Lilly King Rocks 30.39 50 Breaststroke, World No. 4

Full recap from day three prelims at the 2017 arena Pro Swim Series at Atlanta featuring the 200 freestyle, 200 backstroke, 50 freestyle, and 400 IM. Swimmers include Katie Ledecky, Park Tae Hwan, Ryan Murphy, Simone Manuel, and Chase Kalisz.

May 6, 2017 by Maclin Simpson

Lilly King Rocks 30.39 50 Breaststroke, World No. 4

2017 arena Pro Swim Series at Atlanta

Atlanta, GA
May 4-7, 2017
Thursday Timed Finals: 5 PM EST
Prelims Friday - Sunday: 10 AM EST
Finals Friday - Sunday: 7 PM EST
LIVE RESULTS

Day Three Prelims Highlights

Ledecky Cruises To Silky Smooth 1:56 200 Free

Making it look easy as usual, Katie Ledecky cranked out a solid 1:56.97 in the prelims of the 200m freestyle. Her swim was just outside the world top 10 this year, but Ledecky already has the fourth-fastest time of 2017 with her 1:56.31 from Mesa, AZ, last month. Melanie Margalis had a great swim as well, putting up a 1:57.69 and will look to challenge the Olympic gold medalist tonight. Siobhan Haughey, representing Michigan, rounded out the top three heading into finals with a 1:58.87.

Lilly King Rocks 30.39 50 Breast In 50 Free Heats

Three breaststroke specialists -- Olivia Anderson, Andee Cottrell, and Lilly King -- decided to race prelims of the 50 free as a 50 breast. King got the best of the trio of ladies racing in lanes one, two, and three, respectively, in the same heat with a swift 30.39 -- the fourth-fastest time in the world this year. Who is No. 1? Yulia Efimova -- King's Russian rival. Assuming King makes the World Championship team, this will be a battle of epic proportions as they have never raced head to head in a 50 on the international stage.

Park Tae Hwan Continues To Roll

After his blazing-fast 3:44 in Friday night's 400 free, Park Tae Hwan snagged the top seed in this morning's 200 free with a 1:48.24. The magic number for Park in tonight's final will be 1:47.73 -- the FINA "A" qualifying time standard for the World Championships this summer. Given his performance Friday, he should have no problem hitting that mark. The South Korean star will not go unchallenged, however. Joao de Lucca, Felix Auboeck, Patrick Callan, and Zane Grothe all dipped below the 1:50 barrier this morning as well. His biggest threat will likely come from de Lucca, who has been 1:46 mid in this event. Park's best time is 1:44.80.