"I kind of expected him to break the American record in the 800, but I thought he would do it at finals, not at prelims," Bobby Finke's dad Joe Finke said after watching his son break the American record.
In Tuesday's preliminary 800-meter freestyle event, Bobby Finke from Clearwater came in at 7:42.72 to win his heat and become the new American record holder. The title was formerly held by Michael McBroom with a time of 7:43.60, set in 2013.
Bobby previously swam a time of 7:48.22 in the 800-meter freestyle to qualify for the Olympic team in June.
His dad, Joe Finke, is more than proud of what his son has accomplished.
"Making the Olympic team was the ice cream," he said. "Making finals is the whipped cream on top of that and if he gets a medal, that’s a cherry on top of that."
