U.S. Nationals: Five things to watch

小臭贝

Soni vs. Hardy
Rebecca Soni, as we recently wrote (here and here), is the top breaststroker on the U.S. women's team. She won gold and silver at the 2009 World Championships, and netted 11 titles in six meets on the 2009-10 Grand Prix circuit. Hardy, on the other hand, has become a serious threat in the stroke -- mainly the 100m. The 2010 Nationals is her biggest meet since returning from a doping suspension that stemmed from a positive test at the 2008 Olympic Trials. The pair is sure to put on a show in this week Irvine, Calif.


Ryan Lochte's left knee
Ryan Lochte, the owner of six Olympic medals (three gold), told us in June that he was not 100 percent healthy after an unfortunate break dancing incident last fall did damage to his left knee. It was preventing him from swimming breaststroke, so the individual medleys were off the table. It's now August, and Lochte is entered in nine events -- including the 200m and 400m IM -- at this week's National Championships. Surely he won't qualify for (or choose to swim in) all nine finals, but his IM prelim swims will say a lot.

What kind of shape is Phelps in?
Michael Phelps is going through another one of those periods in which he says his training is not where it should be. Even after the Paris Open in June, Phelps -- who won two races, placed third in another and last in a fourth event -- said he was upset and frustrated by his performance. Will he find his groove in Irvine? Phelps' first swims are in the 200m butterfly and freestyle on Wednesday; he's entered in four other events throughout the week.

Can Dagny get it done?
2009 yielded mixed results for Dagny Knutson. On the one hand, she broke into the national swimming spotlight after a strong Grand Prix season, but then failed to perform at Nationals (third in 400m IM) and Worlds (silver in 800m freestyle relay). Knutson told us in May that she was worn out and tired last summer from an intense training regimen. This year she's training smarter and feels much more confident in the pool. Knutson will compete in six events this week; how will things play out?

Will Coughlin compete?
Natalie Coughlin's extended, post-Beijing break from swimming ended at the Austin Grand Prix in March, and since then she competed at the Charlotte UltraSwim, Santa Clara Grand Prix and the Los Angeles Grand Prix, along with the Mare Nostrum series in Europe. Clearly the 11-time Olympic medalist has plenty of competition time under her belt this year (and her times are solid), but will it prove to be enough to swim with the younger crowd -- see Elizabeth Beisel, Elizabeth Pelton and Dana Vollmer for examples -- this week?

原来还有这么多内幕啊，长见识了，呵呵