The insane depth of the U.S. men’s sprint program makes the 100 freestyle one of the most intriguing events as Olympic Trials nears. And if that needed further illustration, a B final at the TYR Pro Swim Series stop in Des Moines that features four Olympians should do the trick Thursday night.
Zach Apple grabbed the top seed in the 100 free in 48.93, with Ryan Held (49.21) second and Marius Kusch (49.35) third. Also in the mix are American relay contenders Dean Farris in fourth and Blake Pieroni in fifth.
But missing the A final were world-record holder Caeleb Dressel, who finished 11th in prelims in 49.89. In 12th place was Nathan Adrian, who went 49.99. Also in the B final are two Olympians swimming outside their wheelhouse, with Ryan Murphy 15th in 50.05 and Townley Hass 16th in 50.06.
Further down the standings are old hands Tom Shields (20th) and, in a tie for 26th, Giles Smith and Ryan Lochte in 50.99.
TYR Pro Swim Series, Des Moines
- Night 1: TYR Pro Series: Katie Ledecky Pops Fifth-Fastest 1500 Free in History
- Live Results
- Evening Heat Sheets
Other events from the second day and first morning session of the meet:
In the women’s 100 freestyle, Simone Manuel took the top seed in 54.04, exactly two seconds back of her world record. Siobhan Haughey was second in 54.10 with Mallory Comerford third (54.16). Relay contenders Catie DeLoof, Margo Geer, Allison Schmitt and Olivia Smoliga also landed in the A final.
In the women’s 100 breaststroke, Lilly King has the third seed in finals, going 1:07.22 in the morning. The top seed goes to Molly Hannis in 1:06.86 with Annie Lazor second (1:07.15). With Madisyn Cox, Melanie Margalis, Breeja Larson and Bethany Galat in the A final, it’s a nice teaser for trials.
Likewise, the men’s 100 breast is full of stalwarts. Michael Andrew was the only one to break a minute in the morning at 59.83 for the top seed. The veteran cast of Andrew Wilson, Kevin Cordes, Nic Fink and Cody Miller comprise the rest of the top 5.
In the women’s 200 butterfly, Hali Flickinger came within .02 of Cammile Adams’ Pro Swim Series record, clocking in at 2:06.78 to grab the top seed. She was more than two seconds quicker than Regan Smith in what might become a two-person duel in the final. Third was 16-year-old Justina Kozan of Break Aquatics in 2:09.92.
Chase Kalisz is the top seed in the finals of the men’s 200 fly, swimming 1:57.64 in the morning. Second is Gunnar Bentz in 1:58.53. Zach Harting, Jack Conger and Jay Litherland also broke the two-minute barrier.
The women’s 400 freestyle is Katie Ledecky’s to lose, the 22-year-old following Monday night’s domination in the 1,500 by going 4:05.26 Thursday. She’s the top seed by more than six seconds. Second is Kaersten Meitz of Boilermaker Aquatic in 4:11.39, with Schmitt, Haughey and Leah Smith also under 4:13 (though Smith scratched the 400 free at night to swim the 200 fly, where she’s in teh B final). Ally McHugh, who has a 4:07 under her belt, is seventh, while Margalis got into the A final after scratches at 4:20.01.
Marwan El Kamash is the top seed in the men’s 400 free in a time of 3:53.28. The top four seeds are clustered within a second, with Zane Grothe, Arik Katz and Nick Norman following, then Gator Swim Club’s Mitch D’Arrigo and True Sweetser another second back. Outside the A final are Lochte (10th, 3:57.75), Jordan Wilimovsky (12th in 3:57.63) and Andrew Seliskar (13th in 3:57.90). Of those three, only Seliskar is on the evening heat sheets to swim.
Finals start at 6:30 p.m.
Valerie Gayle Uy
Mara Guevara WHY
“In the women’s 100 freestyle, Simone Manuel took the top seed in 54.04, exactly two seconds back of her world record.”
Manuel does not own any individual world records. The 100 free world record belongs to Sjostrom and Cate Campbell is also ahead of her in the all time list.
Ahmed Khalid what the hell
Dave Taylor Luke
Steffen do Dressel and Manuel hold the 100m free world records?
Nick Westaway, pretty sure no. I think they both have the American record. Why?
Steffen Docken the article describes them as WR holders in the 100m free