Cal Swimming: With the Olympics Looming, Former Bears Are Fast at Mission Viejo
With the Tokyo Olympics barely three months away, three former Cal swim stars flexed their muscles a bit in the pool this weekend.
Competing at a TYR Pro Swim Series meet in Mission Viejo, Ryan Murphy and Abbey Weitzeil each posted a pair of victories in their specialties and three-time Olympian Nathan Adrian claimed a fifth victory by ex-Golden Bears.
Murphy, the 25-year-old winner of three gold medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics, won the 100-meter backstroke Saturday in a time of 53.11 seconds, fastest this year by an American and No. 5 in the world. Current Cal swimmer Hugo Gonzalez of Spain was second.
Murphy followed that with a win in 1:56.27 in the 200 back on Sunday, just off his season best but nowhere near his career best. Afterward, Murphy told the Digital Journal he was pleased with his weekend.
"It was nice," said Murphy, who swept the 100 and 200 back for Cal at the NCAA Championships for for four straight seasons through 2017. "It's nice to do the 100 and 200 backstroke races back-to-back like that just to feel some differences in the stroke.
“I got a nice feel for where we are at in training. It's good to see those so close together because my body is not changing day-to-day very much. (Coach) Dave Durden is able to get a really nice pulse on where I am at, and where our group is at so that we can make some adjustments and create that training plan for the next couple of weeks.”
Weitzel, 24 and a two-time Olympic medalist, won the 50 free and 100 free, both in season bests by an American. Absent from the field in the 50 was former Stanford star Simone Manuel, the world-recordholder in the event.
Weitzeil’s time of 24.57 in the 50 was sixth-best in the world while her 53.68 mark in the 100 is No. 7 in the world so far in 2021.
Nathan Adrian
Adrian, 32, whose career haul of eight Olympic medals includes five gold, was second in the 100 free prelims behind American record holder Caeleb Dressel. Dressel did not swim in the Sunday morning final, but Adrian won in 48.74, the best mark by an American this season.
“Popping out a 48, doing it in the morning (when) there’s not as many fans . . . .happy to win, for sure,” Adrian said afterward.
The winner of five NCAA titles for Cal before graduating in 2012, Adrian was fourth in Saturday’s 50 free final, swimming 22.29.
On Friday, former Cal swimmers Andrew Seliskar (52.21), Murphy (52.27) and Tom Shields (52.39) placed third, fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 100 butterfly final. Seliskar, 24, also was second in the 200 individual medley (2:00.16).
Katie McLaughlin, a three-time NCAA champ for the Bears as a senior in 2019, was third in the 200 free (1:58.14) on Friday, with Weitzeil checking in fifth (1:58.69). McLaughlin, 23, was sixth in the 50 free (25.31) and eighth in the 100 free (54.84).
Cover photo of Ryan Murphy by Kelvin Kuo, USA Today
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo