FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, May 15th, 2020

SIMONE MANUEL, KATIE LEDECKY, CAELEB DRESSEL, RYAN MURPHY & REGAN SMITH HIGHLIGHT 2019 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS WEEK – SWIMMING, BEGINNING MONDAY, MAY 18, AT 8 P.M. ET ON OLYMPIC CHANNEL: HOME OF TEAM USA

Dressel Becomes First Swimmer to Earn Eight Medals at Single World Championships; Ledecky Wins Fourth Consecutive World Title in 800m Freestyle

NBC Sports’ Dan Hicks Will Introduce Coverage Throughout the Week’s Swimming Competitions

2019 World Championships Week – Swimming Features Over 50 Hours of 2019 World Swimming Championships Coverage

All Olympic Sports Coverage Televised and Streamed Across NBC Sports Platforms is Presented by Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

STAMFORD, Conn. – May 15, 2020 – Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA presents every memorable moment from the world’s best swimmers during next week’s primetime 2019 World Swimming Championships Week, which continues the network’s 2019 World Championships Week coverage, which spans a multitude of Olympic and Paralympic sports over the next 10 weeks.

From Monday, May 18, through Friday, May 22 (starting at 8 p.m. ET), Saturday, May 23 (starting at 10:30 a.m. ET), and Sunday, May 24 (starting at 8:30 a.m. ET), 2019 World Championships Week – Swimming features over 50 hours of programming from the 2019 World Aquatics Championships from Gwangju, South Korea. Five-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky, two-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Manuel, two-time Olympic gold medalist Caeleb Dressel, three-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Murphy, two-time Olympic gold medalist Lilly King, and teenage backstroker Regan Smith highlight the competition.

The U.S. finished the 2019 World Aquatics Championships atop the swimming medal table, totaling 27 medals. Dressel made history by becoming the first swimmer to earn eight medals at a single world championships, while Ledecky, who battled illness throughout the week, became the first woman to win four career world titles in the 800m freestyle.

NBC Sports host and play-by-play announcer Dan Hicks will introduce coverage each day throughout the week’s swimming competitions. Hicks, along with NBC Sports’ Jason Knapp and three-time U.S. Olympic gold medalist Rowdy Gaines, called the event, joined by reporter Ahmed Fareed.

All coverage on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA will stream on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app, in addition to NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app. Coverage of Olympic Sports on NBC Sports Group platforms is a presentation of Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA.

 

MONDAY, MAY 18 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 1 & 2 SEMIFINALS & FINALS

On the opening day of competition, Ledecky placed second in the 400m freestyle final, and Dressel and five-time Olympic gold medalist Nathan Adrian led the U.S. men to victory in the 4x100m free relay. Dressel won the 50m fly (a non-Olympic event), claiming his first individual title of the 2019 World Championships.

Monday’s coverage from Gwangju is highlighted by strong performances by international swimmers such as Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu and Great Britain’s Adam Peaty.

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 1 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 2 – Semifinals & Finals 10 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

TUESDAY, MAY 19 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 3 & 4 SEMIFINALS & FINALS

King won her second consecutive world title in the women’s 100m breaststroke on the third day of competition, besting rival Yulia Efimova of Russia.

On day four, American swimmers had several strong showings in semifinals: Dressel posted the fastest time in the men’s 100m freestyle semifinals; Hali Flickinger and Katie Drabot were the top two qualifiers to the women’s 200m butterfly final; and defending world champion Chase Kalisz had the fourth-fastest time in the men’s 200m individual medley. 19-year-old Kristof Milak of Hungary won the men’s 200m butterfly with a time of 1:50.73, breaking Michael Phelps’ world record.

 

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 3 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 4 – Semifinals & Finals 10 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

WEDNESDAY, MAY 20 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 5 & 6 SEMIFINALS & FINALS

On the fifth day of competition, Dressel broke his own American record in the men’s 100m freestyle with a time of 46.96 seconds, winning his third world title of the competition, and Ledecky returned to the pool in the 4x200m freestyle relay after scratching from two events earlier in the week. Americans won four additional medals on day five: Flickinger (silver) and Drabot (bronze) in the women’s 200m butterfly, Kalisz (bronze) in the men’s 200m individual medley, and Olivia Smoliga (gold) also broke her own an American record in the women’s 50m backstroke, a non-Olympic event.

On day six, Dressel broke Phelps’ 10-year world record in the men’s 100m fly semifinals by finishing in 49.50 seconds, and also placed as the top qualifier in the men’s 50m freestyle semifinals. Manuel won her second straight world title in the women’s 100m freestyle, setting an American record with a time of 52.04 seconds, and became the second swimmer to win multiple world titles in the event. In the women’s 200m backstroke semifinals, Regan Smith broke Missy Franklin’s world record with a time of 2:03.35, while Murphy picked up a silver medal in the men’s 200m backstroke finals.

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 5 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 6 – Semifinals & Finals 10 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

THURSDAY, MAY 21 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 7 & 8 SEMIFINALS & FINALS

Ledecky, after dealing with an illness all week, won her fourth consecutive world title in the women’s 800m freestyle in dramatic fashion, surging ahead in the final 50m to capture the gold. Ledecky became the only woman to win four career gold medals in the 800m freestyle. Dressel, who won three gold medals on day seven to bring his total to six for the week, became the first swimmer to win six or more gold medals at two different world championships (six in 2019, seven in 2017). Smith claimed the gold medal in the women’s 200m backstroke, finishing with the second-fastest time in the event’s history (2:03.69).

On the final day of competition, Dressel earned his eighth medal of the 2019 World Championships, becoming the only swimmer to win eight medals at a single world championships. Manuel claimed the gold medal in the women’s 50m freestyle and King won the gold in the women’s non-Olympic 50m breaststroke, becoming the second woman to win the event at successive world championships. Smith, King, Manuel and Kelsi Dahlia shattered the world record in the 4x100m medley to earn gold (Smith also set the world record in the 100m backstroke in the process), and American Jay Litherland earned his first individual medal at a world championships with a silver in the men’s 400m individual medley.

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 7 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 8 – Semifinals & Finals 10 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

FRIDAY, MAY 22 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 2, 3 & 4 SEMIFINALS & FINALS (ENCORES)

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 2 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 3 – Semifinals & Finals 9:30 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 4 – Semifinals & Finals 11:30 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

SATURDAY, MAY 23 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 1-8 (ENCORES)

Weekend marathon coverage of the 2019 Swimming World Championships begins Saturday, May 23, with encore presentations of all eight days of competition. More than 15 hours of coverage begins at 10:30 a.m. ET.

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 1 – Semifinals & Finals 10:30 a.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 2 – Semifinals & Finals 12:30 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 3 – Semifinals & Finals 2 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 4 – Semifinals & Finals 4 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 5 – Semifinals & Finals 6 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 6 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 7 – Semifinals & Finals 10 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 8 – Semifinals & Finals Midnight Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

SUNDAY, MAY 24 – 2019 SWIMMING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DAYS 1-8 (ENCORES)

Encore coverage of the 2019 Swimming World Championships on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA concludes next Sunday, May 24, with all eight days of competition beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET.

SESSION TIME (ET) NETWORK
Day 1 – Semifinals & Finals 8:30 a.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 2 – Semifinals & Finals 10:30 a.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 3 – Semifinals & Finals Noon Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 4 – Semifinals & Finals 2 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 5 – Semifinals & Finals 4 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 6 – Semifinals & Finals 6 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 7 – Semifinals & Finals 8 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA
Day 8 – Semifinals & Finals 10 p.m. Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA

 

World Championships Week continues in the coming weeks with nightly primetime coverage from the 2019 World Championships in a variety of Olympic and Paralympic sports. Below is highlighted sports content through the end of May, with more to follow:

    • Week of May 18: Swimming
    • Week of May 25: Gymnastics
    • Week of June 1: Diving

–NBC SPORTS–