The Psych Sheet

Colorado Swimmers Show off in Front of the Cameras

If you haven’t checked out the streaming video from the Speedo Champions Series Western Region Sectional meet on Swimnetwork.com, I strongly recommend you run to your computer and pull it up. You’ll want to witness all those great swims being posted by Colorado swimmers. On the women’s side, our Centennial State swimmers continue to dominate. Tonight, individually Missy Franklin took home two wins -- the 100M Freestyle and in the 200M Backstroke where she smashed Bonnie Brandon’s meet record from a couple of years ago. In both events, the second-place finisher was also from Colorado – teammate Caroline Piehl in the free and Evergreen’s Lexie Malazdrewicz in the backstroke, who also qualified for the Open with her swim. STARS Christine Wixted swam to a first-place finish in the 200M Breaststroke also with an Open time while Kathryn Johnson of North Jeffco finished second and likewise qualified for the Open.

On the men’s side, Jared Markham scored a victory in the 200M Backstroke.

While you’re at your computer checking results, be sure to head over to Swimmingworldmagazine.com and cast your vote for Missy Franklin as the top female high school swimmer of the 2009-2010 season. Just look to the bottom, right corner of the home page. Voting closes Friday, and Missy is neck-in-neck with Dagny Knutson of North Dakota.

Almost Like Being There in Oregon

Swimnetwork.com is providing live streaming coverage of the 2010 Speedo Champions Series Western Region Sectionals, which kicks off this afternoon in Mt. Hood with the Men’s and Women’s 800M Free. I’m not sure if they are covering every heat of every event, but I’m sure hoping so given we have so many of Colorado’s top swimmers participating.

Mount Hood Aquatics is also posting real-time results on its site. If the long course version is anything like the short-course championships held in March in Seattle, it should be pretty exciting. Colorado made its mark at that meet with Missy Franklin of STARS nabbing the women’s high point award and Jared Markham of Greenwood Tiger Sharks taking home the grand prize on the men’s side. Both are participating this week, but for each of them along with some of the state’s other elite swimmers, this meet is just a warm up to two weeks of competition in Irvine, Calif., host for both the 2010 ConocoPhillips National Championships Aug. 3-7 and the 2010 Speedo Junior National Championships Aug. 9-13.

Bottom line, it should be an exciting three weeks of swimming coming up as we get ready to bid adieu to the long course season.

Two Colorado Swimmers Tapped for Elite Team

Two Colorado swimmers have been selected to compete in the 2010 U.S. Youth Olympic Games in Singapore this August. Congratulations to Steve Schmuhl of Boulder Swimming and Jordan Mattern of Colorado Stars. 

The two were named late last week by USA Swimming to this highly selective team of only eight competitors. According to USA Swimming, the selection was made based on a variety of factors. As mandated by the Youth Olympic Games, every female swimmer had to have been born between 1993 and 1994 while the male swimmers' birth date has to fall in either 1992 or 1993. Each athlete also had to achieve a FINA Youth Olympic Games “A” time standard at a FINA approved competition. The four highest-ranking males and females meeting those criteria were nominated to the team.

Additionally they could not be a member of the 2009-2010 National Youth Team nor participate in the 2010 Junior Pan Pacific Championships or the 2010 Mutual of Omaha Pan Pacific Championships, both of which are also scheduled for August.

Schmuhl and Mattern's selection is a testament not only to their incredible strength as individuals, but also swimming in Colorado, which is representing one-fourth of the team. The two will travel to Singapore from August 14-26 with the swimming competition running Aug. 15-20.

Colorado Swimmers Keep Making Their Mark

WOW! What an amazing week of swimming, and the racing isn’t over yet. Last week I spent three days at my final (as a swim mom) Colorado 14& Under State Championships , where the swimmers just keep getting faster and faster.

Now I’m in Federal Way, Wash., at the Speedo Western Sectional Championships where Colorado swimmers truly shine and impress, and frankly that’s a lot of fun. It’s one thing to astound the home crowd, but quite fun to have folks in the bleachers utter in amazement at the likes of Colorado STARS Missy Franklin, 14, and the legions of other Colorado swimmers leading the pack. 

Last night was particularly exciting as Franklin and Jared Markham, 16, of Greenwood Tiger Sharks broke a total of three National Age Group records. Now, it’s great to set a meet record, get a Junior cut or even National’s cut, but to be the FASTEST person to ever swim your race at your age, that’s downright mind blowing.

Franklin broke two of her own records – the 13-14 100Y Free with a time of 47.94 – and the 13-14 200Y Backstroke with a 1:51.07, reportedly the third fastest time swam by any US woman this year!

Markham, meanwhile, smashed the 15-16 200Y Backstroke record of 1:44.82 held by Kip Darmody of North Carolina with a swim of 1:43.66.

And there’s still three full days of competition left here so expect more incredible races, and possibly another few NAGs from Franklin. Looming on the horizon is Dara Torres’ 13-14 50Y Free record of 22.44 set in 1982. Franklin’s seed time is a 22.49. There’s also Katie Hoff’s 13-14 200Y IM time of 1:57.76 Franklin goes in with a 1:58.17.

Who knows? That’s what makes swimming so much fun. On any given day, anyone can have an extraordinary race, and that’s true whether you’re setting a new NAG record or just posting your own personal best.

Hats off to some awe-inspiring swims, and a happy birthday to the top swimmer in my book -- my daughter who turns 15 today.

 

 

High School State Meet Lives Up to Expectations and Then Some

Last year when I attended the Girls 5A High School State Championships strictly as a spectator, I couldn’t believe the energy. It was definitely the most exciting swim meet I had been to and even more electric, in some ways, than the 2008 Olympic Trials.

This year, however, was a whole new level of excitement as I made the transition to high school swim mom. Now my daughter was part of a high school team.

Make no mistake. There’s a huge difference between representing your club team and competing for your high school. Swimming really is a very individual sport. When it comes to racing, other than relays, the results are squarely on your shoulders. You either perform to par, or you don’t. It’s not a teammate that has a bad start, sloppy turn or poor finish.

But swimming for your high school team truly transforms this individual sport into a team endeavor, and no where is that more evident than at the state championship meet. Each swimmer and the school they represent are announced, which means you may dive in as Jane Doe swimming the 100Y Freestyle, but it’s not Jane Doe who finished first as much as ABC High School who took the race.

It’s also when swimming really becomes a spectator sport. The stands were filled to capacity.
To the left of us sat the huge section of Regis Jesuit High School fans, nearly all in red and enthusiastically waving their rally towels. To the right was the loud Cherry Creek High School cheering section of parents, students and friends. In between were blocks of various smaller schools, all as vociferous as they could manage.

Before the competition got underway, several teams down on deck led cheers while their supporters from the stands chimed in.

Then, of course, there was the competition itself -- incredible swims and outrageous races. Closest overall race of the evening went to the 100Y Breaststroke consulation heat where the difference between all eight swimmers was just .73!

To be honest, I wasn’t sure how fast the meet would be this year without the full-body high-tech suits, but as I weekly scanned the top swim results, it became clear that the girls were laying down the times. So I wasn’t that surprised to see the records eclipsed. However, I didn’t think it would be ALL the records but two.

Given that none of the individual events were won by a senior, and the freshman class behind Franklin is extremely strong, I’m expecting this speedy streak to continue for at least the next few years. Congrats to everyone on a wonderful state meet.

Here are all the results from yesterday’s finals, including diving, where it should be noted, the state record was not broken.

Women 200Y Medley Relay

1. Cherry Creek, 1:41.88 (previous record 1:43.75 set 2009)
2. Regis Jesuit, 1:43.29
3. Rampart, 1:48.50
4. Fairview, 1:48.61
5. Heritage, 1:49.49
6. Arapahoe, 1:50.07
7. Monarch, 1:51.85
8. Boulder, 1:52.2
9. Littleton, 1:53.54
10. Chaparral, 1:54.79
11. Mountain Vista, 1:54.91
12. Grandview, 1:55.48
13. *Loveland, 1:55.74
14. *Doherty, 1:55.74
15. Smoky Hill, 1:55.8
16.  Air Academy, 1:57.79

Women 200Y Freestyle

1. Jordan Mattern,  Jr. Cherry Creek, 1:48.82 (previous record 1:49.25 set Friday)
2. Hillary Thomas, Jr. Regis Jesuit, 1:50.85
3. Anna Labozan, Jr., Monarch, 1:52.45
4. Abigail Houck, Fr., Fairview, 1:54.55
5. McKenna Newsum-Schoenberg, Jr, Cherry Creek, 1:55.39
6. Kristen Haeger, So., Ralston Valley, 1:55.49
7. Megan Grier, Fr., Regis Jesuit, 1:55.68
8. Shelly Patton, So., Heritage, 1:56.99
9. Elizabeth Anderson, So., Fairview, 1:56.30
10. Hannah Cox, Sr., Dakota Ridge, 1:56.42
11. Julie Anderson, Sr., Fairview, 1:56.48
12. Maggie Burkhardt, So., Denver East, 1:56.49
13. Meghan Varner, Sr., Boulder, 1:58.07
14. Rachel Crino, So., Cherry Creek, 1:58.55
15. Emily Mayo, Fr., Arapahoe, 1:58.80
16. Alison Bischoff, So., Chaparral, 1:59.56

Women 200Y IM

1. Bonnie Brandon, So., Cherry Creek, 2:02.09 (previous record 2:03.87)
2. Christine Wixted, Sr., Cherry Creek, 2:02.91
3. Caroline Piehl, Jr., Smoky Hill, 2:03.71
4. Kyrene Clarke, Sr., Rampart, 2:08.50
5. Mary Scraggs, So., Fairview, 2:10.43
6. Lauren Stoeckle, So., Regis Jesuit, 2:11.23
7. Alex Todd, Jr., Regis Jesuit, 2:11.37
8. Cayla Wood, Sr., Grandview, 2:11.
9. Lauren Rigg, Sr., Fairview, 2:12.99
10. Makenna Wilson, Fr., Chaparral, 2:12.78
11. Caroline Patterson, Jr., Fairview, 2:13.72
12. Whitney Dougherty, Sr., Monarch, 2:13.80
13. Sydney Pair, Jr., Fairview, 2:13.91
14. Elizabeth Oster, Jr., Cherry Creek, 2:14.01
15. Miranda Reetz, Fr., Arapahoe, 2:14.02
16. Sarah James, Fr., Doherty, 2:14.62

Women 50Y Freestyle

1. Missy Franklin, Fr., Regis Jesuit, 22.49 (previous record 22.70 set on Friday)
2. Jenna Gregoire, Sr., Rampart, 23.86
3. Patricia Nelson, Sr., Fort Collins, 24.01
4. Andrea Slouka, Sr., Heritage, 24.44
5. Siobhan Hengemuhle, Jr., Boulder, 24.52
6. Laura Kollar, Sr., Fort Collins, 24.64
7. Gretchen Cohen, Sr., Cherry Creek, 24.72
8. Kylie Rathbone, Sr., 24.80
9. *Elaine Powell, Fr., Cherry Creek, 24.8
10. *Delaney Lanker, Fr., Regis Jesuit, 24.83
11. Emily Scraggs, Sr., Fairview, 24.89
12. Fiona Kane, So., Cherry Creek, 25.08
13. Kianna Lee, Fr., Grandview, 25.10
14. Gabby Smith, Jr., Rocky Mountain, 25.11
15. Lacey Smith, Fr., Fairview, 25.13
16. Elysia Erickson, So., Smoky Hill, 25.29

Women 1 Meter Diving

1. Michal Bower, Fr., Loveland, 489.15
2. Beth Ambrozic, Sr., Arapahoe, 442.35
3. Max Thorn, Sr. Loveland, 430.45
4. Melissa Bollig, Sr. Douglas County, 422.10
5. Breannna Hemming, Jr., Ponderosa, 416.60
6. Lizzy Linsmayer, Sr., Denver East, 410.20
7. Raleigh Williams, Sr. Ralston Valley, 409.90
8. Mady Ingmire, So., Thunder Ridge, 406.25
9. Jessica Heap, Sr., Grandview, 405:90
10. Chanley, Burge, So., Loveland, 398.45
11. Paige Gaydos, Sr., Smoky Hill, 379.50
12. Dani Howe, Sr., Arapahoe, 373.45
13. Casey Nelson, Senior, Cherry Creek, 347.10
14. Demetria Longo, Fr., Grandview, 330.50
15. Jayme Owens, So., Mountain Range, 324.15
16. Aubrie Weiner, Sr., Cherry Creek, 317.05

Women 100Y Butterfly

1. Kelly Naze, So., Cherry Creek 54.25 (previous record 54.44 set on Friday)
2. Alex Todd, Jr., Regis Jesuit, 56.61
3. Delaney Lanker, Fr., Regis Jesuit, 58.09
4. Miranda Morton, Jr., Regis Jesuit, 58.35
5. Yana Garvey, Sr., Mountain Vista, 58.39
6. Ashely Horodyski, So, Columbine, 58.58
7. Hannah Chase, Jr., Regis Jesuit, 58.63
8. McKenna Newsum-Schoenberg, Jr., Cherry Creek, 58.69
9. Maggie Burkhardt, So., Denver East, 59.62
10. Abby Dorfman, Jr., Cherry Creek, 59.63
11. Lauren Rigg, Sr., Fairview, 59.70
12. Jordan Matthews, Sr., Loveland, 1:00.03
13. Sara Nash, Fr., Legacy, 1:00.44
14. Cayla Wood, Sr., Grandview, 1:00.75
15. Mary Scraggs, So., Fairview, 1:00.83
16. Breanna Hemming, Jr. Ponderosa, 1:01.24

Women 100Y Freestyle

1. Jordan Mattern, Jr. Cherry Creek, 51.08
2. Jenna Gregoire, Sr., Rampart, 51.13
3. Caroline Piehl, Jr., Smoky Hill, 51.21
4. Hillary Thomas, Jr., Regis Jesuit, 51.71
5. Anna Labozan, Jr., Monarch, 52.35
6. Andrea Slouka, Sr., Heritage, 52.46
7. Patricia Nelson, Sr., Fort Collins, 53.18
8. Taylor DeBever, Sr., Regis Jesuit, 53.44
9. Emily Scraggs, Sr., Fairview, 53.91
10. Siobhan Hengemuhle, Jr., Boulder, 53.93
11. Megan Grier, Fr., Regis Jesuit, 53.99
12. Fiona Kane, So., Cherry Creek, 54.23
13. Lacey Smith, Fr., Fairview, 54.51
14. Hannah Cox, Sr., Dakota Ridge, 54.60
15. Emily Mayo, Fr., Arapahoe, 54.61
16. Kianna Lee, Fr., Grandview, 54.67

Women 500Y Freestyle

1. Bonnie Brandon, So., Cherry Creek, 4:51.56 (previous record 4:53.47 set in 2007)
2. Abigail Houck, Fr. Fairview, 5:03.86
3. Katie Naze, Sr., Cherry Creek, 5:06.23
4. Julie Anderson, Sr., Fairview, 5:07.03
5. Elizabeth Anderson, So., Fairview, 5:08.55
6. Jaclyn Best, Sr., Boulder, 5:13.70
7. Kristen Haeger, So., Ralston Valley, 5:15.49
8. Ruthie Pappas, Sr., Ralson Valley, 5:17.77
9. Katherine Glassner, Sr., 5:12.99
10. Sydney Pair, Jr., Fairview, 5:13.86
11. Savannah Rose, Fr., Arapahoe, 5:14.03
12. Paula Stoddard, So., Mountain Vista, 5:18.70
13. Barbara Barocio, Fr., Gateway, 5:18.91
14. Bridget Louis, So., Arapahoe, 5:19.25
15. Abby Dorfman, Jr., Cherry Creek, 5:19.66
16. Briana Purkapile, Sr., Chaparral, 5:21.88

Women 200Y Freestyle Relay

1. Cherry Creek, 1:37.17
2. Regis Jesuit, 1:38.01
3. Smoky Hill, 1:39.30
4. Rampart, 1:39.60
5. Heritage, 1:39.76
6. Fairview, 1:40.14
7. Arapahoe, 1:42.14
8. Fort Collins, 1:43.1
9. Chatfield Senior, 1:41.84
10. Littleton, 1:42.73
11. Ralston Valley, 1:43.06
12. Monarch, 1:43.47
13. Boulder, 1:43.66
14. *Ponderosa, 1:43.68
15. *Rocky Mountain 1:43.68
16. Coronado 1:46.61

Women 100Y Backstroke

1. Missy Franklin, Fr., Regis Jesuit, 53.16 (previous record of 53.43 set on Friday)
2. Shelly Patton, So., Heritage, 56.48
3. Yana Garvey, Sr., Mountain Vista, 57.34
4. Sarah James, Fr., Doherty, 57.80
5. Gretchen Cohen, Sr., Cherry Creek, 58.35
6. Caroline Patterson, Jr. Fairview, 58.41
7. Makenna Wilson, Fr., Chaparral, 58.62
8. Katie Naze, Sr., Cherry Creek, 58.80
9. Sara Nash, Fr., Legacy, 58.94
10. Laura Kollar, Sr., Fort Collins, 59.16
11. Rachel Crino, So., Cherry Creek, 59.40
12. Ailey Ruger, Sr. Boulder, 59.75
13. Kassy Brisch, So., Heritage, 1:00.22
14. Elizabeth Oster, Jr., Cherry Creek, 1:00.41
15. Melissa Tillman, Jr. Monarch, 1:01.77
16. Taylor DeBever, Sr., 1:01.86

Women 100Y Breaststroke

1. Kelly Naze, So., Cherry Creek, 1:02.47 (previous record set on Friday)
2. Christine Wixted, Sr., Cherry Creek, 1:03.15
3. Lauren Stoeckle, So., Regis Jesuit, 1:06.12
4. Kyrene Clarke, Sr., Rampart, 1:06.29
5. Janaye Monica, Fr., Fairview, 1:06.40
6. Kourtney Fosse, So, Fairview, 1:06.69
7. Kylie Rathbone, Sr., Lakewood, 1:07.04
8. Megan Perron, Sr., Arapahoe, 1:07.09
9. Hannah Bower, So., Boulder, 1:09.14
10. Amanda Sanders, Fr., Monarch, 1:09.32
11. Whitney Dougherty, Sr., Mondarch, 1:09.34
12. Meagan Smith, Jr., Regis Jesuit, 1:09.53
13. Jackie Macke, So., Regis Jesuit, 1:09.55
14. Erin Hayes, So., Highlands Ranch, 1:09.62
15. Kim Utter, Sr., Littleton, 1:09.64
16. Jordan Matthews, Sr., Loveland, 1:09.87

Women 400Y Freestyle Relay

1. Cherry Creek, 3:24.85 (previous record 3:27.08 set in 2009)
2. Regis Jesuit, 3:24.90
3. Heritage, 3:34.82
4. Fairview, 3:35.37
5. Smoky Hill, 3:38.01
6. Monarch, 3:38.75
7. Boulder, 3:39.65
8. Ralston Valley, 3:41.
9. Arapahoe, 3:41.02
10. Grandview, 3:41.56
11. Loveland, 3:42.99
12. Chaparral, 3:43.39
13. Mountain Vista, 3:43.71
14. Ponderosa, 3:47.85
15. Fort Collins, 3:49.43
16. Littleton, 3:49.56

Special awards:

2010 Co-Swimmers – Jenna Gregoire, who heads to Harvard, and Christine Wixted, who signed with Duke

2010 Swim Coach – Scott Cohen, Smoky Hill

2010 Divers – Lizzy Linsmayer, Denver East

2010 Co-Diving Coaches – Barb Ambrozic of Arapahoe and Jake Barber, Denver East

Girls High School State Off to Quick Start

The water was churning tonight at the 5A Girls High School State Championships as five state records were smashed during preliminary competition at EPIC in Fort Collins. The tone for the evening was set early as Jordan Mattern, a junior at Cherry Creek High School, served up the first state-record setting swim in the first individual event of the evening. Mattern clocked a 1:49.25 in the 200Y Free, breaking the previous mark of 1:50.04 set in 1992 by Stephanie Northrup of Creek.

To few people’s surprise, Missy Franklin, a freshman at Regis Jesuit High School, claimed two of the four records for the evening. Franklin, 14, destroyed the 50Y Freestyle record with a 22.70, bettering the previous record of 23.06 set in 1994 by Becky Bicknell of Denver East. In the 100Y Backstroke, Franklin set the new mark at 53.43, wiping out Creek Sophomore Bonnie Brandon’s record swim of 54.77 from last year.

In the 100Y Butterfly, Kelly Naze, a sophomore at Cherry Creek, put down a 54.44 erasing the mark of 55.16 set by Lisa Caprioglio of Highlands Ranch in 2006.

The biggest record margin, however, came in the 100Y Breaststroke as Duke-bound Cherry Creek High School Senior Christine Wixted swam a 1:02.68, more than a second and a half better than Regis Jesuit’s Lauren Stoeckle’s record-setting swim of 1:04.27 last year.

Down the road at Mountain View High School in Loveland where the 4A High School State Championship prelims were being swum, no records were set.

Not to worry. I'm sure the finals at both meets slated to begin at 2 p.m. tomorrow will be speedy.

Colorado Swimmers Once Again Victorious

The team representing Colorado at this year’s Midwest All Star Meet in Lawrence, Kansas, nabbed first place once again. This marks at least the third year in a row that Colorado has won the Midwest All Stars, which pits the top 14 and under swimmers from Iowa, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, South Dakota and Missouri.

This year’s team swam to victory behind several first-place finishes and also set two meet records in the process. Michael Loyd, 12, set the 11-12 Boys 100Y Breaststroke meet record with a time of 1:05.26 and Matthew Sima, 12, set the 11-12 Boys 50Y Breaststroke meet record with a time of 30.69.

The Colorado team is comprised of the top 10 swimmers each for boys and girls from the following age groups: 10 & under, 11-12 and 13-14. Those swimmers are determined using a high point system based on the CSI database top 10 lists through roughly mid December. The Age Group coaches may also assign automatic spots, which in the past have been given to the top one or two swimmers per an All Star event. It should be noted that at least a few of the state’s top swimmers who were selected this year opted instead to attend other meets. But that didn’t seem to make much of difference. The 2^nd-place team, Missouri Valley, finished more than 450 points behind.

Kudos to these Colorado swimmers who took first place:

Riley Hoffman, 12 (1 relay)
Annie Ochitwa 12  (1 relay)
Leah Roberson 12  (1 relay)
Abby Kochevar 11 (2 relays)
Nathaniel Forbus 14 (1 relay)
Connor Croan 14 (1 individual, 1 relay)
Daryl Turner 14  (3 individual, 1 relay)
Jacob Davis 14 (1 individual, 1 relay)
Shelly Drozda, 12 (6 individual, 1 relay)
Tyler Lis, 12 (1 individual)
Abbie Houck, 14 (2 individual)
Michael Loyd, 12 (1 individual)
Jennae Frederick, 10 (1 individual)
Santana Garcia, 12, (2 individual)
Delaney Lanker, 14, (1 individual)
Dominique Schiffman, 10 (2 individual)
Mary Saiz, 14 (1 individual)
Andie Turner, 12, (1 individual, 1 relay)
Lexie Malazdrewicz (1 individual)
Matthew Sima, 12, (1 individual)
Jolene Norton 12 (1 relay)

To view complete meet results, click here.

Busy Travel Weekend for Swimmers

Many of Colorado’s top swimmers are scattered across the country competing in various meets this week. First and foremost, the state’s select All Star team, made up of many of the leading 10 and under, 11-12 and 13-14 swimmers in the state, are representing Colorado at the Midwest All-Stars in Lawrence, Kansas. Our swimmers have fared very well in the past, grabbing first place and bettering teams from Iowa, South Dakota, Missouri Valley (Missouri and Kansas) and Midwestern Swimming (Nebraska and Iowa).

For a complete list of those who were selected to go, click here. Note that some of these swimmers choose not to compete so several alternates and even swimmers not listed as alternates ended up attending. More meet info. can be found here including the psych sheet and eventually results.

Meanwhile, at least four Colorado clubs are in Austin, Texas, at the New Year’s Classic at the University of Texas this weekend and at least two more area clubs have made the trip to Minneapolis to compete at the Winter Classic at the University of Minnesota, which will host the 2011 NCAA swim championships. Both venues have reputations as being great places to compete, and from the initial results posted so far, it looks to be true with many best times.

Personally, I think it’s great that our kids have a chance to swim at or near sea level. It’s just plain harder to compete at altitude so this offers a nice change of pace.

Franklin Contributes to US Win

Missy Franklin proved to be an asset as Team USA defeated the European stars in the Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool, which wrapped up earlier today in Manchester, England.

Franklin, 14, led off the Women’s 4X100M Free relay with a blistering 52.78, not only her personal best, but the 7^th fastest women’s 100M free swam worldwide in 2009. In fact, her time bested the American Record set in 2007 by Dara Torres, but that record had already been bettered the day before by Olympian and NCAA Swimmer of the Year Dana Vollmer, 22.

In the relay, Franklin had to go head-to-head with European Recordholder Francesca Halsall of Great Britain, but held her own, finishing just 1.2 seconds behind. Franklin was teamed with Vollmer, Amanda Weir and Christine Magnuson, and together the four beat the European relay team by 1.1 seconds. They also finished well ahead of the American Record but weren’t granted the record because of an odd ruling by USA Swimming, which won’t recognize any records set in high-tech suits since banning them from domestic meets Oct. 1. The oddity being, US swimmers can still wear high-tech suits internationally until the end of this year, and in a couple of cases, World Records set at this meet by American swimmers won’t register as American Records.

Yesterday, Franklin placed 4^th in the 100M Free, which featured three American swimmers against Great Britain’s Halsall and two other European swimmers. Franklin was 2^nd among the Americans, beating Weir.

Next Sunday, Dec. 27, you can catch all the meet highlights during a special, two-hour broadcast from 2-4 p.m. EST on NBC.

Franklin Set to Compete in Duel in the Pool

Colorado Stars swimmer Missy Franklin, 14, once again finds herself on the international stage as she competes beginning tomorrow in the 2009 Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool, a two-day meet in Manchester, England, that pits a European select team of swimmers from Britain, Germany and Italy against a handpicked team of the United States top swimmers.

Franklin is the youngest member of Team USA, which includes 17 men (Ryan Lochte had to withdraw because of injury) and 18 women, many of them former Olympians, including Michael Phelps, Rebecca Soni and Aaron Peirsol.

The bi-annual Duel in the Pool is essentially a made-for-TV event designed to showcase the sport’s most exciting swimmers in non-Olympic years. A two-hour broadcast of the event will air on NBC on December 27 from 2 – 4 p.m. ET

Last month, Franklin broke onto the European scene at the FINA World Cup meets in Stockholm and Berlin. She was joined by fellow Colorado swimmer Jared Markham, 16, (shown in above photo with Franklin in Berlin) of Greenwood who competed in the 200M Backstroke at both meets. At Stockholm, Franklin took home an impressive 2^nd-place finish in the 200M IM, 4^th in the 200M Backstroke and 9^th in the 100M free, among her six races.