USA Swimming Grand Prix, Charlotte: Michael Phelps Returns – Video Included

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina, May 15. THE second day of long course meter action at the Charlotte UltraSwim featured the return of Michael Phelps after serving a three-month code of conduct suspension earlier this year.

After the first night of distance freestyle swimming at the stop on the USA Swimming Grand Prix series, all eyes were on Phelps as he qualified third in the men's 200 free. Representing North Baltimore, Phelps clocked a 1:50.46 to finish behind Tennessee's Davis Tarwater (1:50.21) and Club Wolverine's Peter Vanderkaay (1:50.26). Phelps will not debut his new freestyle stroke, however, until the sprint events later in the meet.

Club Wolverine will dominate the finale in the event as Charlie Houchin (1:50.98), Dan Madwed (1:51.03), Tyler Clary (1:51.36) and Matt Patton (1:51.40) all also made the championship heat. Longhorn's Aaron Peirsol touched sixth in 1:51.11 to also have a shot at the title.

In somewhat of a surprise, Ryan Lochte missed the A final with a 12th-seeded 1:52.85 representing Daytona Beach.

Phelps followed in the men's 100 fly, content with another third-place seed, by clocking a 53.41. Tonight will tell the tale of whether Phelps has lost much since his epic 2008 Beijing Olympic meet. Tyler McGill (52.93) and Corney Swanepoel (53.13) qualified first and second.

Peirsol (53.51), Club Wolverine's Chris Brady (53.53), Tarwater (53.64), Club Wolverine's Alon Mandel (54.32) and Club Natation's Thomas Kindler (54.63) also garnered final spots.

The fans in attendance will get to see another head-to-head battle between North Baltimore's Katie Hoff and Minot's Dagny Knutson in the women's 200 free as the two qualified first and second in 2:00.77 and 2:01.18. Overall Grand Prix points leader Mary DeScenza, qualified third in 2:01.56 for Athens Bulldog.

FLA Aquatics' Lauren Driscoll (2:02.01), Team Ontario's Lindsay Seemann (2:02.38), Tennessee's Christine Magnuson (2:02.89), Swim Florida's Erika Erndl (2:02.96) and Team Ontario's Hilary Bell (2:02.98) also made finals.

An international field will be represented in the finales of both the men's and women's 100 breast. Suburban's Corrie Clark topped the field with a 1:09.62, while Tennessee's Martina Moravcikova (1:11.04) finished second. Abby Macgregor (1:11.27) took third unattached, while Swim Wales' Lowri Tynan (1:11.47), Oakville's Julie Calvert (1:11.65), Team Ontario's Amanda Reason (1:11.77), Tennessee's Alexandra Barsanti (1:11.95) and Team Ontario's Bell (1:12.06) all grabbed big final slots.

The men's event featured SwimMAC's Mark Gangloff placing first in 1:01.96, while Longhorn's Eric Shanteau took second in 1:02.53. Brazil's Thiago Pereira (1:02.91), Swim Wales' Robert Holderness (1:03.47), Team Pittsburgh's Warren Barnes (1:04.01), Team Ontario's Bryn Jones (1:04.45), Club Natation's Mathieu Bois (1:04.54) and Team Ontario's Marco Monaco (1:05.06) each picked up championship heat lanes.

Notably, U.S. Masters Swimming Executive Director Rob Butcher tied for 14th to advance to the consolation heat with a 1:05.98 while representing SwimMAC.

The women's 100 fly final could feature an exciting finish with DeScenza (59.55), North Baltimore's Felicia Lee (59.59) and Magnuson (59.96) all qualifying under a minute in prelims.

Bluefish's Alex Forrester (1:01.07), North Baltimore's Christie Raleigh (1:01.16), Virginia's Lauren Smart (1:01.93) and Club Natation's Victoria Poon (1:01.94) each earned a spot in the finale. FLA Aquatics' Chelsea Britt and Express' Adrienne Bicek set themselves up for a swimoff with matching eighth-place 1:01.98s.

Knutson will have another set of big guns to try to take down in the women's 400 IM. Knutson qualified second in 4:47.55 behind Elizabeth Beisel of Bluefish (4:47.46). Julia Smit clocked a third-place 4:49.58 coming off an incredible NCAA season. Seemann (4:50.33), Marlins of Raleigh's Gabi Shishkoff (4:53.66), Club Wolverine's Emily Brunemann (4:55.45), SwimMAC's Justin Mueller (4:55.52) and North Baltimore's Willa Wang (4:55.87) took the rest of the big final transfer spots.

With Phelps vowing to never swim a men's 400 IM again after the Beijing Olympics, the door is wide open for some up-and-coming stars to assume his role as top gun in the event for the U.S. Clary is one of the top talents on that replacement list. He clocked a 4:24.91 for the top qualifying time. Club Wolverine teammate Alex Vanderkaay qualified second in 4:25.48, while Brazil's Thiago Pereira took third in 4:25.73.

Poseidon's Tyler Harris (4:27.17), Club Wolverine's Jared Miller (4:27.61), Team Ontario's Andrew Ford (4:29.77), Pine Crest's CJ Nuess (4:30.58) and Adam Meyer (4:31.17) swimming unattached will also compete for the title in finals.

Universal Sports Coverage of Michael Phelps' 200 Free Preliminary Swim

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