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This week saw two huge stateside competitions, including the fourth stop of the TYR Pro Swim Series in Bloomington with a strong pro group led by world-record holder Lilly King. Several college programs also announced who would be leading their programs after a busy hiring season. Check out all the biggest stories of the week below:
The Week That Was #5 – Ruta Meilutyte Not On Lithuanian Worlds Roster
Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA
Lithuania has selected eight swimmers to participate in the 2019 World Championships, but Ruta Meilutyte is not one of them. The Olympic gold medalist and former world-record holder has been in the news for anti-doping violations in regard to accessibility. Meilutyte missed three anti-doping tests in a 12-month period, which violates FINA’s anti-doping policy. She is waiting to find out the punishment for the rule violation, but it is likely at least a one-year ban. You can see the full Lithuanian roster for Worlds here.
The Week That Was #4 – Elizabeth Beisel To Appear On Survivor
Photo Courtesy: Annie Grevers
Olympian Elizabeth Beisel will appear on the upcoming 39th season of the CBS reality show Survivor. The three-time U.S. Olympian, competing at the 2008, 2012, and 2016 Olympic Games. Beisel served as one of the co-captains of the 2016 Olympic team, leading the team to victory in nearly every event. She last competed at the 2017 World Championships, where she made it to the championship final in the 400 IM. Beisel will be the second Olympic swimmer to appear on Survivor, after 1988 Olympian Katrina Radke appeared on the show in 2017.
The Week That Was #3 – Stanford, Princeton, Brown, And UNC Fill Head Coaches
Photo Courtesy: Cathleen Pruden
Many of the major head coaching positions around the country were filled this week, with Stanford, UNC, Princeton, and Brown all announcing their hires. In arguably the biggest hire yet of the season, University of Hawaii head coach Dan Schemmel was tagged as the next leader for the Stanford men’s swimming and diving program. Mizzou associate head coach Mark Gangloff was named the next head coach for UNC, while in the Ivy League the men’s teams at Brown and Princeton announced the hiring of Kevin Norman and Matt Crispino, respectively. However, the NCAA hiring season does appear to be just beginning, with positions still open at Additionally, head coach Cyndi Gallagher announced her retirement after 31 years at UCLA, opening another high profile Division I position.
The Week That Was #2 – Caeleb Dressel On Fire At The 2019 Atlanta Classic
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
This weekend was the 2019 Atlanta Classic in Georgia, with some stateside swimmers opting to compete there over the TYR Pro Swim Series in Bloomington. While the field wasn’t quite as deep as in Bloomington, there were still plenty of notable swims. Olivia Smoliga had an impressive double on day two, taking down meet records in the 50 free (25.05) and 100 back (59.26), which just happened to be back to back events. Hali Flickinger improved on her season best and broke her own meet record in the 200 fly (2:06.98). One of the most surprising swims of the meet came from Caeleb Dressel, who outdueled Chase Kalisz in the 200 fly to post a personal best and take down the former Georgia Bulldog in one of his strongest events. Dressel touched the wall in 1:56.29, a huge personal best in an event that he has only swum a handful of times. Dressel also won the 100 breast in a best time (1:01.22) and the 100 fly (51.41) and 100 free (47.86) in season bests. You can see the full recaps from all sessions of the 2019 Atlanta Classic here.
The Week That Was #1 – Lilly King Leads Indiana Contingent At TYR Pro Swim Series In Bloomington
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
The fourth meet of the 2019 TYR Pro Swim Series took place in Bloomington, Indiana into the weekend, with a healthy contingent of post-grad swimmers at Indiana all posting some strong swims throughout the meet. Lilly King threw down the #1 times in the world in the 50 breast (30.03) and 100 breast (1:05.68), while Cody Miller posted one his best in-season swims of his career, dropping a 59.24 to win the 100 breast. Training partner Annie Lazor also posted a PB and the world’s #1 time in the 200 breast (2:20.77), while Miller also posted a lifetime best 2:08.94 to win the 200 breast. This meet also served as Nathan Adrian’s return to competition following his diagnosis with testicular cancer earlier this year. The Olympic gold medalist touched in 49.31 to finish fourth in a solid return to competition following his cancer treatment. He was also third in 50 free (22.22). Regan Smith also posted a near personal best in the 200 back (2:06.47), and broke the world junior record in the 100 back (58.82). You can see all coverage from the 2019 TYR Pro Swim Series here.
