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Wilson senior Sammy Hamilton ended his high school career on a high note at the CIF State Swimming and Diving Championships held over the weekend at Clovis West High School.
Hamilton won the 500 freestyle with a time of 4:47.30 and finished eighth overall in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:50.61. The key to her success was a quick start, with Hamilton posting an impressive opening split of 25.54 in the 500m race. Her success has further increased her popularity throughout the United States.
Earlier this month, Hamilton won the CIF-SS Division 1 championship in the women's 500 freestyle with a time of 4:46.63. She won the event by over 6 seconds over the field and was less than 7 seconds off her Division 1 meet record.
“Everything went by so fast for me,” Hamitron said of his high school years. “I feel like I was at a completely different level just a few years ago when I started at Wilson as a freshman. I changed club teams, went through a lot of big changes, and worked a lot harder.”
At last month's Moore League finals, Hamilton achieved two league records and the national standard, repeating as the 200 and 500 freestyle champion in historic fashion. She also had big wins in the 200 free relay and 400 free relay, setting a league record in the latter.
“Before, I wanted to (make history and break records), but now I understand why it's actually happening,” Hamilton said. “I worked harder than a lot of other people. I made it happen. I put a lot of effort into becoming very good at what I do. .”
“It's really exciting to see it all come together,” said his mother, Elle Hamilton, after Sammy broke the record at the Klaus Barth Invitational.
Also at the CIF state meet, Long Beach Poly sophomore Lucas Zhu placed fifth in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:25.44.
The Long Beach Poly men's 200-meter medley relay placed 32nd in the qualifying round with a time of 1 minute 36.76 seconds. Poly senior Sophia Bliss scored 55.92 in the 1000 butterfly heats.
complete results
