5 Buzzworthy Swimming Headlines On The Week That Was

With the international championship racing season fully underway, the top swimming headlines for The Week That Was highlights some of the top performances in the pool, as well as a major announcement about an American star’s competition plans.

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The Week That Was #5: Team USA cleans up in the pool at World University Games

The United States returned to the top of the medal tally in swimming at the World University Games, winning 34 total medals. Fifteen of those were gold, including two individual wins each by Shannon Vreeland and Josh Prenot. Japan continued its tradition of great performances at WUGs with 21 total medals. It’s the highest medal count in swimming for the United States at the World University Games, and it was one of the fastest meets on record. Though no men’s meet records were broken, Russia’s Evgeny Kopolov scored high on the world rankings with wins in the 100 and 200 butterfly events. Prenot’s gold medal in the 200 IM was shared with defending champion Justin James of Australia, while Henrique Martins of Brazil also scored two golds in the 50 fly and 100 free. A few of the American swimmers will refocus and prepare for the world championships for relay duty, or in Rachel Bootsma’s case, the 50 backstroke.

The Week That Was #4: USA sweeps 10K gold at Pan American Games

The United States couldn’t have wished for a much better performance from the open water swimmers to open the Pan American Games in Toronto. The men opened up competition with a 1-2 sweep by the Americans, as Chip Peterson and David Heron separated themselves from the field early and had no competition on their way to gold and silver. For Peterson, it was a medal upgrade for him after finishing second to the late Fran Crippen in the 2007 Pan Ams. The women’s race had a much different outcome, as officials needed to review video of the finish to determine the medal placings. It was American Eva Fabian who captured the gold medal over Venezuela’s Paola Perez Sierra and Ecuador’s Samantha Salinas. The three finished within a tenth of each other in a thrilling finish. It was Fabian’s first international gold medal in the 10K, and the first major medal of any kind for Sierra and Salinas.

The Week That Was #3: Jeanette Ottesen returns to the pool two weeks after road rage incident

Denmark’s Jeanette Ottesen swam the 50 butterfly at the Danish nationals last week, marking her return to competition about two weeks after she and boyfriend Marco Loughran were assaulted in an apparent road rage altercation. Ottesen had suffered the least amount of damage, needing care for a broken finger. She showed that she’s still on track to defend her world championship title in the 50 fly with a 25.68. As for Loughran, he tied for first in the 50 back at the Danish nationals and posted a 55.97 in the 100 back prelims. Loughran did not make Great Britain’s world championship team, so he can focus on getting healthy and training for the 2016 Olympic Trials.

The Week That Was #2: Katie Hoff has surgery, will be out for remainder of summer season

Katie Hoff was on the right track to swimming well at the U.S. nationals next month to mark what could have been a return to the USA Swimming national team. But ongoing issues with blood clots and an enlarged thymic gland have forced her sit out the rest of the long course season. Hoff had surgery to remove the troubled gland, and said “doctors hope the removal will also allow for normal blood flow to return and help dissolve the blood clots.” Hoff is looking to return to the Olympics after competing in the 2004 and 2008 Games. Bad luck with food poisoning derailed her chances of making the 2012 team, and after making the move to Miami recently, she decided to get back into competition. She had been performing well, including some fine swims in the 200 IM and 200 free at the Arena Pro Swim Series meet in Mesa.

The Week That Was #1: Ryan Lochte tests new underwater kicking technique

Ryan Lochte is one of the greatest underwater kickers in the history of swimming, and he showed off a new skill over the weekend at the USA Swimming sectional meet in Georgia. Lochte performed his underwater dolphin kicks on his back when he pushed off for the freestyle leg of the 200 IM, then tried to win the 200 free with the same technique. Lochte had no peer in the 200 IM, winning with a smooth 2:00.00, but Matias Koski got the better of him in the 200 free, winning by a couple of tenths. Lochte said Coach David Marsh came up with the idea a week ago, and Lochte believes kicking on his back is much faster than on his side or stomach. He is hoping to refine it in time for the world championships in three weeks. He’ll have plenty of opportunity to use his new talent, as he’s racing the 200 free and 200 IM in Russia.