Neal Helps USA To Gold

GWANGJU, South Korea -- Team USA swept all three gold medals up for grabs on the opening night (July 4) of World University Games action at the Nambu University International Aquatics Center. Stanford’s Lia Neal was part of the winning 400-meter freestyle relay squad.

The American’s also added wins in the men’s 400-meter freestyle relay and Sarah Henry took the 400-meter individual medley.

The U.S. women led from the start in the 400 free relay to win in a meet-record 3:38.12. Abbey Weitzel (Saugus, Calif.) put Team USA in front from the start, and Shannon Vreeland (Overland Park, Kansas), Madeline Locus (Sugar Land, Texas) and Neal (Brooklyn, N.Y.) never relinquished the lead en route to gold. Japan took silver in 3:41.15, with Russia earning bronze in 3:41.34.

A number of Team USA swimmers advanced to finals in their respective events with solid semifinal swims. Former Cardinal Felicia Lee '14 finished fifth in a semifinal of the 50-meter butterfly.

Complete meet details, including results, can be found here.

Pool action continues through July 10 with prelim sessions at 8:30 a.m. locally (7:30 p.m. EDT the previous day), with finals set for 7 p.m. locally (6 a.m. EDT). 

In the United States, ESPN3, ESPNU and the Longhorn Network will air coverage from July 3-9. A one-hour swimming and diving recap show will air on ESPNU on July 16. 

The World University Games feature 21 different sports and thousands of student-athletes from more than 170 countries. The event was created to celebrate university students and their commitment to education and sport.