Tuesday, February 28, 2023
Top Talents Set for 2023 TYR Pro Swim Series Fort Lauderdale
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – More than 430 swimmers are set to compete this week at the 2023 TYR Pro Swim Series Fort Lauderdale, scheduled for March 1 - 4 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center.
Headlining the psych sheet are Olympic champions Katie Ledecky (Bethesda, Md./Nation’s Capital Swim Club/Gator Swim Club) and Bobby Finke (Clearwater, Fla./Gator Swim Club), swimming in their club’s home state. They are among the 30 U.S. National Team members entered to compete at the meet.
Even more Sunshine State talent will be out in force with Olympic medalists Ryan Murphy (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla./California Aquatics), Natalie Hinds (Midland, Texas/Gator Swim Club) and Kieran Smith (Ridgefield, Conn./Ridgefield Aquatic Club/University of Florida) also slated to compete.
The TYR Pro Swim Series Fort Lauderdale marks the competition’s second stop in 2023, following the series meet in Knoxville, Tennessee in January. The four-part competition brings back the 50m events for the first time since 2019.
Finals on Wednesday and Saturday, along with all prelim sessions, will be streamed on www.usaswimming.org/watch. Prelims take place Thursday through Saturday beginning at 9 a.m. ET, while nightly finals kick off Wednesday at 5 p.m. ET followed by a 6 p.m. ET start time for Thursday-Saturday sessions.
Before racing kicks off, here are five things to look forward to watching in Fort Lauderdale:
The World Comes to Fort Lauderdale
More than 100 athletes from around the world will compete in Fort Lauderdale, including Olympic gold medalists Summer McIntosh of Canada, Siobhan Haughey of Hong Kong and Ahmed Ayoub Hafnaoui of Tunisia.
Backstroke Stalwarts
Look for some of the fiercest competition in the backstroke coming from the American contingent with Murphy, his training partner Hunter Armstrong (Dover, Ohio/California Aquatics), as well as World Championship medalists Justin Ress (Cary, N.C./Mission Viejo Nadadores) and Shaine Casas (McAllen, Texas/Longhorn Aquatics) slated to race.
Same Stroke, Different Distance
Olympic gold and silver medalists Chase Kalisz (Baltimore, Md./Sun Devil Swimming) and Jay Litherland (Athens, Ga./Dynamo Swim Club) will swim the men’s 200m IM, rather than the 400m IM. They’re just a few of the athletes taking on other distances, including Ledecky in the women’s 100m and 200m freestyle, which she won at the TYR Pro Swim Series Knoxville.
Stacked Women’s Freestyle Field
The top-seeded times in the women’s 100m freestyle are owned by a veritable who’s who of freestylers, including Ledecky, Abbey Weitzeil (Santa Clarita, Calif./California Aquatics), TYR Pro Swim Series Knoxville winner Erika Brown (Modesto, Fla./Tennessee Aquatics), Hinds, Olivia Smoliga (Glenview, Ill./Sun Devil Swimming), Simone Manuel (Sugar Land, Texas/Alto Swim Club) and Haughey.
Youth Going The Distance
In the women’s 1500m freestyle, only three of the 16 athletes are age 20 or older. Only four athletes of the 18 in the women’s 800m free are 20 or older. The teen trio from Sandpipers of Nevada – Katie Grimes (Las Vegas, Nev.), Bella Sims (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Claire Weinstein (White Plains, N.Y.) – are slated to swim the 1500m, with Weinstein also competing in the 800m.
Keep up with all the latest USA Swimming news by following @usaswimming on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Headlining the psych sheet are Olympic champions Katie Ledecky (Bethesda, Md./Nation’s Capital Swim Club/Gator Swim Club) and Bobby Finke (Clearwater, Fla./Gator Swim Club), swimming in their club’s home state. They are among the 30 U.S. National Team members entered to compete at the meet.
Even more Sunshine State talent will be out in force with Olympic medalists Ryan Murphy (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla./California Aquatics), Natalie Hinds (Midland, Texas/Gator Swim Club) and Kieran Smith (Ridgefield, Conn./Ridgefield Aquatic Club/University of Florida) also slated to compete.
The TYR Pro Swim Series Fort Lauderdale marks the competition’s second stop in 2023, following the series meet in Knoxville, Tennessee in January. The four-part competition brings back the 50m events for the first time since 2019.
Finals on Wednesday and Saturday, along with all prelim sessions, will be streamed on www.usaswimming.org/watch. Prelims take place Thursday through Saturday beginning at 9 a.m. ET, while nightly finals kick off Wednesday at 5 p.m. ET followed by a 6 p.m. ET start time for Thursday-Saturday sessions.
Before racing kicks off, here are five things to look forward to watching in Fort Lauderdale:
The World Comes to Fort Lauderdale
More than 100 athletes from around the world will compete in Fort Lauderdale, including Olympic gold medalists Summer McIntosh of Canada, Siobhan Haughey of Hong Kong and Ahmed Ayoub Hafnaoui of Tunisia.
Backstroke Stalwarts
Look for some of the fiercest competition in the backstroke coming from the American contingent with Murphy, his training partner Hunter Armstrong (Dover, Ohio/California Aquatics), as well as World Championship medalists Justin Ress (Cary, N.C./Mission Viejo Nadadores) and Shaine Casas (McAllen, Texas/Longhorn Aquatics) slated to race.
Same Stroke, Different Distance
Olympic gold and silver medalists Chase Kalisz (Baltimore, Md./Sun Devil Swimming) and Jay Litherland (Athens, Ga./Dynamo Swim Club) will swim the men’s 200m IM, rather than the 400m IM. They’re just a few of the athletes taking on other distances, including Ledecky in the women’s 100m and 200m freestyle, which she won at the TYR Pro Swim Series Knoxville.
Stacked Women’s Freestyle Field
The top-seeded times in the women’s 100m freestyle are owned by a veritable who’s who of freestylers, including Ledecky, Abbey Weitzeil (Santa Clarita, Calif./California Aquatics), TYR Pro Swim Series Knoxville winner Erika Brown (Modesto, Fla./Tennessee Aquatics), Hinds, Olivia Smoliga (Glenview, Ill./Sun Devil Swimming), Simone Manuel (Sugar Land, Texas/Alto Swim Club) and Haughey.
Youth Going The Distance
In the women’s 1500m freestyle, only three of the 16 athletes are age 20 or older. Only four athletes of the 18 in the women’s 800m free are 20 or older. The teen trio from Sandpipers of Nevada – Katie Grimes (Las Vegas, Nev.), Bella Sims (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Claire Weinstein (White Plains, N.Y.) – are slated to swim the 1500m, with Weinstein also competing in the 800m.
Keep up with all the latest USA Swimming news by following @usaswimming on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.