When Auburn’s Fred Bousquet Took the 50-Yard Freestyle to Uncharted Territory
For years, the sport waited. Through multiple challenges, the 19-second barrier in the 50-yard freestyle featured an impenetrable force field. Multiple sprint legends made a run at an 18-point performance during their collegiate careers, with Tom Jager and Matt Biondi first targeting the threshold in the 1980s.
There were sniffs from North Carolina State’s David Fox and Auburn’s Brett Hawke in the 1990s, and South African star Roland Schoeman tested the barrier with several sub-19.10 markers for the University of Arizona between 2000-2002. There was also a 19.05 effort from Cal’s Anthony Ervin. Yet, a visit to the 18-second realm remained out of reach.
Until Fred Bousquet came along.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Bousquet crashing through the 19-second barrier, a feat he accomplished twice at the 2005 NCAA Championships. As Auburn captured the third of five consecutive team titles under the watch of coach David Marsh, Bousquet headlined a spectacular sprint group, one that also included George Bovell, Ryan Wochomurka and Bryan Lundquist. One of the guys mentoring that sprint contingent was Dave Durden, then an assistant at Auburn and the longtime head man at Cal.
A month ahead of the NCAA Champs, Bousquet claimed victory in the 50 freestyle at the SEC Championships. With a clocking of 19.57, much work remained to take the sprint discipline into new territory. Then again, Auburn had built a reputation for excelling when it mattered most, so a big drop was almost expected when the Tigers arrived in Minneapolis for the NCAA Champs.
As Bousquet climbed the blocks for the prelims of the 50 freestyle, there was hope an 18-something time would flash on the scoreboard. But when 18.74 was digitized, jaws dropped. Following years of misses, Bousquet changed the event by going a quarter-second under the long-chased barrier.
Bousquet continued to dance with history during the evening session. Emerging victorious in the 50 freestyle for the third straight year, Bousquet again dipped under the 19-second mark, going 18.90. Not only did Bousquet back up his showstopper from the morning, he needed the effort as Cal’s Duje Draganja went 19.01 for second place.
The truth is, Bousquet might have cracked the 19-second barrier a year earlier, if not for the format utilized at the 2004 NCAA Championships. In 2000 and 2004, the NCAA Champs were held in short-course meters instead of short-course yards. While Bousquet set a world record en route to the 2004 crown in the 50 free, the decision to go metric forced a yearlong wait to chase an 18-point swim.
This year’s NCAA Men’s Championships will begin on Wednesday, with the 50 freestyle scheduled to be held on Thursday. Since Bousquet’s barrier-breaking performance, two men (Caeleb Dressel and Jordan Crooks) have gone sub-18. More, this year’s psych sheet boasts 27 entries with a sub-19 clocking.
Two decades ago, Bousquet opened the door – twice.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about it,” Bousquet said of his historical moment. “When I went back to the hotel, I wasn’t able to take a nap. As soon as I would close my eyes, I would start thinking about it and just visualize the race again and again. When I came back (to the pool) this afternoon, I decided to just relax and take it like a man and decide to be a champion. That was the main goal – just to win the race.”
