The men’s field is stacked for today’s USA Swimming National Open Water Swimming Championships 5K, but with one obvious absence: Alex Meyer.

But Meyer solidified his position on the USA Swimming national team with his dominant and strategic victory in Friday’s 10K national championship. With his victory, Meyer has a choice to swim the 5, 10, and 25 km races at the 2013 World Championships in Barcelona. Given his background as the 2010 world 25 km champion, it will be interesting to see what 2 or 3 events he chooses to swim.

In today’s race in Meyer’s absence, look out for Sean Ryan, Andrew Gemmell, Chip Peterson, Arthur Frayler, and Joey Pedraza, but the contingents from the Mission Viejo Nadadores, Nation’s Capital Swim Club, and Team Santa Monica will also poke around the lead pack.

Undoubtedly, the race will come down to the final few hundred meter sprint. The 2013 USA Swimming National Open Water Swimming Championships 5 km race competitors include the following athletes (listed with their entered times):

1. Andrew Gemmell (22) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (14:59.05 1500m)
2. Sean Ryan (20) Club Wolverine (15:20.79 1500m)
3. Jordan Wilimovsky (19) Team Santa Monica (15:23.01 1500m)
4. Ryan Feeley (21) Club Wolverine (15:24.28 1500m)
5. David Heron (18) Mission Viejo Nadadores (15:28.50 1500m)
6. Janardan Burns (17) Mission Viejo Nadadores (15:30.40 1500m)
7. Daniel O’Connor (21) Mission Viejo Nadadores (15:34.62 1500m)
8. Nick Norman (16) Mission Viejo Nadadores (15:41.62 1500m)
9. Scott Simmer (17) Team Santa Monica (15:49.36 1500m)
10. Ryan Kao (17) La Mirada Armada (15:56.42 1500m)
11. Chip Peterson (25) North Carolina Aquatics Club (15:56.98 1500m)
12. Joey Pedraza (25) Davie Nadadores Swim Team (15:57.74 1500m)
13. Drew Ledwith (20) Greenwood Swimming (16:00.25 1500m)
14. Ben Miller (18) Marlins of Raleigh (16:02.89 1500m)
15. Brendan Casey (16) Team Santa Monica (16:07.25 1500m)
16. Bobby Yribarren (27) Tiger Aquatics (16:13.06 1500m)
17. Christoph Grimmett‐Norris (18) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (16:13.77 1500m)
18. Nicholas DeVito (17) Team Santa Monica (16:13.96 1500m)
19. Cory Mayfield (19) La Mirada Armada (16:18.40 1500m)
20. Alex Palumbo (20) Unattached (16:24.50 1500m)
21. Jerad Kaskawal (17) FAST Swim Team (16:32.28 1500m)
22. Conor Cudahy (18) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (16:34.22 1500m)
23. Arthur Frayler (19) Germantown Academy Aquatic Club (14:49.88 1650y)
24. Bradley Phillips (20) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (14:58.21 1650y)
25. Mitchell Huxhold (19) Unattached (15:08.61 1650y)
26. Sam Petersen (21) University of Tennessee (15:11.21 1650y)
27. Brennan Jacobsen (20) Unattached (15:22.12 1650y)
28. Bryce Bevier (20) University of Tennessee (15:22.62 1650y)
29. Alex Nickell (19) Navy Swimming (15:26.77 1650y)
30. Riley Mita (19) Navy Swimming (15:30.41) 1650y)
31. Noah Martin (18) Navy Swimming (15:35.45) 1650y)
32. Brandon Goldstein (16) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (15:41.16 1650y)
33. Brian Phillips (19) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (15:45.71 1650y)
34. Michael Caputo (22) Eastern Express Swim Team (15:50.34 1650y)
35. Noah Johnston (16) Lakeside Swim Team (15:50.69 1650y)
36. Nathan Pawlowicz (16) Nation’s Capital Swim Club (15:51.88 1650y)
37. Ian Wheeler (21) Golden West Swim Club (15:55.15 1650y)
38. Evan Munaretto (15) FAST Swim Team (16:00.51 1650y)
39. Michael McGean (18) Shawmut Aquatic Club (16:02.28 1650y)
40. Lamar Simon (13) FAST Swim Team (16:03.65 1650y)
41. Dirk Bell (17) LTP Racing Club (9:08.65 1000y)
42. Shawn Parkhurst (21) Town of Tonawanda Titans Swim Team (9:19.62 1000y)
43. Weston Miller (17) Scottsdale Aquatic Club (9:20.45 1000y)
44. Chris Yeager (14) First Colony Swim Team (9:31.03 1000y)
45. Kyle Kemp (18) Y‐Spartaquatics Swim Club SC 60 8:26.14 800m)
46. Joe Szczupakiewicz (16) Southwest Aquatic Team (8:26.35 800m)
47. Steve Sholdra (19) unattached (8:27.49 800m)
48. Peter Kalibat (17) Eastern Express Swim Team (8:31.44 800m)
49. Nick Vargas (17) Buenaventura Swim Club (8:33.67 800m)
50. Parker Greene (17) Scottsdale Aquatic Club (8:34.45 800m)
51. Matthew Johnson (17) Canyons Aquatic Club (15:37.88 1650y)

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