July 5, 2008
OMAHA, Neb. - Alex Righi's hopes for the 2008 Olympics ended Friday after he came up short in his attempt to advance to the finals in the 50-meter freestyle at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Omaha, Neb. Righi managed to make the semi-finals before a 10th place finish ended his Beijing hopes.
In his third and final event of the Olympic Trials, Righi placed 12th in the morning session with a time of 22.45 seconds to advance to the evening session semi-finals for the race. Needing a top eight finish in the evening, Righi finished tied for 10th with a time of 22.41 seconds. Righi was nine hundredths of a second short of placing in the top eight.
Also competing Friday, rising senior Chris Pool placed 43rd in the 200-meter butterfly with a time of 55.45. With the 43rd place finish in his second and final event of the Olympic Trials, Pool's attempt to earn a trip to Beijing ended.
Righi also raced in the 100-meter backstroke and the 100-meter freestyle. While Righi also advanced to the semi-finals of the 100-meter freestyle, his ninth place finish in the event left him on the outside looking in.
Report Filed by Steven Horn '10, Yale Sports Publicity
