Four Storylines To Watch At The 2023 Pro Swim Series – Westmont

2023 PRO SWIM SERIES – WESTMONT

• April 12-15, 2023
• FMC Aquatic Center, Westmont, Illinois
• Long Course Meters (50 meters)
• Event Central
• Pre-Scratch timeline
• Psych Sheets
• Live Stream

The second Pro Swim Series trip to Westmont has arrived. In addition to the bevy of U.S. pros that have been in attendance at the first two PSS stops of the year in Knoxville and Fort Lauderdale, the collegiate season has now wrapped up, meaning that the psych sheets are loaded with NCAA stars to go along with the top pros and an intriguing mix of juniors.

Regan Smith and Shaine Casas impressed at the Fort Lauderdale meet, and both are back in action in Illinois. The meet is also a homecoming for Ryan Murphy and Olivia Smoliga, both of whom grew up in the area. We’ll touch on the NCAA swimmers later on, but for juniors to keep an eye on, look no further than Thomas Heilman, who wowed at the East edition of Winter Juniors.

Note that Katie Ledecky withdrew from the competition on Tuesday due to illness.

Below, find four key storylines to follow over the course of the meet:

All Eyes on Leon Marchand

Leon Marchand (photo: Jack Spitser)

After an outstanding NCAA Championships where he went 3-for-3 in NCAA records and earned Swimmer of the Meet for the second-straight year, Leon Marchand turns his attention to long course. After his performances at NCAAs in 2022, the big question was how his yards speed would translate to the 50-meter pool. He answered those questions emphatically, becoming the world champion in the 200 and 400 IM, scaring Michael Phelps‘ world record in the latter with a 4:04.28.

While Marchand will undoubtedly have more in store later this year in Fukuoka, this meet will be a good gauge for where he’s at in the lead-up to those World Championships. He did the same last year at the San Antonio PSS, where he went 1:56.95 in the 200 IM (then a French record), 4:10.38 in the 400 IM, and 2:09.24 in the 200 breaststroke.

Marchand is the first NCAA swimmer since Natalie Coughlin to complete an undefeated NCAA season. He’ll aim to keep his winning streak going, as he’s entered the 200 breast, 200 fly, 200 IM, and 400 IM. It will be a good test for the Frenchman, especially as he weighs his options of whether he wants to focus on the 200 fly or 200 breast at Worlds (maybe both?). The breaststroke is the only event he’s entered in where he’s not the top seed; there, he’s fourth behind Nic Fink, Will Licon, and Charlie Swanson.

NCAA Swimmers Transition from SCY to LCM

Gabi Albiero (photo: Jack Spitser)

There are plenty of other NCAA swimmers making the jump into the big pool along with Marchand. Some are coming off solid NCAA seasons of their own, like the Louisville duo Gabi Albiero and Christina Regenauer, who face off against a sprint field stacked with pros like Simone Manuel, Abbey Weitzeil, Erika Brown, and Olivia Smoliga.

Isabelle Stadden, Emma Sticklen, and Lindsay Looney are some of the other collegiate women that are looking to roll their yards improvements into long course. The three are looking to get in on the action in meters, while Katharine Berkoff and Phoebe Bacon both are aiming to defend their spots on the Worlds roster later this spring.

After winning two national titles (men’s 200 and 500 free), Luke Hobson is another name to keep an eye on; he’ll try to assert himself in a field of American mid-distance freestylers that’s getting crowded pretty quickly.

On the flip side, there are NCAA stars who are hoping that long course will be a fresh start. After a quiet NCAAs, Carson Foster aims to get back on track in Westmont. He’s the Worlds silver medalist in the 200 and 400 IM behind Marchand and will get a rematch with him this week. Fellow Longhorn Kelly Pash also looks to turn the page, after only making one ‘A’ final at the 2023 NCAAs.

Bjorn Seeliger is another NCAA swimmer shifting gears. He finished third in both the 50 and 100 free, and 10th in the 100 back. Seeliger is also still working towards his big meters breakout–could this be the season?

Santo Condorelli Makes His Return to Competition

courtesy of Rafael Domeyko

Santo Condorelli appearing on the psych sheets was one of the biggest surprises pre-meet. The 28-year-old, who’s now training at Texas Ford Aquatics, was assumed to be serving an 18-month suspension for a whereabouts violation, but it was quietly lifted by World Aquatics last October.

Condorelli won an Olympic medal in Tokyo as a part of Italy’s prelim 4×100 freestyle relay and has also represented Canada and the United States in the past. He prides himself on being the “most international of international swimmers” and it seems that he’s returning to racing for the United States with an eye on Paris 2024.

Condorelli’s last competition on record was in Rome in December 2021. He’s seeded fifth in the 50 free (22.00), eighth in the 100 free (48.49), and fifth in the 100 fly (51.62).

With his last meet over a year ago, it will be interesting to see what kind of times he posts and how he fares against names like Shaine Casas and Michael Andrew, both of whom he would face at the 2024 Olympic Trials if he does intend to race for the U.S.

Women’s Breaststroke Heats Up

Lydia Jacoby (photo: Jack Spitser)

Speaking of NCAA swimmers, the Texas 1-2 of Lydia Jacoby and Anna Elendt are set to race in Westmont. They’re joined at the top of the psych sheets by Lilly King and Annie Lazor. Jacoby and King are the last two Olympic gold medallists in the 100 breaststroke, Lazor is an Olympic bronze medalist in the 200, and Elendt won silver in the 100 in Budapest. All this sets up for some great races in Westmont.

Of the four, Jacoby will be particularly interesting to watch. She had an excellent freshman campaign at Texas. Jacoby dropped time steadily over the course of the season, bringing her yards times up to par with her meters times. She broke the 17-18 100 breast NAG three times, and capped her season off with an NCAA title, which she described post-race as her “first big win since the Olympics.”

Now, she returns to meters. The meet will be a good test for her, as she’ll face King, Lazor, and Kaitlyn Dobler at World Trials. Last year, the reigning Olympic champion missed making the Worlds team and she’ll be eager to not be left at home this time around.