The Duel in the Pool is a
swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
event that took place bi-annually from 2003 to 2015.
In 2022, the event was reintroduced with an edition between the United States and Australia and co-organized by
Swimming Australia
Swimming Australia is the peak governing body for competitive swimming in Australia. The body has approximately 100,000 registered members nationally in 1100 clubs across the country, which includes swimmers, coaches, officials, administrators ...
and
USA Swimming
USA Swimming is the national governing body for competitive swimming in the United States. It is charged with selecting the United States Olympic Swimming team and any other teams that officially represent the United States, as well as the overal ...
.
From 2003 to 2015, the competition was organized by
USA Swimming
USA Swimming is the national governing body for competitive swimming in the United States. It is charged with selecting the United States Olympic Swimming team and any other teams that officially represent the United States, as well as the overal ...
, and sponsored by
Mutual of Omaha
Mutual of Omaha is a Fortune 500 mutual insurance and financial services company based in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1909 as Mutual Benefit Health & Accident Association, Mutual of Omaha is a financial organization offering a variety of insuranc ...
, the event was a made-for-television competition pitting the stars from the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
against another team, accumulating points across a series of individual and team-relay events.
The original concept (2003–2015) focused on the rivalry between the world's then two powerhouse swimming nations,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and the United States, who together would shutout all other nations for the top two spots of the medals tables at ever major all-nation competition for a decade, including the
FINA World Championships
The FINA World Championships or World Aquatics Championships are the World Championships for aquatics sports: swimming, diving, high diving, open water swimming, artistic swimming, and water polo. They are run by FINA, and all swimming events ar ...
(1998–2007) and the
Summer Olympics
The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...
(
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
–
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
).
The reintroduction concept (2022) expanded the event line-up from the original concept to include
para swimming
Para swimming is an adaptation of the sport of swimming for athletes with disabilities. Para swimmers compete at the Summer Paralympic Games and at other sports competitions throughout the world. The sport is governed by the International Para ...
and
open water swimming
Open water swimming is a swimming discipline which takes place in outdoor bodies of water such as open oceans, lakes, and rivers.
The beginning of the modern age of open water human swimming, swimming is sometimes taken to be May 3, 1810, when L ...
events.
Following three consecutive American victories (2003, 2005, 2007), where they averaged nearly double the points of the Australians, the Australians were replaced by an all-star team with members from various European nations. The Europeans did no better than the Australians, with the Americans winning all four of their meetings (2009, 2011, 2013, 2015), again averaging nearly double their opponents' scores in three of the events, and scoring a one point victoryvia a tie-breaker racein 2013, the one competitive tournament in the series. After the 2015 event, a reporter noted the futility of the competition, stating: "The score was hardly relevant: by a whitewash – for a 7th consecutive win".
In 2017, swimming news website ''
SwimSwam
''SwimSwam'' news is a swimming news organization covering competitive swimming along with diving, water polo and synchronized swimming. SwimSwam launched as a website in March 2012 and quickly became the most-read swimming website in the world. ...
'' claimed the event could never be held again, as USA Swimming was unable to renew a television sponsorship deal after 2015.
[
While reports in '']The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' and NBC Sports
NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...
compared the later USA-vs-Europe versions of the Duel in the Pool to golf's USA-vs-Europe Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
, it was noted that a number of stars were missing from both swim teams, unlike the participation of the most elite golfers in the Ryder Cup.
2003-2007: United States vs. Australia
2003
At the inaugural event Mutual of Omaha/Fujitsu Duel in the Pool in Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...
on April 6, 2003, the Americans overwhelmed the Australians, 196-74, winning 21 of the 26 events. This result set the stage for Team USA's dominant performance at both the 2003 World Championships and later the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
2005
On August 2, 2005, the United States captured victories in 18 of the 28 events in front of the sold-out crowd of 2,600 in Irvine, California
Irvine () is a Planned community, master-planned city in South Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the 1960s and the city was formally incorporated on ...
. The US won 190-102, although the Australians rode a wave of talent on the women's side, outscoring the American women 76-70.
2007
The 2007 Duel in the Pool between the US and Australia took place in Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia on April 3, 2007. The United States won their third straight Duel in the Pool, with a score of 181.5 points to Australia's 129.5.
During a mixed 4×100 metres freestyle relay, Australian Libby Lenton
Lisbeth Constance Trickett, OAM (; born 28 January 1985) is a retired Australian swimmer. She was a gold medallist at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2008 Summer Olympics, and the 2012 Summer Olympics. She was the world record holder in the shor ...
became the first woman to beat the 53 second mark swimming freestyle over a distance of 100 metres, beating the previous world record by 0.31 seconds with a time of 52.99. At the time, she was racing a relay-leg against American Michael Phelps, who clocked in at 48.72 seconds. However, mixed 4×100 metres freestyle relay was not an official event recognized by FINA
FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...
, the world governing body for swimming, so her time was not ratified as a world record. It would be another seven years before the mixed 4×100 metres freestyle relay, along with the mixed 4×100 metres medley relay, were added to the list of official FINA events.
2009-2015: United States vs. Europe
2009
The event took place December 19–20, 2009 between the USA and a combined British, German and Italian team swimming under the team name E-Stars in Manchester, England
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
. The final score was a 185–78 victory for the USA with eight world records set during the competition. This meet marked the last major competition where polyurethane suits were worn, with the required use of textile suits being reinstated January 1, 2010.
2011
The 2011 Duel in the Pool was held December 16–17, 2011, in Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, using venues from the 1996 Olympic Games
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
. The Americans defeated a European All-Star team from Great Britain, the Netherlands, Poland, Belarus, Denmark, Austria, Ireland, Lithuania and Hungary, 181.5-80.5.
2013
The 2013 Duel in the Pool was held December 20–21, 2013. Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, Scotland served as host in advance of hosting the 2014 Commonwealth Games
The 2014 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a' Cho-fhlaitheis 2014), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014, ( sco, Glesca 2014 or Glesga 2014; gd, Glaschu 2014), was an international multi-sport ev ...
. Like previous editions since 2009, the competition took place in a short course
In swimming, the term short course (abbreviated SC) is used to identify a pool that is in length. The term is also often included in meet names when conducted in a short course pool. "Short course" is the second type of pool configuration current ...
pool. The US team defeated the European All-Stars in the closest meet of its history. Resulting in a tie between the two teams, they had to have a tie-breaker mixed 200 medley relay. The team of Eugene Godsoe, Kevin Cordes, Claire Donahue, and Simone Manuel beat the Europeans in a time of 1:31.17. The final score was 132–131.
2015
The 2015 Duel in the Pool was held December 12–13, 2015 at the Indiana University Natatorium
Indiana University Natatorium is a swimming complex on the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis campus in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It also serves as the home of the IUPUI School of Health & Human Sciences (including phy ...
in Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
. The US defeated Europe for the fourth time in a row, with a score of 155–107.[ Two world records were broken; in the women's 4×100 m medley relay by the US team, and by American ]Matt Grevers
Matthew Grevers (born March 26, 1985) is an American competition swimmer who competes in the backstroke and freestyle events, and is a six-time Olympic medalist. He has won a total of thirty-three medals in major international competition, fou ...
in the 100 m backstroke. Ranomi Kromowidjojo
Ranomi Kromowidjojo (; born 20 August 1990) is a retired Dutch swimmer of mixed Dutch-Javanese Surinamese origin who mainly specialises in sprint freestyle events. She is a triple Olympic champion, winning the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m frees ...
of the Netherlands equaled her own world record in the 50 m freestyle. Also, 16 American records
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
were broken.[
]
2022: United States vs. Australia
2022
The 2022 Duel in the Pool took place between teams from the United States and Australia from August 19 to 21, 2022 in Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre
The Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (SOPAC) , formerly Sydney International Aquatic Centre (SIAC), is a swimming venue located in the Sydney Olympic Park in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Built in 1994, the SOPAC was a major venue for th ...
(pool and para swimming events) and Bondi Beach
Bondi Beach is a popular beach and the name of the surrounding suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Bondi Beach is located east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council, in the Easter ...
(open water swimming events).["Swimming's ultimate rivalry to return in Sydney"](_blank)
''Swimming Australia
Swimming Australia is the peak governing body for competitive swimming in Australia. The body has approximately 100,000 registered members nationally in 1100 clubs across the country, which includes swimmers, coaches, officials, administrators ...
''. 19 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.["United States, Australia to Square Off at 2022 Duel in the Pool"](_blank)
''USA Swimming
USA Swimming is the national governing body for competitive swimming in the United States. It is charged with selecting the United States Olympic Swimming team and any other teams that officially represent the United States, as well as the overal ...
''. 20 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
Results
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duel In The Pool
Recurring sporting events established in 2003
Swimming competitions in the United States
Swimming competitions in Australia
International swimming competitions