Matt King is about to take on the best swimmers in the world. Again.
The Glacier Peak High School graduate is representing the United States at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships, which begin Thursday in Doha, Qatar.
King, who is taking the year off from the University of Virginia to concentrate on trying to make the U.S. Olympic team, was selected to compete in the men’s 50- and 100-meter freestyle races. He is also expected to compete in relays.
This is King’s second time representing the U.S. at the World Aquatics Championships. Last July King ended up anchoring the U.S. 400 freestyle relay team to the bronze medal in Fukuoka, Japan.
The men’s 100 freestyle heats are scheduled for Feb. 13, with the semifinals on Feb. 14 and the finals on Feb. 15. The men’s 50 freestyle heats are scheduled for Feb. 15, with the semifinals on the Feb. 16 and the finals on Feb. 17. The relays take place throughout the competition.
King is hoping his performances serve as a springboard heading into the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, which take place June 15-23 in Indianapolis. The 2024 Summer Olympics are July 26-Aug. 11 in Paris.
Potts garners GNAC honor
Glacier Peak High School graduate Katie Potts, now a senior on the Western Washington University women’s track and field team, was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s Women’s Field Athlete of the Week for Jan. 22-28.
Potts, competing against NCAA Division I athletes at the indoor UW Invitational on Friday in Seattle, unleashed a throw of 50 feet, 11 inches in the weight throw. The mark was the best by a GNAC athlete this season and was the best by an NCAA Division II athlete in the competition, as Potts placed 11th in a field of 31.
This was Potts’ second career GNAC Athlete of the Week award.
Professional table tennis coming to Everett
Major League Table Tennis, the first professional table tennis league in the United States, is coming to Everett as it’s holding a West Division competition on Feb. 23-25 at Angel of the Winds Arena.
Each of the West Division’s four teams will be involved in the event. Each match between teams includes four singles and one doubles matches, then concludes with a Golden Game during which each of a team’s five players rotate in every four points.
Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased on the Angel of the Winds Arena website.
If you have an item for the community sports roundup, email Nick Patterson at npatterson@heraldnet.com.
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