OMAHA, Neb. – The road to Tokyo runs through Nebraska starting Sunday, as nearly two dozen Cal men – past, present and future – head to Omaha for the U.S. Olympic Trials Wave II on June 13-20. Across eight days of action at the CHI Health Center, the Golden Bears will compete alongside the nation's best for a spot on the U.S. Olympic roster.
Preliminaries begin each day at 8 a.m. PT, while semifinals and finals begin at 4:45 p.m. PT on June 13-17, 5:45 p.m. PT on June 18-19 and 5 p.m. PDT on June 20. Prelims will be streamed on NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports app in addition to NBCSN televising the prelims sessions on a delay. Finals sessions will be televised nightly on NBC or NBCSN. The full Wave II schedule of events can be viewed here.
THE CAL CONTINGENT
It won't take much effort to find a Blue & Gold cap in Omaha, as 21 Cal-affiliated men's swimmers are listed on the pre-meet psych sheet. The group includes six post-grads, 13 members of Cal's 2020-21 collegiate team and two incoming signees, most of which call Spieker Aquatics Complex home.
Post-Graduates
» Nathan Adrian – 50 Free, 100 Free
» Anthony Ervin – 50 Free
» Ryan Murphy – 100 Back, 200 Back, 100 Fly
» Josh Prenot – 100 Breast, 200 Breast, 200 IM
» Andrew Seliskar – 100 Free, 200 Free, 200 IM, 100 Fly
» Tom Shields – 100 Fly, 200 Fly
Collegiate
» Daniel Carr – 100 Back, 200 Back
» Sean Grieshop – 200 Free, 200 IM, 400 IM
» Ryan Hoffer – 50 Free, 100 Free, 100 Fly
» Chris Jhong – 200 IM, 400 IM
» Trenton Julian – 200 Free, 400 Free, 100 Fly, 200 Fly, 200 IM
» Tyler Kopp – 400 IM
» Destin Lasco – 50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free, 100 Back, 200 Back, 200 IM
» Jason Louser – 100 Breast, 200 Breast, 200 Fly, 200 IM, 400 IM
» Bryce Mefford – 100 Back, 200 Back
» Colby Mefford – 200 Back, 400 Free, 200 Fly
» Dare Rose – 100 Fly, 200 Fly, 200 Free, 400 Free
» Reece Whitley – 100 Breast, 200 Breast
» Zach Yeadon – 200 Free, 400 Free, 800 Free
Signees
» Jack Alexy – 50 Free, 100 Free, 100 Back
» Gabriel Jett – 200 Free, 400 Free, 800 Free, 200 Fly, 200 Back
DURDEN LEADING THE WAY
Following the upcoming week's action in Omaha, Cal head coach David Durden will lead the U.S. Olympic men's swimming team into Tokyo in late July. Originally selected in December 2018 to helm the Team USA men, Durden's status was reconfirmed in July 2020 after the Olympic Games were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Durden's experience with USA Swimming spans more than a decade; he last served as head coach of the Team USA men at both the 2015 and 2017 FINA World Championships and was also an assistant coach at the 2011 World Championships, 2010 Pan Pacific Championships and 2009 Duel in the Pool. At Cal, Durden has maintained one of the world's most impactful training centers in recent years.
FIVE YEARS AGO IN OMAHA
The summer of 2016 was a historic one for the Bears with six individuals – Nathan Adrian, Anthony Ervin, Ryan Murphy, Jacob Pebley, Josh Prenot and Tom Shields – qualifying for the Rio Olympic Games at the U.S. Trials. The group went on to bring home 11 medals, eight of which were gold.
STAY POSTED
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