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Top 5 Tuesday: Gary Hall Jr. QuotesI really like Gary Hall Jr. Outside of exchanging a few emails we don’t really know each other but-more than anything-I appreciate (as a swimmer and a fan) a true personality in our sport. Hall’s willingness to take a stand-understandably-gets him in trouble from time to time. But, at least Gary’s statements offer up entertainment, something [...]
Manaudou Now Involved in Financial InvestigationIt really is unbelievable: when it rains it pours for Laure Manaudou. After she left her coach Philippe Lucas to train with her boyfriend in Italy, after her Italian team fired her and she returned to train in France with her brother, after explicit photos were posted of her on the internet and (finally) after [...]
Thorpe Doesn?t Think Phelps Will Top SpitzMichael Phelps may not be sharing his goals for the ‘08 Games in Beijing, but a report out today in the Guardian indicates Ian Thorpe isn’t shying away from publicly stating that he doesn’t think Phelps will be able to top Mark Spitz’s 1972 gold medal haul.
Beijing?s Water Cube Open For BusinessIt is a building almost beyond comprehension; a giant, mostly transluscent cube covering three underground swimming pools. It’s Beijing’s own National Aquatics Center, better known as “The Water Cube,” and it is officially open for business today.
Top 25 Women?s Roundup: Stanford and Arizona?Wow.We have previously discussed the dangers of the Berlin classic “Take my Breath Away,” but this week I find new significance in the song. Rarely does reading the results to a meet take my breath aw…(I’ll stop) like this week’s duel between Arizona and Stanford. Read on to see the results of that [...]
Top 25 Men?s Roundup: UPSETS GALORE!!!There are two types of fans in the world: those that root for the underdog and those that go for the champion. As always in college swimming, this week provided both with something to cheer for…but more for the former. While it’s hardly an upset between a #2 and #3 (Stanford and Arizona), or when [...]
Dallmann Lights Up Last Day of Luxembourg MeetWatch out for Petra Dallmann. A member of the German World Record 400 and 800 free relay is swimming very well and added another meet record to her cap today at the Luxembourg Euro Meet. The Germans looked good in general, although backstroke ace Helge Meeuw had to deal with some stiff competition.
Florida And Auburn Duke It Out Long CourseFlorida vs. Auburn. Troy vs. Quick. Distance vs. Sprint? Plenty of story lines coming out of this SEC rivalry, but in contradiction to current college rankings Auburn’s women, currently ranked second, couldn’t stave off the seventh ranked lady Gators’ depth while Florida’s men, ranked fifth, didn’t have the speed to counter the eighth ranked Auburn [...]
Feigen Comes Up Short Of National Record in 100 FreeJimmy Feigen created quite a stir yesterday with his 19.65, new national record in the prelims of the 50 freestyle at the Texas UIL District 26-5A Championships. That same day he effectively warmed down in the 100 (48.73) with the understanding being he would reverse it today and take a shot at the 100 record. [...]
Klochkova Looks Good in Mid-Season Meet.5-time Olympic Medalist Yana Klochkova, potential backstroke medalist Helge Meeuw and sprinter Petra Dallman led the way at the second day of the Luxembourg Euro-Meet. All broke meet records and posted some solid in-season times.
Jimmy Feigen Breaks National High School RecordThe men’s 50 freestyle record is sacred, regardless of age. While Alexander Papov’s long course mark may be safe from from Texas’ Jimmy Feigen for a while, Mike Cavic’s National High School Record is not: Feigen broke it today in prelims action of the Texas 5A District Champs. His time of 19.65 just edged out Cavic’s 19.69 [...]
Thomas Lurz Breaks Meet Record on Day 1 of Luxembourg InviteKnown more for his Open Water Swimming (2005 and 2007 5km World Champion), German Thomas Lurz popped off a great 1500 at the Euro Meet in Luxembourg today. Lurz broke the existing meet record with a 15:13.48, the funny thing is when you think about it that’s actually showing some “front end speed.” Also in action was the [...]
FINA Says Will Not Recognize French World RecordIt was certainly the quietest world record of 2007, the Cercles des Nageurs de Marseille short course meter 4X100 mark of 3:08.29. Set at the very tail end of 2007, the quartet of Freddie Bousquet, Fabien Gilot, Gregory Mallet and Romain Caffet actually destroyed the old Swedish mark of 3:09.57. The reason it wasn’t ratified? The record [...]
Beijing, Drugs, Michael Johnson, And Sly Stallone?First things first, and it’s a good thing: There’s word out today that drug testing at the upcoming Beijing Olympics will be “more significant than at any other Olympics.” That’s what World Anti-Doping Authority chief John Fahey tells the BBC, adding that he believes there will be a reliable test for human growth hormone. That’s [...]
Phelps: Wrist Injury ?Huge Wake Up Call? and Will Help in Long RunPerhaps the only people more worried about Michael Phelps’ health more than the star himself and his coach Bob Bowman are the folks at NBC. With swimming being amongst the highest rated Olympic sports, they have a $1.5 billion dollar bet that people will want to tune in and watch Phelps go for glory. No surprise then [...]
Manaudou Arrives In MulhousePublished media accounts make Laure Manaudou’s first day swimming at the Mulhouse club in France sound like a Britney Spears court appearance. According to The Guardian, some 40 journalists packed the poolside today to see the swimming star’s first splash at her new club.
Desperate Search Down Under For New ThorpedoThere’s a lot of hype down under over a 13 year old boy with an interesting name: Te Haumi Maxwell. Australian media are writing about his potential to become the next Ian Thorpe. But is it too soon to be making such comparisons?
The Swimmers? Ear: Behind-The-Heroes (And Scenes) From Long BeachYou think swimming in a swim meet is exhausting? Try reporting one.
The concepts are similar: You wait. And wait. And wait some more. In the swim media, you wait longer than a Hannah Montana ticket line to get that one quote you need, that one quote that will make-or-break your article, video, interview, or documentary. [...]
Resort in Chile Breaks World Record for Largest PoolSometimes when I’m swimming it feels like the pool is too long: I will never reach the other end. The new pool at the San Alfonso del Mar Resort in Chile probably gives that feeling to a lot of people as the Guinness Book of World Records has named it the largest pool in the [...]
Top 5 Tuesday: The Best of All Time?Minus PhelpsThe topic has come up a few times, but not nearly as often as it should. How good are the world’s swimmers right now? To the general populace and to the passive swim fan they might as well be nonexistent: they know Michael Phelps and they know that no one is beating him [...]