2020 International Swimming League – Match 7
- Thursday, November 5th: 10AM – 12 noon Local Time (3AM-5AM U.S. Central Time, 6PM – 8PM J+1 Japan)
- Friday, November 6th: 10Am – 12 noon Local Time (3AM-5AM U.S. Central Time, 6PM – 8PM J+1 Japan)
- Duna Arena – Budapest, Hungary
- Short Course Meters (SCM) Format
- ISL Technical Handbook
- 2020 ISL Scoring Format
- 2020 ISL Prize Money and Bonuses
- How to Watch
- Omega Results
- Teams: Energy Standard/DC Trident/Toronto Titans/Iron
- Day 1 Recap
In the morning match of Thursday’s International Swimming League doubleheader, Energy Standard earned the right to choose both the men’s and women’s skins events for day 2 of the meet.
They have opted for the breaststroke events for men and freestyle events for women.
ISL Match #7 Skins Events
- Men – Breaststroke (Energy Standard)
- Women – Freestyle (Toronto)
Under new ISL rules for 2020, the winner of the medley relays on day 1 of the meet choose the strokes for the 50 meter ‘skins’ races on day 2 of the meet. In those ‘skins’ events, 3 rounds of 50s are held in succession with a short break, with the field being whittled from 8 to 4 to 2 swimmers.
The defending league champions were dominant in those medley relays, winning the women’s event by almost 3 seconds and going 1-2 in the men’s event, with the ‘A’ relay more than 3 seconds ahead of the ‘B’ relay.
That was part of a big team performance that saw Energy Standard jump out to a 71-point lead ahead of a soft field, buoyed by the return of the defending league MVP Sarah Sjostrom.
Team Scores After Day 1:
- Energy Standard – 300
- Toronto Titans – 229
- Iron – 205
- DC Trident – 141
With the advantage in skins, and teams still being a perfect 12-for-12 in winning the skins races that they chose, Energy Standard should cruise to victory on day 2 of the meet.
There is, however, the biggest potential upset in a skins race we’ve seen so far this season via their peculiar choice of the men’s breaststroke events. While Energy Standard does have the #2 and #3 men’s 50 breaststrokers from Thursday’s individual events Ilya Shymanovich and Felipe Lima, they’ll run head-long into one of the league’s breakout swimmers: Turkey’s Emre Sakci.
Sakci missed the World Record in the 50 breaststroke on Thursday by .04 seconds and led Ilya Shymanovich, the top Energy Standard finisher, by .39 seconds.
While Shymanovich is the better swimmer in the longer races, Sakci showed last week that he’s got plenty to advance through the rounds of skins – he was 25.7 in the third round of the event last week. That’s almost as fast as Shymanovich was in the individual 50 breast on Thursday.
But, with Florent Manaudou in the 50 freestyle available, it’s not clear that this decision was made with ‘maximizing points in this meet’ in mind, though we’ve seen a few teams in this dominant position make this sort of decision. It will, at least, be a more interesting battle to watch.
In the women’s event, Energy Standard had plenty of options. Their women’s sprint fly group is the best in the league, as is their women’s sprint free group.
In either case, they’d run headlong into Iron’s Ranomi Kromowidjojo, who has not yet lost a freestyle skins race in her ISL career.
The Energy Standard women were otherwise fairly dominant in freestyle ‘skins’ races last season, with Sarah Sjostrom winning in the Las Vegas finale and Femke Heemskerk joining her in several finals.
The big question is whether or not Energy Standard will use Sjostrom in this skins race. She missed the team’s last meet after a flareup of a back injury, and seems to be easing her way back into racing with just 3 swims (50 free and two relays) on Thursday. The format of the ‘skins’ event is one that would exacerbate a back injury as much as any event on the schedule, but maybe freestyle isn’t as much strain on her back as butterfly.
In either case, with 2nd-place Toronto not being a real contender in either event, while Energy guarantees of victory in the skins races are not there, they should feel confident about the chances of those events to seal up their team win.
Are they trying to push Titans down helping Iron?
I think not but can happen. Otherwise only backstroke would have been good for Titans, anything else is for ENS and/or IRO.
Same thought! Looks like they are helping Iron to become second and beat Toronto. Don’t know if they try to make another European Team achieve the semifinals or because Iron will never be then a serious threat to reach the final eventually… Otherwise these choices don’t make any sense I guess.
men’s free and women’s breast makes much more sense to me.
Sporting gesture to let Sakci have a crack at the WR. Energy don’t need to win the skins if they get 2nd and 3rd. If Sakci goes for WR in round 1 he’ll be done anyway.
He can swim it in the semis. In this case his (and Kromowidjojo’s) points will be needed for the second place.
Is Energy anticipating Iron not making the final and preparing to pick breaststroke if they win the men’s medley relay in that meet? That’s the only reason I would see them choosing breast over free today.
For the women I feel like choosing free over fly means they don’t intend to use Sjostrom in the skins. I’m guessing they’ll use Heemskerk and Blume in the skins and put Sjostrom and Haughey on their “A” mixed free relay.
If they didn’t want to play it safe with her back problems, wouldn’t Sjostrom and Shkurkia in fly skins and Heemskerk and Haughey on the “A” mixed free relay be slightly better than Sjostrom and Heemskerk in the free skins and… Read more »
At least one of Heemskerk and Blume or maybe both are relay only for this match since Sjostrom, Shkurdai and Banic have all swam individual events on day 1.
Thanks, iceman, I didn’t realize that. I had incorrectly thought when swimmers were being referred to as “relay only” it was just a matter of fact way of describing what events they ended up swimming. I didn’t know it was an actual pre-meet designation in ISL.
That’s correct. Each team gets 12 swimmers who can swim anything, 2 swimmers who can swim relays only, and 2 swimmers who are on the bench per gender (assuming full rosters).
We’ve never gotten a good answer about whether they have to declare those relay only swimmers before the session starts or so long as only 2 of them wind up swimming on relays they’re good. But, most teams decide their relay-only swimmers before the meet starts.
I think it’s Blume, because Heemskerk swam the 50 free individual today 😉 So then you get Blume (being a relay only) in the mixed relay for sure, I guess 🙂
It’s possible. Breast skins in the final is probably the best way to handicap Cali, while free gives Dressel a good shot to win
Kromowidjojo actually lost a round of skins before against Sjostrom in London last year, she did beat her in the final round though
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6J6N0abwA0
I think they mean winning overall because she has finished 2nd in earlier rounds on a few occasions
Sakci is not as good in the late rounds? What about 25.73 last week? And it looks like he is in even better shape now. I’d say it’s possible Energy become the first team that lose the skins they selected. I think they had many more chances of winning in freestyle.
Tbh I think they have a really good shot at winning every stroke EXCEPT breaststroke! Chad in the fly, manadou in fr, any one of their backstrokers (would be a close one with Shane Ryan right there) either way, I think sakci will CRUSH them
bro it doesn’t matter that Sakci isn’t as good at longer distances, he’s legit savage
25.7 in the final skins