The third and final cluster of the FINA World Cup wraps up over the next 10 days, with three meets contested throughout Asia to determine who will walk away with the $150,000 USD male and female winner’s checks. 

2017 FINA World Cup -- Cluster No. 3

Beijing -- November 10-11

Tokyo -- November 14-15

Singapore -- November 18-19

Current Overall Points Standings

Men

1. Chad Le Clos (RSA) – 385.5
2. Tom Shields (USA) – 261
3. Kirill Prigoda (RUS) – 243

Women

1. Sarah Sjostrom (SWE) – 533
2. Katinka Hosszu (HUN) – 455
3. Emily Seebohm (AUS) – 216

Overall Series Bonus Prizes (USD)

1st -- $150,000

2nd -- $100,000

3rd -- $50,000

Cluster Bonus Prizes (USD)

1st -- $50,0000

2nd -- $35,000

3rd -- $30,000

4th -- $20,000

5th -- $10,000

6th -- $5,000

The big-hitters on this year’s tour will all be here -- Katinka Hosszu, Chad Le Clos, Sarah Sjöström, Tom Shields, Ranomi Kromowidjojo, and Emily Seebohm have all returned to finish what they started in August.

Joining them on this cluster will be strong representation from China, Japan, Australia and the Ukraine, with the likes of Budapest World Championship medallists Jiayu Xu, Daiya Seto, Junya Koga, Andrii Govorov, and Mykhailo Romanchuk, as well as Denmark’s Pernille Blume and 2012 double Olympic Champ Shiwen Ye of China. 

Newly minted World Record holder Cate Campbell has arrived with sister Bronte and fellow Aussie Brittany Elmslie in tow. The women’s sprint freestyle here is going to be insanely fast.

Races to Watch

Women’s Sprint Free

World Record holder. Olympic Champion. World Champion. Those are the titles thrown around when Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Cate Campbell, Sarah Sjöström, Pernille Blume, Bronte Campbell, and Lia Neal are all in the pool -- at the same time. Sheesh.

Le Clos vs Shields

These two have been battling it out all tour, not only across the three butterfly distances, but also the 200m freestyle and 200m backstroke. 

Not many men can beat Le Clos in the short course pool, but Shields was able to steal one away recently in Hong Kong. Standing 1^st and 2^nd in the overall point score, look for these two guys to fight tooth and nail for every point (and dollar) manageable across the next three meets.

Sjostrom vs Hosszu

Iron Lady Katinka Hosszu has won the past five World Cup series, but with the new and limiting rules in place, she has relinquished her dominance to Sarah Sjöström. 

The Swede has taken the overall advantage thanks to a couple of World Record bonuses’ earlier in Europe, but Hosszu fought back valiantly to win Cluster No. 2 by a mere three points. Hosszu won 11 of 12 individual events, while Sjostrom “just” 10 from 12. The only event in which they directly race each other is the 100m IM. This is getting personal. 

Editorial Coverage By Bobby Hurley