U.S. Olympic swim champions conquer challenges to win at Winter Nationals

By Nick ZaccardiDec 4, 2015, 11:45 PM EST

Michael Phelps, Missy Franklin, Allison Schmitt and Dana Vollmer all won individual Olympic gold medals in 2012 and then dealt with unique challenges to their dominance in this Olympic cycle.

On Friday, all four captured U.S. Winter National titles in events where they reigned in London.

Start with Phelps, the 22-time Olympic medalist who last year came out of a 20-month competitive retirement and then was suspended following a September 2014 DUI arrest.

On Friday, Phelps clocked 51.38 seconds to win the 100m butterfly at the U.S. Winter Nationals in Federal Way, Wash. Phelps came back to defeat Tom Shields, the second-best American in the event, by .03.

That’s his fourth-fastest time ever outside of summer meets in the event, which he’s won at the last three Olympics, according to USA Swimming’s times database.

“I just had a friend of mine text me, actually, today, and he was like, dude, you’re 30 years old, and you’re still doing times better than you have in the past,” Phelps told media in Federal Way. “I said it just shows anything is possible.”

Swimmers generally train to peak in the summer — and certainly not December. And of the three faster non-summer times, two of them were from the 2007 World Championships and the 2005 World Championships trials, meets Phelps certainly trained to peak for.

On Thursday, Phelps won the 200m individual medley in a time 1.69 seconds faster than at a meet in Minneapolis three weeks ago.

“A good place to be,” Phelps, who on Aug. 8 swam the world’s fastest 100m butterfly time (50.45) since 2009, told NBC’s Carolyn Manno on Friday. “It’s really just trying to swim the fastest times that I can unshaved. For me to be where I am right now and to be kind of unshaved, unrested and still being able to swim some of the fastest times I’ve been able to swim in-season in my life, I think it’s a good sign.”

Winter Nationals conclude Saturday and will be streamed live the next on USASwimming.org/Nationals at 9 p.m. ET. NBC and NBC Sports Live Extra will air coverage Sunday from 1-2 p.m. ET.

Full Friday results are here.

In other events, Franklin beat Natalie Coughlin in their first 100m backstroke final duel since the 2012 Olympic trials (when Franklin also won and Coughlin was an agonizing third after winning the 2004 and 2008 Olympic titles).

Franklin prevailed in Federal Way in 1:00.03 after being fifth at the halfway point.

“Gave myself a little bit of a heart attack there,” Franklin told media in Federal Way.

The 33-year-old Coughlin placed fourth at 1:00.41, but is still the fastest American in the event this year (59.05) after shying away from the backstroke in 2013 and 2014.

Franklin is returning from a back injury that plagued her at the biggest meet of 2014, the Pan Pacific Championships, and a six-meet individual race winless drought this summer.

“Every single time I race, I learn something,” Franklin told Manno. “I’ve made some major improvements since this summer.”

She’s got five Olympic medals and has said her goal is to become the most successful female Olympic swimmer of all time. The medals record is currently shared by the retired Jenny Thompson and Dara Torres, plus Coughlin, who has entered 12 career Olympic events and earned medals in all of them.

Earlier Friday, Franklin suffered a defeat in the 200m freestyle. Allison Schmitt beat Franklin in the event for the first time since Schmitt broke the Olympic record in the London Games final, where Franklin was fourth.

“Mentally, I’m still struggling with that race a little,” Franklin told media in Federal Way.

Since the 2012 Olympics, Schmitt has dealt with depression and failed to make the U.S. team for the 2013 World Championships, 2014 Pan Pacific Championships and 2015 World Championships.

Schmitt, who also won the 400m free Thursday, must likely beat Franklin in the 200m free again at the Olympic trials on June 29 to make the Rio team in the event. That’s because Katie Ledecky is the World champion and two make the Olympic team.

Also Friday, Olympic champion Dana Vollmer won the women’s 100m butterfly in 57.95, her fastest time since coming back from a nearly two-year break to have a baby.

Vollmer’s time ranks her No. 16 in the world and, more importantly, No. 3 among Americans for the year behind Kelsi Worrell (57.24) and Katie McLaughlin (57.87). Worrell and McLaughlin are not competing in Federal Way.

The top two at the Olympic trials on June 27 in Omaha make the Olympic team.

“Time-wise, I feel like I’m still the same person,” said Vollmer, whose since-broken world record from the London Games was 55.98. “I have a 55 in me, and I just gotta get back to it. … It’s nice to see time chipping away slowly.”

Another U.S. Olympic champion, Matt Grevers, captured the men’s 100m back in 52.54, bettering his disappointing bronze-medal time from the World Championships on Aug. 4 by .12 of a second.

“I wanted to redeem myself a little bit after Worlds,” Grevers told media in Federal Way. “I was hoping for a little better.”

MORE SWIMMING: Michael Phelps: I wasn’t 100 percent at Beijing Olympics

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2023 French Open men’s singles draw, scores

By OlympicTalkMay 31, 2023, 6:46 PM EDT

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The French Open men’s singles draw is missing injured 14-time champion Rafael Nadal for the first time since 2004, leaving the Coupe des Mousquetaires ripe for the taking.

The tournament airs live on NBC Sports, Peacock and Tennis Channel through championship points in Paris.

Novak Djokovic is not only bidding for a third crown at Roland Garros, but also to lift a 23rd Grand Slam singles trophy to break his tie with Nadal for the most in men’s history.

FRENCH OPEN: Broadcast Schedule | Women’s Draw

But the No. 1 seed is Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, who won last year’s U.S. Open to become, at 19, the youngest man to win a major since Nadal’s first French Open title in 2005.

Now Alcaraz looks to become the second-youngest man to win at Roland Garros since 1989, after Nadal of course.

Alcaraz missed the Australian Open in January due to a right leg injury, but since went 30-3 with four titles. Notably, he has not faced Djokovic this year. They could meet in the semifinals.

Russian Daniil Medvedev, the No. 2 seed, was upset in the first round by 172nd-ranked Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild. It marked the first time a men’s top-two seed lost in the first round of any major since 2003 Wimbledon (Ivo Karlovic d. Lleyton Hewitt).

No. 9 Taylor Fritz, No. 12 Frances Tiafoe and No. 16 Tommy Paul are the highest-seeded Americans, all looking to become the first U.S. man to make the French Open quarterfinals since Andre Agassi in 2003. Since then, five different American men combined to make the fourth round on eight occasions.

MORE: All you need to know for 2023 French Open

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2023 French Open Men’s Singles Draw

At the French Open, a Ukrainian mom makes her comeback

By OlympicTalkMay 31, 2023, 5:15 PM EDT

Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina, once the world’s third-ranked tennis player, is into the French Open third round in her first major tournament since childbirth.

Svitolina, 28, swept 2022 French Open semifinalist Martina Trevisan of Italy, then beat Australian qualifier Storm Hunter 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 to reach the last 32 at Roland Garros. She next plays 56th-ranked Russian Anna Blinkova, who took out the top French player, fifth seed Caroline Garcia, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 on her ninth match point.

Svitolina’s husband, French player Gael Monfils, finished his first-round five-set win after midnight on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. She watched that match on a computer before going to sleep ahead of her 11 a.m. start Wednesday.

“This morning, he told me, ‘I’m coming to your match, so make it worth it,'” she joked on Tennis Channel. “I was like, OK, no pressure.

“I don’t know what he’s doing here now. He should be resting.”

Also Wednesday, 108th-ranked Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis ousted three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3 in four and a half hours. Wawrinka’s exit leaves Novak Djokovic as the lone man in the draw who has won the French Open and Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz as the lone men left who have won any major.

The top seed Alcaraz beat 112th-ranked Taro Daniel of Japan 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. The Spaniard gets 26th seed Denis Shapovalov of Canada in the third round. Djokovic, the No. 3 seed, swept 83rd-ranked Hungarian Marton Fucsovics 7-6 (2), 6-0, 6-3 to reach a third-round date with 29th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Broadcast Schedule

Svitolina made at least one major quarterfinal every year from 2017 through 2021, including the semifinals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2019. She married Monfils one week before the Tokyo Olympics, then won a singles bronze medal.

Svitolina played her last match before maternity leave on March 24, 2022, one month after Russia invaded her country. She gave birth to daughter Skai on Oct. 15.

Svitolina returned to competition in April. Last week, she won the tournament preceding the French Open, sweeping Blinkova to improve to 17-3 in her career in finals. She’s playing on a protected ranking of 27th after her year absence and, now, on a seven-match win streak.

“It was always in my head the plan to come back, but I didn’t put any pressure on myself, because obviously with the war going on, with the pregnancy, you never know how complicated it will go,” she said. “I’m as strong as I was before, maybe even stronger, because I feel that I can handle the work that I do off the court, and match by match I’m getting better. Also mentally, because mental can influence your physicality, as well.”

Svitolina said she’s motivated by goals to attain before she retires from the sport and to help Ukraine, such as donating her prize money from last week’s title in Strasbourg.

“These moments bring joy to people of Ukraine, to the kids as well, the kids who loved to play tennis before the war, and now maybe they don’t have the opportunity,” she said. “But these moments that can motivate them to look on the bright side and see these good moments and enjoy themselves as much as they can in this horrible situation.”

Svitolina was born in Odesa and has lived in Kharkiv, two cities that have been attacked by Russia.

“I talk a lot with my friends, with my family back in Ukraine, and it’s a horrible thing, but they are used to it now,” she said. “They are used to the alarms that are on. As soon as they hear something, they go to the bomb shelters. Sleepless nights. You know, it’s a terrible thing, but they tell me that now it’s a part of their life, which is very, very sad.”

Svitolina noted that she plays with a flag next to her name — unlike the Russians and Belarusians, who are allowed to play as neutral athletes.

“When I step on the court, I just try to think about the fighting spirit that all of us Ukrainians have and how Ukrainians are fighting for their values, for their freedom in Ukraine,” she said, “and me, I’m fighting here on my own front line.”

Svitolina said that she’s noticed “a lot of rubbish” concerning how tennis is reacting to the war.

“We have to focus on what the main point of what is going on,” she said. “Ukrainian people need help and need support. We are focusing on so many things like empty words, empty things that are not helping the situation, not helping anything.

“I want to invite everyone to focus on helping Ukrainians. That’s the main point of this, to help kids, to help women who lost their husbands because they are at the war, and they are fighting for Ukraine.

“You can donate. Couple of dollars might help and save lives. Or donate your time to something to help people.”

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2023 French Open Men’s Singles Draw

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