It's not often that an amateur swimmer has the opportunity to see the world's best compete, much less race against them. Alex Vance, two-time Swimmer of the Year in Virginia and a member of Carter Center Aquatics (CCA) senior team, travelled to the Queen City May 15-16 to attend the Charlotte Ultra Swim Grand Prix, where Michael Phelps and many other Olympians were in attendance.

"It was an exciting experience, very intense," said Alex. "The media, the athletes and the atmosphere at the pool was one of the coolest things I have gotten to see in swimming."

Vance, 15, is a rising junior at Hidden Valley High School and qualified for Ultra Swim last summer at Virginia Swimming Senior Championships. His times in the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke were good enough to also qualify in the 400-meter individual medley. Alex's best finish was 31st in the 100-meter event in 1 minute 8.46 seconds. Although Phelps did not swim this event, two other Olympians did.

CCA head coach Greg Johnson said, "This was a very unique experience for Alex. This world-class swimming meet is virtually in our backyard and the opportunity for a high school sophomore to race against Olympians is priceless."

Alex trains at the Carter Athletic Center at North Cross School with many of his high school teammates who are also on the Marlins swim team. He has finished 3rd the past two years in the 100-yard breaststroke at the AA State Championships and was named Swimmer of the Year by Virginia Swimming in 2007 and 2008. Although just 15, Alex has competed on the national stage the past three years. He has attended Junior Nationals in Orlando, FL three times and has also qualifies to attend that same meet in Federal Way, WA this August.

"I just want to keep getting better," said Vance. "Swimming is a tough sport and demands a lot of my time, but watching those guys swim last weekend was very inspirational."

Alex and the rest of CCA Marlins will travel to Cary, NC next month to compete, and then go to Atlantic Beach, NC for a week of training at the beach.

The Charlotte Ultra Swim is sanctioned by USA Swimming, the governing body for swimming, and offers the opportunity for swimmers to dash for cash. There are purses for meet records, top finishes and overall standings. The top prize is $20,000. This was Phelps' first competition since his eight gold medals in Beijing.

Submitted by Greg Johnson, Marlins coach