L.A. Invitation Swim Meet : Mirror, Mirror on the Wall--Lightfoot Reaches Goal

Swimming Coach Don Wagner insists that his pupils write down their goals and paste them on their refrigerator doors, giving them food for thought several times a day.

But Joyce Lightfoot, 17, went a step further--she put hers on her bathroom mirror. It said simply “8:53.84,” Lightfoot’s best time ever in the 800-meter freestyle.

Until Thursday, that is.

With Wagner running alongside the pool hollering encouragement and teammate Janet Evans cheering by his side, Lightfoot won the 800-meter heat in the Los Angeles Invitation Swim Meet in 8:53.07. She shaved nearly a full second off her goal and qualified for the U.S. nationals on her final attempt.

Others weren’t quite so lucky at USC’s Olympic Swim Stadium. Lightfoot was among only five of 74 swimmers to qualify for the nationals.

“I’m so excited,” said Lightfoot, who will attend Ohio State this fall. “I put my goal up three weeks ago and have remembered it every day. This was very important to me.”

The L.A. Invitational is the final tuneup before the nationals, which will be held July 31-Aug. 4, also at USC. On Thursday, only the 800-meters for both sexes were contested. The rest of the events will be held today through Sunday with preliminary heats beginning at 9 a.m. and finals beginning at 5 p.m.

Among the top swimmers are Sylvia Pohl, who at the Seoul Olympics became the first medalist for Costa Rica, and Evans, a three-time gold medalist at Seoul who did not compete Thursday because she has qualified for nationals.

Evans will, however, compete in several other events this weekend as a member of the Fullerton Aquatic Sports Team.

Shauna MacEwen, a member of the Daland United Swim Team from Thousand Oaks, and Sheri Smith of the Industry Hills Team also qualified for the nationals Thursday.

In the men’s 800-meter event, Lars Jorgensen, 18, not only defeated older brother and fellow Olympian Daniel, 21, but also broke Daniel’s meet record of 8:13.47 with a time of 8:09.46. Daniel put on a late charge but finished in 8:16.82, well behind Lars but well ahead of the rest of the field.

“Once I looked at the program, I knew it was me against him, head to head,” said Lars, a sophomore at USC.

Unlike your typical younger brother, however, Lars refused to needle his brother.

“Nah, I won’t rag on him,” Lars said. “I’ll pick on him after I win at basketball and stuff, but not really in swimming, maybe because it’s so competitive, so serious.”

“He never beats me in basketball,” said Daniel, a senior at USC. “I usually give him a few points, but I’ve got to respect his time today. He was great, but it will be a different ballgame when the nationals come around.”