Hayley Peirsol takes the fifth

Steve Virgen

Over the final 100 meters of the ever-challenging 800-meter

freestyle, Hayley Peirsol felt pain from her shoulders to her toes.

She was in fourth and still seemed to be waiting for an extra

kick. But it never came and she finished fifth in the 800 free finals

in 8 minutes, 31.29 seconds in front 7,765 at the U.S. Olympic swim

trials at the Charter All-Digital Aquatic Centre in Long Beach

Tuesday.

“I felt pain,” Peirsol said of her final 100. “I could see them up

there and they were doing well. I was trying do everything in my

power to catch up, but it wasn’t there.”

Peirsol was attempting to finish in the top two spots to join her

older brother, Aaron, in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece next

month.

Instead, Diana Munz won the race in 8:26.06, edging second-place

Kalyn Keller, who finished in 8:26.33 and joined her brother, Klete,

in making the U.S. Olympic team in more than one event.

The Kellers are the first brother-sister tandem to make Team USA

since 1972.

When Peirsol conducted her interview with the media, about 15 feet

to her left stood Kayln and Klete Keller with their parents speaking

to TV reporters.

The scene didn’t seem to bother Peirsol, who was comforted by her

older brother after her race.

“Aaron just came and said, ‘It’s OK,’ ” Peirsol said. “He knows

I’m not upset. You can’t do anything about it. I’m fine with it. I

would have liked to have done better, but it’s OK. It’s done.”

Brent Lorenzen, a UC Irvine swim assistant who also coaches

Peirsol, said the 18-year-old swimmer was solid throughout the first

200 meters. A strong distance freestyler, Peirsol was expected to

improve over the final 200, but she could not make her move, Lorenzen

said.

Munz and Kayln Keller were ahead of the pack during the final 200

meters, battling for first place.

“Those two got locked in a good race and they’re both great

competitors and love to race,” Lorenzen said. “Hayley didn’t just

have the capacity to be at that level for whatever reason.”

Overall, Peirsol said she enjoyed her experience in the U.S.

Olympic trials. She also competed in the 400 free and finished 13th

in 4:14.04 Thursday.

“It was a great experience,” said Peirsol, who will be a sophomore

at Auburn University in the fall. “I didn’t go four years ago. This

is my first one. It’s a lot of fun. I’m looking forward to the future

and other big meets.

“I’m excited about the rest of my summer,” continued Peirsol, who

will be accompanying her family to see her older brother in Greece

next month. “It’s kind of like a win-win situation, I guess. I’m

looking forward to my summer now. Obviously, I would love to have

gone to the Olympics. It’s not like I’m devastated.”