Michael Phelps among US swimmers facing biggest month of year in the pool

Phelps facing biggest month of year in the pool

IRVINE, Calif. — Michael Phelps’ run-up to his last Olympics begins with this week’s U.S. national championships. He’s facing his biggest month of the year in the pool, but the challenge is more mental than physical.

The 14-time Olympic gold medalist has competed sparingly so far this season, and hardly gotten the results he’s used to. A month ago in Paris, he struggled in his freestyle events and appeared off form.

“Not being as satisfied as I want to be leaving here I think is more than likely going to happen,” he said Monday. “It’s going to be a meet that is more mental than physical.”

There’s a lot at stake when the five-day nationals begin Tuesday. The top two finishers in each event qualify for the Pan Pacific championships later this month in Irvine, and from that group, the U.S. team for next year’s world championships will be chosen.

Failing to qualify for those teams means American swimmers won’t be competing at a major international meet until the 2012 London Olympics.

Phelps is scheduled to swim five events in Irvine: the 200-meter freestyle, 100 butterfly, 200 fly, 200 individual medley and 200 backstroke.

His busiest day will be his first, when he competes in two events Wednesday.

“I’m more motivated now than I have been all year,” he said. “Not being where you want to be is frustrating. You know what you need to do to get back and you know what you need to change.”

Phelps is still perfecting his new freestyle stroke, which was flawed in Paris, where his timing and stroke were off.

“It is a lot better than it was a couple weeks ago,” he said. “I feel like I can actually swim freestyle again. That’s always a good feeling coming into a nationals meet.”

Many of Phelps’ Beijing Olympic teammates are here looking to solidify their schedules for the next two years.

Ryan Lochte injured his left groin last week, which has curtailed his breaststroke practice. He planned to test the stroke before deciding whether to swim the individual medleys, where he would compete against Phelps in the 200 IM.

If he can’t do breaststroke, Lochte still has an ambitious schedule planned with five other events, including the 200 back against Phelps and Aaron Peirsol.

Natalie Coughlin is competing in the 100 backstroke, 100 fly and 100 free; a resurgent Katie Hoff could swim up to five events; Olympic relay hero Jason Lezak attempts to extend his career at 34; and Jessica Hardy tries to regain a place on the international stage after a one-year doping suspension that ended last year.

“This is a big meet for me because I haven’t gotten to travel with the national team since 2007,” Hardy said. “I’ve moved on from 2008. I obviously had a lot of struggle with processing that and getting through that year, but I’ve definitely moved on.”

Lezak is focusing solely on the 100 free, his best event. He became a first-time father eight months ago, which has curtailed his training time.

“It’s been hectic, and learning to deal with that was hard,” he said. “Once I got that down, things started doing a little bit better and I started training better.”

The meet represents the Americans’ biggest test so far this year of the return to textile suits.

Gone are the neck-to-ankle suits made of polyurethane materials that revolutionized the sport but are now banned by all the major governing bodies. The suit frenzy reached a peak at last year’s world championships in Rome, when 43 world records were set.

At the start of this year, FINA passed new rules on how much skin could be covered and what fabrics could be used. Men are only allowed to wear waist-to-knee “jammers,” while women must wear shoulder-to-knee suits and only textile materials may be used.

Since then, times have been slower, including at the Australian nationals in March.

“I still think you’re going to see tight races,” Phelps said. “For me, I’d rather see a tight race than watch a world record get obliterated by five seconds.”

Phelps has long maintained it’s about the swimmer, not the suit.

“It’s really going to be interesting to see who can make the transition between wearing (textile) suits and not wearing (banned) suits,” he said. “It’s going to show who’s willing to put in more work to be able to be in better physical shape. You’re not going to be able to float as easy on top of the water as you were with the (banned) suits.”