FanHouse Olympic Swimming Trials

We covered the entire U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials, click on the tag for all of the coverage.

If Dara Torres had made the Olympic team as a member of a relay team, it would have made for a great story. The 41-year-old swimming great would have made an amazing comeback after her second retirement to earn a fifth trip to the Olympics.

But Torres has gone beyond being just a good story, by winning her second event at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials she's become proof that the impossible may just be possible. Torres set her second American record of the week as she won the 50 meter freestyle, showing that she's swimming better than she ever has before, 24 years after she competed in her first Olympics.

We're covering the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials all week.

Just like we saw four years ago, NBC's swimming coverage this August will be the Michael Phelps show once again--and with him winning his fifth and final event at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials. it's obvious why. Phelps will head to Beijing with a legitimate shot at breaking Mark Spitz' record of seven gold medals in a single Olympics. With three relays, Phelps is entered in eight events.

But Saturday's Trials action also showed who else we'll be seeing wall-to-wall coverage of next month. If you haven't paid much attention to swimming since 2004, you might not have heard much about Katie Hoff, but if you watch next month's Olympic coverage, Hoff will become a household name.

We're previewing all of the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trial events

Men's 1500 Meter Freestyle

What to watch for: This event is unique in that there's no women's equivalent. Only men swim the 1500 and it's the ultimate distance event for an Olympic swimmer. Distance swimmers Larsen Jensen and Peter Vanderkaay look to add to their lists of Olympic events by swimming this event. Perennial distance favorite Erik Vendt is seeded first and will likely make another Olympic team.

What it takes: The 1500 is like a pacing game. Go out too fast and you either won't have enough won't have enough to chase down the leader. Go out too slow, and you've got gas left over in the tank when you hit the wall. And gas left over is never good. The best distance swimmers are as reliable as a stopwatch: each 100 meters should clock in at about the same time.

Unlikely underdogs: Usually you wouldn't think of Vanderkaay as an underdog, but he's almost eight seconds behind the first two. Watch for him to make a move on Jensen and Vendt.

My prediction: Jensen has been having such a fantastic Trials that he'll probably use that momentum to keep on keeping on. Vendt will qualify in an event known as his trademark event.

We're covering the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials all week.

Thursday night's swimming trials action was all about the upsets. But Friday was about the battles between the favorites.

There really wasn't a big upset on Friday, but we did see plenty of top performances. Rebecca Soni, a disappointment in the 100 meter breastroke, lived up to expectations as she won the 200 meter breaststroke. Amanda Beard, who now splits her time between being a Playboy model, a Go Daddy girl and occasional hops into the pool, showed that she's still able to challenge for a medal, as she qualified for her fourth Olympics by finishing second.

Most 41-year-old swimmers have been retired for more than a decade, but Dara Torres isn't exactly normal.

Torres came to the Olympic Trials just aiming to make her fifth Olympic team (her first Olympics was back in 1984 in Los Angeles, back when Carl Lewis and the hightop fade were in style). But even Torres didn't seem ready to imagine that she could win the 100 meter freestyle.

But here she is, supposedly 20 years past her prime, swimming the fastest times of her life and beating swimmers half her age.

"It's really hard to see the scoreboard, I think it's age," Torres joked on NBC when asked how she felt when she realized that she had won.

The New York Times did an outstanding feature on Torres' longevity in last Sunday's magazine. As they explained it, Torres' work on increasing her flexibility, including long pre-race stretching sessions, has allowed her to not only keep swimming competitively at age 41, but has also allowed her to increase her speed, even as her body would seemingly be slowing down.

Torres says she doesn't have that many races left in her 41-year-old body. But if she has a few more left for Beijing, she could make swimming history.

We're previewing the races that are taking place at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials.

Women's 200 Backstroke

What to watch for: Unlike the 100 meter distance, we will not see the American queen of backstroke, Natalie Coughlin in this event. The 200 distance is better suited to swimmers like Katie Hoff, who swim longer distances. Watch for women who are catch water and power underwater, using every wall to her advantage and who can finish strong.

What it takes: Margaret Hoelzer, who's already secured a spot in the 100 backstroke, is seeded first in this event. Katie Hoff, who was seeded second, decided to pull out of the event, leaving the door open for Hayley McGregory, who has another chance to go to Beijing. McGregory missed the Games when she finished third to Coughlin and Hoelzer in the 100 earlier this week.

Unlikely underdogs: Elizabeth Beisel and Mary Descenza have been swimming consistently well at these Olympic Trials and both have a chance here. Beisel is only 15, so we can expect to see her around for quite a while, but she has the talent to earn a spot.

My prediction: Hoelzer will go to the games in both backstroke events and McGregory will redeem herself and grab herself an Olympic berth.

We're previewing the races that are taking place at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials.

Women's 800 Meter Freestyle

What to watch for: For the first time in history, I think that Janet Evans' nearly 20-year-old record might be challenged tonight. Katie Hoff is about a good a female swimmer as this country has seen in over a decade and has shown that she's focused and prepared for this meet. The women don't swim the 1500 meter distance, which is reserved just for men, so this is where the distance swimmers will get their chance to shine. Watch for swimmers with a steady 2-beat kick and a long, comfortable stroke.

What it takes: Hoff is swimming in this event. And for once isn't seeded first. The first seed belongs to 20-year-old Kate Ziegler. If Hoff and Ziegler can push each other in the finals of this event tonight, we could watch one of the longest standing records in swimming fall. Ziegler is seeded first and Hoff second going into tonight's finals. The two are seeded over thirteen seconds ahead of third seed Kelsey Ditto.

Unlikely underdogs: While her chances of making it to Beijing are slim, keep an eye on Caroline Burckle, who has swum well at these Olympic Trials.

My prediction: Thirteen seconds is a LOT of time. Hoff and Ziegler can book their tickets to Beijing.

We're previewing the races that are taking place at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials.

Men's 50 Freestyle

What to watch for: The 50 free is the drama king (or queen) of every Olympic Games. It is the all out fistfight that everyone waits for. In the first 10 seeds alone there are three men who are seeded at the exact same time and the first 10 places are separated by just under seven-tenths of a second. It is the event in which if you slip, breathe, blink, or forgot to cut your finger nails, you'll be sitting at home while someone else takes the flight to Beijing. Watch for swimmers who breathe little, and stroke a lot. That might sound elementary, but the perfect 50 free has only one breath, lots of kicking, and a whole lot of guts.

We're covering the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials all week.

Brendan Hansen was surprised to lose the 100 meter and 200 meter breaststroke in Athens in 2004, as he was edged for the gold medal by Japan's Kosuke Kitajima. But that was nothing compared to the shock of Thursday night.

Kitajima and Hansen have had a great rivalry that was supposed to be one of the big stories at Beijing. Hansen has been motivated to pay Kitajima back for his pair of wins in 2004, but after a stunning finish, he won't get a chance to get revenge in the 200 meter breaststroke.

Hansen has dominated the 200 meter breaststroke for years, and held the world record until a month ago. But on Thursday, Hansen ran out of gas in the final 50 meters, dropping from first at the final wall to fourth. Scott Spann was the beneficiary, as he hauled down everyone with a blazing final 50 meters to finish first. Eric Shanteau finished second for the other berth.

We're covering the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials all week.

The Michael Phelps of the Olympic Trials has been Katie Hoff.

Hoff won two more events on Wednesday, setting American records in both. But what was most impressive is the events that Hoff won. Not many swimmers would attempt, much less win, a combo of the 200 meter freestyle and the 200 meter IM on the same day. The only thing standing between Hoff and being known as the top female swimmer in the world is to now do it in Beijing. Hoff will be joined by Natalie Coughlin in the 200 IM, and by Allison Schmitt in the 200 freestyle.

"She's a stud for doing the 200 free-200 IM double," Natalie Coughlin said. "That's an incredibly tough double, and I don't know of another female swimmer who could do it so successfully."

Hoff has already won four events and has qualified for one relay. She still has two more individual events to go, plus the likelihood that she'll qualify for another relay. If so, she, like Phelps would be gunning for eight gold medals in Beijing.

Speaking of Phelps, he won his third event of the trials, but he wasn't particularly thrilled with his 200 butterfly performance. He finished just .11 seconds off of his world record time, but he told NBC he didn't swim hard enough on the first 100 meters. He'll have a chance to swim more to his liking in Beijing. Gil Stovall of Georgia, on the other hand, was thrilled to make his first Olympic team; he finished second to Phelps in the 200 butterfly.