Drexel University held their annual Blue vs. Orange Intrasquad meet on October 3rd, and a unique event appeared on the lineup for the second straight year: the Eliminator 1000.
Six swimmers started the race, and the last one at each point of the 200, 400, 600, and 800 was eliminated, leaving two swimmers at the final touch of the 1000. That swimmer earned the win.
At the end of each 200, the bell was rung over the lane where the swimmer was in last place, signaling they were done swimming the event.
Head coach Nathan Lavery provided some insight on the men’s race:
“Watch the guy in lane three use hand touches to stay in the game at the 400 and 600 marks — Kaan Akdag. It actually almost cost him at times, but he pulled it off.
“Colton, in lane two, sped up when he realized how close he was. He’s more a 100/200 guy, so the strategy was to use that speed to sit and nail the last 25 each time — knocked out by 0.01 at the 400 mark, but he should have had it.
“Lane six, Theo Andreopoulos, is a sprint free/back guy just trying to hang in.
“We did this once last year, and they didn’t quite know what to make of it. This year they had more clearly defined strategies going in, and it showed. Fun to see them figuring it out.
“The last two remaining swimmers were on the same team, so once they got through at 800, they slowed down.”
Results
- Lane 1: Grady Potter (Gold) – NT (6th)
- Lane 2: Colton Wade (Blue) – NT (5th)
- Lane 3: Kaan Akdag (Gold) – 9:48.71 (2nd)
- Lane 4: Richard Pucek (Blue) – NT (3rd)
- Lane 5: Roko Krpina (Gold) – 9:48.40 (1st)
- Lane 6: Theo Andreopoulos (Blue) – NT (4th)
Race Footage
Courtesy of Drexel Athletics & Nathan Lavery
Part One (first eight minutes):
Part Two (ending):
Making swim meets more engaging has been a major topic in the sport over the past several years. Texas, Virginia, Georgia Tech, and the CSCAA have been at the forefront of this effort on the collegiate scene, having experimented with innovative formats at various competitions.
On the first day of their November 2022 dual with Virginia, Texas experimented with a new format by scoring the men’s and women’s competitions together, rather than separately as is typical. Bevo, the University of Texas’s official live Longhorn mascot, was present at the Lee and Joe Jamail Center that day. The meet also featured music, a DJ, a light show, and ISL-style swimmer introductions before the races. The 100 IM and mixed 400 freestyle relay—events not usually included in NCAA competition outside of intrasquad meets—were also swum on Friday. The Longhorns have since incorporated elements of this format into two of their meets each season.
At the UVA–Texas dual meet in October 2023, Virginia introduced two unconventional concepts: “super finals” and “winner-takes-all” events. Super finals took place after the regular heats of the 100 back, 100 breast, and 100 fly, with each team selecting one swimmer—who did not compete in the standard 4 vs. 4 heat—to race head-to-head. The winner earned five points, while the loser received none. The University of Tennessee also incorporated the super final format into its annual invitational this past November.
On April 18, Georgia Tech announced a knockout-style dual meet tournament that will take place October 17-18. The format will feature eight teams, including Georgia Tech, NC State, Auburn, Minnesota, Georgia, Army, Florida State, and George Washington.
Seven dual meets will be contested throughout the tournament, with the first four being scored head-to-head between two teams. The winners of those competitions will advance to round two, where two more meets will be scored head-to-head, with the winners advancing to the final competition.
The College Swimming and Diving Coaches of America (CSCAA) announced the CSCAA Power 4 Dual Meet Challenge on May 28, which will run its inaugural edition at Tennessee from November 21-23. The event will be a double-elimination, bracket-style dual meet featuring one representative from each of the Power 4 conferences, with the 2025 edition to include Michigan (Big Ten), Arizona State (Big 12), Virginia (ACC), and Tennessee (SEC).
These innovations have trickled down to the high school scene. A knockout-style dual meet was announced featuring the top eight most successful Illinois high school boys’ swimming programs over the past two decades, and the organizers cited the college tournaments as the inspiration to form the meet. New Trier, Hinsdale Central, Glenbrook South, Neuqua Valley, Naperville Central, Lyons Township, Stevenson, and St. Charles North will compete on December 30 at 4 p.m., with the location TBD.
Whether it’s an Eliminator 1000, a knockout-style dual meet, or music and light shows, the sport has seen a shift over the past few seasons toward trying new things. With much debate over how college swimming dual meets can become more exciting, could the Eliminator 1000 become more prominent? Will your team take on the event?
Fun!