SWIMMING MEET OF CHAMPIONS : Biondi Calls Forth Memories, Holds Off Kutler

In what he called his greatest performance since the 1988 Olympic Games, Matt Biondi withstood a charge from Santa Clara’s Dan Kutler to win the 100-meter butterfly Friday night at the Chrysler Swim Meet of Champions in Mission Viejo.

Although Biondi’s 56.16-second clocking does not compare to the 53.01 he swam in Seoul when Surinam’s Anthony Nesty nipped him at the wall in 53.00, it is the fastest time Biondi has swum without resting and shaving his body hair.

Biondi, who won five gold medals at Seoul, edged Kutler, a UCLA junior, by two-tenths of a second.

“The last 25 (meters) is always the hardest for me,” Biondi said. “I always tighten up, but I held my stroke together better than I ever have before.”

Although Biondi is looking forward to the main meet of the summer for the U.S. team, the Pan Pacific Games in August, he already is training for the 1992 U.S. Olympic Trials in March.

“The time is now to be putting in the distance for the trials,” Biondi said.

On the women’s side, Costa Rica’s Silvia Poll won the 100 backstroke and 100 freestyle despite having only a 20-minute break between the events. Poll, the 1988 Olympic silver medalist in the 200 freestyle, clocked a 1:03.66 to take the backstroke by 1.9 seconds over Mary Petry, a 17-year-old from Industry Hills.

In the 100 freestyle, Poll edged Sarah Anderson of Golden Bear, 58.02 seconds to 58.23.

Eric Namesnik, the American record-holder in the 400 individual medley, won his specialty by a 6.2-second margin. His 4:23.23 broke the 1984 meet record of 4:24.37, set by Canadian Olympian Alex Baumann in 1984.

Northridge teen-ager Kristine Quance was even more dominant in the women’s 400 individual medley with a 4:48.36, about 14.5 seconds ahead of the field.

Both medley champs were denied the opportunity to race tougher competition. Olympian Dave Wharton missed the men’s final to attend a wedding, and Summer Sanders scratched from the women’s race because of tendinitis in her shoulder.

Mission Viejo’s Artur Wojdat earned his second title of the meet with a convincing 200 freestyle victory in 1:50.97 over teammate Eric Diehl.

Seven-time Olympic gold medalist Mark Spitz tied for 26th in the 100 butterfly with a 58.93. The 41-year-old will continue his comeback in an attempt to make the U.S. Olympic Trials qualifying time of 55.59.