INDIANAPOLIS >> Four of America’s biggest swimming stars — including Lakeville’s Regan Smith — doubled up at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Thursday night.

Lilly King left with another big prize.

An engagement ring.

Smith, King, Ryan Murphy and Kate Douglass all claimed a second individual event in Paris with their performances in the temporary pool at Lucas Oil Stadium.

But the most dramatic moment came just off the deck.

King’s boyfriend, former Indiana University swimmer James Wells, pulled out a ring, dropped to a knee and asked her to marry him.

She said yes with a kiss and a big hug.

In the pool, Smith won the women’s 200 butterfly after previously setting a world record in the 100 backstroke. Murphy touched first in the men’s 200-meter backstroke, adding to his triumph in the 100 back. And Douglass followed up her win a night earlier in the 100 freestyle with a victory in the 200 breaststroke.

Regan Smith swims during the Women’s 200 butterfly finals Thursday, June 20, 2024, at the US Swimming Olympic Trials in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Smith trailed 17-year-old Alex Shackell at the final turn but rallied to win in 2:05.70. Shackell, from suburban Carmel, thrilled the home crowd by claiming an Olympic berth in 2:06.69.

Shackell is heading to the Olympics with her 19-year-old brother Aaron, who made the team by winning the 400 freestyle on the opening night of the trials. Their father, Nick Shackell, represented Britain at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics.

Earlier Thursday, Smith posted the fastest qualifying time for Friday night’s 200 backstroke final, her final event of the trials.

Smith, 22, coasted to the fifth-fastest time (2:09.30) in the 200 backstroke prelims, then cut nearly three seconds from that time in the semifinals. Her semifinal time of 2:06.41 was .82 seconds ahead of next fastest qualifier Phoebe Bacan.

Smith narrowly missed out on another Olympic berth in Sunday’s historic 100 butterfly final. Smith swam the fifth-fastest time in history but finished .1 seconds behind runner-up Torri Huske and .31 seconds behind winner Gretchen Walsh.

King rallied to finish behind Douglass, edging Alex Walsh for the second U.S. spot at the Olympics. King had previously won the 100 breaststroke.

Murphy used his stunning underwater technique to hold off Keaton Jones and Jack Akins, finishing in 1 minute, 54.33 seconds. He punched the water in triumph when he saw his name atop the scoreboard for the second time in the meet.

Jones claimed the second spot at the Olympics in 1:54.61, while it was another heartbreaking finish for Akins. He was third in 1:54.78, the same position he had in the 100 backstroke when he missed a Paris berth by two-hundredths of a second.

Douglass dominated the 200 breaststroke, going out under world-record pace over the first half of the race and finishing in 2:19.46.

King was third at the final turn, but turned up the pace on the final lap for a runner-up finish of 2:21.93.

Walsh, a silver medalist in the 200 individual medley at Tokyo Olympics, failed to join her sister Gretchen on this Olympic team. Alex Walsh still has a shot to make the squad in the 200 IM, which begins Friday.

Caeleb Dressel bounced back with the second-fastest time in the semifinals of the 50 freestyle, one night after a third-place finish in the 100 free cost him a chance to defend his Olympic title in that event.

Dressel will need to finish in the top two of the 50 free final Friday night to claim his first individual race of the Paris Games. The tattooed Floridian was one of the biggest stars in Tokyo, winning five gold medals, but he hasn’t been as dominant since returning from a long layoff.

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If the Saints are any indication, Major League Baseball hit a home run in electing to go to a full-time challenge system on balls and strikes in Triple-A games for the remainder of the season.

Starting next Tuesday, the fully automated ball-strike system (ABS) that has been used for half the games will be eliminated. Each team will be allowed two challenges, which is one less than has been available to date. A successful challenge does not cost a team a challenge.

“Everybody loves it,” Saints pitcher Louie Varland said Thursday night at CHS Field prior to the Saints taking an 8-4 lead over Toledo into the eighth inning. “Everybody wants the challenge system instead of half and half with ABS.

“The challenge system is going to make baseball way better. It’s basically a balance of old school and new school, and at the end of the day you want the right calls to be made.”

Pitcher Brent Headrick professed his love for the challenge system and said Twins pitchers who have been on rehab assignments with the Saints quickly became fans, too.

“The zone is definitely tighter with the ABS,” Headrick said, “so they weren’t getting calls they usually got in the big leagues. But pitchers love the challenge system; they can’t wait to use it.”

While Headrick said the challenge system is fair for hitters and pitchers, he feels there are some pitches — such as a backup slider up in the zone — that could clip the zone and register as a strike.

Veteran utility man Tony Kemp, who joined the Saints early in the season after being designated for assignment by the Baltimore Orioles, has been exposed to the challenge system for the first time.

“I’m happy that it will be in the big leagues at some point,” Kemp said. “We, as hitters, work our butts off to know the strike zone’s ins and outs. There have been times in my career when it’s 3-2 (count), the balls off the plate and it’s called a strike, that I wish I could have challenged.

“Instead of going to the ABS, you need to keep an umpire back there. But they need to do a better job of guys being accountable, and I think this is going to be a way umpires can be held accountable.”

Saints shortstop Brooks Lee, who hit a pair of home runs on Thursday, considers himself an “ultra-aggressive” hitter, so he said the change
won’t affect him as much as some other players.

“I try not to get to two strikes,” he said. “I swing a lot, so I don’t get strikes called on me a lot. But it definitely will be good for guys who are more patient.”

Saints manager Tony Gardenhire said he has preferred the challenge system from the start. “Going from three to two is going to be an adjustment,” he said. You’re going to have to be more careful in how you use them.”

Gardenhire said that while he allows his pitchers to challenge a call, he prefers that the decision comes from his catcher. “Catchers are really good at knowing the zone,” he said.

Catchers also have become adept at “framing” pitches, which has allowed them to steal strikes by fooling the umpire, which is another reason why Gardenhire prefers that his catcher make the challenge.

“Our catchers are so good at moving the ball that sometimes our pitchers think it’s a strike,” Gardenhire said, “and the catcher knows it’s not. So I tell our pitchers not to call it, because sometimes they get caught up in some emotions.

“But every once in a while they get one right, so they’re quick to say that they get to do it again.”

Briefly

Lee, who has been on a tear at the plate of late, made his first start of the season at second base. If the Twins elect to call him up this season, he likely would see time at second, with Carlos Correa entrenched at shortstop and Royce Lewis at third.

Matt Wallner hit his 17th home run of the season in the first inning.

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As a Bible study group in St. Paul lamented gun violence in the community and the world, they wondered, “What can we do?”

The Rev. Kirsten Fryer told them about her friend who’s a retired pastor in Madison, Wis., and has taken on the mission of “Guns to Garden Tools.” It’s part of a national movement of taking firearms that have been surrendered and using blacksmithing to convert them into garden tools.

Bethlehem Lutheran Church in the Midway in St. Paul, where Fryer is pastor, and the House of Mercy church are hosting a community event Saturday. Fryer’s friend, the retired Rev. Jeff Wild, will have his blacksmithing forge and anvil to demonstrate how he creates garden tools. There will also be seed planting and garden demonstrations, a community art project and free food.

Biblical verses from the books of Micah and Isaiah inspired the work: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks.”

Fryer said of turning guns into garden tools, “What does it look like for us to take this thing that was meant to take life and create something that makes life?”

The churches, which share a building, have a pocket prairie with plants native to Minnesota at their corner on Roy Street and Shields Avenue. They plan to use some of the tools that Wild creates in the garden.

Part of a national effort

Wild was inspired by the book, “Beating Guns: Hope for People Who Are Weary of Violence,” which was intended by authors Shane Claiborne and Michael Martin to show why Christians should be concerned about gun violence and how they can be part of the solution.

Martin founded RAWtools (it’s “war” spelled backwards), which has programs on turning guns into garden tools.

Wild is affiliated with RAWtools and involved with Presbyterian Peace Fellowship, which trains leaders to organize safe surrender and gun buyback events. They disassemble and make inoperable the guns that are handed over to them.

“We hear some very meaningful stories from people who have experienced trauma because of a firearm,” Wild said. Last year, a woman who surrendered a handgun to Wild told him it was the gun her father used to take his life.

Wild said he’s also struck by the funerals he presided over during his 34 years as a pastor — a dozen were men who died by suicide and half of those were with a firearm.

In Minnesota, firearms were used in 45% of suicide deaths, 65% of homicide deaths and 54% of interpersonal violence homicide deaths from 2015 to 2020, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. People can call 988 if they are in emotional distress or crisis, or the Minnesota DayOne domestic violence hotline at 866-223-1111.

‘Ali’s Garden’

To make the tools Saturday, Wild will be bringing parts from firearms that were surrendered in the Madison area in recent weeks. Bethlehem Lutheran wasn’t ready to take on a gun surrender event this year, but might consider it in the future, Fryer said.

People seeking to surrender a firearm in St. Paul at any time can call police at 651-291-1111 and ask to speak with an officer about it.

Also Saturday, the church will dedicate a garden at the front of the building as “Ali’s Garden.” It’s in memory of Ali Reed, who was fatally shot last June 25 in Minneapolis. Reed, 26, was baptized at Bethlehem Lutheran and his funeral was held there.

“Ali was very much loved by his family and is missed every day,” said his mother, Amber Webber. His life was ended “simply by being at the wrong place at the wrong time. We may never understand why he was murdered. Ali had a kind soul, always willing to help out where needed and without judgment.”

Webber said she sees a need for better gun control and stricter penalties, “so firearms stop being easily accessible to troubled youth and other offenders. The young men out here senselessly shooting and ending the lives of others needs to stop. My son’s life mattered.”

At the end of Saturday’s gathering, the church will hold a Service of Lament for Victims of Gun Violence.

Gun to Garden Tools community event

Where: Bethlehem Lutheran Church in the Midway and House of Mercy parking lot, 436 N. Roy St., St. Paul.

When: Saturday, noon to 3 p.m. for community art projects, seed planting, gun violence information, free gun locks. Blacksmithing demonstrations 12:30, 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. Ask the Gardener at 1 and 2 p.m. Habanero Tacos truck will be there with free tacos until 2 p.m. Service of Lament at 2:45 p.m. The church is planning to hold the event rain or shine.

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As soon as officials decided to create the position of executive director of Ramsey/Washington Recycling & Energy, Trista Martinson began lobbying people to apply.

Trista Martinson (Courtesy of the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners)

“I worked hard to recruit people,” said Martinson, chair of the Ramsey County Board. “I kept saying, ‘This job is my dream job. We have to find the right person.’ I kept saying that over and over and calling people and saying, ‘You should apply for this job. It is my dream job, and here’s why.’ I said that enough to where someone said to me, ‘It’s your dream job. You should apply.’ I hadn’t even considered that.”

Martinson took that advice, she said, and submitted an application “at the last moment.”

On Thursday, officials in Ramsey and Washington counties announced that Martinson, 49, of St. Paul, will step down from her elected position and lead the partnership through which the counties manage waste. She will start in early August.

Martinson, who has represented District 3 in Ramsey County since 2019 and has served as board chair since 2022, said applying and interviewing for the position she helped create was nerve-wracking.

“I was nervous because I was so passionate about the position and the job and because I really, truly wanted the best person to lead this organization,” she said. “Its potential is, literally, endless.”

National search

Officials conducted a national search for the position. Twenty-seven people applied and four finalists were interviewed.

Martinson, who recused herself from the search process, was chosen for her “strategic vision, unwavering commitment to public service and collaborative spirit,” said R&E Board Chairman Fran Miron, who also is vice chair of the Washington County Board. “She is an exceptional choice as our first executive director. She was such a quality candidate, and her passion for the mission, vision and work that we are doing at the center is second to none.”

The team charged with making the hiring decision included Miron; Ramsey County Commissioner Victoria Reinhardt; Michael Reed, a division manager for Ramsey County Public Health who oversees the department’s recycling and energy division; Dave Brummel, director of Washington Public Health and Environment; Rae Eden Frank, a deputy director of Ramsey County Public Health; and Kelli Hall, the R&E human resources manager.

The fact that Martinson was on the Ramsey County Board was “a detriment in many ways,” Reinhardt said. “She had to really shine — and she did.”

“She was absolutely the best candidate for this job with her vision of where (R&E) is now and where it will be in the future,” Reinhardt said. “We need someone like Trista who is really strong in the environmental field and who has the executive skills to pull everyone together.”

Martinson “rose to the top” during the interview process because she “demonstrated a strong passion and commitment for the environment and climate resiliency, a strong ability to lead people, programs and operations, and a demonstrated ability to work with local units of government,” Reed said. “She brought a unique viewpoint and skillset, working as a county commissioner. She also has established relationships in the community, including working closely with nonprofits.”

Martinson’s salary has yet to be approved; the hiring range for the position was $154,500-$191,000. The compensation is paid for out of the R&E Center’s facility budget, not out of Ramsey or Washington County budgets, Reed said.

Ramsey and Washington counties have worked collaboratively since the 1980s to manage waste. In 2016, the counties jointly purchased the center in Newport.

Recycling & Energy is governed by a joint powers nine-member R&E Board, which is comprised of commissioners from both counties. The organization serves more than 800,000 residents and 70,000 businesses.

‘This is what I want to be doing’

While on the Ramsey County Board, Martinson has worked to make climate resiliency a countywide strategic priority, she said. She also has been an advocate for environmental and climate justice.

She’s particularly proud of the work she has done with her colleagues and R&E staff to support the rollout of a new food scraps pickup program, which will soon be the largest residential co-collection food scrap recycling program in the state. It will divert up to 20 percent of waste in Ramsey and Washington counties, she said.

Martinson, along with other commissioners, has been a vocal advocate for investing in a composting facility in Louisville Township in Scott County to process the food scraps and other organic material into clean energy.

“This is the work that energizes me and inspires me,” said Martinson, adding that her longtime mentor and “environmental guru” was Reinhardt, an environmental and waste-to-energy advocate. “This is what I want to be doing.”

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Growing up in Little Falls, Minn., Martinson loved spending time outdoors, she said. “My parents were always outside looking for me, and they usually found me hidden in a raspberry patch or up a tree.”

One of her first jobs in high school was working for the Mississippi River Headwaters doing water testing and plant and soil recordings, she said. “Keeping the environment clean and readily available has always been important to me,” she said.

Prior to joining the Ramsey County Board, Martinson served in a variety of leadership, advocacy and lobbying roles including positions at the Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans, Minnesota Humanities Center and Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity. She also served, for a combined 16 years, in the U.S Navy, U.S Marine Corps Reserve and Minnesota National Guard. She completed her last five years of military service as a company commander.

Martinson is the founder of the Women Veterans Initiative, a nonprofit organization that advocates to build equity in services to develop innovative programs to address the needs of women Veterans. She also has served as a Ramsey County Veterans Court Advocate.

She has taken classes at the University of St. Thomas and will graduate this summer with a degree in communications and public policy from Metro State University in St. Paul.

Martinson has five sons: Taavo, Hunter, Kaelen, Soren and Aren. She lives in the Como neighborhood and enjoys gardening and spending time outdoors.

Special election

Martinson will formally resign from the county board before she starts her new position on Aug. 1.

A special election will be held either this fall or winter to fill her seat; her term expires at the end of 2026.

“I feel good about where Ramsey County is and all the work I’ve done there for the last five years,” she said. “We have such a strong leadership team. Not everyone can say that about their county, but we do. There are going to be some great candidates that step forward, I have no doubt.”

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