The 2026 Mare Nostrum Tour is set to kick off in Monaco this weekend, May 23-24, 2026, with a star-studded lineup of Olympians and world record holders. The event, held at the Prince Albert II Nautical Center, will feature a 50-meter long course and will be streamed live and on demand worldwide, with the exception of Brazil, Japan, South Africa, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia, and Macedonia, where local broadcasters hold the rights. The tournament promises to be a thrilling spectacle, with a range of events and a high level of competition. The prize money for the tournament varies slightly from meet to meet, with the Monaco stop featuring the "Speed Tournament" (the 50-meter races contested in a skins format). The winner of each event wins €350 at each stop, followed by €200 for second and €100 for third. A Mare Nostrum Record earns €750, while a Meet Record earns €600. The exception is the Speed Tournament, where the winner gets €600 and the second place finisher is awarded €300. Monaco is also offering up a €15,000 prize for the first world record broken at the meet, provided it’s in an ‘A’ final or in one of the final two rounds of the Speed Tournament. The tournament will feature a range of events, including the men’s sprint fly events, which are arguably the races of the meet. France’s Maxime Grousset, Switzerland’s Noe Ponti, and soon-to-be American representative Ilya Kharun, who made up the entire 100m fly podium at last summer’s World Championships, are all entered. The women’s 100m freestyle will also be a highlight, with a rematch between the two fastest swimmers in the world this season. The Netherlands’ Marrit Steenbergen, the reigning world champion, will face off against Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey, who is the third-fastest performer in history. The women’s 400 IM will also feature a great head-to-head matchup, with reigning World Junior champion Agostina Hein set to face Canadian veteran Mary-Sophie Harvey. The tournament will also feature a range of other events, including the men’s backstroke, where Kliment Kolesnikov has been Russia’s go-to backstroker for nearly a decade, and two teammates have emerged as serious challengers: reigning world bronze medalist Pavel Samusenko and 100m backstroke World Junior Record holder Miron Lifintsev. The tournament promises to be a thrilling spectacle, with a range of events and a high level of competition. It will be interesting to see how the swimmers perform and who comes out on top. Personally, I think the tournament will be a great showcase of the world's top swimmers and will be a thrilling event to watch. In my opinion, the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. 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What this really suggests is that the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. If you take a step back and think about it, the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. What makes this particularly fascinating is the fact that the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. In my opinion, the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. From my perspective, the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. One thing that immediately stands out is the high level of competition and the range of events on offer. What many people don't realize is that the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. If you take a step back and think about it, the tournament will be a great opportunity for the swimmers to showcase their skills and will be a great event for the sport of swimming. This raises a deeper question: what will the tournament mean for the future of swimming?
