2010 Los Angeles Grand Prix Preview

The 2010 Los Angeles Grand Prix, taking place on USC’s campus July 8-11 and hosted by Trojan Swim Club & Southern California Swimming, is a new addition to USA Swimming’s Grand Prix schedule. It is the last swim meet of the series, when one professional swimmer gets awarded the $20,000 grand prize. The prize is a culmination of overall point totals acquired by a swimmer throughout the Grand Prix series. It is also the final test before the U.S. National Championships three weeks later.

Kate Ziegler and Ous Mellouli swim on Night 1

Meet Preview

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Day 4 was the final night of the 2009-2010 USA Swimming Grand Prix Series and was an eventful one in Los Angeles.  Chloe Sutton was named the overall Grand Prix Series High Point winner and takes home the $20,000 in prize money.  Cal's Dana Vollmer started off the night with a win over Tuscon-Ford's first seeded Christine Magnuson in the 100m butterfly with a time of 57.39.  Then, Masayuki Kishida took home the first men's gold of the night in 52.80 for the men's 100m butterfly. 16-year-old Bonnie Brandon won the 1500m freestyle in 16:45.76.  While, Olympic gold medalist Natalie Coughlin took an easy first in 1:00.52 for the 100m backstroke. Trojan Swim Club took 1st through 3rd in the 100m breaststroke with Olympian Rebecca Soni out-touching Jessica Hardy in 1:06.23. Japan's Kosuke Kitajimam set a meet record in 1:00.82 in the men's 100m breaststroke.  Read the full USA Swimming's recap for more coverage of the final night from the 2010 Los Angeles Grand Prix.  Thanks for watching and see you next year!

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Day 3 of the 2010 Los Angeles Grand Prix had lots of great swims.  Canadian Ryan Cochrane took the first event of the night with a win in the 1500m freestyle.  FAST's Ariana Kukors set the pace for a great 200m IM finish in a time of 2:11.01.  Rebecca Soni is blowing everyone away in the breaststroke and took the victory in the 200m breast.  Japan's Kosike Kitajima swam away with his first gold of the meet in the 200m breastroke.  FAST's Kara Lynn Joyce out touched home team favorite Jessica Hardy to take her second win of the meet in the fast 50m free in a time of 25.14.  Olympian and FAST swim club member Katie Hoff also cruised to her first win taking the 400m freestyle championship.  Check out USA Swimming's full recap of the night from Day 3 at the LA Grand Prix.  And be sure not to miss all the action from the last day at USC tomorrow beginning at 8:30am PT.

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Day 2 from the McDonald's Olympic Swim Stadium at the University of Southern California had some impressive swims.  Katie Ziegler took the first gold of the meet in the 800m freestyle. FAST's Kara Lynn Joyce took first in the 100m free in a time of 54.69.  For the men, Cal's Nathan Adrian swam away with the finish in the 100m free in a tim eo f 48.71.  Host, Trojan Swim Club's, Markus Rogan took the top spot in the 200m back and Katinka Hosszu placed first in the 400m IM. For a full USA Swimming recap of the event check out Day 2 from the 2010 LA Grand Prix.  Prelims begin tomorrow, Saturday, at 8:30am PT with Finals at 5:00pm PT.  

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The first night of prelims Katie Ziegler set a pool record in the 800m freestyle.  She will swim in the final along with National Teamer Chloe Sutton on Friday. Ous Mellouli is seeded first heading into the Men's 1500m freestyle final scheduled for Saturday.  Watch all the coverage throughout the weekend to see who will take home the Grand Prix Series crown right here on Swimnetwork. Also check out USA Swimming's Recap of the first night of prelims from Los Angeles.

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The full 2010 LA Grand Prix Psych Sheet.

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The full USA Swimming Press Release is now available as it looks to be a big meet with over 1100 swimmers competing.  Read the full write-up here: Coughlin, Lezak, Soni and 12 other U.S. Olympians to Swim in the Los Angeles Grand Prix.

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While this is the last meet on the Grand Prix series, we should probably know the winner of the overall grand prize before the meet even begins. Chloe Sutton, who turned pro this season, is expected to be in contention, as are superstars from FAST swim club, such as Ariana Kukors and Katie Hoff.  Trojan Swim Club’s Rebecca Soni could be a factor too, swimming in her home pool. Maybe even 2008 Olympic legend Jason Lezak will make the 45-minute drive down from his hometown of Pasadena, California to Los Angeles & the McDonald Aquatic Center to compete.

Arguably, the Los Angeles Grand Prix is the most important Grand Prix meet of 2010, as it is the final major meet before the 2010 National Championships. It is the last chance for athletes to test themselves. Athletes (specifically athletes residing on the west coast) will take advantage of a major hometown meet to tweak their racing strategies, strokes, and analyze exactly where they are at in the final month before the taper and shave meet of the season. What does that mean?

It likely means we’ll see the fastest swimming of the year. Athletes are on the verge of finally resting, and they are in the fine-tuning part of the season. We’ll see athletes in peak shape and physical condition, which means that we’ll see athletes going best in-season times and swimming their best events, gearing up for the National Championships.

The 2010 campaign was a successful one. Swim fans were treated to their favorite Olympic and National Team swimmers in highly competitive meets across the country. Michael Phelps swam near in-season bests in Long Beach. Eric Shanteau – cancer survivor, 2008 Olympian and 2009 World Championships star – brought the crowd to their feet in Columbus. Natalie Coughlin returned to swimming at the Austin Grand Prix.

Swim fans experienced the 2010 Grand Prix series with unprecedented access. Every swim meet was webcast live on Swimnetwork.com, as well as countless, behind-the-scenes athlete interviews and feature articles. Swim fans at the venues were also given access to their favorite swimmers, getting autographs and photographs with the athletes themselves.

While the 2010 campaign wraps up in Los Angeles, USA Swimming is already planning a bigger and better Grand Prix series in 2011. With the passage of new measures designed to give more professional swimmers more opportunities, the 2011 campaign looks to be the most exciting series of all-time. More prize money (reported to increase from 20K to 75K) will surely increase athlete participation in the meets. With the upcoming 2012 Olympics, 2011 is a key year for all swimmers eyeing placement on the Olympic squad that will head to London. Look for some fast swimming, and athletes to be in their top form.

So the 2010 Grand Prix series ends in Los Angeles, after making stops in Minneapolis, Long Beach, Missouri, Austin, Columbus, Charlotte, and Santa Clara. We will see one swimmer take the prize for the overall Grand Prix series. And we will arguably usher in a new era of our sport, where the term “professional swimmer” becomes not just an oxymoron, but an actuality. The Los Angeles Grand Prix is the final stepping stone on the long road to the National Championships in Irvine.

If you cannot attend the Los Angeles Grand Prix (but you still want to follow along) no worries. As usual, Swimnetwork.com will webcast the meet. We will provide live race footage, as well as on-demand videos from the swim meet. In addition, swim fans will enjoy preview blogs, video athlete interviews, and daily poolside wrap-ups. Once again, Swimnetwork aims to provide swim fans with the experience of being at the meet without making the trip.

Upcoming Meets:

2010 YMCA LC National Championships

2010 National Championships