5 top earners at the 2023 Pro Swim Series stop in Knoxville

Bobby Finke at the 2023 Pro Swim Series (via USAswimming Instagram)
Bobby Finke at the 2023 Pro Swim Series (Image via Instagram/USAswimming)

The 2023 Pro Swim Series stop in Knoxville, Tennessee, has concluded. Stars like Katie Ledecky, Bobby Finke, Ryan Murphy, and others participated in the event. Many rising stars were also spotted in the series just like Katie Grimes.

Seventeen-year-old Grimes led all the swimmers in earnings with $6,500 after taking home three victories and an astounding six podium places. Katie Ledecky followed her to the second spot with total earnings of $5,500 in the tournament.


Top 5 earners of the 2023 Pro Swim Series

A total of 53 competitors took home the award money, starting with the top earner Katie Grimes who took $6,500 to nine participants earning $500 at the bottom.

With the best women often swimming and achieving podium results in more events than men, Grimes headed a group of four women who were among the meet's top five earnings, followed by Katie Ledecky.

However, the number three spot has been tied by four swimmers with a total earning of $4,500. So, here is the list of six competitors from the 2023 Pro Swim Series with the most earnings:

  1. Katie Grimes from Sandpipers earned $6,500
  2. Katie Ledecky from Florida (pro) earned $5,500
  3. Mona McSharry from Tennessee earned $4,500
  4. Kylie Masse from Canada earned $4,500
  5. Bobby Finke from Florida (pro) earned $4,500
  6. Bella Sims from Sandpipers earned $4,500

Prize pool of the 2023 Pro Swim Series

The 2023 Pro Swim Series, which included some of the best swimmers in the world, exhibited their extraordinary strength and talent over the course of four meetings in different American cities. The University of Tennessee's Allan Jones Aquatic Center hosted its first competition in four days of intense action in January and served as the venue for the sport's top athletes.

Prize money was brought back for the Pro Swim Series' latter 2022 season, and it was kept there for the 2023 season, which began this week. The top three finishers in each race will receive $102,000 in prize money for each meet in 2023.

The 2023 Pro Swim Series will have four events, with a total prize pool of $408,000. Compared to previous incarnations, the prize money is simpler because there are no series-long points or yearly awards to think about. A swimmer is paid if they place in the top 3 in any competition, Olympics or not.

In terms of participation, the series does appear to be returning to pre-pandemic levels, but it is not apparent that the prize money is a major incentive. Before the meet's last session, when Ryan Murphy was a heavy favorite on 200 backstrokes and Abbey Weitzeil was a heavy favorite in the 100 free, the professional team from Cal left.

That indicates that at least $3,000 was left on the table, which is a considerable sum for many sportsmen and certainly enough to pay for an additional night in a Knoxville hotel.

Even under the new NIL regulations, high school and college swimmers are often only permitted to accept money up to 'actual and necessary expenditures,' although there are many exceptions that allow them to accept additional prize money. We will never know for sure who receives what prize money, but most of the money stated here will wind up with the athletes who won it.

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