Cardinal at Arena Pro Series

STANFORD, Calif. -- Current and former Stanford women’s swimmers will take part in this weekend’s Arena Pro Swim Series at Santa Clara. The meet runs June 18-21 at the George F. Haines International Swim Center and features some of the top swimmers in the world.

The four-day meet serves as the sixth and final stop of the 2014-15 Arena Pro Swim Series. Highlighting Stanford’s entries are USA Swimming National Team members Maya DiRado ’14, Felicia Lee ’14, Simone Manuel and Lia Neal.

The action opens with a timed-final distance session at 4 p.m. PDT on Thursday, June 18. Friday, June 19, through Sunday, June 21, prelims will begin at 9 a.m. PDT, followed by finals at 5 p.m. PDT.

Universal Sports Network will air exclusive live television coverage of the meet Friday, June 19 and Saturday, June 20 at 8 p.m. EDT (5 p.m. PDT) with play-by-play announcer Ted Robinson and analyst Rowdy Gaines calling the action from Santa Clara. Additionally, a webcast of the complete meet will be available at usaswimming.org.

The Arena Pro Swim Series at Santa Clara is the sixth and final stop of the 2014-15 Arena Pro Swim Series, which was formerly known as the Arena Grand Prix Series prior to a January 2015 rebranding announcement. The series provides the nation’s best swimmers the opportunity to face top-flight competition on U.S. soil with twice the prize money as last season on the line.

“Using the Arena Pro Swim Series name makes it immediately recognizable to fans and media that our sport’s absolute best athletes are racing in the hometowns of swimmers and sports fans,” said USA Swimming National Team Director Frank Busch. “At the same time, anyone who posts a qualifying time is eligible, just as it has been, so it creates a unique opportunity for high school and collegiate swimmers to challenge themselves against top competition. In many ways, it’s like playing in the same game as LeBron James or a Tour event with Tiger Woods.”

Stanford signee Katie Ledecky, who has deferred her attendance to Stanford until after the 2016 Olympic Games, ranks in the top five of the Arena Pro Swim Series standings. She will not swim at Santa Clara.