USA Swimming Nationals: Thoughts from the Deck (Day Three)

By John Lohn

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana, August 2. LET the countdown begin. There's a very good chance that by this evening, Klete Keller will no longer be the American-record holder in the 400-meter freestyle. That possibility is not a knock on Keller, a four-time Olympic medalist. It's just that Michael Phelps is contesting the eight-lap freestyle and has a good shot at dipping below the current U.S. standard of 3:44.11.

One night after posting the third-fastest time in the history of the 200 backstroke, a 1:54.65 that seriously scared Ryan Lochte's global standard of 1:54.32, Phelps maneuvered through the preliminaries of the 400 free in 3:50.31. That time was good for the third slot in the championship final. Phelps' career best is a 3:46.73 from 2003. It was an American record at the time.

With this competition serving as Phelps' – and many others – final major tuneup before next year's Olympic Trials in Omaha and the Olympic Games in Beijing, the eight-time Olympic medalist decided to change up his program. Out went the 400 individual medley and 200 butterfly, a pair of his world-record events. In went the 200 breaststroke, the 400 free and both backstroke disciplines. He's also racing the 200 individual medley, 200 free and 100 butterfly.

Each time Phelps enters the water, he has the ability to deliver a special performance. That fact was on display in his 200 backstroke and should be visible tonight as he chases the American mark in the 400 free. Should he crack Keller's record, Phelps will hold five individual American records – both medley events, the 200 fly, 200 free and 400 free. Of course, the medley events, 200 fly and 200 free are also world records.

For perspective, while Keller's American record is a 3:44-low, the world record sits at 3:40.08, courtesy of Ian Thorpe from 2002. Thorpe has the nine-fastest times in history, eight of which sit below 3:42. The 10th-fastest time ever recorded belongs to the other Australian, Grant Hackett, who went 3:42.51 in 2001. Only Thorpe, Hackett, Italy's Massi Rosolino (3:43.40) and Aussie Kieren Perkins (3:43.80) have broken the 3:44 barrier.

**Most people walked away from the second night of the meet talking about Michael Phelps' effort in the 200 backstroke and Dara Torres' victory in the 100 freestyle, at the ripe age of 40. But, one of the most impressive performances was supplied by David Walters, who vaulted from eighth at the midpoint to win the 100 freestyle in 48.96.

Walters, a charge of Eddie Reese at the University of Texas, was a member of the United States squad at the World Championships in Melbourne earlier this year. There, he earned a gold medal after contributing a prelim leg on the 800 free relay. Now, Walters is a threat to be a member of the 400 free relay in international competition. It will be interesting to see how fast Walters will go in the 200 freestyle on Friday, but it figures that a quick time is in the works.

**One of the best races tonight should be the women's 400 freestyle, when Kate Ziegler and Katie Hoff tangle for eight laps. Earlier this week, Ziegler and Hoff battled it out in the 800 freestyle, with Ziegler finishing just ahead of her teenage counterpart. The women are two of the driving forces for USA Swimming on the female side.

Swimming in the 12th of 13 prelim heats, Hoff locked up the No. 1 seed for the final with a mark of 4:07.75. Ziegler was close behind in 4:07.77 in the last heat. Ziegler (4:05.44) and Hoff (4:05.65) rank second and third, respectively, in American history and could make a run at Janet Evans' national standard in the final. Evans' effort of 4:03.85 from the Seoul Olympics has stood since 1988. France's Laure Manaudou holds the world record at 4:02.13 and has the three-fastest times in history.

**The comfort level in the Indiana University Natatorium has improved since the opening day of the competition. The chlorine odor has subsided slightly and the temperature is more manageable than the initial day. The staff at The Nat has taken steps to improve the conditions, including the placement of exhaust fans.

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