 100-yard race and Saturday at 200 yards. She is CSU’s first NCAA swim qualifier since 2004.
Mattos and Fuller didn’t dare announce NCAA expectations going into her freshman year.
“She’s ahead of where I thought she’d be,” Mattos said. “She’s a seasoned veteran without the seasoning.”
The goal this weekend, he said, is achieving All-America status, which is awarded to the top 12 American finishers.
Regardless of any hardware, Fuller at least gets a new LZR Racer for the national meet. Speedo’s website lists the suit at $550, but the school gets a steep discount with Mattos’ long-standing ties to the sponsor.
“Speedo can’t give them away because so much research and development goes into them,” Mattos said. “When you’re on the blocks and everyone is in high tech and you’re not, it’s not the same playing field.”
Natalie Meisler: 303-954-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com
NCAA championships
WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
Through Saturday at College Station, Texas
Who to watch:
• Breann Fuller, Colorado State, fr., 100-yard backstroke
• Michele Lowry, DU, sr., 400 ind. medley, 1,650 freestyle
FENCING
Through Sunday at University Park, Pa.
Who to watch:
• Simone Barrette, Air Force, fr., women’s epee
• Peter French, Air Force, jr., men’s epee
• Andras Horanyi, Ohio State, sr., men’s foil (Boulder H.S.)
• Daniel Trapani, Air Force, jr., men’s epee
WRESTLING
Through Saturday at St. Louis
Who to watch:
125 — Tony Mustari, Northern Colorado, jr. (three-time prep champion from Greeley Central H.S.)
125 — Michael Martinez, Wyoming, fr. (Pagosa Springs H.S.)
133 — Cory VomBaur, Wyoming, jr.,
149 — Mitchell Polkowske, Northern Colorado, fr. (two-time champion at Centauri H.S.)
149 — Kevin LeValley, Bucknell, so. (four-time champion at Limon H.S.)
157 — Justin Gaethje, Northern Colorado, so.
174 — Shane Onufer, Wyoming, fr.
184 — Joe LeBlanc, Wyoming, fr. (three-time champion at Meeker H.S.)
285 — David Marone, Virginia Tech, so. (two-time champion at Broomfield H.S.)
285 — Tucker Lane, Nebraska, fr. (three-time champ at Nucla H.S.)
STAY ON THE COUCH
Rapids hit the road.
Season openers haven’t been kind to the Rapids. Now in their 14th MLS season, the Rapids will play on the road in an opener for the 11th time. Does someone at the league office hate the Colorado 11?
With all those opening road games, the Rapids have started a season in the win column just twice — they are 2-9-2 all time in openers. The good news: The victories have come the past two seasons.
So hopes are high when the Rapids travel to Southern California to take on Chivas USA on Saturday. The game, kicking off at 8:30 p.m. MDT, airs on the Fox Soccer Channel.
And even though the game is three states away, Rapids fans won’t be lacking in party atmosphere. Sobo 151 (at 151 South Broadway) will host the official viewing party Saturday. The folks at Sobo are legit soccer fans. Be prepared.
GET OFF THE COUCH
Bikers unite!
Saturday will kick off a summer-long monthly gathering of boozing bikers (as in cyclists) when the Fort Collins Brewery Tours on Bikes meets for the first time.
The tour, which starts at Full Cycle Bikes in Fort Collins and visits some of the top-notch microbreweries in town, is open to just 15 people. And they’ll meet again every third Saturday of the month. Check for information.
But why not start your own tour? Maybe a Denver Vinyl Cyclists tour of record stores past Wax Trax, Twist and Shout and Jerry’s. Or a Boulder Bikers and Buns tour of sandwich shops between Salvaggio’s and Jimmy & Drew’s. Or a Highlands Ranch Readers tour connecting Tattered Cover and Highlands Ranch Library (it’s a short tour, you could do laps). The ideas are endless.
WHAT WE’D LIKE TO SEE
Nelson honored.
The legends will be out in force for the American Ski Classic in Vail, a pro-am alpine racing event running through Saturday at Golden Peak. Among them, Billy Kidd, Franz Klammer, Stein Halsnes and Daron Rahlves will return to the competitive slopes.
The Classic will boldface one name in particular. Longtime Vail resident Cindy Nelson — tabbed by some the “grand dame of American women’s ski racing” — will be inducted into the Classic’s International Ski Racing Hall of Fame as a legend of honor.
Nelson earned seven World Cup victories and seven U.S. national championships in her career and was a four-time member of the U.S. Olympic and World Championship teams.
Check for more info.
Nick Groke, The Denver Post
