Beard gets the cheers for third

Michael Phelps won the men’s 400-yard individual medley race Sunday night at the Toyota Southern California Grand Prix at Belmont Plaza Olympic pool, even though his goggles filled up with water at the start.

Kaitlin Sandeno of Lake Forest won her third race in three days, taking charge of the women’s 400 individual medley during the breaststroke and winning by two lengths over the field, even though she has a burgeoning case of bronchitis.

Matt Grevers, a relatively unknown 22-year-old from Lake Forest, Ill., won the men’s 50-yard freestyle and 200-yard freestyle, setting meet records in both races and exuberantly proclaiming his excitement at re-finding the form he thought had deserted him a season ago.

But it was Amanda Beard, 26 and a three-time Olympian, who received loud cheers and whistles for her third-place finish in the women’s 200-yard breaststroke. Tara Kirk, who was a three-time medalist at the 2007 world championships, finished first in 2 minutes 9.94 seconds, and Caitlin Leverenz, a 16-year-old from Tucson who was a silver medalist at last year’s junior national championships, was second in 2:08.59.

Beard was two seconds back in 2:10.76 but was full of smiles afterward.

“I had a lot of fun,” Beard said. “It wasn’t about my time, it was about getting back in the pool and competing.”

Beard has done provocative photo spreads for Maxim and FHM magazines and a controversial nude photo shoot for Playboy magazine. She was the second-youngest Olympic swimming medalist as a 14-year-old at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

Sunday night, Beard spoke of competing not only for a spot on the 2008 team but also 2012. “Why not?” Beard asked. “Swimming is my job.”

Beard, who is from Irvine, went to college at the University of Arizona and came back to Southern California two years ago to swim for Dave Salo and the Trojans Swim Club. Salo had been Beard’s first coach, at Irvine Novaquatics, and he said it made him feel good when Beard asked to come back.

“When she was 14, 15, she was a little kid and it was, ‘Just do what I tell you to do,’ ” Salo said. “Now it is a much more adult relationship. It changed with the Playboy thing. Amanda came in one day and said, ‘Have you seen it?’ As I was saying no she was waving the spread in front of me. She’s very honest now about things going on in her life.”

Salo said Beard asked him last week whether it was OK with him if she did a photo shoot with “LA Ink,” a cable television show about a tattoo parlor. She also asked Salo whether he would like to participate. (The answer was no.)

Sunday, Beard was in an eight-woman final that had Andrea Kropp, a 14-year-old sophomore from Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, finishing sixth and Jordan Danny, a 16-year-old junior from Newhall Hart, finishing eighth.

Beard laughed about the teenagers’ energy. “I got to the end and thought I couldn’t get myself out of the pool,” Beard said. “And then I look at those two laughing and jumping around. I have to watch what I say. I used to be those two.”

Salo said it is perspective that will serve Beard well as the competitive march toward the 2008 Olympic trials unfolds. “She’s been the 14-year-old, the Olympian, the world record-holder, the has-been,” Salo said. “I think she likes where things are right now.”

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Phelps, who won his third event in three nights, is going to swim the 100-yard butterfly, backstroke and breaststroke today. He had qualified for the finals of the 50-yard freestyle Sunday but pulled out.

“The 50 is the 50,” Phelps said. “I never really ever do that. I was joking around a little bit this morning, having a little fun.”

Phelps said he has never had a problem with goggles until Sunday night, “and I still swam my fastest time ever in the event. I’m not complaining. I’m happy.”

Phelps finished in 3:38.28, more than six seconds ahead of runner-up Tamas Kerekjarto, a Hungarian Olympian.

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diane.pucin@latimes.com