Peirsol top seed heading into today’s 200 back finals

OMAHA, Neb. — Aaron Peirsol, a former Newport Harbor High standout swimmer, will be the top seed in the 200-meter backstroke final at the U.S. Olympic Trials today.

Peirsol recorded the fastest time at 1 minute, 55.78 seconds in the semifinals Thursday. Peirsol’s rival, Ryan Lochte, will be the second seed, as he finished at 1:56.52. The two are considered the best in this event.

Lochte holds the world record in the 200 back, 1:54.32, and Peirsol was the previous record-holder.

Peirsol, who won gold in the 100 and 200 back in the 2004 Olympics, will compete in his third Olympics next month.

He lowered his world record in the 100 back in 52.89 seconds to win the event Tuesday.

UC Irvine’s Lyndsay DePaul finished seventh in the 200 butterfly final with a time of 2:11.20. DePaul will be a junior at UCI in the fall.

— From staff reports