Streamlined News: Swimvitational Begins; Olympic 10K Qualifier on Tap; Australia “Bad Boys” Apologize

PHOENIX, Arizona, June 8. THE water is in the pool at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Nebraska, and swimmers from across the country are there now testing out the venue at the Mutual of Omaha Swimvitational this weekend. Prelims started this morning with some very conservative swimming. As far as we could tell, just a couple of new swimmers made Olympic Trials times, and the top swimmers didn't put forth much effort in qualifying for finals.

Also this weekend will be the all-important qualifying swim for the Olympic 10K event in Setubal, Portugal. Fifteen men and 15 women will be picked to race in the London Olympics, with the top nine automatically going … though the sole stipulation is that only one swimmer from each country is eligible from this race to qualify for the 10K. Ashley Twichell and Haley Anderson are setting up to get that one American spot, and a few other notable names in the women's race will include South African Paralympian Natalie du Toit and Hungary's Eva Risztov, who was a 2004 Olympic finalist in the 400 IM and now focuses solely on open water racing.

The men's race in Portugal is more packed with well-known swimmers, making that race a highlight of the weekend. With Great Britain already guaranteed a spot in the men's Olympic race, David Davies and Daniel Fogg will be fighting for that spot. Davies was the silver medalist in the inaugural 10K in Beijing, while Fogg has qualified for the Olympics already in the 1500. Olympic champion Ous Mellouli is trying his hand at open water, and he will be challenged by open water legend Petar Stoychev, as well as rising stars Richard Weinberger of Canada and Chad Ho of South Africa.

Ten men and 10 women already booked their place in the 10K Olympic swim by placing in the top 10 at the world championships last summer. Alex Meyer became the first American Olympian for 2012 by finishing fourth at worlds last year. No other American spot is open in the men's race, which is why no men from the U.S. are racing in Portugal.

In the seaside town of Riccione, Italy, the world Masters swimming championships will begin Sunday. More than 9,000 participants will race in the pool, and we're bound to see a few world records come from the meet at the end of seven days of racing featuring some of the best Masters swimmers in the world.

Nick D'Arcy and Kenrick Monk have apologized publicly for any offense the photo of them holding guns caused around the world. D'Arcy and Monk were photographed in an American gun shop during their stay here recently, prompting Swimming Australia to demand the photographs be removed immediately, as they violated the organization's social media policy. Swimming Australia is still considering what actions to take now that the athletes are back in Australia.

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