Video courtesy of Garrett McCaffrey.
It was a big day for the Arizona State Sun Devils on Saturday – the ASU men topped in-state rivals Arizona for the first time since 2002, and to top it off, Olympic hero Michael Phelps made an appearance, swimming a pair of exhibition races along with several other pros training out of Arizona State.
The first of those races was a 200 freestyle, which you can watch above.
Phelps battles training partner David Nolan in this race, ultimately winning with a 1:34.04. Nolan, the former Stanford standout who has moved to Tempe to train with Phelps, was 1:34.42 trailing Phelps.
You can check out the race video from the 100 IM here. That race pitted Phelps against Olympic backstroke champ Matt Grevers (who trains at the University of Arizona) and American 200 yard IM record-holder Nolan, with Grevers beating the ASU training parters.
Phelps told SwimSwam after the meet that these were his last competitive swims in the short course yards pool. Phelps will contend for another Olympic berth at U.S. Trials this summer, and plans to retire after the Rio Olympic Games.
Stay tuned to SwimSwam’s College News Section for a more full breakdown of the Pac-12 rivalry meet between Arizona and Arizona State, plus full coverage of the rest of the weekend’s college duals.
Beside Ledecky and Phelps swim off, I think a mixed relay team with Franklin, Ledecky, Phelps and Lochte will be thrill.
They are the swimmers representing this sport, they are all Olympics Champions / World record holders, most importantly they are all TEAM USA.
I couldn’t find the article on the college meet. Are you sure you posted one?
Dunc1952 – here’s the story on the college meet: http://swimswam.com/asu-men-break-multiple-records-in-first-win-over-arizona-since-2002/
IMO, i think the exhibition took away from the fast times of the ASU vs AZ meet. How long can you milk Michael Phelps? The dual meet had some excellent times and very little talk about the meet itself.
“The first thing you have to do is to get people in the stands, then show them there is a reason to come back. “-Billie Jean King.
Highly doubt mainstream media/folks would be THAT interested in a ledecky/phelps showdown, even in an olympic year — maybe enough to read the results in the paper after the fact — but it would be EXTREMELY interesting to me to see ledecky pushed so closely in one of her baby events in a race setting.
I agree. While phelps has made it into the mainstream, people that are not swimmers don’t know who is Katie Ledecky, sadly. She just doesn’t command the star power that Billie Jean King commanded in her prime, for example. There’s also the small wrinkle that KL is still an amateur athlete and I’m not sure how this could be arranged so that ncaa rules are not violated.
Phelps’ turnover is soooo sloooow. Then he notices Nolan’s catching him.
Great to see such a huge crowd. Last time I saw that turnout for a ASU swim meet at Mona Plummer was in the late 80’s when ASU swam an exhibition against the US National team. Go Devils!
Awesome to have these guys racing exhibition at a college meet! Swimming needs more smart promotional events like this.
OK people, I am still waiting for the Phelps vs. Ledecky swim off in the 400 Free. Remember their times from different heats were an exact tie from last year in the Mesa, AZ (I think) Grand Prix series? That would be huge media event. Kind of like a modern version of Bobby Riggs vs. Billie Jean King. Now we just have to wait for the obligatory comments from the swim crowd that likes to protect the boring old and traditional ways of doing things that ensures the seats are half filled at best.
Phelps vs. Ledecky swim off in the 400 Free is a great idea!
Thank you Phelps Swims 200 Brest Rio for your support.
It frustrates me to no end how USA Swimming, NCAA, and corporate sponsors don’t capitalize on opportunities to better promote our sport.
Can you imagine the media frenzy that would be created by a Phelps vs Ledecky 400 swim off? It would make national headlines and probably live major network TV coverage. Donate all proceeds to charity. Think of the publicity Aquasphere would get from this event.
We have exciting races, beautiful and interesting athletes, and TV friendly venues. And what do we get? Boring coverage and empty stadiums. Don’t believe me? OK, then watch the next time you see a Grand Prix or college meet watch… Read more »