Virginia's Raab Finishes 17th In World Championships

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July 26, 2005

MONTREAL – University of Virginia swimmer Michael Raab (Rockville, Md./Walter Johnson) placed 17th in the preliminaries of the 200-meter butterfly on Tuesday (July 26) at the 2005 FINA World Swimming Championships at Jean-Drapeau Park. Raab clocked a time of 1:59.38 to finish 17th.

Raab, who completed his collegiate eligibility in 2004-05, was just 18 hundredths of a second shy of 16th place and is the first alternate for tonight’s semifinals.

Raab earned a spot on the USA World Championship Team in the 200-meter butterfly by finishing second in the event at the World Championship Trials on April 2. Raab clocked a time of 1:58.79 to place second, just eight hundredths of a second behind Davis Tarwater. Raab was also second in the preliminaries of the 200 fly with a time of 2:01.15.

A three-time first-team All-American and four-time ACC champion in the 200 butterfly, Raab set the Pan American Games record in winning the gold medal in the 200-meter butterfly in August of 2003. He clocked a time of 1:57.33 in setting the record. In October of 2004, Raab competed in the FINA World Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., and turned in a sixth-place performance and bettered the NCAA short course meters record with his prelims performance of 1:54.95.

Raab will also compete for Team USA in the Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool vs. Australia on August 2 at the Woollett Aquatic Center in Irvine, Calif.

Raab competed in the 2003 Duel in the Pool vs. Australia and helped the USA sweep to top three places in the 200 fly with his third-place time of 1:58.29.