At SEC Champs, LSU Sprinter Jere Hribar Continued to Elevate Status
Late last year, Jere Hribar temporarily departed his Baton Rouge training base and ventured to Poland for a business trip. The Louisiana State University standout saw an opportunity to excel in the sprint-freestyle events at the European Short Course Championships, and his aspirations were fulfilled when he walked away with medals of each color.
A towering figure at 6-8, Hribar is a burgeoning star on the sprint scene, and his efforts at the Euro Short Course Champs serve as proof. In addition to capturing the gold medal in the 50-meter freestyle (20.70), he added a silver medal in the 100 freestyle (45.64) and helped Croatia secure a bronze medal in the 400 freestyle relay. Those efforts followed ninth and 17th-place finishes at the World Championships in Singapore last summer.
Hribar is expected to contend for the podium this summer at the long-course edition of the European Championships in both sprint freestyles. He’s moving toward that competition in Paris with a best time of 21.79 in the 50 freestyle and a top performance of 47.93 in the 100 freestyle. Last week, Hribar shined at the Southeastern Conference Championships, and while that meet was held in the short-course format, the 22-year-old is clearly on a sharp improvement arc.
At the SEC Champs, Hribar claimed victory in the 100 freestyle, as his mark of 40.42 fended off the 40.45 outing by Tennessee’s Gui Caribe and the 40.94 of Florida’s Josh Liendo. He also notched a third-place finish in the 50 freestyle, as his mark of 18.57 trailed only the 18.42 of Liendo and the 18.46 of Caribe. Enhancing his week was the fact that he delivered a 17.59 split on the end of the 200 medley relay, was 40.15 while anchoring the 400 medley relay and split 39.84 on the 400 freestyle relay.
When the NCAA Championships are held next month in Atlanta, look for Hribar to maintain his momentum from SECs. He has firmly etched himself as one of college swimming’s elite performers, and his success on that stage could carry Hribar to another level in the Olympic-sized pool. The talent is certainly there.
