Star-studded Day 2 at Fran Crippen Memorial meet

MISSION VIEJO - Day 2 of the TYR Fran Crippen Memorial Swim Meet was a big one when you consider who was competing Friday.

Headlining the day were many Olympic swimmers, such as gold medalist Katie Hoff and American hero Jason Lezak.

Lezak, the anchor for the gold medal-winning - and world record-setting -  400-meter relay in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, competed in the 100-meter freestyle race, which he dominated. Lezak finished with a time of 49:71, almost two whole seconds faster than the next best swimmer.

“I was just trying to learn a little bit from my last two races and try and be a little more controlled in the first 50 (meters) and try and bring it home in the back 50,” said Lezak.

Hoff, who competed in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, receiving three medals in 2008, raced in the 100 freestyle and the 400 freestyle, finishing second and fourth, respectively, in two of the day's most competive races.

She finished behind two other talented swimmers, Chloe Sutton and Kate Ziegler.

Sutton, who also competed in the 2008 Olympics, had her second successful day at the Fran Crippen Memorial, finishing first in the 400 freestyle.

Ziegler finished third in the event, but was not as happy with her performance.

“I’m not happy with my time,” said Ziegler, who finished in a time of 4:11:10, “but you can’t drastically change anything, I just have to fine-tune a few things.”

As important as this event is, many swimmers look at it as a warm-up for other events. In Lezak’s case, the event he is aiming for is the FINA World Championships, which are in Shanghai, China, starting on July 16.

“This is a good warm-up for the World Championships, lets me know a few little things I can get better,” Lezak said.