At the 2010 Swimming Grand Prix stop in Columbia, Missouri, at the stunning University of Missouri natatorium, there will be 15 U.S. National Team members, with Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte being the most notable to American fans. The two male superstars, Lochte and Phelps, will face off head-to-head in 4 events, including the 200 free, 100 fly, 100 back, and 100 free.
Lochte, the 2009 Golden Goggles Award Winner for USA-Swimming Swimmer of the Year will also compete in the 50 freestyle. Phelps, who picked up his on hardware as Swimming World’s World Swimmer of the Year for 2009, will also swim the 200 I.M. and 200 backstroke.
The Missouri stop, hosted by the Columbia Swim Club Tiger Sharks, is the third meet of the eight meet series. A running score of the whole grand prix series will be kept via a power-points system, with the overall winner receiving a grand prize of $20,000 dollars.
The meet will feature 15 U.S. National Team Members, including 2008 Olympians Eric Shanteau (Lilburn, Ga.), Garrett Weber-Gale (Milwaukee, Wis.), Chloe Sutton (Mission Viejo, Calif.), as well as swimmers Amanda Weir (Lawrenceville, Ga.), Erika Erndl (Naples, Fla.), Nick Thoman (Cincinnati, Ohio), Felicia Lee (Wayne, N.J.), Elizabeth Pelton (Ruxton, Md.), Deni Cullom (Dana Point, Calif.), Keri Hehn (Fargo, N.D.), Matthew Lowe (Minot, N.D.), David Russell (Wellesley, Mass.) and Patrick Schirk (Pottstown, Pa.).
Strong international competition will also be present at the meet, which includes Olympic gold medalists Kosuke Kitajima and Ous Mellouli of Tunisia; Austrian former world-record holder Markus Rogan, and Britain’s Simon Burnett, who was the 2006 NCAA Champion in the 200 freestyle.
