Michigan Olympic Updates (July 28): Silver Medals in Swimming and Diving
7/28/2021 10:15:00 AM | Olympics
• Tokyo Olympics Site | U-M Olympics Coverage
Former U-M women's swimmer Siobhán Haughey won a silver medal in the 200-meter freestyle, and graduate assistant diving coach Michael Hixon repeated as a silver medalist in the men's synchronized three-meter springboard diving on Wednesday (July 28) in Tokyo, Japan. The two medals raised the Michigan total from the 2020 Games to six (1 gold, 4 silver, 1 bronze).
Women's Swimming
Michigan alumna Siobhán Haughey made history for Hong Kong Wednesday morning (July 28) at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, earning a 2020 Tokyo Olympics silver medal in the 200-meter freestyle to become Hong Kong's first swimming Olympic medalist. Haughey's 1:53.92 was .42 off the new Olympic record set by winner Ariarne Titmus of Australia. Canada's Penny Oleksiak placed third.
Haughey put together a beautiful final race, hitting the wall third after the first 50 meters and owning the middle 100 meters with splits of 28.33 and 29.08 to take a lead. Her final 50-meter split of 29.74 trailed only Titmus, as the Aussie closed in 28.80 to finish just ahead of Haughey. A 14-time NCAA All-American at Michigan, Haughey set a new Asian record with her time, bettering the previous record (1:54.57) set by China's Junxuan Yang earlier this year.
After finishing the 200-meter freestyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics in 1:57.56 and failing to make it to the final, Haughey was fourth in the event at the 2019 World Championships. She burst into the public eye in Tokyo with her impressive 1:55.16 in her semifinal heat, placing her between Titmus and United States' legend Katie Ledecky.
Haughey becomes the third member of the Michigan women's and diving swimming program to win a medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, joining rising senior Maggie MacNeil of Canada (gold, 100-meter butterfly; silver, 4x100-meter freestyle relay) and fellow 2019 alumna Catie DeLoof of the United States (bronze, 4x100-meter freestyle relay).
Haughey returned to Tokyo Aquatics Centre Wednesday night and qualified for the 100-meter freestyle semifinals. Haughey's 52.70 was the second-fastest of the heats and broke the Asian record, a mark previously owned by Japan's Ikee Rikako (52.79). She touched second in heat 6 to Australia's Emma McKeon, who set an Olympic record with her 52.13. Haughey will compete in the first 100-meter semifinal at 9:53 p.m. EDT Wednesday, July 28 (10:53 a.m. Thursday in Japan).
Haughey and Hong Kong were scheduled to compete in the 4x200-meter relay heats at the end of the night session but were a late scratch.
• 200-meter Freestyle (Final): 2. Siobhán Haughey (1:53.92)
• 100-meter Freestyle (Heats): 2. Siobhán Haughey (52.70)
• 4x200-meter Freestyle Relay (Heats): Hong Kong (did not start)
• Results and Video: 200 free | 100 free (NBCOlympics.com)
• Olympic Silver Makes Haughey Hong Kong's First Swimming Medalist Ever
Michael Hixon (right) and Andrew Capobianco (Getty Images)
Men's Swimming and Diving
Michigan graduate assistant diving coach Michael Hixon and diving partner Andrew Capobianco won a silver medal in the synchronized three-meter springboard diving Wednesday night (July 28) at Tokyo Aquatics Centre. The American pair finished second with a 444.36 total, nearly 40 points ahead of bronze medalists Patrick Hausding and Lars Rudiger of Germany (404.73). China's Zongyuan Wang and Siyi Xie scored 467.82 to take the gold medal.
Hixon and Capobianco started slowly, sitting fifth after two dives, but moved into second place after the third of six dives and held that position the rest of the way.
Hixon, who joined the Michigan coaching staff prior to the 2020-21 campaign and is pursuing an MBA at the Ross School of Business, also won a silver medal in the event at the 2016 Rio Olympics with Sam Dorman. He was coached in Tokyo by U-M diving coach Mike Hilde. Hixon competed collegiately at Texas and Indiana.
After swimming in the 4x200-meter relay heats the previous night and helping United States advance, Wolverine rising senior Patrick Callan was not in the lineup for the event final Wednesday morning in Japan when the Americans fell short of the podium, swimming a 7:02.43 for fourth place and narrowly missing a medal. Callan would have received a medal had they placed.
Great Britain (6:58.58) cruised to victory, taking control in the third leg and never relinquishing the lead on its way to setting a new European record. The Russian Olympic Committee (7:01.81) and Australia (7:01.84) put together a second-half charge to pass the Americans, who were first or second every lap through 550 meters but had faded to fifth at the 600-meter mark.
• 4x200-meter Freestyle Relay (Final): 4. United States (7:02.43)
• Synchronized Three-meter Diving (Final): 2. Michael Hixon and Andrew Capobianco (444.36)
• Results and Video: Synchro Diving | 4x200 Free Relay (NBCOlympics.com)
• Hixon Repeats as Olympic Silver Medalist in Synchronized Three-Meter Diving
Sam Mikulak (USATSI)
Men's Gymnastics
Men's All-Around Final
Three-time Olympian Sam Mikulak (USA) competed in the men's all-around final Wednesday night (July 28) at Ariake Gymnastics Centre and placed 12th with a total score of 83.164. He posted top-10 scores on vault (7th, 14.533) and parallel bars (8th, 14.966) and was in line for a top-10 overall finish before a low floor exercise score in the final rotation.
Mikulak, who qualified for the final with the 14th-best score (84.664) during qualification Saturday (July 24), started the second all-around final of his Olympic career with a 13.566 on pommel horse. He then moved to still rings (13.533), followed by vault (14.533). He compiled a 14.966 on parallel bars and improved his score from qualifying on high bar by .767 with a 13.633 on the apparatus. The day concluded on floor exercise, where he struggled to a 12.933.
Fellow American Brody Malone placed 10th with a score of 84.465, while Japan's Daiki Hashimoto (88.465) captured gold.
Mikulak placed seventh in the all-around at the 2016 Rio Games. He did not qualify for the all-around final in 2012 in London. He will close out his Olympic career on Tuesday (Aug. 3) in the parallel bars individual event final at 4 a.m. EDT (5 p.m. in Japan).
• Sam Mikulak: All-around, 12th (83.164); floor exercise (12.933); pommel horse (13.566); still rings (13.533); vault (14.533); parallel bars (14.966); high bar (13.633)
• Results and Video (NBCOlympics.com)
Moritz Wagner (USATSI)
Men's Basketball
Germany 99, Nigeria 92
Scoring 17 points in just 12 minutes, Moritz Wagner helped the German National Team to its first Group B win, 99-92 over Nigeria at Saitama Super Arena. Limited to 12 minutes after picking up his fourth foul in the final minute of the third quarter, Wagner still managed 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting while draining two three-pointers. He added three rebounds and three steals -- one of which led to a monster dunk. Former Wolverine Ekpe Udoh played eight minutes off the bench for Nigeria and scored two points.
With both teams coming off opening-round losses, Germany and Nigeria tallied 13 lead changes and 14 ties as neither national team wanted to fall to 0-2 in Group B play. After Germany maintained a close first-quarter lead, 24-21, unforced turnovers and red-hot shooting from Nigeria in the second allowed the Nigerians to build a three-point lead of its own with 19 seconds left. However, Germany's Maodo Lo launched a late triple as time expired to draw the game even at the break, 50-50. Wagner finished the first half with 12 points.
The squads battled back and fourth in the third quarter as the score remained tied, 74-74, entering the final quarter. With just six minutes remaining and the score tied, 81-81, Germany took advantage of missed Nigerian shots and turnovers to make a late 15-3 run and pull away. Reaching as much as a 14-point lead, Germany was able to hold off a late Nigerian run to earn its first win.
The Germans (1-1) will close Group B play against Australia on Sunday (July 31) at 4:20 a.m. EDT (5:20 p.m. in Japan).
• Moritz Wagner (Germany): 17 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 assist, 12 minutes
• Ekpe Udoh (Nigeria): 2 points, 1 rebounds, 1 assist, 8 minutes
• Stats and Video (NBCOlympics.com)
Ellen Tomek (right, Row2K/USRowing photo)
Women's Rowing
Women's Quad Sculls (4x) B Final
Wolverine alumna Ellen Tomek concluded her third Olympic experience on Wednesday morning (July 28) local time at the Seaforest Waterway in Tokyo, Japan. The quad sculls (4x) B final included the United States with Tomek and teammates Cicely Madden (Brown), Meghan O'Leary (Virginia) and Alie Rusher (Stanford) competing against New Zealand, France and Great Britain in a race that was delayed a day by adverse weather conditions.
Tomek stroked the boat to a fourth-place finish in the race and 10th place overall in Tokyo. The crew from Great Britain grabbed the first lead of the race with the U.S. and New Zealand just over a second behind at 500 meters. Near the halfway point, the Brits were up 2.5 seconds on the field and the Americans were less than a quarter-second behind New Zealand, pacing for third. In the final half of the race, the Kiwis moved comfortably into second, finishing 3.86 seconds behind Great Britain (6:25.14). France (6:29.70) nipped the Americans (6:30.03) at the line for third place.
Tomek ends her time in Tokyo without a medal, but she still ranks among the most decorated U-M alumnae in Olympic history. She and Tiffany (Ofili) Porter (track and field) are the Wolverines' first female three-time Olympians.
Women's Four (4-) B Final
One-time Wolverine Grace Luczak completed her trip to Tokyo by stroking her boat to a rebound performance in the women's four (4-) B final. Luczak and teammates Kendall Chase (California), Claire Collins (Princeton) and Madeleine Wanamaker (Wisconsin) rowed against crews from Romania, Denmark and Canada. After a struggle in qualifying heats and a last-place finish in the repechage, it was the Americans' day in Tokyo. The Romanians took the first lead of the race, but it was gone by the 500-meter mark as the U.S. took control. The U.S. boat grew a healthy lead before Romania began to take back strokes and the Canadians pushed for third. The Americans took a lead of more than a second into the final 500 meters and held off all challengers to win the race and finish the trip to Tokyo in seventh place overall. The winning time was 6:33.65, with Romania (6:34.72) in second and Denmark (6:35.12) in third, Canada barely behind (6:35.13) in fourth. This was Luczak's second Olympic experience representing Team USA.
• Ellen Tomek (quad sculls): 4th, B final (6:30.03) -- 10th overall
• Grace Luczak (women's four): 1st, B final (6:33.65) -- 7th overall
• Results and Video: Quad Sculls | Women's Four (NBCOlympics.com)
