COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – With significant prize money once again on the line, the nation’s best swimmers will have six opportunities to face top-flight competition on United States soil next season, as USA Swimming today unveiled the 2013-14 Arena Grand Prix Series schedule.
As part of USA Swimming’s partnership with Arena, the Arena Grand Prix Series will offer swimmers the opportunity to take home prize money for top finishes in all individual Olympic-distance events. In total, $150,000 in overall prize money is available to be distributed over the course of the six-meet series. At each meet, $500 will be awarded for a first-place finish, $300 for second and $100 for third in all individual events. Arena is serving as the title sponsor for the Arena Grand Prix Series for the second straight year.
In addition to the prize money, swimmers will compete for a Series grand prize from BMW. For the first time in the history of the Series, BMW will give the highest-scoring eligible male and female U.S. swimmer a one-year lease of a BMW ActiveHybrid 3 Series. Additional exposure will come via the Universal Sports Network, which will nationally broadcast coverage from each Arena Grand Prix Series meet.
The six events comprising the 2013-14 Arena Grand Prix Series include:
Nov. 14-16, 2013: Arena Grand Prix at Minneapolis
Jan. 17-19, 2014: Arena Grand Prix at Austin
Feb. 13-15, 2014: Arena Grand Prix at Orlando
April 24-26, 2014: Arena Grand Prix at Mesa
May 15-18, 2014: Arena Grand Prix at Charlotte
June 19-22, 2014: Arena Grand Prix at Santa Clara
“Thanks in large part to Arena’s support, we saw the Arena Grand Prix Series taken to new heights last season, and we reaped the benefits of this elevated competition by winning the medal count at the 2013 FINA World Championships,” said Frank Busch, USA Swimming’s National Team Director. “This kind of prize money will again attract the nation’s top swimmers to the Arena Grand Prix Series meets, and we look forward to another exciting Series in 2013-14.”
Male and female overall Arena Grand Prix Series champions will be honored at the conclusion of the 2013-14 series based on the number of points accumulated throughout the six meets. Participants will be awarded points in each individual Olympic event throughout the duration of the Series (Five points for first, three for second, one point for third place). Olympic gold medalists Missy Franklin and Ryan Lochte won the 2012-13 series titles.
As it did throughout the 2012-13 Arena Grand Prix Series, the Universal Sports Network will air coverage of each of the six meets this season. Complete broadcast details will be posted when available at usaswimming.org.
In addition to the broadcast coverage on the Universal Sports Network, USA Swimming will webcast prelims and finals from each meet on usaswimming.org. For more information on the Arena Grand Prix Series, visit usaswimming.org/grandprix. A leaderboard for the Series will be available online and in Splash Magazine, the official magazine of USA Swimming.
Visit usaswimming.org for complete rules for the 2013-14 Arena Grand Prix Series.
The above is a press release submitted to Reachforthewall.com by USA Swimming and has been reprinted here in it’s entirety without alteration.
About USA Swimming:
As the National Governing Body for the sport of swimming in the United States, USA Swimming is a 400,000-member service organization that promotes the culture of swimming by creating opportunities for swimmers and coaches of all backgrounds to participate and advance in the sport through clubs, events and education. Our membership is comprised of swimmers from the age group level to the Olympic Team, as well as coaches and volunteers. USA Swimming is responsible for selecting and training teams for international competition including the Olympic Games, and strives to serve the sport through its core objectives: Build the base, Promote the sport, Achieve competitive success. For more information, visit www.usaswimming.org.