ISL Match Nine, Day Two Notes: Energy Standard Well-Positioned to Chase Repeat

Photo Courtesy: Mine Kasapoglu/ISL

ISL Match Nine, Day Two Notes: Energy Standard Well-Positioned to Chase Repeat

Look back to last season, the inaugural year of the International Swimming League, and Energy Standard was an overwhelming force. The Paris-based club immediately asserted its dominance, and eventually capped the campaign with a league championship.

There has been less hoopla surrounding Energy Standard during this second season of the ISL, which has been unfolding in a bubble format in Budapest. An opening-match loss to the Cali Condors, paced by Caeleb Dressel, removed favorite status from James Gibson’s club. But as Energy Standard closed out its regular season on Tuesday, it delivered a statement that a championship repeat is very much within reach.

Paced by Skins victories from captains Sarah Sjostrom (50 freestyle) and Chad Le Clos (50 butterfly), Energy Standard claimed a 145.5-point triumph over the Tokyo Frog Kings, with Team Iron and the Toronto Titans following in third and fourth place. And in its lopsided win, Energy Standard displayed the potent combination of top-tier talent and depth that is needed to take home the team title.

Because it will go through the regular season undefeated, the Cali Condors will be pegged as the favorite to celebrate a championship. All the ingredients are there, most notably Dressel and Lilly King. But Energy Standard is going to be a problem, and an argument can be made that it might be even stronger than last season – despite it not owning an unblemished record.

Not only is Energy continuing to rely on the likes of Sjostrom, Le Clos and Kliment Kolesnikov, among others, it added power in the offseason with the additions of Siobhan Haughey and Benedetta Pilato. Meanwhile, Florent Manaudou, who sat out the regular-season finale, looks even better than he did last year.

There is no doubt that Energy Standard will get through the semifinals over the weekend, and once that step is made, the team – riding obvious momentum – should feel good about its chances to go back-to-back.

Moving On

While Energy Standard easily advanced to the ISL playoffs, the other three teams that competed in the ninth match of the season – Tokyo Frog Kings, Toronto Titans and Team Iron – will also move on to this weekend’s semifinals. Of the 10 franchises in the league, only the D.C. Trident and Aqua Centurions will not take part in the postseason.

Let’s See the Veteran

When Toronto registered a victory in the 400 freestyle relay on the first day of Match Nine, the Titans were anchored by veteran Olympic medalist Brent Hayden. On the comeback trail, the Canadian recorded the best split of his team, going 46-low. But Hayden was not one of Toronto’s representatives when the 100 freestyle was held on Day Two, as Blake Pieroni and Michael Chadwick handled those duties.

Barring a surprise performance, Toronto’s season is going to come to an end during the ISL semifinals. So, why not give Hayden an individual swim in the 100 free? Fans would love to see the “old man” compete in an individual event against some of the world’s premier sprinters.

Swim of the Year?

When Nicholas Santos touched the wall in 21.78 in the 50 butterfly, the Team Iron competitor found himself just .03 off his world record from 2018. The performance also enabled Santos to Jackpot six of his foes to the tune of 30 points, as only runnerup Takeshi Kawamoto managed to keep his points.

The 40-year-old Santos was the focus of a recent Swimming World feature and has clearly learned how to defy age. Said Santos in an interview for the Swimming World feature: ““I have a lot contact with strength coaches across the world and try to practice different training methods, so I usually try to put that into my training. I think it’s working for me.”

Strength in Medley

The Tokyo Frog Kings wrapped up a strong showing in the individual medley events on Tuesday. While Kosuke Hagino and Yui Ohashi doubled in the 200 IM and 400 IM, Runa Imai checked in with a victory in the 100 medley. The only medley discipline not won by a Japanese swimmer was the men’s 100 IM, which went to Team Iron’s Marco Orsi.

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