The top four teams in the International Swimming League’s inaugural season all met in Las Vegas for the Grand Finale to determine who would be crowned the first-ever ISL champions.
In what was the most closely contested match of the season, with three clubs in the running for the title all the way up until the end, European champions Energy Standard prevailed in the skins event to edge out rival London Roar by 9.5 points.
After jumping out to the lead on Day 1, Energy Standard was passed by London early on Day 2. The Roar held that advantage until the men’s skins, where they were locked out of the semi-finals and thus outscored by the eventual winners by 24 points.
The Condors led the match through the first six events of the opening day, and were within two points of Energy Standard before falling off in the skins. The LA Current were in fourth most of the way, still within striking distance after Day 1, but failed to gain any momentum on Day 2.
Check out each club’s score in every event below, with their running total in brackets.
Scoring Progression – Day 1
| Event | Energy Standard | London Roar | Cali Condors | LA Current |
| W 100 FLY | 12 (12) | 9 (9) | 11 (11) | 5 (5) |
| M 100 FLY | 8 (20) | 7 (16) | 11 (22) | 11 (16) |
| W 50 BR | 7 (27) | 5 (21) | 16 (38) | 9 (25) |
| M 50 BR | 7 (34) | 11 (32) | 11 (49) | 8 (33) |
| W 400 IM | 7 (41) | 12 (44) | 10 (59) | 8 (41) |
| M 400 IM | 15 (56) | 8 (52) | 5 (64) | 9 (50) |
| W 4×100 FR | 28 (84) | 20 (72) | 16 (80) | 10 (60) |
| M 200 BK | 9 (93) | 4 (76) | 11 (91) | 12 (72) |
| W 200 BK | 7 (100) | 7 (83) | 9 (100) | 13 (85) |
| M 50 FR | 12 (112) | 7 (90) | 11 (111) | 7 (92) |
| W 50 FR | 15 (127) | 8 (98) | 7 (118) | 7 (99) |
| M 4×100 MR | 22 (149) | 26 (124) | 12 (130) | 14 (113) |
| W 200 FR | 14 (163) | 9 (133) | 9 (139) | 5 (118) |
| M 200 FR | 3 (166) | 15 (148) | 7 (146) | 12 (130) |
| W 50 BK | 7 (173) | 7 (155) | 12.5 (158.5) | 10.5 (140.5) |
| M 50 BK | 13 (186) | 12 (167) | 3 (161.5) | 9 (149.5) |
| W 200 BR | 7 (193) | 7 (174) | 16 (177.5) | 7 (156.5) |
| M 200 BR | 6 (199) | 8 (182) | 10 (187.5) | 13 (169.5) |
| M 4×100 FR | 20 (219) | 20 (202) | 18 (205.5) | 16 (185.5) |
Scoring Progression – Day 2
| Event | Energy Standard | London Roar | Cali Condors | LA Current |
| W 100 FR | 12 (231) | 15 (217) | 7 (212.5) | 3 (188.5) |
| M 100 FR | 7 (238) | 13 (230) | 10 (222.5) | 7 (195.5) |
| W 100 BR | 3 (241) | 9 (239) | 15 (237.5) | 10 (205.5) |
| M 100 BR | 9 (250) | 14 (253) | 7 (244.5) | 7 (212.5) |
| W 400 FR | 5 (255) | 11 (264) | 14 (258.5) | 7 (219.5) |
| M 400 FR | 8.5 (263.5) | 16 (280) | 9.5 (268) | 3 (222.5) |
| W 4×100 MR | 14 (277.5) | 26 (306) | 26 (294) | 2 (224.5) |
| M 200 IM | 10 (287.5) | 10 (316) | 7 (301) | 10 (234.5) |
| W 200 IM | 8 (295.5) | 13 (329) | 12 (313) | 4 (238.5) |
| M 50 FLY | 13 (308.5) | 3 (332) | 13.5 (326.5) | 7.5 (246) |
| W 50 FLY | 9 (317.5) | 9 (341) | 6 (332.5) | 13 (259) |
| M 100 BK | 13 (330.5) | 12 (353) | 3 (335.5) | 9 (268) |
| W 100 BK | 9 (339.5) | 10 (363) | 12 (347.5) | 6 (274) |
| Mixed 4×100 FR | 26 (365.5) | 24 (387) | 16 (363.5) | 8 (282) |
| W 200 FLY | 3 (368.5) | 12 (399) | 15 (378.5) | 6 (288) |
| M 200 FLY | 15 (383.5) | 7 (406) | 3 (381.5) | 12 (300) |
| W SKINS | 39 (422.5) | 31 (437) | 6 (387.5) | 4 (304) |
| M SKINS | 31 (453.5) | 7 (444) | 28 (415.5) | 14 (318) |
As the chart shows, there was never a clear leader throughout the two-day match. Energy Standard produced their biggest advantage midway through Day 1, and then London took control up until the final event.
The Current clearly struggled to keep pace on Day 2.
Stroke-by-stroke Breakdown
| Stroke | Energy Standard | London Roar | Cali Condors | LA Current |
| Freestyle | 76.5 | 94 | 74.5 | 51 |
| Backstroke | 58 | 52 | 50.5 | 59.5 |
| Breaststroke | 39 | 54 | 75 | 54 |
| Butterfly | 60 | 47 | 59.5 | 54.5 |
| Individual Medley | 40 | 43 | 34 | 31 |
| Relays | 110 | 116 | 88 | 50 |
| Skins | 70 | 38 | 34 | 18 |
Analyzing each club’s points-per-stroke, it’s clear that the LA Current were unable to stay with the other teams primarily due to a lack of points in the relays and skins events. They had one disqualification in the women’s 4×100 medley which not only lost them their eighth-place points, but also docked them an additional four for the DQ.
The other three clubs were relatively even everywhere, with London proving to have the best group of freestylers in the league, and Cali showing off a very strong breaststroke squad.
However, Energy Standard came close to matching the Roar on both free and the relays, and then demolished them on the skins to win the title. That’s ultimately what the match came down to.
About the ISL: The International Swimming League is a global professional swimming competition launching in 2019 with teams in both Europe (Italy-based Aqua Centurions, France-based Energy Standard, Hungary-based Iron, and London Roar) and the United States (Cali Condors, DC Trident, LA Current, NY Breakers). The inaugural season will include matches in Indianapolis IN, Naples ITA, Lewisville TX, Budapest HUN, College Park MD, London GBR, and the championship finale at the 3,800-seat Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. The ISL aims to create groundbreaking projects, in both form and content, exploring the full potential of competitive swimming while securing sustainable commercial growth in the sport.
Key Dates:
5-6 October 2019 – IU Natatorium, Indianapolis, USA
12-13 October 2019 – Aquatic Swimming Complex, Naples, Italy
19-20 October 2019 – The LISD Westside Aquatic Center, Lewisville, Texas, USA
26-27 October 2019 – Duna Area, Budapest, Hungary
16-17 November 2019 – Natatorium at the Eppley Recreation Center, Maryland, USA
23-24 November 2019 – London Aquatic Centre, Great Britain
20-21 December 2019 – Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, Las Vegas, USA
ISL SOCIAL: Keep up with all the latest ISL news by following @iswimleague on Instagram and Twitter and @internationalswimmingleague on Facebook. Visit https://isl.global
Media Contact: James Mulligan ([email protected])
International Swimming League Ltd
Alfred-Escher-Strasse 17, 8002 Zurich, Switzerland
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