5 Men To Watch At USA Swimming Nationals

Commentary by Jeff Commings

GREENSBORO – Though many of the top American male swimmers are in Doha this week for the short course world championships, that does not mean the competition at the USA Swimming nationals will be ho-hum. We’ve got an Olympic champion and the fastest man in the 200-yard butterfly on the docket, and that would be enough to get the adrenaline pumping for most swim fans.

Those two will likely provide some fireworks in the short course yards meet in Greensboro, where college swimmers, postgrads and a few high schoolers will mingle for some final racing before hunkering down for tough holiday training. Here are five that will give us a show:

Nathan Adrian

Last May at the U.S. Masters Swimming nationals, Nathan Adrian thought he had tied his American record in the 100 freestyle with a 41.08, but that was proven to be false and the time fixed to 41.13. I’m sure Nathan wants another crack not only at his American record, but at the 41-second barrier. Only Cesar Cielo and Vlad Morozov have gone under the barrier, and it’s still odd that the 100 free Olympic champion has not yet joined them. We probably have a focus on long course swimming to blame for that, but I sense that Adrian will right that wrong this week. Adrian will have the confidence that he has gotten close to his record already this year, and probably was not fully rested for that meet. If Adrian puts in a good rest for nationals, we might see him scare Morozov’s U.S. Open record of 40.76.

Michael Wynalda

Speaking of magical barriers, I think Michael Wynalda wants to see “1:31” next to his name this week in the 200 freestyle. Now that he’s a postgrad training with the elite squad at Club Wolverine, he doesn’t have to worry about NCAAs or the Big Ten conference meet. He can lay it on the line here and see if he can become the ninth person under 1:32. The American record is 1:31.31. Simon Burnett’s Beamonesque U.S. Open record is 1:31.20. Wynalda’s best time is 1:32.14, and he might have to rely only on himself in the final in Greensboro to make it happen. Ohio State’s Michael Disalle might take the race out fast and help pace Wynalda, but might not have the endurance to seal the deal. The field of top swimmers in the 200 freestyle in the United States is extremely crowded at the top, and a dip under 1:32 would give Wynalda the confidence he needs to work toward a spot on the Olympic team.

Dylan Bosch

The U.S. Open record holder in the 200 fly, Dylan Bosch is without peer in the event in short course yards. And he’s just a junior at the University of Michigan. Bosch swam faster than he thought possible at this meet last year, and he might be in a place to surprise himself again. I don’t expect him to lower his U.S. Open record of 1:39.33, but if he can get within a second of it, there’s a strong possibility that 1:38 is in the cards for the NCAA championships. The South African will have to step up his game in the event if he wants to join Chad Le Clos at the world championships next year and at the 2016 Olympics. The 200 fly is one of South Africa’s growing events, with Sebastien Rousseau and Michael Meyer also in the hunt for an international roster spot.

Tim Phillips

A door opened for Tim Phillips two months ago, and he has stepped through it and landed on Team USA’s roster in the 100 fly for next year’s long course world championships. Now, he needs to show his worth before making his world championship debut next summer. Phillips is on the cusp of breaking 45 seconds in the 100 fly with a lifetime best of 45.10, and will likely have Giles Smith to contend with this week in the final. The two excel in the short course pool, but if Phillips wants to show his worth in long course, he will have to get stronger on top of the water. If you’ve seen Tim Phillips on deck, you know that he’s no 98-pound weakling. That strength needs to be coupled with endurance, and after a solid summer of swimming, it appears he’s heading in the right direction.

Mike Alexandrov

Mike Alexandrov is the veteran of the elite crop of American breaststrokers, with more than a decade of elite-level swimming under his belt. But he fell short of landing on any of Team USA’s international rosters for 2015, and that has likely been his training motivation. We saw what happened to Matt Grevers after he missed out on making the 2011 world championship team (hint: reigning Olympic champion), and Grevers’ former teammate at Northwestern could have the same resurgence. This weekend’s performances in the breaststroke events could turn things around for Alexandrov, but he’s got lots of competition in his way.

USA Swimming nationals psych sheet