Germany’s Lukas Maertens Blasts 1:44.14 200 Free, #7 Performer All-Time (Video)

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

2024 GERMAN SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS (OLYMPIC TRIALS)

• Thursday, April 25th – Sunday, April 28th
• Berlin, Germany
• LCM (50m)
• German Olympic Selection Policy
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After his monstrous time of 1:44.89 in the heat of the men’s 200m freestyle at these 2024 German Championships, all eyes were on 22-year-old Lukas Maertens to see what he would produce in tonight’s final.

The 2024 World Championships finalist did not disappoint, blasting a big lifetime best of 1:44.14 en route to claiming the gold.

As he did in the morning, Maertens put an insurmountable distance between himself and the field, with the next-closest finisher represented by Danny Schmidt who touched over 4 seconds later in 1:48.61. Rounding out the podium was Philipp Peschke who bagged bronze in 1:49.00.

In tonight’s stellar outing, Maertens opened in a blistering 50.71 and brought it home in 53.43 to put up the fastest time of his career.

German Olympic Trials
男子200Fr
ルーカス・マルテンス 1:44.14

Lukas Märtensが0.65秒PB更新して、今季世界ランキング1位の素晴らしい記録！
世界水泳福岡＆ドーハで相当の傑出したタイムで世界歴代7位！
現役でこの記録を上回るのは1:42.97を持つDavid Popoviciのみ https://t.co/jTAdjHS2pJ pic.twitter.com/ToRIjN6unr

— 競泳NEWS (@swimcoverage) April 27, 2024

Entering these championships his lifetime best rested at the 1:44.79, a time registered as lead-off on the German men’s 4x200m free which placed 7th at the 2023 World Championships.

Prior to tonight’s swim, Maertens had already sealed his spot on the German Olympic roster in this 200m free event, courtesy of the 1:45.33 he produced for 4th place at this year’s World Championships in Doha.

Maertens’ effort checks the German in as the 7th-quickest men’s 200m free performer in history and ranks him #1 in the world this season, bumping 20-year-old South Korean World Championships gold medalist Hwang Sunwoo.

Top 10 Men’s LCM 200 Freestyle Performers All-Time

1. Paul Biedermann (GER) – 1:42.00, 2009
2. Michael Phelps (USA) – 1:42.96, 2008
3. David Popovici (ROU) – 1:42.97, 2022
4. Yannick Agnel (FRA) – 1:43.14, 2012
5. Danila Izotov (RUS) – 1:43.90, 2009
6. Ian Thorpe (AUS) – 1:44.06, 2001
7. Lukas Maertens (GER) – 1:44.14, 2024
8. Tom Dean (GBR) – 1:44.22, 2021
9. Duncan Scott (GBR) – 1:44.26, 2021
10. Matt Richards (GBR) – 1:44.30, 2023

This is the 2nd head-turning performance Maertens has turned in at these championships. He posted a time of 3:40.33 400m free on night one. That performance rendered Maertens the 4th-best performer in history, sitting just .26 away from retired Paul Bidermann‘s seemingly untouchable world record of 3:40.07 that’s been on the books since 2009.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Germany’s Lukas Maertens Blasts 1:44.14 200 Free, #7 Performer All-Time (Video)