Olympic swimming trials start today

The first day of the U.S. Olympic Swimming trials will commence today at the Qwest Center in Omaha with prelims in five events: men's 400-meter individual medley, 400 freestyle and 100 breaststroke, and women's 400 IM and 100 butterfly.

Finals are scheduled for tonight in the men's and women's 400 IM and the men's 400 free.

Club Wolverine's Michael Phelps could produce the first world record swim in the 400 IM. Phelps, who set the mark of 4 minutes, 6.22 seconds at last year's World Championships in Melbourne, Australia, was also entered on the psych sheet in the 400 free, but decided to scratch Sunday.

Although much is being made of Harvard-Westlake of Studio City graduate Dara Torres' bid to make her fifth Olympic team at age 41, she isn't the oldest female competitor at the meet. Susan Von Der Lippe, 42, competes in the first prelim heat in the 100 butterfly.

Crescenta Valley of La Crescenta senior Yumi So will compete in the 12th of 18 prelim heats and UCLA graduate Kim Vandenberg will race in the final heat. The swimmers need to qualify among the top 16 to compete in the semifinals.

With Phelps out of the 400 free, the showdown is reduced to a four-swimmer battle between Club Wolverine's Peter Vanderkaay -- the American record-holder at 3:43.82 -- and former USC standouts Klete Keller, Larsen Jensen and Erik Vendt. Vanderkaay and Vendt train with Phelps.

North Baltimore Aquatics Club's Katie Hoff has an opportunity to regain her world record tonight in the 400 IM. Hoff, 19, who clocked 4:32.89 at the 2007 World Championships, had her mark lowered by Australia's Stephanie Rice (4:31.46) in March.

UCLA sophomore Samantha VandenBerge will compete in the fifth heat of 11 in the 400 IM, Chaminade of West Hills junior Meghan Hawthorne will race in the sixth heat and Flintridge Sacred Heart of La Canada Flintridge junior Andrea Kropp is entered in heat No. 8.

Brendan Hansen, the world record-holder (59.13) in the 100 breaststroke, will compete today in the prelims and semifinals, with the final scheduled for Monday night.

Cheyne Bloch, older brother of Oaks Christian of Westlake Village junior Chase Bloch, will compete in heat 10 of 11. Former Saugus standout and Mission Viejo graduate John Criste, who recently completed his freshman season at Stanford, will race Hansen in the final heat.