Pardubice Grand Prix – Round 2
- Friday, May 17th – Sunday, May 19th
- Pardubice, Czech Republic
- Ostrava Recap
- Czech Republic 2019 World Championships & World University Games Selection Criteria
- Start List/Results
- Live Stream
The 2nd Grand Prix of the Czech Republic is set to take place in Pardubice this weekend, with many of the same standouts from the 1st round in Ostrava set to compete. Simona Kubova is among the mix, as is distance ace Jan Micka.
24-year-old Micka most recently clocked a new Czech National Record in the men’s 1500m freestyle while competing in Stockholm. His time there of 14:48.52 earned him silver, but laid waste to his previous best and national standard mark of 14:55.47 set in prelims of the 2017 World Championships. The Czech swimmer would go on to wind up 8th there in Budapest, hitting a slower mark of 15:09.28.
Several Hungarians are listed on the entry forms, as they were in Ostrava, to the tune of Zsuzsanna Jakabos, Gabor Balog and Sebastian Sabo. There are also a few Spaniards expected to compete, cinluding Olympic champion Mireia Belmonte. She’ll kick-off her Pardubice campaign with the women’s 1500m freestyle right off the bat on day 1.
For the Czech swimmers, this competition serves as the primary qualification meet for this summer’s World Championships, although athletes did have the opportunity to race at other competitions for qualification as long as they pre-approved those meets with the swimming federation.
Below is the set of selection standards for Czech swimmers.