Bill May is a perfect 4-for-4 at the Swiss Open, and appears headed for 5-for-5 after taking the lead in the solo event Friday at the 26th annual Swiss Open in Geneva, Switzerland.

May scored a 96.500 in the solo technical event to top second-place finisher Masako Tachibana of Japan at 95.167. Victoria Bowen of Plano, Texas, is fifth with a mark of 91.833.

In the team event, U.S. National Team II, swimming first, set the pace for the day. The United States' all-American "Rowing" technical routine earned a 93.166. Japan sits in first at 94.833, with Canada third at 93.000.

"As the first team to swim in the meet, it was very important for us to set the tone and standard for other teams to match," coach Linda Witter (Columbus, Ohio) said. "We're very pleased to be in second place after the technical event."

Swimming for Team USA were Bowen (Plano, Texas), Anna Eng (West Chester, Pa.), Mary Hofer (San Diego), Suzanna Hyatt (Indianapolis), Lindsay Newbill (Laguna Hills, Calif.), Andrea Nott (San Jose, Calif.), Kim Probst (Troy, N.Y.), Shella Sadovnik (Irvine, Calif.), Emiko Takyu (San Jose, Calif.) and Beth Kreimer (Cincinnati, Ohio).

May, of Cicero, N.Y. is the world's premier male synchro swimmer. Because international federation rules do not allow him to compete in the World Cup, World Championships or Olympic Games, the elite, invitational Swiss Open has become May's home away from home. He first captured Swiss Open gold in 1997, and repeated in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

Bowen is a junior at Ohio State, and is making her second Swiss Open solo appearance. Bowen finished fourth in the solo event in 2001.

Competition continues Saturday with solo and team free final events.

Solo Technical
1, Bill May, USA, 96.500. 2, Masako Tachibana, Japan, 95.167. 3, Chelsea Luker, Canada, 92.333. 4, Belinda Schmid, Limmat Nixen Zurich, 92.167. 5, Victoria Bowen, USA, 91.833. 6, Marie Gagnon Boudreau, Canada, 91.667. 7, Magdalena Brunner, Limmat Nixen Zurich, 89.333. 8, Cornelia Libal, Germany, 85.000.

Team Technical (incomplete results available)
1, Japan, 94.833. 2, United States, 93.166. 3, Canada, 93.000. 4, Switzerland.