U.S. OLYMPIC FESTIVAL LOS ANGELES 1991 : ROUNDUP : Stelle Earns Two Medals in Swim Competition

Jason Stelle of Westlake Village won a silver medal in the 200-meter backstroke and a gold medal as a member of the North 400 medley relay team Saturday on the first day of the U. S. Olympic Festival swimming competition at USC.

Stelle, 18, was in fifth place at the halfway mark of the backstroke, but his strong kick over the last 60 meters enabled him to catch every swimmer except Michael Andrews of the West, who finished in 2 minutes 4.61 seconds.

The USC-bound Stelle was timed in 2:05.81.

“I was pretty lucky to come in second because I saw a bunch of guys ahead of me,” Stelle said.

Stelle clocked the fastest 100 backstroke split of the evening, a blistering 58.55, in leading off the winning relay.

Stelle’s Calabasas-based CLASS Aquatics teammate, Chris Baskett, earned a silver medal in the 400 freestyle with a 3:57.83, behind Brian Barnes of the South who touched in 3:56.68. Valencia’s Lindsay Gassner placed 13th in the 100 butterfly with a 1:10.14 clocking. Gassner, 14, swam for the West.