Among Upsets at Olympic Swimming Trials Is Weltz in 200 Breaststroke Scott Weltz celebrating after winning the 200-meter breaststroke final at the Olympic trials on Friday night. OMAHA - Figure skating has the kiss-and-cry area. Swimming has the mixed zone, the corridor the competitors walk through on their way from the racing pool to warm down after their events. It is the spot where the winners and the others stop to answer a few cursory questions from reporters. The carpeted walkway is deceiving. Every night of the United States Olympic swimming trials, it has been an emotional minefield. The first event on Friday night produced the biggest upset of the week on the men's side: Scott Weltz, a U.C. Davis graduate who finished outside the top 35 in the 200-meter breaststroke at the trials four years ago, beat a group in that event that included the former world-record holder Brendan Hansen and the American-record holder, Eric Shanteau. Weltz, who has never finished higher than fourth at a national championships, produced the fastest final 50 in the field by nearly a second, covering it in 33.13 seconds to stop the clock at 2 minutes 9.01 seconds. Clark Burckle touched second in 2:09.97 to make his first Olympic team. Shanteau was third (2:10.05), directly ahead of Hansen (2:10.25). In the mixed zone, Weltz, 25, had trouble catching his breath but answered each question thrown his way with great enthusiasm. "I'll talk to anybody who wants to talk to me," he said with a big grin. His head kept shaking long after his body had grown numb from his accomplishment. He said he kept repeating to himself that he was going to London. "I've said it so many times in my mind," he said, "and now I can say it out loud, and it's great." Shanteau stopped briefly to talk but walked away when he was asked a question about his finish. "I don't even want to talk about it," he said. I've had that third place so many times. The runner-up in the 100-meter breaststroke on Tuesday, Shanteau was second in the 200 breaststroke at the 2008 trials, third in the 200-meter individual medley and fourth in the 100 breaststroke. In 2004, he finished third in the 200 and 400 individual medleys. The top two finishers in each event qualify for the Olympics. Hansen, who made the team in the 100 breaststroke four years ago but missed it in the 200, was gracious in defeat. "Scott swam a great race," he said. That's a big-time swim for him. He added: "I didn't really make a mistake in the race. It just wasn't there. Weltz blew through the mixed zone like a breath of fresh air. So many swimmers who have punched their tickets to London this week have acted more relieved than jubilant. Weltz reacted as if he had just won the lottery. And he was not the only one: his coach, Peter Motekaitis, jumped out of the stands and slipped on the deck in his haste to congratulate him. "It was a dream come true," Weltz said. Twenty years of work paid off. The last swimmer from the final to make his way to the warm-down area was Burckle, whose ear-to-ear grin lighted his path. In 2008 he watched his older sister, Caroline, qualify for the Beijing squad as a member of the women's 800-meter freestyle relay. His best trials finish had been a fifth in the 200 breaststroke. Four years later, Burckle was the top qualifier in the final and led the field at the 100. After being overtaken by Shanteau at 150 meters, Burckle found another gear in the final 50. "This just really reassures what I believe in and all the hard work I've put in," said Burckle, who swam at Florida and Arizona. When my college career was up, my parents wanted nothing more than for me to compete for the Olympics. They didn't even want me to try to get a job. It's so awesome to pay them back with this kind of reward. Natalie Coughlin, 29, a two-time Olympian and 11-time medalist, has described this meet as "eight days of chlorine and tears." Her eyes remained dry on Wednesday after she missed by one spot a berth to London in the 100 backstroke, the event in which she is the two-time defending Olympic champion. She was composed again on Friday night as she made her way through the mixed zone after squeezing into the final of the 100-meter freestyle. Coughlin, who set the Olympic trials record in the event four years ago with a 53.64, placed seventh in 54.48 seconds, one spot ahead of Lia Nial, a 17-year-old from Brooklyn. Amanda Weir, a 2004 Olympian in the 400-meter freestyle relay and the 400-meter medley relay, clocked a 54.14 to lead all finalists. Missy Franklin, 17, was second in 54.19. "This meet is kind of a horrible meet," Coughlin said. It's super exciting for the people making the team, but there is so much stress and anxiety in the air, and I just want people to enjoy it as much as possible and just give their personal best, and that's what I'm doing. No matter what happens in the 100 freestyle final on Saturday night, "life will go on," she said. "That's why you don't see me freaking out," she added. I think a lot of people after the backstroke expected me to throw a little hissy fit, which is offensive because it's just a race.