George Washington University Athletics
Hokfelt Qualifies for European Swimming Championships
4/9/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming and Diving
STOCKHOLM, Sweden - Fresh off his NCAA Championships appearance, George Washington senior Gustav Hokfelt turned in a terrific performance over the weekend at the Stockholm Open to qualify for this summer's European Championships.
"As Gustav puts the finishing touches to his time here at GW, we are proud to see him finish off his senior year with a bang," GW head coach James Winchester said. "Coming from NCAAs and re-acclimatizing to long course is no small feat, and the work Gustav has put in with assistant coach Birkir Jonsson over the last couple of weeks has been impressive."Hokfelt set a Swedish national record in the 100-meter backstroke on Saturday when he won his preliminary heat in 54.76 seconds. The Stockholm native earned a silver medal in the event, finishing second in the final in 54.83 seconds just behind Russia's Grigory Tarasevich. It was the No. 21 time in the world so far this year.
Hokfelt also took second in Friday's 50-meter backstroke, again coming in behind Tarasevich in 25.49 seconds. The GW captain's time in the event ranks among the top 25 in the world this year, as well. He already held the Swedish record in that one after recording a career-best time of 25.34 seconds at the 2017 Stockholm Open.
On Thursday, Hokfelt started his stay at the Stockholm Open by placing fourth in the 200-meter backstroke. He touched in 2:01.23 seconds.
Those swims continued a strong run for Hokfelt, who qualified for his first NCAA Championships with an impressive showing at the A-10 Championships in February when he won seven gold medals to help the Colonials win a repeat conference title. He swam three events at the national meet last month, highlighted by an 18th-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke in A-10 and program record time.
Hokfelt's latest reward for his continued progress is his first appearance at the European Championships, which will be held in Scotland from Aug. 3-12.
"To set a national record and qualify for European Championships is really the icing on the cake on a fantastic senior year," Winchester said. "One of our goals here at GW is to provide opportunities for success at the NCAA and international level, and Gustav has shown that can be achieved here."
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