Placentia’s Evans Doesn’t Make the Cut in the 400 IM

Summer Sanders took the top spot and runner-up Erika Hansen downed Placentia’s Janet Evans, the American record-holder and 1988 Olympic gold medalist, for the other berth in the 400 individual medley Sunday at the U.S Swim Trials at the Indiana University Natatorium.

Sanders, a Stanford sophomore, ran out of steam in the final leg, the freestyle, clocking a 1:08.7 for a cumulative time of 4:40.79.

Hansen, a Texas junior, closed fast with a 1:02.9 in the freestyle for a 4:41.06. Evans was next in 4:45.55.

“I was disappointed, but I’m looking forward to my freestyle,” said Evans, an overwhelming favorite in the 400 and 800 freestyle events Tuesday and Thursday.

Evans said she was proud of herself for not scratching. “I could have taken the easy way out, but I went out and tried,” she said. “Obviously, there were three people in the race. I wasn’t gonna give up a spot.”

Evans said it would be her last 400 individual medley even if she does not retire after this season.

“Sometimes in an event you have problems,” she said. “I think everyone was expecting me to swim it because I won the gold medal in it in 1988.”