By SwimSwam on SwimSwam

Courtesy: Mountain West Conference

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.– Nevada’s Wiktoria Samula and Laura Isabel Vazquez Lopez have notched MW Swimming and Diving Peak Player of the Week honors. Samula was named swimmer of the week, while Vazquez Lopez garnered diver of the week accolades.

This marks Samula’s first career weekly honor and Vazquez Lopez’s second.

SWIMMER OF THE WEEK

Wiktoria Samula, Nevada

Sophomore, Lublin, Poland

• Placed atop the podium five different times, winning four individual events and one medley in victories over Fresno State and UC Davis.
• Against the Bulldogs, Samula won the 100 breast with a time of 1:02.05, good for 23rd in the NCAA, and the 200 breast (2:15.84).
• Versus UC Davis, the Poland native took first in the 100 breast (1:02.96) and 200 breast (2:16.89). Samula also swam the second leg of the first-place finishing 200 medley relay (1:43.36).

DIVER OF THE WEEK

Laura Isabel Vazquez Lopez, Nevada

Sophomore, Guadalajara, Mexico

• Helped lead the Wolf Pack to victories over Fresno State and UC Davis, claiming victories in the 3-meter board in both meets and took second on the 1-meter board against UC Davis.
• Tallied a 358.13 against Fresno State and 362.63 against UC Davis on the 3-meter dive, good for first in both meets.
• Posted a second-place finish in the 1-meter dive against UC Davis with a score of 312.75.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Nevada’s Samula, Vazquez Lopez Garner Mountain West Weekly Nods

By SwimSwam on SwimSwam

Courtesy: FGCU Athletics

ATLANTA – Junior Petra Halmai and freshman Reese Wakefield swept the CCSA weekly awards for FGCU swimming & diving, as announced by the league Tuesday afternoon. Halmai (Dombovar, Hungary/Lanczos Komel Secondari Grammar School) was tabbed Swimmer of the Week, while Wakefield (Guelph, Ontario, Canada/Bishop Macdonelle CHS) was named Diver of the Week for the second time this season.

“Congratulations to both Reese and Petra,” head coach Dave Rollins said. “We are off to a great start as a team and to have our athletes recognized by the conference is a fantastic honor. Reese qualifying for zones in only her second meet as an Eagle is tremendous and for Petra to have posted some of the fastest times in the country this early in the season is simply ridiculous. Congratulations to both, this is a very well-deserved honor.”

Both Halmai and Wakefield contributed crucial points for FGCU, as the team downed Vanderbilt Friday night at the FGCU Aquatics Complex by a score of 172-121. The victory marked the team’s first over an SEC opponent in a dual meet and extended the team’s start to the season to a 5-0 run, the best since 2015-16.

Halmai laid down some of the fastest times in the country in the meet against the Commodores, during which she earned three individual first-place finishes and combined for a triumph in the 200-yard medley relay. Her time in the 200 Breast (2:11.36) was just 0.15 seconds off her personal best – which stands as both the CCSA/FGCU record – and ranks fifth in the nation. She swam a 1:01.18 in the 100 Breast, good for 12th in the country.

Immediately after swimming the 100-yard breaststroke, Halmai competed in the 200 Fly and earned yet another top finish for the Green and Blue. At the conclusion of the meet, she swam an exhibition in the 400 IM and dominated the field, posting the top time in the CCSA by a full five seconds.

In just her second meet as an Eagle, Wakefield swept both the 1m and 3m boards. This marks the second time she has achieved such a feat this season, as she took home both titles in her debut during the meet against Georgia Southern/Campbell (Oct. 5). She posted an NCAA Zone score in the 1m dive, tallying up 270.86 points. On the 3m board, she outscored opponents by over 24 points.

Though Wakefield is just two meets into her collegiate career, she has already matched the FGCU freshman record by earning two CCSA Diver of the Week selections. Current junior Megan Wakefield and former Eagle Melissa Novak each received the honor twice during their rookie campaigns.

Fans will have the chance to see Wakefield, Halmai and the rest of Rollins’ squad take on the Houston Cougars (3-0, 2-0 American) in a two-day meet this weekend at the FGCU Aquatics Complex. The teams will face off at 4 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 1 and return to the Nest the following day for an 11:30 a.m. start. On Friday, fans in attendance will have the chance to compete in a Halloween costume contest.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: FGCU’s Halmai, Wakefield Earn CCSA Weekly Honors

By SwimSwam on SwimSwam

Courtesy: Coastal Collegiate Sports Association

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – FAU earns a CCSA Swimmer and Diver of the Week honors sweep, announced Tuesday by the league office. Rateb Hussein was tabbed Swimmer of the Week while teammate Logan Downey earned Diver of the Week.

CCSA Swimmer of the Week
Rateb Hussein | FAU
Freshman | Cairo, Egypt
– Second career CCSA Swimmer of the Week honor; first to win two honors this season
– Brought home three first-place finishes and a school record against Indian River State, who is coming off a NJCAA National Championship
– Recorded two individual wins in the 100 fly (49.66) and 200 fly (1:49.50); set a personal best in the 200 fly
– In the 200 medley relay, his team broke a three-year FAU freshmen record and his 46.21 split in the 400 free relay was the fasest among his teammates

CCSA Diver of the Week
Logan Downey | FAU
Junior | Plantation, Fla.
– First CCSA Swimmer of the Week honor this season; FAU has earned all three diver of the week honors this season
– Brought home two second-place finishes against Indian River State this past weekend
– Recorded a season-best score of 250.12 on the 3-meter dive, finishing just behind the reigning NJCAA National Champion
– Earned a score of 232.72 in the 1-meter dive

Read the full story on SwimSwam: FAU’s Hussein, Downey Sweep CCSA Men’s Honors

By Spencer Penland on SwimSwam

HOUSTON vs SMU (women’s meet)

• Wednesday, October 23rd
• Houston, TX
• Short Course Yards
• Results

TEAM SCORES

1. Houston – 190
2. SMU – 104

The Houston Cougars downed SMU in an in-state matchup on Wednesday, October 23rd. Houston won 11 of 16 events, also swimming the last event exhibition (not for points). Sam Medlin (Houston) was a double event winner, sweeping the distance freestyles. Medlin kicked off her day with a 10:15.44, which was a season best by 14 seconds. Medlin went on to win the 500 free, touching in 5:01.23. That time came in well of Medlin’s season best of 4:53.91, which she swam against Tulane earlier this month. Medlin also provided a 52.24 on the 3rd leg of the Houston A 400 free relay. The relay swam exhibition, but was the fastest in the field. Mykenzie Leehy led the squad off in 52.37, and was followed by Zarena Brown (51.11), Medlin, and Hanna Blewett (51.65) for a final time of 3:27.37.

Zarena Brown had won the 100 free earlier in the meet with a 50.98, a little faster than she split in the relay. Similarly, Leehy was also faster in the individual 100 free, touching in 52.08 for second place. Brown also won the 200 free in 1:49.10, which was her first time under 1:50 this season. Additionally, Brown was victorious in the 50 free, finishing in 23.65. Brown’s 100 and 50 free times were also her best of the season to date.

Houston’s Ionna Sacha was another double event winner, sweeping the backstroeks. Sacha posted a 55.24 in the 100 back, out-pacing teammate Laura Laderoute (55.51). Sacha then swam a 1:58.98 in the 200 back, clearing the field by over 3 seconds.

Other event winners:

• 100 breast: Gaby Jimenez Peon (Houston) – 1:03.59
• 200 breast: Audrey McKinnon (Houston) – 2:18.61
• 100 fly: Erin Trahan (SMU) – 55.44
• 200 fly: Olivia Grossklaus (SMU) – 2:03.40
• 200 IM: Gabi Grobler (SMU) – 2:04.05
• 1 meter diving: Nicole Stambo (SMU) – 282.60
• 3 meter diving: Katie Deininger (Houston) – 304.13

PRESS RELEASE – HOUSTON:

HOUSTON – The University of Houston Swimming & Diving program defeated SMU on Wednesday afternoon at the Campus Recreation & Wellness Center in a 190-104 decision.

Full results can be found HERE. Full scores can be found HERE.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Cougars picked up their second conference dual-meet victory of the season after winning 11 events, including two podium sweeps.
• Zarena Brown, Samantha Medlin and Ioanna Sacha each ranked up multiple first-place finishes.
• Brown won a trio of events, winning the 50 Free (23.65), 100 Free (50.98) and 200 Free (1:49.10).
• Medlin walked away with wins in the 500 Free (5:01.23) and 1000 Free (10:15.44).
• Ioanna Sacha posted top finishes in each of the backstroke events as she won the 100 Back at 55.24 and 200 Back at 1:58.98.
• Gaby Jimenez led the Cougars to a sweep of the 100 Breaststroke as she finished at 1:03.59. Angeliki Mavrantza finished second (1:04.04) and Peyton Kondis third (1:04.08).
• Houston also swept the 200 Breaststroke as Audrey McKinnon led the Cougars at 2:18.61. Kondis finished second at 2:18.92 and Mavrantza finished third at 2:19.59.
• On the boards, Jolie Blodgett led Houston in the 1-meter with a third-place finish. Blodgett racked up 263.40 points. Lauren Burrell took fourth-place with 253.43 points, followed by Katie Deininger with 248.63 points.
• In the 3-meter, Deininger won the event with 304.13 points, followed by Burrell in second-place with 302.03 points.

UP NEXT
Houston will travel to Florida Gulf Coast on Nov. 1-2, before preparing for the Phill Hansel Invitational Nov. 21-23 at the CRWC.

FOLLOW THE COUGARS!
Fans can keep up with the latest in University of Houston Cougar athletics by following us on Facebook (Facebook.com/HoustonAthletics), Twitter (@UHCougars), Instagram (houstoncougars) and YouTube.com (Youtube.com/UHAthletics). In addition, the swimming & diving team has established its own official Facebook (Facebook.com/UHCougarSwim) and Twitter pages (@UHCougarSwim), which provide regular updates on the team and live results during home meets.

PRESS RELEASE – SMU:

HOUSTON (SMU) – The SMU women’s swimming and diving team fell on the road at American Athletic Conference foe Houston Wednesday afternoon.

The Mustangs picked up four individual wins at the event led by swimmers Erin Trahan, Gabi Grobler and Olivia Grossklaus and diver Nicole Stambo.

Trahan and Grossklaus swept butterfly events for SMU, with Trahan taking the 100 distance at 55.44 and Grossklaus clocking in at 2:03.40 in the 200. Grobler closed out individual events with a victory in the 200 IM, covering the distance in 2:04.05.

Trahan was also second in the 50 free, while Grossklaus touched second in the 500.

In her second event as a Mustang, Stambo led the divers with a win on 1 meter and an NCAA Zone score of 282.60. It was the second time the freshman hit the Zone qualifying mark this season, after doing so at the season-opening SMU Classic earlier this month.

All four divers achieved at least one Zone qualifying mark at the event, with Taylor Ohlhauser doing so on 1 meter (267.23) with her runner-up performance and Katie Crown (284.70) and Johanna Holloway (281.33) hitting the mark on 3 meter.

Other notable performances included a second-place finish from Felicia Anderson, Grobler, Trahan and Sam Smith in the opening 200-yard medley relay, as well as runner-up finishes from newcomers Frederica Kizek in the 1,000-yard freestyle and Janelle Gursoy in the 200-yard freestyle.

In the final team totals, Houston outscored the Mustangs, 190-104.

The Mustangs are back in action Friday when they travel across the Metroplex to face TCU. Diving action begins at 11 a.m. with swimming to follow at 1 p.m.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Houston Downs SMU 190-104

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

One of this week’s marquee meets is a battle for Texas supremacy as the #15/#12 Texas A&M Aggies host the #5/#2 Texas Longhorns.

That happens Friday in College Station, and should be one of our top cross-conference battles. On the men’s side, we get to see Aggie standout Shaine Casas take on Texas’s talented fly/back group, led by former NCAA backstroke champ Austin Katz and fly transfer Maxime Rooney.

The rest of our highlighted matchups take place under some heated conference rivalries:

• In the ACC, #13/#6 Louisville hosts Notre Dame, which received ranking votes for both men and women in our season-opening Power Ranks.
• In the SEC, the #8/#13 Georgia Bulldogs head to the #16/#9 Florida Gators, where we should get a great matchup between top young IMer Zoie Hartman (UGA) and Vanessa Pearl (Florida).
• In the Pac-12, both USC and UCLA are making swings through Arizona. #10/#19 USC will face #14/#14 Arizona State on Friday while UCLA faces Arizona. On Saturday, things flip-flop, with UCLA at ArizonaState and #10/#19 USC battling -/#10 Arizona.
• Then there’s the Big Ten, where the #8 Indiana men host #4 Michigan.
• Additionally, Penn State hosts #18/#5 Ohio State, with the ACC’s Virginia Tech also in the mix.

Below is a list of the D1 meets we’ll be covering at SwimSwam this week. If we missed any, please leave them in the comments and we’ll get them added.

By SwimSwam on SwimSwam

Courtesy: Southeastern Conference

Men’s Swimmer of the Week: Alec Connolly, Tennessee Tennessee’s Alec Connolly, a senior from Knoxville, Tenn., won the 100 free (49.94) in Tennessee’s 150.5-149.5 win over No. 11 Louisville. Connolly also swam the anchor legs of the winning 200 medley relay (1:27.07 – 19.44) and 400 free relay (2:57.49 – 43.00). He placed second in the 50 free (20.33) to close out the meet.

Men’s Diver of the Week: Anton Down-Jenkins, South Carolina South Carolina’s Anton Down-Jenkins, a sophomore from Wellington, New Zealand, swept both springboard events against No. 3 N.C. State. Down-Jenkins set a personal best of 379.13 in the 1-meter, topping the rest of the field by 49 points. He scored 375.68 in the 3-meter, 65 points ahead of the runner-up.

Men’s Freshman of the Week: Harry Homans, Georgia Georgia’s Harry Homans, a freshman from Barrington, R.I., earned three individual wins for the Bulldogs in their dual wins over North Carolina and Duke. At Chapel Hill, Homans took first in the 100 back (49.49) and 200 back (1:46.27) for his first collegiate wins. In Durham, he won the 200 back (1:46.80) and placed second in the 400 IM (3:59.62) and third in the 100 back (49.63).

Women’s Swimmer of the Week: Erika Brown, Tennessee Tennessee’s Erika Brown, a senior from Charlotte, N.C., posted three individual wins and was a part of the first-place 200 medley relay in the Lady Vols’ 172.5-127.5 win over No. 13 Louisville. Brown recorded B-cut times in the 100 free (48.86), 100 fly (52.29) and 100 back (53.03). She also swam anchor for the winning relay squad (1:39.41 – 45.68).

Women’s Diver of the Week: Alison Maillard, Auburn Auburn’s Alison Maillard, a senior from Houston, Texas, won both diving events for the second straight meet to score 18 points in Auburn’s win over Arkansas. Maillard scored a 318.15 in the 1-meter and 314.78 in the 3-meter.

Women’s Freshman of the Week: Zoie Hartman, Georgia Georgia’s Zoie Hartman, a freshman from Danville, Calif., collected three individual wins along with a win in the 400 free relay in the Bulldogs’ dual wins over North Carolina and No. 17 Duke. Hartman registered B-cut times to win the 100 breaststroke (1:00.84), the 200 breaststroke (2:12.32) and the 200 IM (1:59.50) at UNC. At Duke, she swam the anchor leg of the first-place 400 free relay (3:20.41 – 50.23) while placing third in the 50 free (23.46) and 100 free (50.49).

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, Auburn Bring Home SEC Weekly Honors

By SwimSwam on SwimSwam

IRVINE, Calif.–  The USA Water Polo Women’s National Team, the defending Olympic champions and top-ranked team in the world, will call DeNunzio Pool and Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey home this December when they host the 2019 USA Water Polo Holiday Cup.

Team USA, winners of the last three FINA World Championships, will welcome Canada, Russia, Italy and the Netherlands for six days of competition this December 16-21. Currently on a 59-game winning streak, the USA Women’s National Team returns to action this December after qualifying for the 2020 Olympic Games this past June followed by gold medals at the FINA World Championship and Pan American Games.

DeNunzio Pool is home to the Princeton University Men’s and Women’s Water Polo Teams. Team USA goalkeeper and 2016 Olympic Gold Medalist Ashleigh Johnson (Miami, FL/Princeton/NYAC) helped the Tigers to two NCAA Tournament appearances in 2013 and 2015 and will be back playing a competitive match at Princeton for the first time since her senior season in 2017.

“I’m really looking forward to being back on campus and to having the opportunity to share my Team USA experience with the people who supported me throughout my time as a student-athlete at Princeton!” said Johnson.

A complete match schedule is available below with FREE admission available for all matches. Team rosters, promotions and live broadcast coverage will be announced in the coming weeks.

2019 USA Water Polo Holiday Cup

• December 16-21 – DeNunzio Pool – Princeton, NJ
• Subject to change – all times Eastern

Monday, December 16
5:30pm – Canada vs Netherlands
7:00pm – USA vs Russia

Tuesday, December 17
5:30pm – Italy vs Russia
7:00pm – USA vs Netherlands

Wednesday, December 18
5:30pm – Italy vs Canada
7:00pm – Netherlands vs Russia

Thursday, December 19
5:30pm – Italy vs Netherlands
7:00pm – USA vs Canada

Friday, December 20
5:30pm – Russia vs Canada
7:00pm – USA vs Italy

Saturday, December 21
10:00am – 4th place vs 3rd place
11:30am – 1st place vs 2nd place

Read the full story on SwimSwam: USA Women’s Water Polo Will Host 2019 Holiday Cup in Princeton, New Jersey

By Lydia Ferrari Kehoe on SwimSwam

Two of South Africa’s most decorated swimmers, Tatjana Schoenmaker and Chad Le Clos, have both been nominated for awards at this year’s South Africa Sports Awards. Minister of Sport and Recreation, Nathi Mthethwa, announced the nominees on October 11th ahead of what will be the 14th annual awards ceremony. 

Schoenmaker is up for both the Sportswoman and Sports Star of the Year awards, alongside netball player Karla Pretorius, footballer Thembi Kgatlana and 800m runner Caster Semenaya. Le Clos has been nominated in the Sportsman of the Year category, which also includes paddler Andrew Birkett and boxer Moruti Mthalane. 

Following such a successful year, Schoenmaker will be trying to continue that momentum in the run up to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. She won a silver medal in the 200m breaststroke at this year’s World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, becoming the first South African woman ever to do so. She also won two gold medals at the 2019 World University Games in the 100m and 200m breaststroke. Speaking to Sport24 earlier this year, she said her aim is “to do great in both [100m and 200m breaststroke] events” at the upcoming Olympics. 

Le Clos is also training for next year’s Olympics with coach James Gibson at the Gloria Sports Facility in Turkey. He first shot to the forefront of swimming at the London 2012 Olympics after a sensational win against Michael Phelps in the 200m butterfly. Throughout his career, Le Clos has collected more than seventeen Commonwealth Games medals, twenty World Championships medals, and a further three Olympic Games medals. 

The Department of Sport and Recreation SA has said that “This year’s edition of the SA Sport Awards is geared towards recognising the ways in which sport has boosted social cohesion and nation building in the democratic South Africa focusing also on the human triumphant spirit”. The winners will be announced at a gala dinner in Durban on November 10th. 

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Chad le Clos And Tatjana Schoenmaker Nominated For South Africa Sports Awards

By Anne Lepesant on SwimSwam

Fitter and Faster Swim Clinics is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.

Trent Frandson from Ankeny, Iowa has announced his intention to swim for the University of California, Berkeley in 2021-22. Frandson is the #13 recruit in the class of 2021 according to our Way Too Early list of top-20 boys. He will join #5 Jack Alexy on the Bears’ roster in the fall of 2021.

“I am honored and excited to announce my verbal commitment to University of California, Berkley to continue my swimming and academic career with an amazing team and coaching staff.  I want to thank my family, coaches and friends for all of the support. GO BEARS

By Anne Lepesant on SwimSwam

Fitter and Faster Swim Clinics is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.

Abby Kapeller of Greenwood, Minnesota has verbally committed to the University of Virginia for 2021-22, joining #6 Reilly Tiltmann in the class of 2025. Kapeller swims for Aquajets Swim Team

“I can’t express how excited I am to announce my verbal commitment to swim and study at the UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA

By Karl Ortegon on SwimSwam

Several new video posts have been uploaded to Shane Tusup‘s YouTube page since our last update, as the coach has taken his swimmers to their first big meets together, the FINA World Cup stops in Budapest and Berlin. This series follows Tusup’s coaching journeys with Italian record-holder Ilaria Cusinato and Hungarian teenager Zsombor Bujdoso, especially with Cusinato’s quest for Olympic glory next year. Since the beginning of their journey, Hungarian swimmers David Foldhazi and Liliana Szilagyi have joined the group.

You can view episodes 13-16 on Tusup’s YouTube page, while we’ve embedded the vlog posts below, too.

In Episode 13, we see some final preparations for the Budapest meet. We learn that this is Tusup’s first time back on the pool deck at a big meet in two years, and we see Bujodoso hang out a bit with American national team-er and vlogger Michael Andrew.

The team travels to Budapest and races in Episode 14. Cusinato clocks a 2:16.16 to place 16th in the 200 IM and 5th in the 400 IM (4:48.64). We also hear a bit from Foldhazi and how he’s feeling so far.

In Episode 15, the group celebrates Cusinato’s 20th birthday (October 5th). We hear from Szilagyi, who says that swimming in Hungary is a lot of tough training without a lot of payoffs, but with Tusup, she feels that it’s going to pay off. A 200 butterflier, Szilagyi is a competitor with not only Katinka Hosszu but a slew of other Hungarian standouts.

We also see their travels to Berlin, for the next FINA World Cup stop, which happened two weeks ago. Tusup runs into some issues with his deck pass, and says that he has heard from the Italian swimming federation that he needs to go to the Hungarian federation for clearance, and vice versa from the Hungarian federation. Cusinato is Italian, while the other three are Hungarian. In Berlin, FINA ultimately denies him deck access for the entire meet despite his ability to get cleared in Budapest.

We see footage in Episode 16 at the Berlin meet, but it isn’t taken by Tusup and his crew, as they’re not allowed on deck. Instead, the athletes take the reins and document the meet, and we learn that Foldhazi and Cusinato seem to be in a relationship.

In Berlin, Bujdoso’s best finish is 13th in the 400 IM (4:39.64). Foldhazi touches 20th in the 100 back (57.39) and 200 back (2:06.82), while Szilagyi places 10th in the 800 free (9:42.30) and 11th in the 200 fly (2:18.85). Cusinato hits best times in the 50 free (26.63), 50 fly (27.64), and 400 free (4:15.54). In the 400 IM, she goes 4:46.11 to beat her Budapest time and take bronze, and she also hits a season-best in the 200 IM (2:15.07).

Finally, Tusup talks about contrasting views of training, sport, and culture between the United States and places like Europe and Asia, saying the latter parts of the world aren’t quite as positive and open-minded to their process.

EPISODE 13

EPISODE 14

EPISODE 15

EPISODE 16

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Dark Horse Series Continues as Tusup Denied Deck Pass for World Cup – Berlin

By Braden Keith on SwimSwam

On Tuesday evening, ESPN featured Rochester Institute of Technology diving coach Cliff Devries on its award-winning E:60 documentary series.

• Watch the episode on Watch ESPN here.

The episode, called “Cliff Diving,” was about Devries’ annual birthday dive off the 3-meter springboard at RIT’s Judson Pool. Devries, who turns 46 on Wednesday, is paralyzed on the right side of his body after having a 6-inch long brain tumor removed from the base of his brain stem 24 years ago.

About 10 years ago, Devries began a birthday dive tradition to take a plunge every year to mark his birthday. A video about his 2017 dive has more than 235 million views on Facebook.

“A diver symbolized the culmination of a lot of work, involves strength, beauty,” he said in the promo. “You’re not going to find a lot of beauty in what I do. It’s a lot of hard work. It’s a lot of emotion that’s all balled up into a little half-second fall into the water.”

Devries, who was a two-time All-American diver in high school, has been coaching at RIT since 1999. He took a 3-year hiatus in the early 2000s to work as an accountant, but returned to coaching in 2005. He is also the founder of Upstate New York Diving, which is now the largest diving program in the state. He is a 6-time Upper New York State Athletic Conference Diving Coach of the Year and was the first diving coach awarded the Richard E. Steadman Award by the CSCAA.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: RIT Diving Coach Cliff Devries Featured on ESPN’s E:60 Documentary Series

By Karl Ortegon on SwimSwam

Fitter and Faster Swim Clinics is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.

UCLA has picked up a verbal commitment from Canadian breaststroker/IMer Bailey Herbert. She is a member of Canada’s junior national team.

“I am beyond excited to announce my verbal commitment to swim and study at UCLA!! Thank you to my family, coaches, and friends for always supporting me. I can’t wait to join the Bruin family! #gobruins 

By SwimSwam Partner Content on SwimSwam

Courtesy: FORM Swim Goggles

Less than three months ago, the FORM Swim Goggles entered the swimming scene, becoming the first pair of goggles with a smart display that shows your metrics while you swim.

Now, the goggles have now been adopted by Canada’s reigning champs, the UBC Thunderbirds, with an eye toward helping the team win their fourth straight men’s and women’s national championship titles. The T-Birds have entered a two-year partnership with FORM.

“The partnership with FORM is very exciting for us,” said T-Birds assistant coach Derrick Schoof. “The FORM goggles are a really effective and high-quality training tool that our team can use on a daily basis. The FORM goggles are already enhancing our training program, and I am confident they will lead to improved results in competition.”

FORM’s goggles have a see-through smart display that’s built into one of the eye cups. Thanks to that display, swimmers can keep an eye on metrics like split times, stroke rate, stroke count, distance per stroke, and pace per 50 during their sets. FORM has also joined forces with Polar to bring support for real-time heart rate to the goggles later this year.

Two-time Olympian Scott Dickens, who joined FORM as the company’s Director of Strategic Partnerships earlier this year, was at UBC giving the ‘Birds their goggles. Each team member got a pair and was shown how to configure the goggles and customize the smart display to show the metrics they want to see in their training.

Check out the FORM website for more info and for coach inquiries. You can also follow FORM on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

^{Courtesy: FORM Swim Goggles, a SwimSwam partner.} 

Read the full story on SwimSwam: UBC Thunderbirds Adopt FORM Swim Goggles for Training

By SwimSwam Partner Content on SwimSwam

Swimmingly®is all about celebrating and promoting the grass roots level of our sport. Summer swimming is where most of us got our start in the sport and we want to highlight some incredible summer leagues, teams, and swimmers who had an amazing season!

With the 2019 Summer Season wrapped up, Swimmingly® is announcing the TOP LEAGUES, TEAMS, and SWIMMERS of the summer. *NEW* This week, we are including the TOP 10 Swimmingly®Summer TEAMS of 2019!

*This information is from teams that use the Swimmingly® app & software to run their meets and capture results. These results are based on the % of best times by swimmer throughout the 2019 season.*

TOP 10 SUMMER TEAMS of 2019:

1. Lake Forest Swim Team

• League – Louisville Swim Association
• Where: Louisville, KY
• # of Teams: 18
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

2. 7 Hills

• League – Nashville Swim League
• Where: Nashville, TN
• # of Teams: 20
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

3. Longpoint

• League – Coastal Carolina Aquatic Association
• Where: Charleston, SC
• # of Teams: 20
• Swimmingly® users since 2015

4. Bella Casa

• League – Tarheel Swimming Association
• Where: Raleigh, NC
• # of Teams: 88
• Swimmingly® users since 2015

5. Life Time Centennial Piranhas

• League – Mountain-Hi Swim League
• Where: Denver, CO
• # of Teams: 24
• Swimmingly® users since 2018

6. Brentwood Barracudas

• League – Williamson County Swim League
• Where: Brentwood, TN
• # of Teams: 20
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

7. Chapel Hill Country Club

• League – Chapel Hill Summer Swim League
• Where: Chapel Hill, NC
• # of Teams: 8
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

8. Emerald Bay

• League – Orange County Swim League
• Where: Orange County, CA
• # of Teams: 6
• Swimmingly® users since 2014

9. Waterford Waverunners

• League – Man O’ War Swim Conference
• Where: Lexington, KY
• # of Teams: 9
• Swimmingly® users since 2018

10. River Glen

• League – Suburban Swim League
• Where: Indianapolis, IN
• # of Teams: 7
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

TOP 3 SUMMER LEAGUES of 2019:

1. Louisville Swim Association

• Where: Louisville, KY
• # of Teams: 18
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

Louisville Swim Association swimmers celebrating an awesome season at their championship meet. – courtesy Swimmingly

2. Tarheel Swimming Association

• Where: Raleigh, NC
• # of Teams: 88
• Swimmingly® users since 2014

TIE FOR 3rd:

3. Jefferson Shelby Swim Council

• Where: Birmingham, AL
• # of Teams: 22
• Swimmingly® users since 2017

3. Orange County Swim League

• Where: Orange County, CA
• # of Teams: 6
• Swimmingly® users since 2014

Honorable Mention:

• Nashville Swim League
• Where: Nashville, TN
• # of Teams: 20
• Swimmingly® users since 2016

COMING SOON: Swimmingly® TOP SUMMER SWIMMERS of 2019

WHY SWIMMINGLY®?

Summer swimming is only possible because of the incredible parent volunteers of the thousands of leagues and teams across the country. You, the parents, are one of the big reasons that so many swimmers fall in love with swimming. Although a season can be tough for some, those hot summer pool decks, long swim meets, nachos and cotton candy, (believe it or not) is the cultivation of that passion we see in swimmers today! From learning how meets run, to your first DQ, to team camaraderie, this is the place where it all begins…

Hundreds of Summer Leagues and teams turn to Swimmingly® when they are looking for ways to:

1. Reduce the number of volunteers
2. Speed up and simplify their swim meets
3. Eliminate wet, timer & DQ slips
4. Educate parents and volunteers on the pool deck

If you don’t use touchpads to run your meets,Swimmingly® is for YOU.

Summer Swim Teams, High School Swim Teams, Year-Round Swim Teams, Developmental Programs (Year-Round), and more!

Interested in being part of the Swimmingly® community? Learn more and sign up to enjoy an Olympic Year Discount!

(Discount Expires 01/01/20)

Email: Team@swimmingly.app

Call: (866) 377-7946

What is Swimmingly?

If you’ve ever run a summer swim meet, you know that the problem is all the paper! Wet time cards, missing DQ slips, runners, and stressed volunteers! If you believe in shorter swim meets, fewer volunteers, and less paper, Swimmingly is for YOU! Swimmingly is an app and software tailor-made for summer & recreational swim families. It’s now easy for any new swim parent to volunteer at swim meets, know how their kids are doing, when they swim, scores of the meets and when they can get the heck out of there! It’s time for everyone to enjoy summer swimming a little bit more! Learn more here at Swimmingly.app.

Courtesy of Swimmingly, a SwimSwam partner. 

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Swimmingly Announces Top 10 Summer Teams of 2019

By Tomas Rodriguez on SwimSwam

According to The New York Times, Russian state hackers attacked the computer networks of at least 16 national and international sports and anti-doping organizations. The Times cited Microsoft as confirming the attacks were committed by state hackers. The attacks are the latest in a series of brazen Russian cyber attacks on foreign politicians, sporting officials, and anti-doping regulators.

The hacks were timed as the World Anti-Doping Agency deals with the continued fallout from the 2015 Russian doping scandal, which caused many of its Olympic athletes to face a ban from the Games, while the country was excluded from taking part at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

Russia was reinstated as compliant earlier in February of this year, although they may face yet another Games ban after WADA officials discovered that Russian athletes’ failed drug tests had been erased from a critical data set.

According to Microsoft, which helps protect some of the agencies from cyberattacks, the Russian attacks began Sept. 16, just days before WADA announced Russia might face further punishment for inconsistencies in its drug testing data. While Microsoft did not name victims of the cyberattacks, it did confirm that some of the Russian attacks were successful.

The company traced the attacks to a group of notorious Russian state-backed hackers known by the alias Fancy Bear. The group is one of two Russian government groups responsible for the 2016 hack of the Democratic National Committee, as well as previous cyberattacks on sports and antidoping officials between 2014 and 2018.

The attacks resulted in the 2018 indictment of seven Russian intelligence officers accused of hacking sports and anti-doping officials, as well as spreading personal emails belonging to antidoping officials and the private medical records of Western athletes. The hacks occurred amid mounting criticism of Russia for its yearslong, state-sponsored doping program.

The latest Russian cyberattacks could factor into WADA’s decision whether or not to punish Russia for possibly manipulating data at the center of the 2015 doping scandal. Russia’s promise to turn over the data set was key to WADA’s decision to lift a ban on Russia’s anti-doping agency in late 2018.

That determination ended a three-year suspension of Russia’s anti-doping agency that had been imposed after the discovery of one of the most brazen cheating schemes in history, one that corrupted a number of major international sporting events, including several Olympics. As a result of the scandal, Russian athletes were barred from competing under their country’s flag at the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

In recent months, a WADA investigative team discovered inconsistencies between a data set it received from a whistle-blower in 2017 and data submitted by Russian officials last January. Failed drug tests had been deleted from the Russian data set. Last month, WADA officials gave the Russians three weeks to explain the discrepancies. WADA has yet to determine whether it will accept Russia’s explanations.

Yuri Ganus, the head of the Russian anti-doping agency, said earlier this month that Russia doctored “thousands” of samples, and he says the data could have been manipulated to protect the reputations of star athletes who now hold key government or sport administration positions. Ganus also said that manipulation of the data could only be done by people with access to some of Russia’s most powerful institutions.

Ganus was the official who last December publicly called on Vladimir Putin to turn over data from the Moscow lab out of concern that Russian athletes would be suspended from international competition if the deadline were missed.

Russia is now in a race against time with less than a year to go until the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Russians Reportedly Hack World Anti-Doping Agency Computers

By Coleman Hodges on SwimSwam

FORM is swim goggles with a smart display. FORM is a sports technology company with a simple mission: to break down the barriers between what swimming is and what it could be.

The ISL has brought a parody galore into swimming, and one aspect at the forefront of that is teams made up of athletes who train all over the world. But when you are competing in meets on back-to-back weekends in different continents with those teams, here’s my question: How do you get everyone on the same page, to put up the best times they can for both meets?

SwimSwam got to document this transition during Group B’s travels to their first 2 ISL Matches (Lewisville, Texas and Budapest, Hungary). On the Wednesday morning before the match in Budapest, the New York Breakers had arrived in Budapest the day before, and the team was in full swing with their meet preparation. There was a myriad of different workouts going on, and we did our best to film what we could of each of them.

While many were getting in some quality speed work, such as Michael Andrew, Lia Neal, Ali & Gabby DeLoof, and Marcelo Chierighini, others were getting into some higher yardage, doing what they could to “keeps the K’s up” or swim the travel out, like Mack Darragh, Emily Escobedo, Jack McLoughlin, and Clyde Lewis.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Practice + Pancakes: How the New York Breakers Prepare for ISL Competition

By Torrey Hart on SwimSwam

We’re back with swimming’s TopTenTweets presented by Arena, where we round up the best of the swimming Twitterverse.

Featured Instagram Post of the Week:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

When you see the photographer across the pool

By SwimSwam Partner Content on SwimSwam

Courtesy: FINIS, a Swim Swam partner. 

Episode 8: Dryland Training (Faster Swimming For Strength Athletes)

Join us with this video series, hosted by Colleen Fotsch– former NCAA Championship Swimmer, and now Professional CrossFit Athlete.

In this series, she’ll be diving into the importance of swimming for strength athletes, and how she incorporates swimming into her training. Follow along as she tackles everything from introduction to swimming as well as helpful tips, workouts, and gear to become a more efficient swimmer.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Swimming for Strength Athletes Part 8 – Dryland Training

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

FINA WORLD CUP SERIES – KAZAN

• Friday, November 1st – Sunday, November 3rd
• Kazan Aquatics Palace, Kazan, Russia
• LCM
• Entries
• Results

We’re entering the first stop of the final cluster of the 2019 FINA World Cup Series, with swimmers headed to Kazan, Russia November 1st-3rd. The final stop wraps up in Doha, Qatar next weekend, as just 2 cities comprised clusters #2 and #3 on the 2019 circuit.

We learned just this week that next year’s edition of the World Cup Series will contain just 6 stops in total, with the 2020 Olympic Games host city of Tokyo dropping out of the 2020 season.

Australia’s Cate Campbell won the cluster #2 bonus, while the Netherlands’ Arno Kamminga topped the men’s field across Budapest and Berlin.

In fact, C1 holds a 3-point advantage in the overall FINA World Cup Series standings over Hungarian mainstay Katinka Hosszu. The pair are well ahead of 3rd place swimmer at the moment, Michelle Coleman of Sweden, who has reaped 135 points thus far.

At this stop in Kazan, C1 is entered in just the women’s 50m/100m free and 50m fly events, while Hosszu is entered in 13 events total, although only the best three results (per meet points) will count towards the ranking/scoring.

As for the men’s series standings thus far, it appears to be Russian Vlad Morozov‘s money to lose, as the 27-year-old is head and shoulders ahead of the next-closest swimmer of Danas Rapsys of Lithuania. American Michael Andrew is still maintaining his spot as the 3rd place swimmer at the moment and the 20-year-old represents the sole swimmer from his nation to be competing this weekend here in Kazan.

Notable competitors per nation entered in Kazan:

Australia – Cate Campbell, Bronte Campbell, Kaylee McKeown, Jake Packard, Emily Seebohm

Austria – Lena Grabowski, Caroline Pilhatsch

Brazil – Jhennifer Conceicao, Felipe Lima, Etiene Medeiros

Denmark – Jeanette Ottesen

France – Naele Portecop, Mewen Tomac

Germany – Philip Heintz

Hungary – David Foldhazi, Katinka Hosszu, Zsuzsanna Jakabos, Sebastian Sabo

Italy – Ilaria Cusinato, Luca Dotto

Japan – Yasuhiro Koseki, Kosuke Matsui

Korea – An Sehyeon, Jaekwon Moon

Lithuania – Danas Rapsys, Andrius Sidlauskas

Netherlands – Kira Toussaint, Jesse Puts, Arno Kamminga

Poland – Wojciech Wojdak

Romania – Daniel Martin

Russia – Daniil Labutin, Daniil Pakhomov, Vitalina Simonova, Anton Chupkov, Daria Chikunova, Vladislav Grinev, Vladimir Morozov, Aleksandra Sabitova, Grigory Tarasevich, Daria K. Ustinova, Daria S. Ustinova, Daria Vaskina, Alexander Zhigalov

Sweden- Michelle Coleman

The United States – Michael Andrew

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Cate Campbell & Vlad Morozov Lead The Way Into FINA World Cup Kazan