Fifteen members of the Virginia men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams, along with the professional training group, will compete at the 2026 Speedo Fort Lauderdale Open from April 29 to May 2 at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center in Florida.
The competition is significant as it draws a field that includes Olympic medalists and world champions. The event was previously part of USA Swimming’s Pro Swim Series.
Current Cavaliers scheduled to participate are Jack Aikins, Claire Curzan, Cavan Gormsen, Katie Grimes, Bailey Hartman, Leah Hayes, Tess Howley, Madi Mintenko, Anna Moesch, Sophia Umstead, and Emma Weber. Members of Virginia’s Pro Training Group set to compete include Kate Douglass, Isabelle Stadden, Alex Walsh, and Gretchen Walsh.
The meet will use a long course meters format with preliminaries and finals for most events except for the 800-meter and 1500-meter freestyle races. Finals will consist of an A final and B final; there will also be a C final for the next-fastest eight qualifiers aged eighteen or under. The schedule begins Wednesday with timed finals in the 1500-meter freestyle starting at 5 p.m., followed by preliminaries each morning at 9 a.m. Thursday through Saturday and finals each evening at 6 p.m.
Events throughout the week include various distances in freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly as well as individual medley races.
