Simone Manuel Swims 22.1 50, 48.4 100 Free in First Races Since Tokyo Olympics

WISCONSIN vs ASU

Arizona State hosted a dual meet against Wisconsin over the weekend, splitting with the Badgers. Some of the ASU pro swimmers raced as well, which was notable in two cases in particular.

Firstly, Olympic champion and American Record holder Simone Manuel swam her first races since the Tokyo Olympics in summer of 2021. Manuel announced her move to Tempe in late August after a break from swimming. Last we saw Manuel competing, she helped the U.S. women’s 4×100 free relay to a bronze medal in Tokyo, anchoring in 52.96.

In her return to racing on Saturday, Manuel swam a 22.18 in the 50 free and 48.40 in the 100 free. While those times are of course off her personal bests of 21.17 and 45.56, her performances over the weekend were right in line with the majority of her dual meet swims during her collegiate career at Stanford. Given that, it seems Manuel is quickly getting back into shape following her break from swimming.

This meet also marked World Record holder Regan Smith‘s first meet as a pro. It appears Smith is adapting well to her training under coach Bob Bowman, as she was fantastic, clocking a 1:49.43 in the 200 back. That time comes in a little over two seconds off Smith’s personal best and would have Smith leading the NCAA by a wide margin this season.

Smith also swam a 51.02 in the 100 back, marking another very solid performance.

Olivia Smoliga was another ASU pro who raced, swimming a 51.94 in the 100 back. Smoliga, a two-time Olympic medalist, swam a 22.23 in 50 free as well.

Chase Kalisz, another recent addition to the pro group, clocked a lifetime best at this meet. Kalisz swam a 1:53.,83 in the 200 breast, taking nearly a second off his previous best of 1:54.62, a time which he swam back in 2016 at a dual meet. Kalisz followed that best time in the 200 breast up with a 1:42.44 in the 200 fly.

Jay Litherland also swam at the meet. He posted a 1:48.06 in the 200 fly, which marks a new personal best. Litherland also swam the 200 breast, however his time shows up as a 1:39.44, which clearly is not accurate.

Notably, none of the Arizona State pro swimmers are set to compete at the FINA World Cup or SC World Champs. Given that, it seems likely the next major meet we see the ASU pros at will be the U.S. Open in about a month.