The women’s points race in the Arena Pro Swim Series is heating up with just two stops remaining; in Mesa, Caitlin Leverenz, Katie Ledecky and Katinka Hosszu all made huge strides in running down points leader Elizabeth Beisel.
It was an uncharacteristically quiet weekend for Beisel, who earned no points in Mesa despite swimming 6 events. Meanwhile, the aforementioned trio took advantage to pull into a three-way tie for second, just 3.5 points back of Beisel.
Hosszu was the biggest riser, putting up 22 of her 35 points in Mesa. Ledecky earned 15 points over the weekend, while Leverenz picked up 6.
The men’s side was the opposite story, though, with Conor Dwyer extending his lead over Tyler Clary. Dwyer put up a meet-leading 15 points to Clary’s 12 and now tops the standings by 16, a lead that should be very tough for anyone to overcome over the final two meets.
Dwyer also cracked $10,000 in total prize money on the season. Beisel has earned $7,700 for the women’s lead.
The male and female points winners at the end of the series will win a 1-year lease of a BMW automobile and a $10,000 bonus. Only American athletes can win the car prize, though the cash bonus is available to all athletes.
According to Arena Pro Swim Series rules, athletes only earn points in Olympic distance individual events, so these lists do not include the men’s 800, women’s 1500 or any relay events. A win is worth $1,000 and 5 points, second $600 and 3 points and third $200 and 1 point.
Arena Pro Swim Series – Point Standings after Mesa
*Note: Athletes maintaining high school or college eligibility have restrictions on the amount of money they can receive. These lists track “money earned,” not necessarily “money accepted.” Amateur athletes are marked with an (A).
Men
| Rank | Name | Total Points | Total Money |
| 1 | Conor Dwyer | 53 | $10,600 |
| 2 | Tyler Clary | 37 | $7,400 |
| 3 | Nathan Adrian | 21 | $4,200 |
| 3 | Michael McBroom | 21 | $4,200 |
| 5 | Connor Jaeger | 20 | $4,000 |
| 5 | Ryan Lochte | 20 | $4,000 |
| 7 | Arkady Vyatchanin | 18 | $3,600 |
| 8 | Bruno Fratus | 13 | $2,600 |
| 9 | Miguel Ortiz | 12 | $2,400 |
| 9 | Matt Grevers | 12 | $2,400 |
| 11 | Junya Koga | 11 | $2,200 |
| 11 | Josh Prenot (A) | 11 | $2,200 |
| 11 | Cody Miller | 11 | $2,200 |
| 11 | Michael Phelps | 11 | $2,200 |
| 15 | Joao de Lucca | 10 | $2,000 |
| 15 | Carlos Claverie (A) | 10 | $2,000 |
| 17 | BJ Johnson | 9 | $1,800 |
| 17 | Ryan Murphy (A) | 9 | $1,800 |
| 17 | Andrew Seliskar (A) | 9 | $1,800 |
| 20 | Felipe Lima | 6 | $1,200 |
| 20 | Giles Smith | 6 | $1,200 |
| 20 | Brendan McHugh | 6 | $1,200 |
| 20 | Sebastien Rousseau | 6 | $1,200 |
| 20 | Josh Schneider | 6 | $1,200 |
| 25 | Darian Townsend | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Mike Alexandrov | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Nick Norman (A) | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Jack Conger (A) | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Michael Andrew | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Pavel Sankovich | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Viktor Bromer | 5 | $1,000 |
| 25 | Louis Croenen | 5 | $1,000 |
| 33 | Bobby Hurley | 4 | $800 |
| 33 | Geoff Cheah | 4 | $800 |
| 33 | Michael Klueh | 4 | $800 |
| 36 | Kyler Van Swol | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Marat Amaltdinov (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Ryan Harty (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Ryan Feeley | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Tripp Cooper (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Andrew Torres (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Glenn Snyders | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Andrew Gemmell | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Alex Coci (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Erik Risolvato | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Grigory Tarasevich | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Azad Al-Barazi | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Renzo Tjon-a-Joe (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Carl Mickelson | 3 | $600 |
| 50 | Guillermo Blanco (A) | 2 | $400 |
| 50 | James Wells | 2 | $400 |
| 50 | Jacob Pebley (A) | 2 | $400 |
| 50 | Grant Shoults (A) | 2 | $400 |
| 54 | Lyam Dias (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Junya Koga | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Michael Weiss | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Frank Dyer | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | James Disney-May | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Anton McKee (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Dion Dreesens | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Kristian Gkolomeev (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Michael Wynalda | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Sean Mahoney | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Luke Greenbank | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Marcelo Chierighini | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Robert Finke (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Tom Shields | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Sean Grieshop (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Jasper Aerents | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | David Plummer | 1 | $200 |
| 54 | Marcelo Acosta (A) | 1 | $200 |
Women
| Rank | Name | Total Points | Total Money |
| 1 | Elizabeth Beisel | 38.5 | $7,700 |
| 2 | Caitlin Leverenz | 35 | $7,000 |
| 2 | Katie Ledecky (A) | 35 | $7,000 |
| 2 | Katinka Hosszu | 35 | $7,000 |
| 5 | Dominique Bouchard | 27 | $5,400 |
| 6 | Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace | 26 | $5,200 |
| 7 | Melanie Margalis | 19 | $3,800 |
| 8 | Hannah Miley | 16 | $3,200 |
| 9 | Katie McLaughlin (A) | 15.5 | $3,100 |
| 10 | Breeja Larson | 12 | $2,400 |
| 11 | Beata Nelson (A) | 10 | $2,000 |
| 11 | Margo Geer | 10 | $2,000 |
| 11 | Audrey Lacroix | 10 | $2,000 |
| 14 | Katie Meili | 9 | $1,800 |
| 15 | Shannon Vreeland | 8 | $1,600 |
| 15 | Alia Atkinson | 8 | $1,600 |
| 15 | Molly Hannis (A) | 8 | $1,600 |
| 15 | Kirsty Coventry | 8 | $1,600 |
| 19 | Kierra Smith (A) | 6 | $1,200 |
| 19 | Maya DiRado | 6 | $1,200 |
| 19 | Micah Lawrence | 6 | $1,200 |
| 19 | Cammile Adams | 6 | $1,200 |
| 19 | Lotte Friis | 6 | $1,200 |
| 24 | Megan Romano | 5 | $1,000 |
| 24 | Noemi Thomas (A) | 5 | $1,000 |
| 24 | Cassidy Bayer (A) | 5 | $1,000 |
| 24 | Farida Osman (A) | 5 | $1,000 |
| 24 | Andreina Pinto | 5 | $1,000 |
| 24 | Allison Schmitt | 5 | $1,000 |
| 24 | Kelsi Worrell (A) | 5 | $1,000 |
| 31 | Hilda Luthersdottir | 4 | $800 |
| 31 | Natalie Coughlin | 4 | $800 |
| 31 | Victoria Poon | 4 | $800 |
| 31 | Mie Nielsen | 4 | $800 |
| 31 | Kristel Kobrich | 4 | $800 |
| 36 | Karlee Bispo | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Zoe Avestruz (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Brooke Zeiger (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Becca Mann (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Marina Garcia (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Kaylin Burchell (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Sam Cheverton | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Hilary Caldwell | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Amanda Weir | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Claire Donahue | 3 | $600 |
| 36 | Simone Manuel (A) | 3 | $600 |
| 47 | Katie Hoff | 2 | $400 |
| 47 | Taylor Ruck (A) | 2 | $400 |
| 49 | Danielle Nack (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Lindsay Vrooman | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Kiera Janzen (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Karlee Bispo | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Fiona Doyle | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Joanna Evans | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Katie Drabot (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Lauren Quigley | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Courtney Harnish (A) | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Svetlana Khakhlova | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Simona Baumtrova | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Danica Ludlow | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Charlotte Evans | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Vien Ngyuen | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Iryna Glavnyk | 1 | $200 |
| 49 | Abbey Weitzeil (A) | 1 | $200 |
What happens when an amateur turns down prize money? Is it offered to the next swimmer, or does Arena/USA Swimming just keep it?
I’m not sure, but I think the sponsors just keep it. 🙁