Aug. 1, 2000
Five member of the Notre Dame women’s swimming team will travel to Indianapolis, Ind., for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials at the Indiana University Natatorium August 9 -16. Senior All-American Carrie Nixon (Ouray, Colo.) and classmates Tiffany O’Brien (Redmond, Wash.) and Kristen Van Saun (Lawrence, Kan.), along with juniors Kelly Hecking (Rutherford, N.J.) and Alison Lloyd (Fort Wayne, Ind.) will make the trip to Indianapolis to battle for a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team.
Nixon is one of the most decorated swimmers in Notre Dame history. A three-time All-American, she has won eight BIG EAST titles. She also has the highest finish of any Notre Dame swimmer at the NCAA Championships, finishing fourth in the 50 meter freestyle in 2000. Nixon will compete on three different days during the trials. August 10th, she will swim in the 100 meter butterfly, then rest until August 14th and the 100 meter freestyle. She will end with her specialty, the 50 meter freestyle on the final day of competition August 16. Nixon won all three BIG EAST titles in these events.
O’Brien placed third in the BIG EAST 400 individual medley, the event in which she will compete on day four (August 12) of the trials. She tallied 21 top-five finishes in the 1999-2000 season, and was the leadoff swimmer for the 1998 BIG EAST championship 400 meter medley relay team.
Competing in the 100 meter and 200 meter backstroke, Hecking was a member of the Irish medley relay team that finished ninth at the 2000 NCAA Championships. The ninth place finish was the highest-ever for a Notre Dame relay team at the national championships. She was also a two-time BIG EAST Champion in the 100 meter and 200 meter backstroke in 2000. The 100 meter backstroke takes place on day three of the trials (August 11) and the 200 backstroke is set for day six (August 14).
Lloyd will join Hecking in swimming two events, the 100 meter and 200 meter breaststroke which are also on day three and six of the trials. Lloyd qualified for the NCAA championship meet in both events in 1999 and recorded 18 top five finishes during the 1999-2000 season.
Van Saun enters the trials in the 400 meter freestyle after taking two BIG EAST titles in the 500 meter freestyle and 800 meter freestyle relay. Van Saun won 11 races last season with the Irish and competed in the 1999 NCAA Championships.
The trials will be shown on NBC Sports on August 13 from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. (ET) and August 19 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. (ET). The event has been sold out since February and with the demand for tickets continuing to increase, the National Governing Body of swimming is making the trials available via big-screen closed circuit TV in the University Place Conference Center on the campus of IUPUI for each of the evening sessions.
NBC will is providing the live feed and former executive director of USA Swimming Ray Essick will emcee and provide some play-by-play of the races.
Results of the races that the Notre Dame participants are competing in will be posted on www.und.com and a link will be available to the official U.S. Olympic Trial web site.