By James Sutherland on SwimSwam
Swim of the Week is brought to you by arena, a SwimSwam partner.
Disclaimer: Swim of the Week is not meant to be a conclusive selection of the best overall swim of the week, but rather one Featured Swim to be explored in deeper detail. The Swim of the Week is an opportunity to take a closer look at the context of one of the many fast swims this week, perhaps a swim that slipped through the cracks as others grabbed the headlines, or a race we didn’t get to examine as closely in the flood of weekly meets.
Juan Vallmitjana, a Spanish native who competes for the South Florida Aquatic Club, was on fire at last week’s Fort Lauderdale Open, setting four best times and earning a pair of podium finishes in the distance freestyle events.
The headlining performance for the Virginia commit was the 800 free, where he knocked nearly two seconds off his personal best time in 7:57.70, placing 3rd behind Bobby Finke and William Mulgrew and climbing the all-time rankings in the boys’ 17-18 age group.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by South Florida Aquatic Club (@swim4soflo)
Still just 17, Vallmitjana now ranks 25th all-time among 17-18 boys in the U.S. club system. His previous best time stood at 7:59.66, set at last summer’s U.S. Pro Championships, which ranks him 7th all-time in the boys’ 15-16 age group.
Split Comparison
2025 U.S. Pro Champs 2026 Fort Lauderdale Open 26.70 27.89 57.70 (31.00) 57.23 (29.34) 1:28.10 (30.40) 1:27.03 (29.80) 1:58.40 (30.30) 1:56.97 (29.94) 2:28.71 (30.31) 2:27.11 (30.14) 2:59.13 (30.42) 2:57.22 (30.11) 3:29.86 (30.73) 3:27.68 (30.46) 4:00.38 (30.52) 3:58.02 (30.34) 4:30.86 (30.48) 4:28.70 (30.68) 5:01.46 (30.60) 4:59.23 (30.53) 5:31.78 (30.32) 5:29.76 (30.53) 6:02.35 (30.57) 6:00.28 (30.52) 6:32.34 (29.99) 6:30.61 (30.33) 7:02.13 (29.79) 7:00.53 (29.92) 7:31.15 (29.02) 7:29.60 (29.07) 7:59.66 (28.51) 7:57.70 (28.10)Additionally, his swim last week is the 10th-fastest we’ve seen from a 17-year-old in the U.S. over the past decade, dating back to the 2015-16 season. It also ranks him seventh all-time among Spaniards, with the national record standing at 7:49.09 from Marcos Rivera in 2009.
Top 17-Year-Old Boys 800 Freestyle (LCM) Performers Since 2015-16 (U.S. Club System)
Aiden Hammer, 7:51.68 – 2025 Luke Ellis, 7:52.40 – 2024 Andrew Abruzzo, 7:54.58 – 2017 Jake Mithcell, 7:54.70 – 2019 Gabriel Manteufel, 7:54.71 – 202 Luke Whitlock, 7:55.00 – 2023 Sean Green, 7:56.47 – 2024 Michael Brinegar, 7:57.22 – 2017 Arik Katz, 7:57.23 – 2019 Juan Vallmitjana, 7:57.70 – 2026Vallmitajana also placed 3rd behind Mulgrew and Finke in the 1500 free, clocking 15:22.96, just over six seconds shy of the personal best of 15:16.61 he set in March at the Spanish Spring Championships. That swim ranks him 39th all-time in the 17-18 age group.
In Fort Lauderdale, Vallmitjana also set best times in the 50 free (25.07), 100 free (52.98) and 400 free (3:53.80), and added season-bests in the 200 free (1:51.66) and 200 back (2:11.44).
Last July, Vallmitjana represented Spain at the European Junior Championships in Samorin, Slovakia, where he made the final of the boys’ 1500 free and placed 8th.
He will join the University of Virginia in the fall of 2027.
See arena North America here.
Follow arena USA on Instagram here.
About arena
arena has revolutionized the world of aquatic sport through insightful collaboration with world class athletes and the development of cutting edge competitive swimwear since 1973. Today, this spirit of collaboration and innovation lives on through a continuous evolution of advanced materials and Italian design that improves the performance, style and expression of all those who chose arena. From leading the lanes to living in style, arena is dedicated to providing all swimmers with the tools they need to express themselves, feel confident, win and achieve more. Because in arena, you can.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: arena Swim of the Week: UVA Commit Juan Vallmitjana Fires Off 7:57 800 Free In Fort Lauderdale
Hence then, the article about arena swim of the week uva commit juan vallmitjana fires off 7 57 800 free in fort lauderdale was published today ( ) and is available on swimswam ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( arena Swim of the Week: UVA Commit Juan Vallmitjana Fires Off 7:57 800 Free In Fort Lauderdale )
Also on site :