The open water athletes will kick off the event, competing March 18-25 at St. Kilda’s beach just outside of Melbourne. The pool swimming events, which are March 25-April 1, will be contested in a temporary pool at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne Park. Here are a few highlights to keep an eye on in Melbourne:
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The Home Court Advantage
As was the case in 2005, the World Championships will set the stage for the 2007 Mutual of Omaha Duel in the Pool, where long-time rivals Team USA and Australia will battle in a dual swim meet. The world's top two swimming countries will square off for bragging rights in this event, which will be televised over the course of two days on NBC. And for the first time, the Aussies will have the advantage of the home crowd. The inaugural event in 2003 was in Indianapolis, and in 2005, the teams went head-to-head in Irvine, Calif.
The Americans have dominated the swimming series, winning both meetings. In 2005, Team USA captured victories in 18 of the 28 events in front of the sold-out crowd of 2,600. Teams USA won 190-102, but the Australians rode a wave of talent on the women's side, outscoring the American women 76-70.
U.S. Relays
Team USA swept all the relays at the 2006 Mutual of Omaha Pan Pacific Championships, setting one world, three American and six Championships records. But with the whole world gunning for them in Australia, that feat will be a challenge to repeat. Currently, the Americans own world records in two of the men's relays (400m freestyle and 400m medley relays).
How Many Records Will He Break?
People weren't necessarily asking the question of Michael Phelps (Baltimore, Md. / Club Wolverine) in 2003, but after his performance at the World Championships in Barcelona, they might be this time around. Phelps became the first person since Mark Spitz at the 1972 Olympic Games, to break at least five world records in one meet when he took down world records in the 100m butterfly, 200m fly, 200m individual medley (twice) and the 400m IM. He was named the Swimmer of the Meet after winning six medals - four of them gold. Earlier this month, Phelps provided an indication of what’s to come in Australia, breaking his own world record in the 200m butterfly during the finals of the 2007 Missouri Grand Prix, Feb. 16-19 in Columbia, Mo.
Natalie Coughlin's Comeback
Natalie Coughlin (Vallejo, Calif. / Cal Aquatics) had high hopes for the 2003 World Champs, having qualified for four individual events and possibly all three relays. However, Coughlin fell ill at the beginning of the meet, which limited her ability to compete. Despite that, she still helped Team USA to a gold in the 400m free relay and a silver in the 400m medley relay. She also finished eighth in the 100m fly. Coughlin recovered without much of a hitch, making the 2004 Olympic Team and winning five Olympic medals – two of them gold – which was the most of any female at the 2004 Games. Since then, Coughlin has racked up 11 medals – five of them gold – in major international competitions. At the 2006 Pan Pacifics, she captured four golds, finishing with a six-medal haul from Victoria.
The World Record Trio
Two of the three members of The Texas Trio – Ian Crocker (Portland, Maine / Longhorn), Brendan Hansen (Havertown, Pa. / Longhorn) and Aaron Peirsol (Irvine, Calif. / Longhorn) – broke world records last summer, and whenever these three take a dip in the pool, records are at risk of being broken. Last summer, Hansen took down the 100m breaststroke world record once and the 200m breast record twice. Peirsol lowered his own world mark in the 200m back in 2006, a race in which he has not lost at a major international competition since 2000.
The three are each competing in their fourth World Championship. They have a combined 22 World medals (16 of them gold), and all three won individual gold in their signature events at the 2005 World Champs in Montreal.
Butterfly Rivalry
Worth noting is the rivalry between Crocker and Phelps in the 100m fly, which initially heated up in 2003 when Crocker shocked the world by out touching Phelps for the world record and the gold medal. Since then, the two have gone head-to-head at numerous major meets. Three of the times Crocker has beaten Phelps, it has been a world record.
About USA Swimming: As the National Governing Body for competitive swimming in the United States, USA Swimming formulates the rules, implements policies and procedures, conducts national championships, disseminates safety and sports medicine information and selects athletes to represent the United States in international competition. USA Swimming has more than 300,000 members nationwide and sanctions more than 7,000 events each year. For more information, visit usaswimming.org.
Swim On!
