International Swimming League Finale in Las Vegas: Day One Live Recap

By Anne Lepesant on SwimSwam

2019 International Swimming League Finale

• Friday, December 20 – Saturday, December 21, 2019
• 1:00 – 3:00 PM Local Time (U.S. Pacific Time)
• Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino – Las Vegas, NV
• Short Course Meters (SCM) format
• Top 4 qualifying franchises: Energy Standard, London Roar, LA Current, Cali Condors
• Live Stream (ESPN3)
• Day 1 complete results

Lane Assignments:

• Energy Standard – Lanes 1/2
• Cali Condors – Lanes 3/4
• LA Current – Lanes 5/6
• London Roar – Lanes 7/8

SwimSwam’s Nick Pecoraro provides live color commentary on each race in italics, below:

We are live from Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, where a few hundred fans are gathered to cheer on the finale. It looks like the smallest crowd of the season in the reduced-to-3,800 seat arena.

Women’s 100 fly

1. Kelsi Dahlia– CAC – 55.35
2. Anastasiya Shkurdai– ENS – 56.09
3. Emma McKeon– LON – 56.10
4. Sarah Sjostrom -ENS – 56.35
5. Farida Osman – LAC – 56.46
6. Marie Wattel – LON – 56.52
7. Natalie Hinds – CAC – 57.01
8. Kendyl Stewart – LAC – 57.04

Kelsi Dahlia touched first to win her first ISL event for the Cali Condors. Out first in 25.75, she was followed by Energy Standard’s Sarah Sjostrom and Anastasiya Shkurdai of Energy Standard. Dahlia came home in a quick 20.6 to get the win with 55.35 ahead of Skhurdai (56.09) and Emma McKeon of London Roar (56.10). Sjostrom touched fourth.

The times swum for this event were not as fast as previously. Energy Standard did unfortunately get the short-end of the stick with favorite Sjostrom swimming her slowest swim of the season (fastest time – 55.65). Luckily, Energy teammate Shkurdai’s second-place finish gave Energy a respectable 12 points. Kelsi Dahlia, on the other hand, did not disappoint for the Condors, yet teammate Hinds took 7th. The Roar had a quiet start with McKeon’s 3rd-place finish by 0.01s, however they scored more points than LA Currents with their 5-8 finish.

Men’s 100 fly

1. Caeleb Dressel– CAC – 49.10
2. Chad le Clos– ENS – 49.15
3. Tom Shields– LAC – 49.52
4. Jack Conger – LAC – 50.08
5. Vini Lanza – LON – 50.21
6. James Guy – LON – 50.56
7. Jan Switkowski – CAC – 50.68
8. Kregor Zirk – ENS – 50.76

Caeleb Dressel of Cali Condors handed Chad le Clos from Energy Standard his first 100 fly defeat of the ISL season. Le Clos was out first, turning in 22.82 at the 50 wall. He led through the 75 and looked as if he would remain unbeaten in the event, but Dressel put his head down over the final 10 meters and surged to a narrow win with 49.10 to le Clos’s 49.15. Tom Shields and Jack Conger of LA Current were third and fourth.

It was another iconic showdown against Energy’s le Clos and Cali Condor Dressel. Thanks to Dahlia’s momentum, Dressel was able to pull off a win over le Clos by just 0.05s. Yet it was LA Current’s Shields and Conger who had a strong showing with their 3-4 finish, worth 11 points.

Women’s 50 breast

1.    Lilly King– CAC – 28.90
2.    Molly Hannis– CAC – 29.05
3.    Imogen Clark– ENS – 29.61
4.    Annie Lazor – LAC – 29.90
5.    Jhennifer Conceicao – LAC – 30.09
6.    Siobhan-Marie O’Connor – LON – 30.21
7.    Jess Hansen – LON – 30.23
8.    Kayla Sanchez – ENS – 30.61

Lilly King of Cali Condors picks up her tenth win with a 28.90 in the 50 breast. The Condors earned 16 points with a 1-2 finish from King and Molly Hannis (29.05). Imogen Clark from Energy Standard was third in 29.61.

Lilly King is now 10-for-10 individually in the ISL, and Condor teammate Molly Hannis showed just how strong their team’s breaststroke squad really is with another 1-2 finish. Imogen Clark of Energy Standard accelerated at the finish to grab third, yet freestyler Kayla Sanchez unfortunately managed 8th-place.

Men’s 50 breast

1. Nic Fink– CAC – 25.75
2. Adam Peaty– LON – 25.88
3. Ilya Shymanovich– ENS – 25.92
4. Felipe Lima – LAC – 26.10
5. Kirill Prigoda – LON – 26.14
6. Will Licon – LAC – 26.59
7. Caeleb Dressel– CAC – 26.89
8. Anton Chupkov – ENS – 26.91

The Cali Condors made it 4-for-4 for the day as Nic Fink upset Adam Peaty in the 50 breast with 25.75. London Roar’s Peaty took second in 25.88, coming to the wall just ahead of Energy Standard’s IlyaShymanovich. Fink led from the outset and Peaty’s last-minute surge fell just short.

Condors are now 4-for-4 with event wins, yet they seem to resemble a surface-level winning streak with their #2 swimmers fading to the bottom 4 places. In this race, Condor Nic Fink pulled a thrilling upset to earn his first ISL win against London Roar and Olympic champ Adam Peaty. While Condor Dressel took 7th, the Condors and the Roar both scored 11 points in the event. Energy Standard did take a major hit as breaststroke-stud Chupkov could only manage 8th (yet Shymanovich took 3rd).

Women’s 400 IM

1. Melanie Margalis– CAC – 4:24.15
2. Sydney Pickrem– LON – 4:26.55
3. Ella Eastin– LAC – 4:27.84
4. Mireia Belmonte – LON – 4:28.60
5. Fantine Lesaffre – 4:33.00
6. Mary-Sophie Harvey – ENS – 4:33.79
7. Bailey Andison – LAC – 4:34.24
8. Hali Flickinger – CAC – 4:35.51

LA Current’s Ella Eastin was out the quickly, turning in 1:00.89 at the fly-to-back wall. She built a two body-length lead after the backstroke, turning in 2:08.13. London Roar’s Sydney Pickrem and Cali Condors’ Melanie Margalis were both 2 seconds back, battling for second place. Margalis took over the lead on breaststroke, moving ahead of Eastin by 1.5 seconds. Margalis continued to increase her lead and wound up with her fourth consecutive win in the event, this time with an American Record of 4:24.15. Pickrem pulled even with Eastin on the breaststroke then outsplit her by more than a second over the final 50 meters to come in second.

The trend continues for the Condors, now 5-for-5 wins thanks to Melanie Margalis, yet are displaying a worrisome depth level as Hali Flickinger finished last. Because of this, the London Roar outscored the Condors by 2 points with Pickrem/Belmonte going 2-4.

Updated team scores:

1. Cali Condors – 59
2. London Roar – 44
3. Energy Standard / LA Current 41 (tie)

Men’s 400 IM

1. Daiya Seto– ENS – 3:54.81
2. Duncan Scott– LON – 3:59.81
3. Max Litchfield– ENS – 4:01.31
4. Andrew Seliskar – LAC – 4:06.01
5. Chase Kalisz – LAC – 4:06.27
6. Anton Ipsen – CAC – 4:09.09
7. Mark Szarnek – CAC – 4:10.52
8. Finlay Knox – LON – 4:13.23

Daiya Seto broke the World Record in the 400 IM with 3:54.81, giving Energy Standard its first win of the day. The old WR, set by Ryan Lochte, had stood for 9 years. Seto also took down the U.S. Open Record (3:59.52) with his swim. ENS picked up more points with a third-place finish from Max Litchfield. Seto went out hard from the outset and was up by over 2 seconds on the field after the butterfly leg. He was followed by Litchfield and DuncanScott of London Roar throughout. The trio had several body lengths’ of clear water behind them.

This last event was a crucial success for Energy Standard and the London Roar. Daiya Seto‘s late addition paid off well with his world record and first ISL win, as well as Energy teammate Litchfield snagging 3rd behind him for a 15-point contribution. Duncan Scott also gave the London Roar a hopeful swing thanks to his second-place finish. The LA Current still remain quiet, yet are not too far from the pack, which is a very safe strategy to have early on.

Updated team scores:

1. Cali Condors – 64
2. Energy Standard – 56
3. London Roar – 52
4. LA Current – 50

Women’s 4×100 free

1. ENS 2 – 3:26.48
2. LON 1 – 3:26.71
3. CAC 1 – 3:27.65
4. ENS 1 – 3:31.35
5. LAC 1 – 3:31.87
6. LON 2 – 3:32.27
7. CAC 2 – 3:34.73
8. LAC 2 – 3:38.78

Penny Oleksiak (52.89), Sarah Sjostrom (51.41), Kayla Sanchez (51.56), and Femke Heemskerk (50.62) hold off a strong anchor from London Roar’s Cate Campbell (50.56) to give Energy Standard the win in the women’s 400 free relay with 3:26.48. The quartet finished under the current World Record but they would need to be of the same nationality to be able to break it, per FINA rules.

Energy Standard has carried the momentum off of Seto’s world record and took their second win of the finale. For the first time this meet, Energy Standard now holds the current lead, yet it’s by a meager 4 points over the Cali Condors. After Energy’s powerful relays, courtesy of “relay master” James Gibson, the London Roar had a solid showing (2-6 finish) and now trail the second-place Condors by just 8 points. The LA Current are now in a slightly more worrisome position after finishing 5-8 in the relay, sitting in 4th by 12 points.

Men’s 200 back

1. Ryan Murphy– LAC – 1:48.81
2. Evgeny Rylov– ENS – 1:48.91
3. Mitch Larkin – CAC – 1:49.15
4. Radoslaw Kawecki – CAC – 1:49.52
5. Christian Diener – LON – 1:53.62
6. Tom Shields– LAC – 1:56.24
7. Max Litchfield– ENS – 1:57.54
8. Finlay Knox – LON – 2:02.07

Ryan Murphy came from behind to win the 200 back in a U.S. Open Record time of 1:48.81. Cali Condors’ Mitch Larkin was first out of the gates, leading at the 50, 100, and 150 walls. He was followed by Radoslaw Kawecki of the Condors for the first 100 and by Energy Standard’s Evgeny Rylov and Kawecki at the 150. Murphy, who had been in 4th place throughout the entire race, upped his tempo and powered past the leaders one by one, until he touched out Rylov by .10 for the win.

Women’s 200 back

1. Kathleen Baker– LAC – 2:01.22
2. Minna Atherton– LON – 2:01.59
3. Kylie Masse– CAC – 2:01.88
4. Emily Seebohm – ENS – 2:02.23
5. Amy Bilquist – LAC – 2:03.25
6. Hali Flickinger – CAC – 2:05.52
7. Mary-Sophie Harvey – ENS – 2:09.70
8. Boglarka Kapas – LON – 2:12.67

In an eerily similar performance to the one we just saw, Kathleen Baker won the 200 back for LA Current with a strong second half, depriving Minna Atherton of her fourth 200 back title for the season. It was London Roar’s Atherton who led throughout the first half of the race, although Baker was never far behind. Baker’s third 50 made the difference; she outsplit Atherton by .6 and held on to win by .37 with 2:01.22.