Miguel NascimentoSpeed was essential for Miguel Nascimento at this stage of the season. After winning the 50 freestyle title on the first day of the Portugal Open, he shared his thoughts. “The competition had its ups and downs,” he said, with a time of 22.61 seconds.
This time was off his personal best of 21.90 seconds, set in 2022. It also fell short of the 22.05 seconds required to qualify for the World Championships in Singapore. Despite this, Nascimento beat his main rivals, Miguel Marques (23.03 seconds) and João Padrela (23.19 seconds).
Portugal’s record holder, Diogo Ribeiro, did not participate. He already had a qualifying time for the World Championships and focused on achieving the minimum times for the 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly events in Singapore.
Nascimento reflected on the final, “There were some positive aspects I hadn’t done in a while.” However, he acknowledged the need for a competitive edge to reach his best time. “I have a competition in Ireland next week, so I’ll adjust and fine-tune my performance,” he added.
Nascimento plans to swim the 50 butterfly and 100 freestyle events to make the most of his current form. “I want to compete and minimize errors before the Ireland event,” he explained. With a long championship ahead, Nascimento hopes everything goes well for those seeking qualification times. He wants Portuguese swimming to continue evolving and competing better internationally. In the eliminatories, Nascimento was the fastest (22.57 seconds) among 87 participants in the shortest event.