An NCAA-leading three current University of Florida swimmers were named to the United States’ 2011 FINA World Championship Team, USA Swimming announced Thursday. Senior Conor Dwyer, junior Teresa Crippen and freshman Elizabeth Beisel will represent the US in Shanghai, China. The event, taking place July 24-31, marks the final key international meet before the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Florida head coach Gregg Troy, who will coach the US men’s team at the London Olympics, will join his swimmers as an assistant coach for the men’s squad, while former Gator great and reigning USA Swimming Swimmer of the Year Ryan Lochte will join Dwyer on the men’s team.
The three current UF student-athletes on the squad top every other NCAA school, with California and Georgia tying for second with two each. Florida’s collection of four past and present swimmers on the team tie with Georgia and Texas for second behind California’s five.
Dwyer, the reigning NCAA and SEC Male Swimmer of the Year, is the second-youngest swimmer on the men’s team and is just one of four current NCAA swimmers to be named to the squad. A senior captain on the UF men’s team, Dwyer will compete in Shanghai as a member of the US 800-meter freestyle relay team. The 2010 Ben Hill Griffin Award winner was named to the team after finishing in the top 10 in three different events at the 2010 Long Course US Nationals in Irvine, Calif., where he swam four personal-best times that were also top-10 times in UF history.
Crippen, a seven-time All-American at UF, will be competing in Shanghai in the women’s 200-meter butterfly. The junior made the team after winning a silver medal for Team USA in the 200 fly this past August at the 2010 Mutual of Omaha Pan Pacific Championships in Irvine. Crippen’s time of 2:06.93 broke her own school record set 13 days prior at US Nationals.
Like Crippen, Beisel made the squad due to her success at the 2010 Pan Pacs. The freshman will compete in the women’s 200-meter backstroke and 400-meter individual medley in Shanghai after capturing a gold medal in each event this past August. Beisel broke the meet and school record in the 400 IM (4:34.04) on the second day of Pan Pacs, while breaking the 200 back meet record the following day (2:07.83).