Fresh off being named Female Athlete of the Year at the Golden Goggle Awards, Katie Hoff (Towson, Md./North Baltimore) will be vying for titles in the five events she’s entered in, particularly the 200m individual medley. The 16-year-old was a triple gold medalist at the 2005 World Championships, earning individual gold in the 200m and 400m IM. Hoff, who is the current American record holder in the 200m IM, is scheduled to compete against a stacked field in Auburn, including two of the three 2004 Olympic medalists in this event.
Ukraine’s Yana Klochkova will be the one to beat after becoming the first swimmer ever to win both IMs in back-to-back Olympics when she captured double gold in 2004. Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry, who competed for Auburn from 2001-05, was the 2004 Olympic bronze medalist and 2005 World Championship silver medalist behind Hoff.
Ryan Lochte (Daytona Beach, Fla./Florida) highlights the field on the men’s side. Currently entered in nine events, the University of Florida senior could face a test in the 100m and 200m freestyle from seven-time Olympic medalist Pieter van den Hoogenband of the Netherlands, who chose the U.S. Open to make his return after undergoing surgery on his back (hernia) in May. One of the premier sprinters in the world, van den Hoogenband won titles in the 100m and 200m free at the 1999 U.S. Open.
Other U.S. Olympians scheduled to compete in Auburn include: Maritza Correia (Valrico, Fla./Athens Bulldog), Margaret Hoelzer (Huntsville, Ala./Auburn Aquatics), Megan Jendrick (Puyallup, Wash./King), Klete Keller (Phoenix, Ariz./Club Wolverine), Tara Kirk (Bremerton, Wash./Palo Alto Stanford), Carly Piper (Grosse Pointe, Mich./Wisconsin Aquatics), Scott Usher (Grand Island, Neb./Wyoming Aquatics), Dana Vollmer (Granbury, Texas/Florida) and Amanda Weir (Lawrenceville, Ga./Swim Atlanta).
The official deadline for entries was Nov. 18. Click here to go to the 2005 U.S. Open Event Page.
