2019 SPEEDO GRAND CHALLENGE
- Friday, May 24 – Sunday, May 26, 2019
- William Woollett Jr Aquatics Center – Irvine, CA
- Psych Sheets
- Live Results
- Meet Preview
- Friday Prelims Recap
- Friday Finals Recap
During the second prelims session of the NOVA Grand Challenge, Kendyl Stewart and Andrew Seliskar put up promising 100 fly times that foreshadow a quick finals session later tonight.
Seliskar kicked it off with a 53.00 swim to lead the 100 fly super-final. His time is now his 7th-fastest swim ever, under a second off his PB of 52.24. Seliskar will be joined by Cal teammate Justin Lynch (53.27) and D2-stud Marius Kusch (53.31) in the super-final. German-native Kusch holds the 5th-fastest time in the world this year with a 51.35, which he swam at Richmond.
On the women’s side, Stewart put up a 58.16, which is just half a second off her personal best time of 57.51. That PB, which was swam at the Israel Swimming Cup, is the 6th-fastest time in the world this year. Touching in second behind Stewart is USC post-grad Louise Hansson (58.84), who holds the 5th-fastest time in the world with a 57.35.
Joining Stewart and Hansson in the super final are Cal teammates Katie McLaughlin (59.27) and Izzy Ivey (1:00.45). McLaughlin will also be swimming in the 200 free super-final, where she put up the top prelims time of 2:00.13. Friday’s 50 free champ Abbey Weitzeil (2:02.34) and Team Elite’s Catie DeLoof (2:02.20) will join McLaughlin and Ivey (2:02.21) in the final.
Ivey won’t be done after those two swims, as she has another super-final swim in the 200 back. Ivey touched in at 2:17.12, six seconds behind leader Dasha Ustinova (2:11.29). Ustinova just made the top 25 times in the world this year earlier at the Russian Nationals, putting up a 2:10.30.
More Prelims Highlights:
- In an all-Cal men’s 200 back super-final, Bryce Mefford leads the way with a 2:02.46. Olympic champion Ryan Murphy (2:03.08) is right behind teammate Daniel Carr (2:02.48). Murphy holds the 7th-fastest time in the world with a 1:56.16 from Knoxville. Andy Song (2:03.99) will join his fellow Bears in the super-final as well.
- Jordan Wilimovsky (3:55.64) and Trenton Julian (3:55.88) finished just two-tenths within each other during prelims of the 400 free. Wilimovsky is right at his Des Moines swims while Julian knocked four seconds off his own PB. Wilimovsky’s PB stands at 3:50.33.
- Erica Sullivan is on her way to winning a distance-double with her 800 free leading time of 8:41.90. Her season-best time of 8:29.02 is the 15th-fastest time in the world this season.
- Michael Chadwick leads the men’s 50 free with a 22.69. Earlier this year, Chadwick went sub-22 in Richmond with a 21.96, which ranks #12 in the world thus far.
- 15-year-old Katie Crom leads the women’s 400 IM with a 4:55.51, three seconds off her personal best of 4:52.84 from Des Moines.
Anyone know why Catie and Ali Deloof are on TE while Gabby remains at Michigan?
I think it might just have to do with formalities with USA Swimming Registration…a lot of time whatever team you are attached with just depends on who/when you submitted your USAS Membership renewal for the next year. So my guess would be that maybe Gabby had done it while she was still UMich.