Sioux Falls swimmer sets record at National Senior Games

Jennifer Kirby had a difficult decision to make.

After competing in three events over the first two days of the National Senior Games swimming meet — held July 25-28 in the Prairie Meadows Pool at the Wellmark YMCA in Des Moines — and two more events slated back to back on the next day, Kirby pondered whether she should scratch the women’s 50-yard butterfly to focus her efforts on the 200-yard breaststroke.

Kirby, who already had earned gold medals in the 50- and 100-yard breaststroke and claimed silver in the 50-yard freestyle, was well positioned to win both of her races in the afternoon July27 in her age division, 55-59.

However, Kirby was also in position to challenge the National Senior Games record in the 200-yard breaststroke. Teammate Tony Trussell noted that Kirby would always have the chance to swim more 50-yard butterflies but not necessarily have the opportunity to break a record.

“In the end, I had to go for it,” said the 55-year-old Kirby, who trains for United States Masters Swimming and Senior Games competitions at the Midco Aquatic Center.

After a bit of soul searching, Kirby shot out a text to the small but mighty eight-swimmer contingent of South Dakota teammates that morning, letting everyone know she’d be scratching the 50-yard butterfly.

Kirby’s decision proved a master stroke as she not only pulled away from Michigan’s Lorajo Becarri at the 150-yard mark to win the event, but also shattered Patty Sweetall’s 2015 NSG record mark of 2:54.43 by almost two seconds – clocking in at 2:50.79.

“It was a good race, a fun race, and she (Becarri) gave me a good push,” said Kirby, who set new personal records in each of her four events in Des Moines. “It just shows you what hard work can do … hard work and support. This has been one of the most fun meets I can remember!”

In scratching the 50-yard butterfly, Kirby put the load on South Dakota teammate Janell Gerberding – also competing in the women’s 55-59 age group. Kirby and Gerberding would have been side by side in the butterfly, but the latter had to go it alone after Kirby opted out.

Again, the decision proved advantageous to the team as Gerberding sprinted to her second gold of the day and third of the meet in a personal record time of 33.09 seconds.

“It feels great,” said Gerberding, who often trains alone in the eastern portion of the state. “To do it back-to-back wasn’t easy, but I had great support and felt strong going into it.”

Gerberding too had a calculated scratch Sunday morning. Upon receiving Kirby’s text, Gerberding decided not to swim the 50-yard backstroke to focus on the 100-yard freestyle and 50-yard butterfly events. The pair of sprints proved no problem for the 56-year-old East River athlete. Before winning the butterfly, she dropped 2.46 seconds off her previous best to comfortably win the freestyle race in new personal best time of 1:06.40.

Kirby and teammate Kevin Kyle videoed and cheered Gerberding on in the 100-yard freestyle, the latter also getting some much-needed rest before his third event of the day: the men’s age 60-64 50-yard butterfly. Kyle, who claimed bronze in the 50-yard backstroke and silver in the 200-yard individual medley to open Sunday’s afternoon session, was looking for a third consecutive podium finish on the day and a sixth in six events.

Despite a slow start, Kyle pushed past Georgia’s Randy Russell over the final 10 yards to claim silver, behind Florida’s Michael Aubrey, in a time of 28.29 seconds – a fifth personal best mark for the meet.

“What a great time we’ve all had here in Des Moines,” said Kyle, who trains with Kirby throughout the summers. “The facility is fantastic, the water feels wonderful, and my teammates have been a blast. I can’t think of a more supportive group, and I wouldn’t have been as successful if not for their support – especially Jenny’s.”

Kirby and Kyle were back in the pool shortly after the meet preparing for the 2025 USMS Summer Nationals, which will be Aug. 6-10 at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Washington.

Not only will Kirby continue to specialize in the breaststroke in Washington, competing in the 50-, 100- and 200-meter events at the long-course championships, but she’ll also join highly competitive fields in the 50-meter butterfly and 100-meter freestyle events. Kyle will focus on the butterfly, swimming the 50-, 100- and 200-meter races in addition to the 50-meter freestyle. South Dakota teammates Leigh Neys of Aberdeen and James McLain of Sioux Falls will compete in the women’s 45-49 and men’s 35-39 age groups, respectively.

“We hope to carry momentum from the National Senior Games into this meet,” said Kirby, who earned five medals in five events at the USMS Spring Nationals April 24-27 in San Antonio, Texas. “Swimming long-course meters is very different from swimming short-course yards, but I think we’re up for the challenge.”