Virginia Graduate Shamek Pietucha Qualifies For Olympics

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June 1, 2000

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Shamek Pietucha (Edmonton, Alberta/Louis St. Laurent), a 1999 graduate of the University of Virginia, qualified for the 2000 Sydney Olympics by winning the 200-meter butterfly at the 2000 Maritime Life Olympic Swimming Trials in Montreal on Wednesday, May 31. Pietucha won the 200 fly with a time of 1:59.79 after setting a new Canadian national record in the semifinals the previous day.

Pietucha broke Tom Ponting’s 12-year old Canadian record with a time of 1:58.08 in winning the semifinals on May 30, before taking the title with a time of 1:59.79 in the final. Ponting’s former record of 1:58.14 was set in 1998. Pietucha’s winning time was more than two seconds ahead of the field. Later this week, Pietucha will attempt to qualify for the Olympics in the 100-meter butterfly.

In 1999, Pietucha became UVa’s first NCAA swimming champion when he won the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:43.50. His time set both Virginia and Atlantic Coast Conference records. During his stellar collegiate career, Pietucha earned All-America honors nine times. In the summer of 1999, Pietucha captured a gold medal in the 200-meter butterfly at the Pan Am Games in Winnipeg, Canada, and earned a silver medal in the 100-meter butterfly.

Pietucha is the second swimmer with a Virginia affiliation to earn an Olympic berth. Rising Cavalier second-year Mirjana Bosevska (Skopje, Macedonia/Trinity Prep) has qualified to represent Macedonia at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Bosevska, the 2000 ACC Women’s Rookie of the Year, also represented her native Macedonia in the 1996 Olympics. In the 2000 NCAA Women’s Swimming Championships, Bosevska garnered first-team All-America accolades in the 400-meter individual medley, the 1500-meter freestyle and the 800-meter freestyle relay, and was an honorable mention All-American in the 400-meter freestyle.