2020 ISL Match 1 – Day 1 Live Recap (Updated With Times)

2020 INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING LEAGUE: MATCH 1

• Friday, October 16: 4 PM-6 PM Local Time (10 AM-12 noon U.S. Eastern, 11 PM-1 AM J+1 Japan)
• Saturday, October 17: 8 PM-10 PM Local Time (2 PM-4 PM U.S. Eastern, 3 AM-5 AM J+1 Japan)
• Duna Arena – Budapest, Hungary
• Short Course Meters (SCM) Format
• 2020 ISL Scoring Format
• 2020 ISL Prize Money and Bonuses
• How To Watch
• Teams: Energy Standard, Cali Condors, LA Current, NY Breakers
• Day 1 Results

The very first meet of the International Swimming League Season 2 will get underway this morning at 10 am Eastern. The meet, located in Budapest, Hungary, is the first of ten set to be held there this year. The first match will see four of the eight returning teams to the league, including last year’s league champions, Energy Standard (ENS). Joining them will be season 1 third-place finishers, the Cali Condors, fourth-place finishers, the LA Current, and eighth-place finishers, the New York Breakers.

Follow along below to keep track of how each race shakes out, along with periodic score updates;

Lanes

• 1 & 2 – LA Current
• 3 & 4 – Energy Standard
• 5 & 6 – Cali Condors
• 7 & 8 – New York Breakers

START LISTS

WOMEN’S 100 FLY

1. Sarah Sjostrom (ENS) 9 Pts – 56.00
2. Anastasiya Shkurdai (ENS) 7 Pts – 56.07
3. Kelsi Dahlia (CAC) 6 Pts – 56.70
4. Erika Brown (CAC) 5 Pts – 56.80
5.  Arina Surkova (NYB) 4 Pts – 57.18
6. Jeanette Ottesen (NYB) 3 Pts – 57.81
7. Kendyl Stewart (LAC) 2 Pts – 57.83
8. Katie McLaughlin (LAC) 1 Pts – 57.93

It’s a great start for the defending champs, who go 1-2 and dominate the opening event. That’s a big win for Sjostrom, who was actually just the #3 performer in the league in the 100 fly last year but has returned this season with a vengeance.

MEN’S 100 FLY

1. Tom Shields (LAC) 12 Pts – 49.58
2. Caeleb Dressel (CAC) 7 Pts – 49.62
3. Maxime Rooney (LAC) 6 Pts – 49.84
4. Chad le Clos (ENS) 5 Pts – 49.97
5. Marcin Cieslak (CAC) 4 Pts – 50.54
6. Max Litchfield (NYB) 3 Pts – 50.77
7. Jan Switkowski (NYB) 0 Pts – 52.16
8. Kregor Zirk (ENS) 0 Pts – 52.36

The first jackpot of the season goes, surprisingly, to Shields, who upsets Dressel. Shields was an absolute game-changer in this league last year, and just continues to show how valuable he is in the ISL format this time around. It’s great for LA to see a big swim from Rooney as well – he’s the rookie who had his NCAA meet wiped out last spring, but looks like an impact addition.

WOMEN’S 200 BACK

1. Emily Seebohm (ENS) 15 Pts – 2:02.70
2. Beata Nelson (CAC) 7 Pts – 2:02.99
3. Hali Flickinger (CAC) 6 Pts – 2:06.03
4. Helena Gasson (LAC) 5 Pts – 2:07.13
5. Tevyn Waddell (NYB) 4 Pts – 2:07.17
6. Chloe Golding (NYB) 0 Pts – 2:08.51
7. Ali Deloof (LAC) 0 Pts – 2:08.86
8. Mary-Sophie Harvey (ENS) 0 Pts – 2:09.91

Emily Seebohm wasn’t a world-beater in the 200 back in the ISL last year, but came up really big with a close win and some big jackpot points here. Beata Nelson showed off exactly why NCAA swimmers are so coveted in the ISL format – her underwaters were outstanding, and she very nearly ran down Seebohm for the big win. We’re definitely seeing the impact of jackpots already, with two jackpots in three events – that overvalues winning events, but also really drives home the value of not taking last in any race and getting jackpotted.

MEN’S 200 BACK

1. Radoslaw Kawecki (CAC) 9 Pts – 1:48.51
2. Ryan Murphy (LAC) 7 Pts – 1:48.73
3. Evengy Rylov (ENS) 6 Pts – 1:49.48
4. Jakub Skierka (NYB) 5 Pts – 1:50.48
5. Adam Telegdy (NYB) 4 Pts – 1:51.42
6. Coleman Stewart (CAC) 3 Pts – 1:54.55
7. Kliment Kolesnikov (ENS) 2 Pts – 1:55.70
8. Jacob Heidtmann (LAC) 1 Pts – 1:56.19

WOMEN’S 200 BREAST

1. Lilly King (CAC) 15 Pts – 2:17.11
2. Emily Escobedo (NYB) 7 Pts – 2:18.46
3. Molly Renshaw (NYB) 6 Pts – 2:19.32
4. Meghan Small (CAC) 5 Pts – 2:21.16
5. Julia Sebastian (LAC) 4 Pts – 2:21.62
6. Viktoria Gunes (ENS) 0 Pts – 2:23.95
7. Breeja Larson (ENS) 0 Pts – 2:24.11
8. Kierra Smith (LAC) DQ 0 Pts – 2:21.01

This one is a massive swing for the Condors, who are on a hot streak despite Dressel’s loss in the 100 fly. Lilly King jackpotted both Energy Standard swimmers, and a DQ to Kierra Smith gave King a triple jackpot in points. King remains unbeaten in the ISL for her career- she’s won the 50, 100, and 200 breast in every meet she’s swum on the tour so far, and that carries forward to this season as well.

MEN’S 200 BREAST

1. Marco Koch (NYB) 19 Pts – 2:02.12
2. Will Licon (LAC) 7 Pts – 2:04.28
3. Ilya Shymanovich (ENS) 6 Pts – 2:04.31
4. Josh Prenot (LAC) 5 Pts – 2:06.60
5. Maxim Stupin (ENS) 0 Pts – 2:07.14
6. James Wilby (NYB) 0 Pts – 2:07.52
7. Kevin Cordes (CAC) 0 Pts – 2:08.70
8. Mark Szaranek (CAC) 0 Pts – 2:10.78

Marco Koch came through with a much-needed win for the New York Breakers. He’s one of just four men returning on that roster from last year, and this win is massive – he jackpotted half the field with four swimmers finishing well behind him. The biggest hurt here is Cali, which got zero points after taking 7th and 8th and getting completely jackpotted.

WOMEN’S 4X100 FREE RELAY

1. Energy Standard 2 – 3:28.51
2. LA Current 1 – 3:29.66
3. Cali Condors 1 – 3:29.87
4. New York Breakers 1 -3:32.67
5. LA Current 2 – 3:32.73
6. Cali Condors 2 – 3:34.91
7. New York Breakers 2 – 3:37.38
8. Energy Standard 1 –  3:37.86

It was a really back-and-forth race here that captured a lot of the racing excitement the ISL is hoping for. The LA Current tried to stack the front end of its relay to get out to a big lead, but putting Katie McLaughlin against Sarah Sjostrom on the anchor leg was just too tough to pull off. Sjostrom is the league’s reigning MVP for a reason, and she proved her value in a much-needed win here for Energy Standard. And much like last year, the double-point relays are very much a stabilizing force in team points – things looked really surprising before this relay with Cali leading and New York second, but Energy’s big win (including some jackpot points) flattened out the point standings to something much closer to what we expected from this meet. Cali does still lead by a solid 19-point margin. But ENS has clawed back to within 20 – though they technically sit fourth, the bottom three are all within a single point.

MEN’S 50 FREE

1. Florent Manaudou (ENS) 12 Pts – 20.63
2. Caeleb Dressel (CAC) 7 Pts – 20.85
3. Justin Ress (CAC) 6 Pts – 21.08
4. Kristian Gkolomeev (LAC) 5 Pts – 21.10
5. Michael Andrew (NYB) 4 Pts – 21.40
6. Matthew Richards (NYB) 3 Pts – 21.47
7. Dylan Carter (LAC) 0 Pts – 21.51
8. Ben Proud (ENS) 0 Pts – 21.52

Energy Standard needed a spark, and the women’s relay win into this 50 free win was exactly what they needed. It also saved them from getting jackpotted, as Ben Proud was 8th but Manaudou’s win preserved those points. Dressel drops another race, but mentioned in a post-race interview that he’s in a relatively high-volume training cycle for the moment. He hasn’t looked sharp yet today, but still looks solid.

WOMEN’S 50 FREE

1. Sarah Sjostrom (ENS) 10 Pts – 23.48
2. Beryl Gastaldello (LAC) 7 Pts -23.94
3. Olivia Smoliga (CAC) 6 Pts – 24.05
4. Arina Surkova (NYB) 5 Pts – 24.18
5. Abbey Weitzel (LAC) 4 Pts – 24.22
6. Erika Brown (CAC) 3 Pts – 24.27
7. Pernilla Blume (ENS) 2 Pts – 24.38
8. Jeanette Ottesen (NYB) 0 Pts – 24.73

Sjostrom has been key so far. She wins the 50 free here – with the London Roar Australians bowing out, Sjostrom is probably the clear 50 free frontrunner along with Iron’s Kromowidjojo. The Current stuck close in event points as both cut into Cali’s lead just slightly.

MEN’S  200 IM

1. Andrew Seliskar (LAC) 10 Pts – 1:52.97
2. Tomoe Hvas (LAC) 7 Pts – 1:54.51
3. Joe Litchfield (NYB) 6 Pts – 1:54.87
4. Lewis Clareburt (NYB) 5 Pts – 1:54.89
5. Max Litchfield (ENS) 4 Pts – 1:55.79
6. Max Stupin (ENS) 3 Pts – 1:56.54
7. Mark Szaranek (CAC) 2 Pts – 1:57.19
8. Gunnar Bentz (CAC) 0 Pts – 1:57.53

The LA Current pulled off a massive 1-2 and a jackpot of last place. They used Andrew Seliskar here – LA has a wealth of IMers and Seliskar has often been more of a 200/400 freestyler in the ISL, but he’s looking like a big IM threat this season based on this swim. Cali got stung by a 7/8 finish and 8th place got jackpotted.

WOMEN’S 200 IM

1. Melanie Margalis (CAC) 19 Pts – 2:04.06
2. Abbie Wood (NYB) 7 Pts – 2:05.89
3. Anastasia Gorbenko (LAC) 6 Pts – 2:06.46
4. Meghan Small (CAC) 5 Pts – 2:08.48
5. Zsuzsanna Jakabos (ENS) 0 Pts – 2:09.54
6. Helena Gasson (LAC) 0 Pts – 2:09.62
7. Molly Renshaw (NYB) 0 Pts – 2:11.59
8. Viktoriya Gunnes (ENS) 0 Pts -2:11.91

Cali needed a boost after a couple of disappointing events, and their strong women’s roster continues to come through for them. Melanie Margalis was 2:04.06 to break the American record. That’s actually the fastest swim we’ve ever seen in the ISL, as Katinka Hosszu was last year’s top performer at 2:04.16. It’s also a massive jackpot, stealing the points from the bottom four finishers, including both Energy Standard entrants.

MEN’S 50 BREAST

1. Ilya Shymanovich (ENS) 19 Pts – 25.64
2. Felipe Lima (ENS) 7 Pts – 26.06
3. Felipe Silva Franca (LAC) 6 Pts – 26.27
4. Michael Andrew (NYB) 5 Pts – 26.36
5. James Wilby (NYB) 0 Pts – 27.09
6. Marcin Cieslak (CAC) 0 Pts – 27.19
7. Will Licon (LAC) 0 Pts – 27.20
8. Kevin Cordes (CAC) 0 Pts – 27.40

MEN’S 4X100 FREE RELAY

1. Cali Condors – 179
2. Energy Standard – 159
3. LA Current – 134
4. New York Breakers – 118

WOMEN’S 50 BACK

1. Olivia Smoliga (CAC) 24 Pts – 25.74
2. Beryl Gastaldello (LAC) 7 Pts – 26.34
3. Emily Seebohm (ENS) 6 Pts – 26.71
4. Georgia Davies (ENS) 0 Pts – 26.80
5. Sherridon Dressel (CAC) 0 Pts – 26.88
6. Ali Deloof (LAC) 0 Pts – 27.01
7. Tevyn Waddel (NYB) 0 Pts – 27.46
8. Chloe Goulding (NYB) 0 Pts – 28.02

Smoliga’s 25.74 is faster than anyone went on the ISL tour last year – that includes standout Minna Atherton, whose season-best was only 25.81. Smoliga is within a tenth of the world record in a massive swim in which she jackpotted everyone from 4th-place on down. The 50 back doesn’t have a clear-cut leaguewide standout, but Smoliga might be rising to that level.

MEN’S 50 BACK

1. Ryan Murphy (LAC) 24 Pts – 22.99
2. Justin Ress (CAC) 7 Pts – 23.08
3. Coleman Stewart (CAC) 6 Pts – 23.22
4. Dylan Carter (LAC) 0 Pts – 23.90
5. Florent Manaudou (ENS) 0 Pts – 23.90
6. Michael Andrew (NYB) 0 Pts – 23.91
7. Joe Litchfield (NYB) 0 Pts – 24.00
8. Kliment Kolesnikov (NYB) 0 Pts – 24.05

It’s the American backstrokers coming up with the biggest jackpot swims so far. Murphy jackpots everyone but two Cali Condors with his 22.99. There were only three sub-23 swims in the ISL last year, all from London’s Guilherme Guido. Murphy is looking like the 50 back skins threat we envisioned him as. Meanwhile Energy Standard appeared to have the league’s best backstroke group by a country mile, they’ve been very disappointing so far. Kliment Kolesnikov has been way off, and ENS somehow had two world record-holders (Manaudou in short course; Kolesnikov in long course) get jackpotted in this 50 back.

WOMEN’S 400 FREE

1. Melanie Margalis (CAC) 15 Pts – 3:58.43
2. Siobhan Haughey (ENS) 7 Pts – 3:58.58
3. Hali Flickinger (CAC) 6 Pts – 4:03.18
4. Boglarka Kapas (NYB) 5 Pts – 4:04.17
5. Anja Késley (NYB) 4 Pts – 4:06.32
6. Makayla Sargent (LAC) 0 Pts – 4:09.72
7. Zsuzanna Jakabos (ENS) 0 Pts – 4:10.47
8. Claire Rasmus (LAC) 0 Pts – 4:10.61

Melanie Margalis went 3:58.8 in the ISL last year, but it took four tenths faster than that to win a tight race with Siobhan Haughey this time around. Margalis’s 3:58.4 would have ranked as the 7th-best swim across all of last season. With Katie Ledecky and Ariarne Titmus both out of the season, Margalis looks like a true force here in the 400. She jackpotted the bottom three as the jackpots continue to define the individual events so far today. Haughey’s entry here was a good move – Energy was going to rely on Femke Heemskerk in perhaps the 200 and 400, but she’s out after a positive COVID test.

MEN’S 400 FREE

1. Danas Rapsys (ENS) 12 Pts – 3:39.36
2. Brendon Smith (NYB) 7 Pts – 3:41.32
3. Felix Aubock (NYB) 6 Pts – 3:41.39
4. Jacob Heidtman (LAC) 5 Pts – 3:41.48
5. Max Litchfield (ENS) 4 Pts – 3:41.88
6. Fernando Scheffer (LAC) 3 Pts – 3:43.96
7. Khader Baqlah (CAC) 0 Pts – 3:49.90
8. Townley Haas (CAC) 0 Pts – 3:52.37

Danas Rapsys was originally a part of the Energy Standard roster last year, but withdrew late. He’s proving to be a high-impact addition so far, winning the 400 free and jackpotting both Cali Condors. We thought the jackpot rule might actually help the Condors, but without Dressel swimming at his best, it’s actually proving to exacerbate the Condors shaky depth in a number of men’s events. Rapsys was 3:39.36, which is faster than anyone in the ISL went last year with the exception of Elijah Winnington, who is sitting out the season for London. Rapsys might take over as the league’s top 400 freestyler, especially with Kristof Milak (3:39.3 last year) also out for the season after a COVID bout.

WOMEN’S 4X100 MEDLEY RELAY

1. Cali Condors – 3:47.92
2. Energy Standard 2 – 3:48.81
3. Cali Condors 2 – 3:51.65
4. Energy Standard – 3:52.60
5. LA Current – 3:53.43
6. New York Breakers 2 – 3:53.75
7. LA Current 2 – 3:53.81
8. New York Breakers – 3:55.53

For a bit, it looked like Cali had a shot to take the 1-2 in this mega-important relay. But Energy Standard’s fly/free legs came through to prevent that. Cali still won handily, though, going 3:47.92. The Condors were undefeated in this relay last year and led the league with a 3:46.82 top time. Cali had to swap out anchors from last year, but they’re looking equally strong, and we’d very much expect them to pick breaststroke as the stroke for tomorrow’s women’s skin race after going 1-3 today in the individual 50 breast.

MEN’S 4X100 MEDLEY RELAY

1. LA Current – 3:23.27
2. Energy Standard 2 – 3:23.33
3. LA Current 2 – 3:26.13
4. Energy Standard – 3:26.98
5. Cali Condors – 3:26.99
6. Cali Condors 2 – 3:27.85
7. New York Breakers – 3:29.08
8. New York Breakers 2 – 3:30.94

The LA Current’s men have been outstanding today, winning both relays. This one is a big upset, as Energy Standard was very dominant in this event last year. LA takes 1st and 3rd for a big windfall to cap off the session. It also sets up an intriguing decision for LA in tomorrow’s skins: LA is probably best in the 50 back with Ryan Murphy and Zane Waddell. But that’s also the clear strength for Energy Standard. If LA wants to gamble some, they could try butterfly to take advantage of a red-hot Tom Shields. Energy wasn’t great (4th/8th) in the 50 fly, but Cali could get a boost with Dressel (2nd) in the mix.

TEAM SCORES AFTER DAY ONE

1. Cali Condors – 280
2. Energy Standard – 235
3. LA Current – 214
4. New York Breakers – 154