UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State swimming alums Shane Ryan and Ally McHugh will compete in the 2019 FINA World Championships in the Nambu International Aquatics Center in Gwangju, South Korea, which open Sunday, July 21, and run through Sunday, July 28. Live television coverage will be carried by the Olympic Channel and NBC Sports Network and streaming coverage will be provided by the NBC Sports app and at stream.nbcsports.com.
Ryan is slated to represent Ireland individually in the men's 100-meter and 50m backstrokes, while McHugh is slated to compete in the women's 400m individual medley for the United States.
With Gwangju 13 hours ahead of the east coast of the U.S., the event schedule is as follows:
Men's 100m Backstroke – Shane Ryan
Prelims - Sunday, July 21 – 9 p.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Semis – Monday, July 22 – 7 a.m. ET – NBCSN
Finals – Tuesday, July 23 – 7 a.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Men's 50m Backstroke – Shane Ryan
Prelims – Friday, July 26 – 9 p.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Semis – Saturday, July 27 – 7 a.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Finals – Sunday, July 28 – 7 a.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Women's 400m IM – Ally McHugh
Prelims – Saturday, July 27 – 9 p.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Finals – Sunday, July 28 – 7 a.m. ET – Olympic Channel
Ryan enters Worlds ranking seventh in the 50m back with a time of 24.32 set at the 2018 European Championships and 24th in the 100m back with a time of 53.73 set at the 2019 Irish Open Championships. McHugh ranks fifth in the 400 IM with her 2018 U.S. National Championship time of 4:34.80.
Ryan owns three major podium finishes in international events, as he earned bronze in the 50m backstroke World Short Course Swimming Championships in December, bronze in the 50m backstroke at the 2018 European Championships in August and gold in the same event at the 2017 World University Games. He is the first Penn State swimmer to advance out of the preliminaries at the Olympics, and had one of the most decorated careers in program history, owning three individual school records, three relay records, two NCAA medals, four All-America nods and three honorable mention All-America honors and four Big Ten Championships. A native of Havertown, Pennsylvania, Ryan holds dual citizenship in the United States and Ireland. His father was born in Ireland and Ryan spent the 2015-16 academic year in Ireland to establish residency there and focus on training for the 2016 Rio Olympics. Ryan returned to Penn State for his senior year during 2016-17.
McHugh became the first swimmer in Penn State women's swimming and diving history to win an NCAA individual championship, capturing the 1650 freestyle at the 2019 NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships. The gold medal was her second NCAA medal overall, as she earned a silver in the same event at the 2018 NCAA Championships. At the Big Ten Championships, McHugh was a four-time champion or runner-up, earning two gold and two silver during her career and she holds Penn State records in the 500 free, 1000 free, 1650 free and 400 IM. The Philadelphia native received Penn State's women's Big Ten Medal of Honor and Student-Athlete of the Year honors for 2018-19 and was among multiple recipients of the University's 2018-19 John W. Oswald Award.
Check GoPSUSports.com for coverage of the Penn State swimming and diving teams during the season. Follow the team on Twitter and Instagram at @PennStateSWIM and on Facebook at facebook.com/pennstateswimminganddiving.
