Action is underway on the first day at the Pan Pacific Championships in Irvine, California, where Ryan Lochte set the tone in the 200m free on 1:46.10 in heats and then followed David Plummer (USA) home in the 100m back, those two locking out Olympic champion Aaron Peirsol under the two-per-nation progression to A finals. No soft heats. This would have then marked the second season in a row in which the Olympic champ could not make it through to what would have been his big 100m final of the summer, Peirsol having miscalculated his pace at Rome world titles last year. Gregg Troy, head US men's coach then  delivered the let-out clause: Lochte will not race the backstroke final. Peirsol lives to fight another final.

"It's kind of an interesting way to make finals," Peirsol told Rebecca Bryan at AFP. "I'll take it. It's tough to step up in the morning and race your teammates. You've got to really prepare yourself, there's no room for error. My start was less than spectacular. My foot fell down and I had to play catch up. There's nothing you can do."

Morning heats summaries

Women 50m butterfly

World champion Marieke Guehrer (AUS) led the way to the final in a championships record of 26.19 ahead of teammate Emily Seebohm (AUS), 26.36, and Yuka Kato (JPN), on 26.40. World champs finalist Gabriella Silva (BRA) was next through in 26.42, with Jessica Hardy the leader among the host of host-nation swimmers, on 26.52. The beauty of the championship records: the Pan Pacs are held every four years, so we should see an almost blanket replacement of standards on the sheet as far as the meet is concerned. The race saw double Olympic medley champion Stephanie Rice (AUS) test the state of a shoulder injury that has plagued her all season and now looks set to require an operation. Coach Michael Bohl tells reporter Nicole Jeffery at The Australian today: "She's quite down and a bit frustrated. She really wants to compete here and she knows the Commonwealth Games is coming up and time just keeps slipping away. We are now holding off what is inevitable, which is an operation. She has been able to do only three weeks of 35km in the pool since March and some weeks are down to eight or 10km. To do a world-class 400m individual medley you have to be able to do 60km a week." Read the article in full.

Men 50m butterfly

 Comeback king, 2000 Olympic 100m bronze medallist and 2001 world 50m champion, Geoff Huegill (AUS) set the pace on 23.27 ahead of 2005 world champion and world record holder (at 22.99) on the eve of the shiny suits era, Roland Schoeman (RSA), on 23.41. Next through, sprint free ace Cesar Cielo (BRA), on 23.48, with a man leaving his teens behind this year, Timothy Phillips (USA) on 23.69.

Women 200m freestyle

Allison Schmitt (USA) laid down the gauntlet with a 1:56.23 championship record not to far shy of the 2008 US record of 1:55.88 set by Katie Hoff, who this morning was to be found in 8th as fourth American on 1:58.40. Next to Schmitt were US teammates Morgan Scroggy and Dana Vollmer, on 1:57.27 and 1:57.45 respectively, ahead of Australians Blair Evans and Kylie Palmer, on 1:57.71 and 1:57.89 as last inside 1:58. Only Federica Pellegrini (ITA), with a 1:55.45 win in Budapest last week, has swum faster than Schmitt this year. No place in the A final for Vollmer and Hoff.

Men 200m freestyle

Just 0.04sec slower than the time in which Paul Biedermann (GER) won the European crown last week in Budapest (though the world champ went faster leading off his national 4x200m relay, as did Yannick Agnel, FRA, and Nikita Lobintsev, RUS), Mr Versatility Ryan Lochte (USA) led the way on 1:46.10, with teammate Peter Vanderkaay on 1:46.66 ahead of Kendrick onk (AUS), on 1:47.38. Down in 8th on 1:47.85 was Olympic silver medallist Tae Hwan Park (KOR), while Olympic champion Michael Phelps was absent, focussing instead on the 200m butterfly in the same session.

Women 100m backstroke

Emily Seebohm (AUS) fastest in the world so far this year, continued to set the pace with a championship record of 59.62 ahead of Olympic champion Natalie Coughlin (USA) on 59.89 and under the minute for the first time since her comeback began after a rest in 2009. Nest through Sophie Edington (AUS) and Aya Terakawa (JPN) on 1:00.34 and 1:00.41 respectively. Gemma Spofforth, world champion, not fully rested to race in Budapest last week, claimed the European crown in 59.80.

Men 100m backstroke

David Plummer (USA), national champion at the start of the month, swam in ahead of the pack on 53.33, with teammates Ryan Lochte and Aaron Peirsol, on 53.69 and 53.85 respectively, split by Ashley Delaney (AUS), on 53.78, and Nick Thoman (USA) last inside 54, on 53.96 and world champion Junya Koga (JPN) in 8th on 54.39, just behind teammate Ryosuke Irie, on 54.18. A second final for Lochte and some way to go for all to get to that 52.11 standard of 2010 set by Camille Lacourt (FRA) in Budapest last week. No place in the final by rights for Peirsol, but Lochte opted to miss the final.

Women 200m butterfly

No sign of world record holder (on that otherwordly 2:01.81) Liu Zige among the Chinese count. Teresa Crippen (USA) set a swift pace on 2:07.03 (which would have split the leading Hungarians Katinka Hosszu and Zsuzsanna Jakabos in European finals last week) off a 1:00.51 split. Next through her teammate Kathleen Hersey on 2:08.03, with Audrey Lacroix (CAN) on 2:08.20. Samantha Hamill was first Australian through, on 2:08.30, with world champion Jessica Schipper seventh on 2:09.52.

Men 200m butterfly

Olympic champion and world record holder Michael Phelps (USA) stepped up a gear, on 1:55.23 this morning compared to a previous season-best of 1:55.70 at the Paris Open in June and the 1:55.00 in which Pawel Korzeniowski (POL), 2005 world champion (when the 2004 Olympic champ took a season off in his signature event) claimed the European crown last week. Nick D'Arcy (AUS) who leads the 2010 world rankings on 1:54.61 went through in third on 1:55.63, the other side of Takeshi Matsuda (JPN), Olympic bronze medallist behind Phelps and Lazslo Cseh (HUN) in 2008, on 1:55.47. Also in the mix, Tyler Clary (USA), Wu Peng (CHN), and Stefan Hirniak, 25, who cracked out a Canadian record of 1:57.31 when he sliced 0.12sec off the standard he set at world titles in Rome in the midst of shiny suits season last year.

Women 800m freestyle

The slower-seed heats of an event that sees the top 8 entries race a straight final were led by open water ace and 5km world champion Melissa Gorman (AUS) in 8:30.45.

Men 1,500m freestyle

The best of the slower-seed heats produced some fine efforts, though the meet format for distance events does not favour the young who are on the cusp of breaking through to a bigger moment, their lot to swim in the morning and away from the folk who will set a more blistering pace. This morning saw teenager Andre Gemmell (USA) lead three US teammates, on 15:07.51, ahead of Michael Klueh, 15:12.04, and 17-year-old Arthur Frayler, on 15:12.89. Those efforts were up on the 15:14.91 of Ryan Napoleon, 20 this year and of the generation from which Australia is seeking a boy to grow into the man capable of keeping alive a winning 30-lap tradition reinforced in most recent times by Kieren Perkins and Grant Hackett.