Mizzou swimming and diving will compete for the Big 12 title this week. Photo courtesy of Mizzou Athletics.

Michael Phelps may not be making a grand appearance at Mizzou this week, but a number of Olympic hopefuls will.

For the third time in conference history, Mizzou will host the 2012 Big 12 Swimming and Diving Championships this Wednesday through Saturday at the aquatic center.

Missouri, Texas and Texas A&M will compete for the men’s title, and Iowa State, Kansas, Missouri, Texas and Texas A&M will vie for the women’s title.

Preliminary diving events will kick off on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m., and the swimming relays will begin at 6 p.m.

All event preliminaries from Thursday through Saturday will start at 10 a.m. Diving finals will begin at 6 p.m. on Thursday, 5 p.m. on Friday and 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. Swimming finals will commence at 6 p.m. daily.

The SEC will soon become Mizzou’s new home, so if you enjoy watching swimming and diving, you won’t want to miss this last chance for the Tigers to battle the Longhorns and the Aggies in the water. Oh, and to leave those Jayhawks at the starting block.

You can purchase tickets at aquatic center one hour prior to the start of each session. Tickets are $5 per session for adults and $2 per session for students.

When: Feb. 22-25

Where: Mizzou Aquatic Center

Cost: $5 for adults and $2 for students

Call: 573-882-9005

Online: http://mizzourec.com/news.asp?HM=373