By Andrew Mering on SwimSwam

On Friday, SwimSwam editor-in-chief Braden Keith published an editorial arguing that there are some pro-athlete facets to the decision to hold finals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the morning.

• Read his editorial here
• More on the Olympic event schedule

One of his points was that there wasn’t clear evidence that morning finals sessions will lead to slower times. So I set out to gather some data on this topic from the most-relevant sample we have on the flip: the Beijing 2008 Olympics.

The last time the Olympics were held in Asia,  the organizers set up the schedule in the same order as they will in 2020. Prelims were during the night session and semis/finals were in the morning.

At the 2000, 2004, and 2012 Olympics the schedule was a more traditional prelims in the morning, finals at night set up. 2016 was a bit of an outlier with prelims in the early afternoon and finals starting at around 10PM and wrapping at midnight.

We can get some idea of the impact of the altered schedule by comparing the 2008 Olympics to the Olympics with a more standard schedule. I compared the time change from prelims to semis, semis to finals and prelims to finals (for events without semis) for the same swimmers, individual events only. For example, in the prelims vs semi comparison, a single data point was Gary Hall Jr. in 2004 50 free prelims 22.04, semis 22.18, a time add of .6%.

Prelims vs Semis Average Time Change 

positive change is slower (“added” time), negative is faster (“dropped” time)

Prelim vs Final Average Time Change  (for events without semifinals)

Semi vs Finals Average Time Change (both at night or both in the morning)

In the years with a standard morning prelims/evening finals schedule, swimmers were noticeably faster in semis than in prelims. In 2008, with the evening prelims/morning finals schedule, on average women were slower in semis than in prelims and slower in finals than prelims in distance events. The men were slower in the finals of distance events and faster than prelims in semis but by a smaller amount than in the standard schedule years (-.1% vs -.3%).

Swimmers were a bit better in 2008 than normal years comparing their finals times to their semis times, but not by the margin they were worse in the previous round.

Analysis

There does seem to be an effect where semis and finals times are slower relative to prelims times in 2008. But is the different schedule the cause?

This data is from 2008, so the obvious first question is “What about the super suits?” The comparison is of swimmers times to themselves in previous rounds. I assume for the most part swimmers were wearing the same suit from one round to the next, so it doesn’t seem like the suits should be a big factor. If someone can present a compelling argument in the comments why super suits would change the way swimmers attack a prelims/semi/finals format meet, I’m all ears.

Another complaint I anticipate: the use of averages instead of medians. Medians are often better because of the skew that can be caused by outliers or asymmetric distributions. That doesn’t seem to be a problem here. The distributions are pretty symmetric and relatively outlier free. The shifts above are present in the medians as well. Here are the distributions for the prelims vs semi data that show the shift in the overall distribution of time changes.

Is the schedule shift the cause of the worse performance relative to prelims in 2008? Maybe. The suits could be to blame. Some other environmental factor could be the cause. The schedule does seem like a likely culprit. Swimmers aren’t used to finals in the morning.

Alternatively, this isn’t evidence that 2008 finals were actually slower than they would have been in neutral conditions. Perhaps swimmers went abnormally hard in prelims in 2008. Records were falling so fast in the super-suits and times dropped so quickly overall, that maybe it became harder to control energy in early rounds.

Personally, I think the most likely explanation for the shift in the data is that the morning finals/semis is a disadvantage. It’s the simplest explanation.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: What Happened When Beijing Had Morning Prelims in 2008?

By Loretta Race on SwimSwam

The most decorated Scottish athlete at a single Commonwealth Games, Duncan Scott, has just been named the 2018 Scottish Sportsperson of the Year. At the Team Scotland Scottish Sports Awards that took place over the weekend, an event which celebrates the success of individuals, schools, clubs and teams across the whole of Scottish sport, 21-year-old Scott was also named ‘Male Athlete of the Year’ for the 2nd consecutive year.

Scott’s crowning achievement in a whirlwind summer included taking the 100m freestyle gold medal at the this year’s Commonwealth Games on the gold coast. Beating Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers on his home soil, Scott’s individual gold marked the first time a Scottish swimmer had ever won the event. He added an individual silver in the 200m IM, as well as bronze medals in the 200m free and 200m fly on the Gold Coast, while also racking up 3 relay medals.

Shortly afterward while competing at the 2018 European Championships in Glasgow, Scott snatched gold in the 200m freestyle, while also collecting silver in the 100m free. The versatile athlete was a critical component of the British men’s 4x200m free and 4x100m medley relays, which both won gold.

Having trained at the University of Stirling for several years, Scott’s coach Steven Tigg was named Coach of the Year. Tigg not only has been crucial in Scott’s development, but the coach has also guided Aimee Willmott to a 400m IM gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Duncan Scott, Coach Steven Tigg Honored Big At Scottish Sports Awards

By Spencer Penland on SwimSwam

We’ll be previewing the top 12 men’s and women’s programs for the 2018-2018 season – stay tuned to our College Swimming Previews channel to catch all 24. Can’t get enough college swimming news? Check out the College Preview issue of SwimSwam Magazine for more in-depth college swimming coverage, including a bird’s-eye view of the flood of coaching changes and our ever-popular rankings of the top 50 individual swimmers in college swimming.

#3 Indiana Hoosiers

Key Losses: Blake Pieroni (43 NCAA Points, 4 NCAA Relays), Michael Hixon (36 NCAA Points), Levi Brock (15 NCAA Points)

Key Additions: Zach Apple (Auburn Transfer – sprint free), Michael Brinegar (IN – Distance), Jack Franzman (IN – sprint free), Zane Backes (CA – breast), Andrew Couchon (IN – breast/sprint free), Brandon Hamblin (VA – sprint free/fly)

GRADING CRITERIA

As the NCAA finish order is determined by points, we base our grading scale on projected NCAA points. Versatility and high ceilings are nice, but they don’t win you NCAA titles unless they bring points with them. Bear in mind that all of these grades are projections more than 6 months out – and as none of us has a working crystal ball, these projections are very subjective and very likely to change over the course of the season. Disagreeing with specific grades is completely acceptable; furiously lashing out at a writer, commenter or specific athlete is not.

• A = projected to score significant (10+) NCAA points per event
• B = projected to score some (3-10) NCAA points per event
• C = projected on the bubble to score likely only a few (1-2) or no NCAA points per event
• D = projected to score no NCAA points

We’ll grade each event discipline: sprint free (which we define to include all the relay-distance freestyle events, so 50, 100 and 200 plus the 200, 400 and 800 free relays), distance free, IM, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly.

2017-2018 LOOK BACK

The Indiana Hoosiers outperformed expectations at the NCAAs, led by Blake Pieroni in his last collegiate season. The Hoosiers actually held the lead in team scoring over Texas and Cal going into the final day of competition, finishing comfortably in 3rd, and only 27 points behind Texas.

Blake Pieroni had an incredible senior season, making the A final in the 50, 100, and 200 free. IU’s highest point-scorer, however, was Ian Finnerty, who scored 51 individual points to Pieroni’s 43.

Overall, The Hoosiers were fueled by incredible breakthrough performances at the NCAAs, including Pieroni becoming the first man ever to break 1:30 in the 200 free, and Finnerty becoming the first ever to break :50 in the 100 breast. IU was also able to rely on their solid diving backbone, which scored 98 points, led by senior Michael Hixon.

The Hoosiers also finished in the top 9 in every relay, winning the 400 medley relay, and coming in 2nd in the 800 free relay.

SPRINT FREE: A

The loss of Blake Pieroni, no doubt, is a painful one. He brought a sub-19 50 free, 41.1 100 free, and sub-1:30 200 free to the table. That’s a tough whole to fill, but have no fear, Zach Apple is here to save the day. Apple’s times from last year were just slightly slower than Pieroni’s, clocking in at 18.97 in the 50, 41.36 in the 100, and 1:31.18 in the 200 free. Apple comes in as the 3rd fastest (tied with Ryan Hoffer) returning 50 freestyler from last years NCAAs, the 2nd fastest 100 freestyler, and the 2nd fastest 200 freestyler. When all is said and done this year, Apple could actually outscore Pieroni’s 43 individual points this year.

Mohamed Samy was also an A finalist in the 200 free, giving the Hoosiers another sprint free boost.

The Hoosiers took heavy losses to their free relays, obviously losing Pieroni, their fastest leg on all 3 relays, but also losing seniors Ali Khalafalla and Josh Romany. Khalafalla put up a solid 19.40 lead-off on the 9th place finishing 200 free relay, and a 42.29 anchor split on the 6th place finishing 400 free relay. Josh Romany anchored the 200 free relay in 19.20.

Apple will be able to replace Pieroni well enough, and the Hoosiers are bringing in Indiana sprint star Jack Franzman, who brings times of 19.74, 43.44, and 1:37.58 to the team. While individual scoring may be a bit of a reach for Franzman’s freshman campaign, he could certainly play a vital role in the relays, which IU is going to need if they want to match or better last year’s finish. The Hoosiers are also bringing in Brandon Hamblin, who comes in with personal bests of 20.18 and 44.62, which could also make him a very useful player on the free relays. The Hoosiers also have sophomore Bruno Blaskovic, who threw down a sub-19 50 split last year.

DISTANCE FREE: A-

The Hoosiers were somewhat strapped for top-tier distance freestylers last season, but that is no longer the case. Michael Brinegar joins the team, and is bringing with him a mile time that would have been 4th at last year’s NCAAs, and is 3rd among those who will be competing in the NCAA this season. Brinegar, who is a pure distance swimmer, will need to bring down his 500 time from 4:19 if he wants to make an impact there as well. IU will also have to figure out what his best 3rd event will be, which will all but certainly be a choice between the 200 free, where he is 1:38.9, and the 400 IM, where he is 3:55.0.

The Hoosiers are also bringing in another freshman distance star: Mikey Calvillo. Calvillo, like Brinegar, is a pure distance swimmer. He comes into the NCAA with a 15:05 personal best in the mile, which has a lot of potential. While that time is off the sub-14:50 that it will almost certainly take to score at NCAAs, it’s not out of the question that he could provide a few extra distance points to the team.

IM: A

The Hoosiers are still in need of scoring potential in the 400 IM, where last year’s team leader, Spencer Lehman, could answer the call. Lehman posted a 3:47.12 in the 400 IM last year, which is well off from B finals at the NCAAs, but not so far off that it definitely couldn’t happen.

Indiana’s real IM power comes in the 200, where Vini Lanza and Ian Finnerty run the show. Last year, Lanza came in 6th in an A final which contained 3 seniors. Finnerty also made the A final, finishing in 8th. There’s currently no reason to believe they both can’t make the A final again this year, so that points to this being another strong spot in the IU roster.

BUTTERFLY: A

Vini Lanza is back and poised to score a lot of points in the fly events as well. Lanza is the fastest returning 100 flyer from last year’s NCAAs, and the 2nd fastest 200 flyer, behind only NC State’s Andreas Vazaios. Given that, at this point in the season there’s nothing to suggest we shouldn’t expect top 3 finishes from Lanza in both fly events, again giving the Hoosiers a reliable top-end flyer. Lanza will also be tapped to swim fly on the medley relays. IU’s 400 medley won at the NCAAs last year, and loses only Pieroni, who will be replaced by Apple, suggesting the Hoosiers are the favorites in that. The 200 medley came in 4th and returns all 4, suggesting they should at least remain in the top 4.

BACKSTROKE: B+

Backstroke is likely the weakest point in the Indiana roster, and yet they have a 45.1/1:40.8 leading the way in Gabriel Fantoni. Fantoni, whose best times would have scored at last year’s NCAAs, swam just off his times in prelims, narrowly missing both B finals. A 45.1 100 back certainly has the ability to make the A final, and a 1:40 200 back is close to B final territory, so as long as Fantoni can perform at his best at the NCAAs, the Hoosiers should be able to score fairly solidly here too.

Mohamed Samy was a B finalist in both backstrokes last year, signalling that he could score a handful of points or maybe more this year as well.

BREASTSTROKE: A+

Indiana head coach Ray Looze’s bread and Butter: breaststroke. IU returns the reigning champion in the 100 and 200 breast in Ian Finnerty. Finnerty is the clear favorite going into this season, suggesting that for now we can say 40 points to IU for the breaststroke events. Finnerty will also play a huge role on Indiana’s powerhouse medley relays, both of which could be in the title hunt.

That’s just the beginning for the Hoosiers , however, as they are bringing in 2 freshman breaststroke stars as well. Zane Backes brings a 53.0 100 and 1:55.0 200 to the table. His time in the 100 was less than half a second outside the top 16 at last year’s NCAAs, and his 200 time is less than a second from the top 16. That being said, it’s possible Backes can completely make up for the loss of Levi Brock, who scored 15 points in the breast events last year. Andrew Couchon is the other incoming breaststroker, coming in with a personal best 54.4 100 breast.

2018-2019 OUTLOOK

Before we get into our outlook, it’s important to note that Indiana is a team that will again benefit from its diving group — despite the loss of Michael Hixon, who scored 36 points for IU last year, they return Andrew Capobianco (33 points), and James Connor (29 points).

In terms of NCAA scoring ability, there is no doubt Indiana has one of the most well-rounded teams in the NCAA. With no real weak points, and a big diving advantage, this team will be one that’s hard to beat. The loss of Blake Pieroni will be made up for by Zach Apple, which is a monstrous boost to the team, because of the points he will score both individually and on relays.

Speaking of relays, the Hoosiers have an excellent shot at being top 8 in all 5, and grabbing a couple of titles as well. Namely the medley relays are where their real power comes from, but they also came in 2nd in the 800 free relay last year, and Zach Apple isn’t that far off Pieroni’s 200 speed.

Vini Lanza and Ian Finnerty will surely be looking to go out with a bang in their senior campaigns, and could possibly sweep the breaststroke and butterfly respectively. Michael Brinegar is set to bring in distance free points, which was one of the few holes the Hoosiers had in their roster last year.

All things considered, this IU team is stacked, and is a top 3 favorite with the potential to really explode and possibly rank even higher.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: College Swimming Previews: Finnerty, Lanza Set to Deliver #3 Indiana

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

2018 FINA WORLD CUP – DOHA

• Thursday, September 13th – Saturday, September 15th
• Hamad Aquatic Centre (HAC), Aspire Zone, Doha, Qatar
• Heats at 10am local/Finals at 6pm local
• LCM
• Entry Lists
• SwimSwam Preview
• Results

FULL FINA WORLD CUP SCHEDULE

• September 7-9, Kazan, Russia (50m)
• September 13-15, Doha, Qatar (50m)
• September 28-30, Eindhoven, Netherlands (25m)
• October 4-6, Budapest, Hungary (25m)
• November 2-4, Beijing, China (25m)
• November 9-11, Tokyo, Japan (25m)
• November 15-17, Singapore (25m)

Swedish sprint star Sarah Sjostrom hit max points at each of the first two stops of the 2018 FINA World Cup, earning the $50,000 Cluster 1 bonus and leading the series points by 30.

The major change to series scoring this year is that athletes can earn prize money in as many events as they want, but can only score points from their best 3 finishes. Sjostrom won five events in both Kazan and Doha, leaving her with a perfect three scoring wins. She also hit the top FINA points performance at both meets for the max 24-point bonus. 60 points at each meet leaves her with 120 to lead the series by 30 over Katinka Hosszu.

(Sjostrom was so dominant in Doha that she actually had the three best FINA points performances overall).

On the men’s side, Anton Chupkov earned the top performance bonus and leads points by 3 over Michael Andrew. Chupkov’s lead and the tight leaderboard (Andrew is 3 back, Vladimir Morozov 6 back) is a product of the new scoring system, which allows more specialized swimmers to compete, rather than the old format which really only rewarded those who could enter 5+ events at each stop.

WORLD CUP SCORING

Medal Points

Each individual event yields points for the top 3 finishers.

• Gold: 12 points
• Silver: 9 points
• Bronze: 6 points

Each athlete can swim an unlimited amount of events, but only their best three finishes count for points.

World Record Bonuses

Each world record yields 20 points. Tying a world record is worth 10 points.

Performance Bonuses

The top 3 male and top 3 female swims of the meet earn bonus points. Top swims are determined based on FINA points. Only the top-scoring swim from each athlete is counted.

• First: 24 points
• Second: 18 points
• Third: 12 points

PERFORMANCE BONUSES:

Women:

1. Sarah Sjostrom, 50 free: 23.99 = 960 FINA Points
2. Katinka Hosszu, 100 back: 59.63 = 924 FINA Points
3. Ranomi Kromowidjojo, 100 free: 53.29 = 913 FINA Points

Men:

1. Anton Chupkov, 200 breast: 2:08.77 = 951 FINA Points
2. Andrii Govorov, 50 fly: 22.82 = 949 FINA Points
3. Michael Andrew, 50 back: 24.49 = 945 FINA Points

2018 World Cup Point Standings

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Sjostrom Perfect Over World Cup Cluster 1; Chupkov Wins Men’s Cluster

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

2018 FINA WORLD CUP – DOHA

• Thursday, September 13th – Saturday, September 15th
• Hamad Aquatic Centre (HAC), Aspire Zone, Doha, Qatar
• Heats at 10am local/Finals at 6pm local
• LCM
• Entry Lists
• SwimSwam Preview
• Results

FULL FINA WORLD CUP SCHEDULE

• September 7-9, Kazan, Russia (50m)
• September 13-15, Doha, Qatar (50m)
• September 28-30, Eindhoven, Netherlands (25m)
• October 4-6, Budapest, Hungary (25m)
• November 2-4, Beijing, China (25m)
• November 9-11, Tokyo, Japan (25m)
• November 15-17, Singapore (25m)

With no world record bonuses yet doled out, Sarah Sjostrom has still earned $65,000 in prize money over the first two stops of the 2018 FINA World Cup. She leads all athletes, with $59,750-winner Katinka Hosszu running second.

Hosszu has actually won more per-race prize money, especially with her focus on the Hungarian relays. But Sjostrom won the first cluster points for a $50,000 bonus, while Hosszu was second and only won $35,000.

On the men’s side, Anton Chupkov has won $55,000, most of that from his $50,000 cluster bonus. Michael Andrew has netted $48,000 and Vladimir Morozov just under $41,000.

PRIZE MONEY SYSTEM

Event Prizes

Prize money is given to the top 6 in each individual event:

• Gold: $1500
• Silver: $1000
• Bronze: $500
• 4th: $400
• 5th: $300
• 6th: $200

Prize money is also given to the top 3 mixed relay teams (though no series points are earned).

• Gold: $3000
• Silver: $2000
• Bronze: $1000

In our money lists, we’ve given each relay member one quarter of that money, which amounts to $750 for a win, $500 for second and $250 for third.

World Record Bonuses

Each world record is worth a $10,000 bonus.

Cluster Bonuses

The 9-meet series is broken into 3 clusters of 3 meets each. Each cluster awards bonuses for the top 6 athletes in points over those three meets. An athlete must swim all 3 meets in the cluster to earn a cluster bonus:

• 1st: $50,000
• 2nd: $35,000
• 3rd: $30,000
• 4th: $20,000
• 5th: $10,000
• 6th: $5,000

Series Bonuses

And the series as a whole will give out bonuses to the top 3 men and women in total series points:

• 1st: $150,000
• 2nd: $100,000
• 3rd: $50,000

2018 World Cup Money List

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Sjostrom Hits $65K, Chupkov $55K In Winnings After World Cup Cluster 1

By Loretta Race on SwimSwam

73rd NATIONAL SPORTS FESTIVAL – JAPAN

• Saturday, September 15th – Monday, September 17th
• Fukui Tsuruga City General Athletic Park Swimming Pool
• LCM
• Start Lists/Results (in Japanese)

The 73rd National Sports Festival of Japan concluded today, with the nation’s golden girl, Rikako Ikee, capping off a whirlwind summer. After already snagging 4 medals at the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships, including gold in the women’s 100m fly, the 18-year-old went on to claim a historic 6 golds at this year’s Asian Games in Jakarta to become the prestigious competition’s first-ever female MVP.

The teen Olympian was back in the pool this weekend to close out her successful racing season, capturing another two gold medals in Fukui. Competing in the 18 & under category, Ikee scorched a new meet record in the 100m freestyle, touching in 53.46. She was the only swimmer under 55 seconds in the race and came within half a second of her own Japanese National Record of 53.03 set earlier this year at the Japanese National Championships. Ikee blasted a 53.27 to take gold in Jakarta, so the teen is consistent despite several key competitions right in a row.

Ikee also made her mark here in the 50m freestyle, notching the only sub-25 second time of the field. Taking gold in 24.33, Ikee topped the 24.53 Games Record-setting time she produced to take gold in Jakarta. Her time in Fukui this weekend also would have rendered a bronze medal at the Pan Pacs, easily surpassing Ikee’s 24.60 that left her in 6th at that meet.

Fans were pleased to see Ikee in the pool, as 3 highly anticipated athletes wound up not competing. 2016 Olympic silver medalist in the 200m fly, Masato Sakai, was set to make his post-surgery return, but wound up not competing this weekend. Also pulling out of the meet was sprinter Shinri Shioura, who said he contracted tonsillitis after the Asian Games and spent a week in the hospital. World Championships medalist Yui Ohashi was also expected to compete ni the 200m IM, but was a no-show for her race.

However, there were still some solid performances produced by the Japanese contingency at the meet to demonstrate the strength and depth that continues to grow in the nation with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics not too far off the horizon.

Below are some key swims over the weekend:

• Runa Imai took the women’s 200m breaststroke in a time of 2:23.50, just .07 off of her own personal best of 2:23.43 from almost 3 years ago.
• The men’s 400m free saw Naito Ehara claim his 4th consecutive meet title, with the 25-year-old touching in 3:51.64 for the win. Mahiro Ishii took the title for the women, clocking 4:13.57.
• In Ohashi’s absence, soon-to-be-24-year-old Miho Teramura topped the women’s 200m IM field, producing a winning effort of 2:11.73. Teramura also won the women’s 100m breaststroke in 1:07.22, a big new personal best.
• 200m freestyle bronze medalist from Pan Pacs, Katsuhiro Matsumoto, got the job done in the men’s 100m freestyle, winning the race in 49.22. The 50m freestyle victor was Nakao Shunichi, who stopped the clock at 22.27 for the gold.
• The top 5 finishers in the men’s 100m fly race all fell in the 52-point range, led by winner Yuki Kobori‘s 52.03.  Next in line was Masayuki Umemoto, who finished in 52.26, while Naoki Mizunuma rounded out the top 3 in 52.78. Also on the board in sub-53 were Yuya Yajima and Yasumasu Nishino, who hit the wall at 52.83 and 52.92, respectively.
• The women’s 100m fly winner was Ai Soma, whose 58.25 laid waste to the 58.70 to 21-year-old’s previous personal best of 58.70 collected in Tokyo at Pan Pacs.

Look for your favorite Japanese swimming stars at the Short Course World Championships Trials meet coming up next month.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Ikee Caps Off Historic Summer With 2 Meet Records At Japanese Festival

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

Three more people with swimming connections have been banned by the U.S. Center for SafeSport. Jarret Sadler and Harrison Franks of Texas and Donald Graham of New Mexico have all joined the banned list.

Jarret Sadler

The 25-year-old Sadler was arrested this week in Louisville, Kentucky. The local CBS affiliate reports that Sadler is accused of sexually abusing a 17-year-old girl at a party. An arrest warrant showed that Sadler didn’t know the girl, but allegedly forced her to perform a sex act against her will while she was under the influence of alcohol. Police also say the girl told him to stop, but he didn’t listen.

The News-Enterprise reports that the alleged abuse occurred at around 2 AM on June 24, and that Sadler is charged with first degree sexual abuse and second degree sodomy.

Local media report that Sadler is employed by the Red Cross, but CBS noted that “the crime is not related to his profession.” He was a former athlete member of USA Swimming and a part-time coach member prior to his ban. The News-Enterprise reports that Sadler had lived in Kentucky only about five months, and is a native of Texas. SafeSport’s database lists Sadler as being from Kingwood, Texas.

He’s currently listed as “ineligible” rather than “permanently ineligible,” which means the five-day window for an appeal is still open.

Harrison Franks

Lubbock, Texas’s Franks is listed as “permanently ineligible” as of August 2, 2018. His violation is listed as “criminal disposition – sexual misconduct.” No information is yet available on the specific’s of Franks’ case. He was a former high school swimmer in the state of Texas.

Donald Graham

Graham, of Ranchos De Taos, New Mexico, is listed as “permanently ineligible” as of September 4, 2018. His violation is “sexual misconduct – involving a minor.”

Graham was a member of USA Swimming as an official, though he had previously spent time in the sport as an athlete (swimming Masters as recently as 2014 and competing for Texas in college) and as a coach.

We’ve asked the Center for SafeSport for further information on all three, but didn’t receive any information beyond what is listed in the bans database.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 3 More Swimming Names Added to SafeSport’s Banned Database

By Braden Keith on SwimSwam

22-year old Canadian Olympian Yuri Kisil has turned pro, leaving the UBC Thunderbirds program and focusing his preparation entirely on the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. As part of the decision, Kisil will be moving across Canada to Toronto where he’ll join the National Performance Centre and train under Ben Titley.

While Canada’s west coast was the epicenter of the last generation of top Canadian swimmers, their recent unparalleled run of success has come out of Ontario, and especially Toronto.

While the pieces are moving, and many but not all have spent time at the National Training Centre, the names that are either from or based out of Ontario include former World Record holder Kylie Masse, Penny Oleksiak, Erika Seltenreich-Hodgson, Hilary Caldwell, Kayla Sanchez, Rebecca Smith, Mabel Zavaros – the core of the women’s team that has lifted the country to Olympic and World Championship podiums.

The current group that is listed as specifically training at the High Performance Center in Ontario are Michelle Toro, Sanchez, Rebecca Smith, and Taylor Ruck (though we know Ruck is beginning her first semester at Stanford in the United States).

While at UBC, Kisil led the team to 3 U SPORTS (Canadian collegiate) national championships, sweeping the 50 and 100 free national titles in each of those three years. He was a two-time U SPORTS Male Swimmer of the Year and in 2016 was named UBC’s top male athlete.

U SPORTS athletes have 5 years of eligibility, as compared to the 4-year system employed  in the US by the NCAA.

Kisil says outright that his goal is to win a medal at the 2020 Olympic Games.

“My goals going forward are to get better at the sport,” added Kisil. “I have certain times I want to achieve and still tons of accomplishments that I have yet to check off my list. My main goal moving into the 220 Olympics though is to make it onto the podium.”

At the 2017 World Championships, Kisil was 25th in the 50 free prelims (22.43) and failed to advance, and was 10th in the 100 free semi-finals (48.50). He was also on Canada’s 6th-place 400 free relay (they touched the wall 8th, but 2 teams were DQ’ed); and their non-finalling 800 free and 400 medley relays.

He won a pair of bronze medals as a finals swimmer on Canada’s mixed relays – bringing his total to 3 after being a part of the bronze medal winning mixed 400 free relay at the 2015 World Championships.

In the summer of 2018, he took another bronze medal in the 50 free, swimming 22.02 to place behind only Michael Andrew and Caeleb Dressel at the Pan Pac Championships.

Kisil’s Best LCM Times:

• 50 free – 22.02
• 100 free – 48.28
• 200 free – 1:48.90

“I had an amazing experience being involved with UBC and its swimming program,” said Kisil just before heading to Toronto. “It helped me to progress as an athlete, and I made many lifelong friends. I loved my time here, I’m very grateful for the opportunities provided and it’s a time in my life that I’ll never forget.”

“The great coaching staff and my teammates pushing me every day in the pool really helped me achieve my goals. Every day I came to the pool I knew If I wanted to win a set I would have to give it my all and that really helped me push myself at each practice.”

“Yuri helped elevate the program to great heights in his three seasons on the Men’s Varsity team as evidenced by the three national titles he was a big part of,” said UBC head coach Steve Price. “He was an integral part of our relays and led our men by winning the U-Sport “Male Swimmer of the Year” the last two seasons. Yuri took on a leadership role at the Championship competitions, supported his teammates to perform their best and injected lots of fun in the pursuit of the U-Sport titles. Yuri will be missed as a popular teammate and the guys know they will need to step up this season to his shoes. I want to thank Yuri for his time as a Thunderbird and wish him the best of luck as he pursues his international aspirations at the National Performance Center. Once a T-Bird always a T-Bird and we are excited for his future in this sport.”

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2-Time U Sports Swimmer of the Year Yuri Kisil Turns Pro Early

By Reid Carlson on SwimSwam

On Thursday, September 20th, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will hold a meeting of its Executive Committee to determine whether or not to reinstate the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) following RUSADA’s plea for reinstatement and WADA’s own Compliance Review Committee’s (CRC) recommendation to alter two outstanding requirements set by WADA that have thus far hindered its reinstatement.

RUSADA, which claims it should be reinstated based on its “technical capability to perform its duties in benefit of all clean athletes of Russia and the world,” is likely to be reinstated given that WADA’s very own Compliance Review Committee (CRC) suggested the amendments to the former outstanding criteria hindering RUSADA’s reinstatement.

Though the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) was reinstated by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) following the conclusion of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeong-Chang, South Korea, RUSADA has remained in limbo as Russian sporting and government officials have repeatedly refused to accept two criteria vital to its restoration.

First, pursuant to criteria which have now been amended slightly, RUSADA was meant to publicly accept the findings of the McLaren Report, which former ROC President Alexander Zhukov refused to do. Second, RUSADA was ordered to allow WADA officials access to the Moscow Anti-Doping lab, its samples, and data, which the organization also refused.

Instead of accepting the findings of the McLaren Report and admitting the existence of a state-sponsored doping scheme in Russian sports, RUSADA will accept the validity of the IOC Disciplinary Commission’s report, also known as the Schmid Commission’s report, as it was led by Samuel Schmid of the IOC Ethics Committee. The Schmid Commission’s finding differ from that of the McLaren Report in that it did not find “any documented, independent and impartial evidence confirming the support or the knowledge of this system by the highest State authority.”

This “evolution of wording,” as it was called in the Schmid Commission’s report, was one of Zhukov’s biggest grievances with the McLaren Report, which alleged that the Russian doping scheme came via orders from the highest levels of Russian government. The Schmid Commission amended the findings of McLaren to read “An institutional conspiracy existed across summer and winter sports athletes who participated with Russian officials within the Ministry of Sport and its infrastructure, such as RUSADA, CSP and the Moscow Laboratory, along with the FSB for the purposes of manipulating doping controls.”

Furthermore, instead of allowing multiple WADA officials access to the Moscow Laboratory, one “independent expert” will be granted access to the Moscow lab, its samples, and data, per a WADA press release from September 14th, 2018. WADA followed its September 14th press release with another on September 15th, in which it intended to quell what it described as “speculation and misinformation” circulating about the RUSADA Roadmap to Compliance.

Now, nearly three years after RUSADA was first suspended, WADA has apparently accepted less than it originally asked for from the Russian Agency that helped make it possible for Russian athletes to cheat drug tests in Olympic and world championship competitions. Not only will RUSADA likely gain reinstatement without accepting the findings of the McLaren Report, but it will also allow merely one “expert” access to the Moscow lab. These compromises, once formally accepted by WADA’s Executive Committee, could also pave the way for Russian reinstatement with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), arenas where Russian athletes have been forced to compete under the neutral Olympic flag, unable to officially represent their home nation.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: WADA Poised to Reinstate RUSADA Thursday With Amended Requirements

By Wendy Mayer on SwimSwam

Courtesy: Rhonda Chandler
Here I am. I knew this day would come, and yet I am unprepared. It is a few years earlier than I thought so perhaps that is why I am befuddled. As of this morning, I am no longer a swim mom. I know it seems trivial to say. How can something my children do identify me so much? But here I sit, with alligator tears in my eyes, knowing I will never watch my children swim another competitive race again. It’s killing me.

It started over 12 years ago, and if I think about it a lot longer than that. Both sides of our family are swimmers. My uncle was competitive, swam D1 in college, and held some state records back in the day. All of us have been water babies since birth, every summer swim lessons all the way to lifeguard, and every summer spent clothed in only suits and the sheen of water on our skin. When I had children, into the pool we went. My son took his first chlorine bath at about 2 weeks old, my daughter, a Ground Hog Day baby, had to wait till 3 months of age. Time passed, but every summer, same as me, lessons and swimming every chance we got. Both kids swam independently taking breaths and unassisted across the deep end of the pool by age 4. The next summer formal lessons began with a former D1 swimmer friend who was Red Cross Certified Instructor. We were a water safe family.

The kids got a little older and we began trying some sports. Soccer and gymnastics were a couple, but nothing anyone really loved. All the usual complaints, it’s hot, I don’t like this, etc. Then one day we were leaving a pool party in my son’s 7th summer. He had a blast playing with the other kids in the water, and they figured out they could race each other swimming. He was so animated telling me all about the racing. I mentioned that we could get on a team where you could race kids in swimming. Well, for the next year he hounded me about it. I didn’t automatically sign him up because I knew what swimming was, and I wanted to make sure he was committed. I had friends in high school that swam club and varsity. I knew the time commitment it would be. But after a year of badgering, I said yes. We planned to go tryout for the team. On the way out the door that fateful day, I asked his sister if she wanted to tryout too. She was 6 and she said yes. By the end of the day we were a swim family, for better for worse.

Just like that the years rolled by. Both children were successful, enjoyed their friends, and were fit as fiddles. I served on the board of the club for over 5 years, 3 as president. What began as open meets, went to B/C, then BB, then A, and Senior Circuit, and Sectionals. We hit high school and both kids tried out for the team successfully making Varsity as 9th graders in consecutive years. It was great. I never minded the chlorine smell, or wet towels, the endless food purchased, or the weekends spent on aluminum benches. (I have always thought bleach was the best way to clean anything.) We were surrounded by great families that knew the commitment we had made and shared our lives and dreams for our kids. I simply adored watching my kids work for something so hard, and be so proud of themselves when the accomplished a new cut, or won a race.

Our daughter lost her love of it after the first year of high school. Trying to balance club, school and Varsity did not leave her the time for non-swimming friends that she desired to share her life with. After her 9th grade year, she quit club, and continued Varsity. That lasted one more year. So after exactly 10 years of swimming club, and two years of Varsity, she quit. Her words to me were, “I get up, get my suit on, and stand by that pool looking at that water, and nothing in me wants to get in and swim that line anymore. I am just done.” She was good, and could have been great. She still has the most perfect efficient stroke of any swimmer I have seen. But, she more than others, saw how much work it took to be great, and she knew it wasn’t what she wanted to sacrifice everything else for. She told me that she was impressed by people who were willing to put in the hours, laps, and work; but that it wasn’t for her. She then got her lifeguard certification and spent the next two years of high school guarding at the same pool. She made Head Lifeguard and competed in guard games for the city with her team placing third. She was the one who ended up swimming the 50 free lap in the guard relay…winning the leg. Once a swimmer always a swimmer.

My son, it has always been his sport. He did well enough to swim in college. He won several district races in high school in epic fashion occasionally – which was great fun to watch. One of my favorite memories is his 500 FR swim at district his freshman year. He and another boy on the team, who was two years older and a friend of ours, were representing our school. They were seeded in the last and fastest heat. They start the race, and my son goes out fast – too fast. He is way ahead of anyone else. The mom of the other boy was sitting beside me saying how great my son was doing, and I remember telling her that I thought he went out too fast, he wouldn’t be able to hold it. As the race went on, he just kept going with no one near him. Then she says, “Rhonda, he’s going to win! He’s going to lead start to finish!” I told her to stop talking, she was going to jinx it. He just swam like mad and beat his time from two weeks earlier by 15 seconds, winning the race by 10 seconds and led beginning to end. It was simply fantastic. Afterwards, he told me, “I don’t know what happened. I just felt perfect in the water, it was the best swim of my life.” while grinning ear to ear.

We had a lot more meets in the next four years. He transitioned to shorter distances, but never really was a sprinter. He kept going and liking swimming, loved his friends, and didn’t mind the work. He was voted Freshman swimmer of the year, MVP of the year both his junior and senior years on Varsity, as well as being Captain for the team. The time came for college. He had said he wanted to swim in college with and end goal of making Senior Nationals, but that was when he was 14 – and somewhere along the way, I quit asking what the goals were. I thought we knew.

He picked a D2 college he could get a great engineering degree and swim on the team. Freshman year was hard academically at one of the top 3 schools in the nation for engineering. His swimming was stagnant, but he also had to cope and learn how to live and train at altitude for the first time. By the end of season he did get a new best time in a 200 back, which he had never really been known for, a pleasant surprise.

Unfortunately, unbeknownst to the parents, he wasn’t enjoying it anymore.

He came home and was swimming for a week or so with his old club to stay in shape. I got home yesterday, when he should have been at practice. I said, “Aren’t you supposed to be at practice?” He said, “I’d like to talk to you.” I knew at that moment what he was going to say. From my side, I held it together. I said all the right things. I support his decision. He told me that he had originally loved the racing until around 9th grade. Then he loved the practices and friends, but slowly over the years he love diminished to only be for his friends, not the swimming. He explained that during the last 6 months it has been extremely hard to get motivated for practice and the work involved. He just didn’t want to get in the water and swim the line anymore. What surprised me is that as he told me, “I don’t think I want to swim anymore.” He was crying. And I asked why. He didn’t know exactly. But what he said was this, “I have been swimming for so long, I don’t know who I am without it.” I thought that was one of the saddest things I had every heard. My son, who is many things, had always thought of himself as only a swimmer. Not the Eagle Scout, not the A+ student, not the kind and good friend….a swimmer only.

So here I am, an avid swim mom with no child to dote upon. I have a couple of videos I won’t delete…ever. I have Meet Mobile and USA Swim apps on my phone and I can’t bring myself to delete them. Especially the USA one, it has all his times, every single one. I can remember some of the races vividly. I remember the ones he suffered through and died at the end, as well as the ones where he succeeded. How can I just let them go? He went today to talk to his coach and separate from the team, so it’s formally done. He called me when the meeting was over. I felt better about the decision because in his voice I could hear happiness and relief. His greatest obstacle was the fear disappointing all of the rest of us. I am trying to be happy for him, I am trying to hide my sadness. It is a lot like the day I dropped him off at college. My sadness is that it is over. I will selfishly miss it, his progression in the sport, and nothing form here will ever be the same.

I am the mom of swammers. Two great wonderful accomplished and brilliant individuals. Swimming gave them so many skills that translate outside of the pool to live their dry lives. I am thankful for every minute. But if I had one wish, it would be one more meet or practice where I pick them up all wet and disheveled, they jump in my car, happy as larks and chatter all the way home about the entire day. The moments in between all the swims are what made it special. And dear God do I hope I have grandchildren that swim.

About Rhonda Chandler

Rhonda Chandler resides in Plano, Texas with her husband, Kirk, their two children and four pets. She is a graduate of Texas Tech University with degrees in Journalism and English.   She and her husband own a boutique wine store in  Dallas, La Cave Warehouse, specializing in European wines.   Her hobbies are reading, fishing, theatre, and travel.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: I Am A Swam Mom

By Sanuj Srivastava on SwimSwam

72nd Glenmark Senior National Aquatic Championships 2018

Date: September 19 To September 23, 2018

Address: Dr. B.R.Ambedkar International Aquatic Complex, Pirappancode, Trivandrum,Kerala

Course: 50m

Host: Kerala Aquatic Association

Glenmark 72nd Senior National Aquatic Championships 2018 19th Sept Se 23 Sept Tak Dr. B.R.Ambedkar International Aquatic Complex, Pirappancode, Trivandrum,Kerala Me Hoga, Is Championships Ko Kerala Aquatic Association Organize Kra Rha Hai. Lagbhag 800 Men And Women Isme Participate Karne Ja Rhe Hai.

Niche Day 1 Ke Events And Heatsheet Di Gayi Hai:

SWIMMING DAY 1 PROGRAM FOR 72^ND SENIOR NATIONAL AQUATIC CHAMPIONSHIPS -2018

– MORNING SESSION – HEATS

– EVENING SESSION – FINALS

1. 1. 200M  FREE STYLE                                          MEN
2. 2. 200M  FREE STYLE                                          WOMEN
3. 3. 200M    INDIVIDUAL  MEDLEY                      MEN
4. 4. 200M    INDIVIDUAL   MEDLEY                     WOMEN
5. 5. 50M      BREAST  STROKE                                MEN
6. 6. 50M      BREAST  STROKE                               WOMEN
7. 7. 4 x 100M  FREE STYLE RELAY                       MEN
8. 8. 4 x 100M FREE STYLE RELAY                       WOMEN

Day 1 Heats Senior Nationals 2018: Click Here

News, Tips and Workout Ke Liye Aap SwimSwam Hindi Ko Visit Karte Rahe And Facebook Par Bhi SwimSwam Hindi Ko Like Kar Le.

Join Us:-

• Google Plus► SwimSwam Hindi
• Twitter► SwimSwam Hindi
• Facebook► SwimSwam Hindi

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 72nd Glenmark Senior National Aquatic Champ 2018 Ki Day 1 Heatsheet

By Jared Anderson on SwimSwam

The University of Evansville has hired Brent Noble of Wabash College to be the new head coach of the combined swim and dive program.

Noble had spent five seasons with Wabash of the NCAA’s Division III and the NCAC. He makes the jump to Evansville’s Division I program, with the men competing in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and the women in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC).

Noble replaces Rickey Perkins, who left Evansville, Indiana to take over as the new head coach at Bowling Green State University. He had led Evansville since 2002.

You can read Evansville’s full press release below:

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Evansville Director of Athletics Mark Spencer has announced the hiring of Brent Noble as the Head Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Coach.  Noble joins the Purple Aces program from Wabash College where he oversaw his student-athletes break 22 out of 23 school records in his five seasons at the helm.

“Throughout our search process, it became evident that Brent Noble had all of the attributes that we were looking for in our new head coach,” Spencer said.  “Brent is a quality individual who brings a strong pedigree in the Midwest.  He has the ability to bring out the best in student-athletes both in the classroom and in the pool.  We are excited to welcome him to the Purple Aces family.

Noble has spent the last five seasons as the Head Swimming and Diving Coach at Wabash College and is coming off of a stellar campaign that saw the Little Giants take fourth place at the North Coast Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving Championships.  Finishing with 1,154 points, his squad reached the 1,000-point plateau for the fourth time in school history.  It was also the highest tally in the history of the Wabash program.  Aaron Embree and Hunter Jones received Scholar All-America Honorable Mention Recognition while the team earned Scholar-All-America Team accolades in the spring.

“It’s clear that this is a special group of men and women, and I’m very excited to be their next leader,” Noble said.  “Evansville combines a rigorous academic environment that I can feel very good about recruiting to with the opportunity to compete in Division I athletics, and I feel like that is a really great fit for me at this point in my coaching career.”

“I am very thankful to Mark Spencer for the opportunity, and I’m eager to get to work and help to build this program and make the UE community proud.”

His Little Giant swimming and diving team placed fifth at the 2017 NCAC Championships. Wabash captured two All-NCAC honors in one- and three-meter diving. Aaron Embree qualified for the second consecutive year for the NCAA Diving Regional.

Wabash placed fourth at the 2016 NCAC Championships, missing the 1,000-point mark by half a point with a score of 999.5. Zechariah Banks captured individual titles in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke and moved on the 2016 NCAA DIII Championship Meet. Banks captured fifth-place finishes in both events at nationals to earn All-America honors.

His Little Giants finished fourth at the 2015 North Coast Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving Championships with a total of 1,041 points to earn Noble NCAC Men’s Coach of the Year honors. The Little Giants topped the 1,000-point mark for the first time since 2008 and became the first team to finish fourth with more than 1,000 points. Wabash swimmers set 14 new school records at the 2015 championships and produced six All-NCAC performances, including an individual NCAC victory by Jack Belford in the 500 freestyle.

Six Wabash swimmers —  Carter Adams, Zechariah Banks, Jack Belford, Jake Childress, Elliot Johns, and Chris McGue — qualified for the 2015 NCAA Division III National Championship meet in Texas, the most qualifiers since the Little Giants sent nine to the national meet in 1991. Wabash finished the 2014-15 season with a 5-2 dual-meet record, including a 162-129 home victory over arch-rival DePauw University.

He guided the Little Giants to a successful outing at the 2014 NCAC Swimming and Diving Championships, finishing fourth in the highly-competitive league. The Little Giants sent six swimmers to the “A” finals of the meet with a third-place finish in the 400-yard medley relay. Noble’s squad posted 10 school records during the season and 11 NCAA provisional qualifying times.

The youngest head swimming coach in NCAA Division I, he tripled the size of the Sacred Heart roster in his time with the school in 2012-13. His swimmers set nine new school records and every member of the team turned in at least two lifetime-best results in their primary events. His team also excelled in the classroom, earning Scholar All-America team honors by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America.

He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Eastern Illinois University in 2009, where he competed for four years as a member of the Panthers’ swimming team. He earned academic all-conference honors all four years, and was part of the winning 800-meter relay team at the 2007 Mid-Continent Conference Championships, and made 15 finals appearances in conference championship events throughout his career. Noble is still listed on the top-ten list at Eastern Illinois in the 200- and 400-yard individual medley.

A graduate of Terre Haute South High School in Indiana, he earned varsity letters as a member of the swimming and cross country teams.  He is expected to earn a Master’s of Science in Kinesiology from Indiana University in December and has studied swim training and techniques at the Indiana University Counsilman Center for the Science of Swimming in addition to his own research to help maximize potential in student-athletes.

His first college coaching experience came when he joined the DePauw University coaching staff in 2010 as an assistant for the men’s program. He designed season and weekly training and workout plans, which helped send five swimmers to the NCAA Division III National Championship meet.  Noble was hired as a sprint coach for the men’s and women’s teams at East Carolina University in 2011, where his athletes posted seven school records, three freshmen records, and 14 new individual times on the all-time top-10 list. His swimmers also earned five all-conference selections and produced four NCAA Division I “B” cuts.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Evansville Hires Wabash’s Brent Noble As New Head Coach

By Eric Lahmy on SwimSwam

Ancien nageur, Eric Lahmy est journaliste, écrivain, rédacteur en chef, et reporter. Il anime depuis 2013 Galaxie-Natation, un blog dédié à son sport préféré.

Lundi 17 Septembre 2018

C’est dans Le Parisien et c’est du Amaury Leveaux tout craché. Il n’a pas replongé, mais il a annoncé qu’il replongeait. Ça fait toute la différence. Il veut gagner le 50 mètres des Jeux olympiques de Tokyo, en 2020. Il va aux USA, à USC, chez Dave Salo, et comme il a gagné pas mal d’argent dans les affaires, il sera à l’aise pour payer tout ça. Dans son texte, il n’y a que du positif. Il a toujours été musclé naturellement donc pas besoin de se remuscler après des années sans activités physiques. Tout son laïus suivant ce modèle assez bonimenteur qui lui colle au discours…

Bref, Leveaux d’or, c’est pour 2020 !

C’est vrai qu’il a nagé très vite au temps des combinaisons polyuréthane, et que le 50 mètres n’est pas tout à fait de la natation, donc que tout espoir y est permis quand on l’a nagé vite, qu’on est relativement jeune et qu’on mesure 2,02m.

Un garçon dépressif (et semble-t-il fort sympathique) de 35 ans qui avait passé la moitié de sa vie d’adulte à gratter sa guitare de rock, à soigner un syndrome de Tourette et à engouffrer des hallucinogènes dans des soirées bruyantes n’a-t-il pas été champion olympique de l’épreuve en 2016 devant un Florent Manaudou de neuf ans plus jeune et bodybuildé grave ?

35 ans, c’est l’âge que n’aura pas encore tout à fait Leveaux aux Jeux de Tokyo, et seulement deux ans de plus que ce mec qui était réputé marcher sur l’eau.

Wait and see, disent les anglais.

Mais lisez l’entretien avec Le Parisien et retrouvez Leveaux tel qu’en lui-même…

http://www.leparisien.fr/sports/natation-leveaux-replonge-pour-la-medaille-d-or-olympique-a-tokyo-17-09-2018-7892163.php

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Suivez Leveaux (Amaury), il revient (en paroles) et se voit déjà Leveaux d’or en 2020

By Torrey Hart on SwimSwam

Former Bowdoin College men’s swim coach of 39 years Charlie Butt passed away at the age of 93 last Friday, the school announced Monday.

Butt additionally served the women’s program for the first 24 years of its existence and coached soccer for 23 years. In his retirement, he served as an assistant coach for the squash team.

He was born in 1925 in Shanghai, China, and in his youth participated in many sports including swimming and water polo. He attended St. John’s University in Shanghai for two years before the Japanese occupation during World World II closed it down. He then worked as a salesman and oiler before returning to Shanghai after the war, and then became a member of the national soccer team and held Chinese national records in swimming in 50-yard, 100-yard, and 100-meter free.

Butt additionally qualified for the 1948 Olympic Games in London as a member of both the basketball and swimming teams, but did not attend due to his political opposition to the Chinese government. He left China in 1951, and the way he did so was truly remarkable.

Collegiate swim coach Sam Freas told SwimSwam the story:

“Charlie’s story was so interesting, compelling, and intriguing when I personally heard it from him. He escaped China after a basketball game in Beijing, swam to a ship that was in the harbor, climbed up the anchor line and was a stowaway. In order to repay for being a stowaway he spent almost a year on the ship. After struggling to get to Springfield College, he was befriended by the swim coach Red Silvia… Thus he spent a lifetime in swimming. He was a special guy.”

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Charlie Butt, Former Bowdoin Coach of 4 Decades, Dies at 93

By SwimSwam on SwimSwam

Courtesy: Frostburg Athletics

FROSTBURG, Md.– Frostburg Director of Athletics Troy A. Dell announced this morning that Bryan Christiansen has been hired from a national search as Frostburg’s next head swimming coach.

Christiansen is entering his first season as the head coach of the Frostburg State University swimming teams. This will be his first head coaching position at the collegiate level in his career.

Christiansen was named the assistant coach of John Carroll University’s swim teams in 2017, where he was part of the coaching staff that was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Women’s Staff of the Year for the 2018 season, while leading both the men’s and women’s to the 2018 OAC Championship.

“I first want to express my gratitude to Director of Athletics Troy Dell and the rest of the search committee for offering me the responsibility to lead the Frostburg swimming team,” said Christiansen. “I’m excited to become a part of the community here in Frostburg and begin working with an impressive and dedicated group of athletes. We have the opportunity to achieve some great things as a program over the next few years as we transition to Division II and I am honored to be at the helm.”

During his tenure with John Carroll, Christiansen coached 19 conference champions, and both Men’s and Women’s Divers of the Year. JCU also set seven OAC records, 13 varsity records and had two NCAA All-Americans.

Prior to his tenure with JCU, Christiansen served as an assistant coach at SUNY New Paltz from 2015-2017. He was part of a coaching staff that led their teams to second place finishes in the 2016 and 2017 SUNY Athletic Conference, coached eight conference champions while setting three SUNYAC records, 14 varsity records and 13 pool records. The SUNY New Paltz swimming teams both went undefeated in the 2016-2017 season.

Christiansen has coached swimming since 2008 at the club and high school levels and still active with summer swim camps, also directing the New Paltz Elite Camp from 2016-17.

Christiansen graduated from Hiram College, earning his bachelor’s degree in history in 2008 with a 3.82 GPA. He was a three-year captain of the men’s swim team and was named the MVP in the 2006-2007 season. He was part of the 800-meter freestyle relay team that finished with a time of 7:06.60 in 2008, still a Hiram College record to this day.

He earned his master’s degree in communication and media technology from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Frostburg Tabs Christiansen as Swimming Coach

By Karl Ortegon on SwimSwam

We’ll be previewing the top 12 men’s and women’s programs for the 2018-2018 season – stay tuned to our College Swimming Previews channel to catch all 24. Can’t get enough college swimming news? Check out the College Preview issue of SwimSwam Magazine for more in-depth college swimming coverage, including a bird’s-eye view of the flood of coaching changes and our ever-popular rankings of the top 50 individual swimmers in college swimming.

#2 CAL GOLDEN BEARS

Key Losses: Kathleen Baker (53 NCAA points, 4 NCAA relays), Noemie Thomas (22 NCAA points, 2 NCAA relays)

Key Additions: Cassidy Bayer (DC – fly), Elise Garcia (CA – sprint free/fly), Ema Rajic (IL – breast), Alex Sumner (PA – back), Alicia Wilson (GBR – IM)

GRADING CRITERIA

As the NCAA finish order is determined by points, we base our grading scale on projected NCAA points. Versatility and high ceilings are nice, but they don’t win you NCAA titles unless they bring points with them. Bear in mind that all of these grades are projections more than 6 months out – and as none of us has a working crystal ball, these projections are very subjective and very likely to change over the course of the season. Disagreeing with specific grades is completely acceptable; furiously lashing out at a writer, commenter or specific athlete is not.

• A = projected to score significant (10+) NCAA points per event
• B = projected to score some (3-10) NCAA points per event
• C = projected on the bubble to score likely only a few (1-2) or no NCAA points per event
• D = projected to score no NCAA points

We’ll grade each event discipline: sprint free (which we define to include all the relay-distance freestyle events, so 50, 100 and 200 plus the 200, 400 and 800 free relays), distance free, IM, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly.

2017-2018 LOOK BACK

Thanks to the outstanding racing from Kathleen Baker and a very deep sprint free group, Cal secured a 2nd place finish at the NCAA Championships behind only Bay Area rival Stanford. The Golden Bears finished as high as 2nd in three different relays, while Baker won the 200 back crown in NCAA and American record fashion and Abbey Weitzeil found her way to the A final in the 50 and 100 frees. Freshmen Robin Neumann and Sarah Darcel delivered, both reaching an individual A final, while another rookie, Ali Harrison, helped Cal’s breaststroke problem with a very solid 58.8 400 medley relay split.

SPRINT FREE: A+

The top-end talent here is deep, and with Simone Manuel done at Stanford, Weitzeil will be in contention with Erika Brown for the 50 free title and Mallory Comerford for the 100 free title, pending any freshmen who could compete. Whether she wins or not is hardly too important, though– Weitzeil is one of the fastest sprinters in yards, ever, and she will keep relays in the title conversation while also bringing in a good 30+ points on her own.

Meanwhile, Amy Bilquist and Maddie Murphy were both 21 flat starts last year and went 1-2 in the 50 free B final. Katie McLaughlin has made considerable strides in her sprint freestyle game, and freshman Elise Garcia comes in at 22.6/49.4.

While more of a 200 freestyler, Neumann was a 48-low last season and will likely replace Baker’s 400 free relay leg to join Bilquist, Weitzeil, and McLaughlin. As far as the 800 free relay goes, we might see those same four again, though a substitution might be made if Coach Teri McKeever wants to save a big gun for another relay.

DISTANCE FREE: C-

McLaughlin (4:39.4), Chenoa Devine (4:40.6) and Neumann (4:40.9) were all clumped together to lead the Bears in the 500 last year. McLaughlin could do either the 500 or the 50 on day 2 of NCAAs, but she may end up on all five relays and skip a day 2 individual since Noemie Thomas is graduated and off the fly medley leg. Whether or not that’s the case, these three would all be cusp B final scorers.

Devine was the only person to race the 1650 on the Cal roster last year with a 16:16.20 season best at Pac-12s, which is not in NCAA scoring range.

IM: A-

Baker out is tough, but Sarah Darcel scored in the 400 IM A final last year and raced the 200 IM B final as a freshman. Half of the 2018 400 IM A final is either graduated or has gone pro, giving Darcel a great shot to repeat in the top 8. Keaton Blovad‘s 1:55.7 from Pac-12’s would have B finaled at NCAAs, giving the Bears another option.

Meanwhile, freshmen Bayer (4:12), Rajic (4:14), and Sumner (4:15) could all develop in the 400 IM, and British freshman Wilson brings in a 2:14 IM in long course which is not to be overlooked.

BUTTERFLY: A-

McLaughlin went up top for both butterfly events, touching 4th in the 200 and 6th in the 100. She should also provide very strong relay splits for the Bears, though Maddie Murphy may be called on for the 200 medley relay. A pure sprinter, Murphy could free up McLaughlin to focus on the other four relays and add a third event, or she might allow for McLaughlin to anchor the 200 medley giving Weitzeil more room to do something else. Individually, Murphy is a fringe player for a 100 fly B final appearance.

Cassidy Bayer is one of the best 200 flyers in yards in the incoming class, and could be a scorer in that event individually. Elise Garcia, too, is a very strong flyer with times of 52.7/1:56.6, so look for her to be another potential scorer for Cal.

BACKSTROKE: A-

There’s no replacing Baker, but having Bilquist in your back pocket (sorry for the pun) is a life saver. Bilquist is capable of sub-51 (her best is 50.50), and she wound up 10th in the 100 back at NCAAs. She traded out the 200 back for the 100 free individually last year, but she has been 1:49 before.

Blovad was strong last year at 51.8/1:53.3, while Sophie Krivokapic-Zhou hit a 52.5 last year in the 100. Freshman Alex Sumner will certainly play into things in the 200 in particular, having been 1:52.3 (and 2:09.0 in LCM).

BREASTSTROKE: C+

Being in C+/B- territory is pretty darn good for the Golden Bears considering past seasons. Breaststroke may no longer be their Achilles heel, with 26-mid relay potential out of Weitzeil in the 50, and a sub-59 split from Harrison on the 400 medley was nothing to scoff at. Distance is the only roster group weaker than breaststroke, but Cal can get by with what they have, and Harrison is a fringe scoring option in the 100.

Freshman Rajic may develop into something great for Cal, coming in at 1:00.6 and 2:14.1, and she’s on the sprintier side of things which could be good for the 200 medley, too.

2018-2019 OUTLOOK

Cal lost Baker and Thomas, two huge talents, but their roster is padded with so much primo talent that they will fare just fine without them. Their freshman class is a bit more modest than some of the classes we’ve seen in the past (Baker-Bilquist-McLaughlin?! All in one class?!) but has the potential to bite, and the depth for relays paired with the fact that at least 7-8 women are poised to score on their own means Cal should be in good standing for another 2nd place finish.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: College Swimming Previews: No More Baker for #2 Cal

By Anne Lepesant on SwimSwam

French Olympic gold medalist Amaury Leveaux has announced his comeback. Five years after hanging up his suit and goggles, the 6’7-1/2” sprinter told Le Parisien, “I’m coming back to swimming. And specifically, the goal is Tokyo. It’s a big challenge but I think I still have something left to do. I thought I’d turned the page, put the swimming book away, but there’s still a big part left to write, and I want to do it.”

Leveaux is a 4-time Olympic medalist. He won gold in 2012 as a member of the French 4×100 free relay. He led off in the final, going 48.13 to put the French in a strong position against the Americans, who led off with Nathan Adrian’s 47.89. Eventually Yannick Agnel overtook Ryan Lochte on the final leg, and the French (Leveaux, Fabien Gilot, Clément Lefert, and Agnel) touched out the Americans by .45. He also won a silver medal in London as part of the 4×200 free relay. In 2008, he won a silver medal individually in the 50 free and led off France’s second-place 4×100 free relay (47.91) in the race that Jason Lezak famously anchored for the Americans.

Leveaux told Le Parisien that it’s something he’s been thinking about since May. Even though he’s only been in the water three times in five years, he’s confident he can get back into competitive form. “I didn’t really miss swimming. To be honest, I still don’t miss it. [But] I’m a competitor. I love challenges. I have plenty of challenges with my son [editor’s note: Leveaux is the father of 3-year-old Edward], w this extra little challenge, to win a gold medal at the Olympic Games, that’s something I’d like to do.”

Leveaux will be moving to Los Angeles on October 1st to train under Dave Salo at USC. He expects to have a rough first 3 months while he gets back into shape. He says he called Salo and presented his plan, told him what kind of shape he’s in and how long he’s been out of the water. Salo agreed to train him. “He knows exactly what I need in order to succeed,” said Leveaux. Later in the interview he added, “I know I have an athletic side, and I have the will [to succeed]. And I think that will the will, I can do anything. Anyone can, if they have the will.”

Leveaux is not coming alone. With him will be a cameraman and an editor so people “can follow my work on a daily basis,” as well as a personal trainer and a chef. “I need optimal conditions, [I need] calm. In France it would have been complicated. I get bored with things quickly but [in this case] I won’t have enough time. It’s just 20 months away….”

Read the full story on SwimSwam: 5 Years into Retirement, Amaury Leveaux Announces His Comeback…in L.A.

By Eric Lahmy on SwimSwam

Ancien nageur, Eric Lahmy est journaliste, écrivain, rédacteur en chef, et reporter. Il anime depuis 2013 Galaxie-Natation, un blog dédié à son sport préféré.

ENTRE ARKADY VYATCHANIN ET GUY LA ROCCA, ALP’38 A TRANCHÉ:  ÇA SERA LES DEUX. AUCUN RISQUE DE LES CONFONDRE, L’UN MESURE 2,03M, L’AUTRE 1,70M.

Mardi 18 Septembre 2018

Le NC ALP’38 a décidé de mettre fin au feuilleton de l’été, et à la situation confuse née de ce qui paraissait devoir être le remplacement de Guy LA ROCCA par un nouvel entraîneur, américain d’origine russe, Arkady VYATCHANIN.

« Après discussions et échanges avec tous les acteurs (Guy, les nageurs, les dirigeants), nous avons décidé de construire et de travailler autour d’un duo d’entraîneurs : Guy La Rocca  et Arkady Vyatchanin, explique à ce sujet Damien CHAMBON, le directeur sportif du N.C. Alp’38.

« C’est un pari que de mettre deux coachs Elite, mais comme vous l’aviez souligné dans votre article, le club (et son président) sont ambitieux et bâtir à partir de l’encadrement nous semble une bonne stratégie. »

Monsieur CHAMBON, s’il crédite l’article de mercredi 12 septembre, intitulé MERCATO À TOUS LES ÉTAGES (3) : QUI AU SOMMET D’ALP’38, DE GUY LA ROCCA OU D’ARKADY VYATCHANIN? et exposant la situation du club de « refléter plutôt bien la réalité tant dans les évènements qui se sont déroulés que dans l’envie d’emmener cette structure dans une autre dimension », il insiste sur un point : « malgré ce que l’on a lu ici ou là, le club n’a jamais voulu remplacer Guy La Rocca par Arkady Vyatchanin (c’était plutôt un autre entraîneur qui devait remplacer Guy – projet qui vient d’être abandonné).  Nous sommes engagés depuis plusieurs mois dans un processus de recrutement d’un deuxième entraîneur pour mettre en place une organisation ambitieuse et pouvoir accueillir plus de nageurs sur notre site. »

« A noter, rappelle le directeur sportif, que l’université Grenoble Alpes est probablement l’unique en France proposant des aménagements pour les sportifs dans toutes les filières (hors médecine). 40% des derniers médaillés Français des JO d’hiver sont étudiants à Grenoble. Notre pari est non seulement de rejoindre les meilleurs clubs français mais également de le faire avec des nageurs qui poursuivent leurs études. Tous les nageurs du groupe sont étudiants et sont présents en cours (la plupart étalent leurs études) »

Je croyais en connaître un rayon en ce qui concerne la natation, mais je ne me souviens pas de deux entraîneurs dirigeant un club dans une parité totale. Il y en avait toujours un qui décidait. Si j’ai vu fonctionner des « républiques d’entraîneurs », c’est dans les équipes nationales, où, dans un lointain passé, on se savait pas qui de Lucien Zins ou de Georges Garret (années 1960), de Guy Giacomoni  ou de Michel Pedroletti (années 1970-80) « dirigeait » l’équipe de France. Plus tard, même si on a un peu accentué sur la hiérarchie, celle-ci ne s’imposait pas, surtout parce que les « coaches » arrivaient avec « leurs » nageurs. En club, à l’année, cela peut devenir délicat…

Il  est certain qu’un entraînement bicéphale peut être une chose délicate, et qui demande beaucoup de bonne foi, de philosophie, et un abandon de toutes les arrière-pensées pour espérer fonctionner. S’ils entament une compétition pour la prééminence, cela peut devenir assez fatigant. Il faut aussi que les deux coaches parlent le même langage – et n’y voyez aucune allusion au fait que VYATCHANIN parle russe et américain et LA ROCCA français, il s’agit de langage technique et d’approche du sport.

Les partages de prérogatives peuvent se faire selon des « frontières » diverses et changeantes, les coaches peuvent scinder les nageurs selon des affinités, selon les techniques (VYATCHANIN a été recordman du monde en dos, ce qui doit lui donner une certaine technicité) ou les distances parcourues (sprint ou demi-fond), ou en fonction de domaines précis (VYATCHANIN semble avoir bossé la diététique, LA ROCCA a géré un finaliste olympique de A à Z.) Sans entente, tout devient difficile car alors cela posera la question de savoir qui aura le dernier mot…

Mais le partage des nageurs me parait être la solution la plus naturelle…

(ericlahmy@yahoo.com)

COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE DU N.C. ALP’38

Grenoble, le 15 Septembre 2018. Le Mercredi 1er Août 2018, à la suite de l’entretien du 30 juillet entre Guy LA ROCCA et trois dirigeants, le NC Alp’38 a communiqué la réorganisation de son équipe d’entraineurs sur le niveau élite élaborée en concertation avec le directeur sportif. L’objectif était double :

– Préparer la saison 2018-2019 et accueillir dans les meilleures conditions les nouveaux nageurs arrivant au club.

– Proposer à Guy LA ROCCA de nouvelles missions.

Cette décision a provoqué chez une partie de nos nageurs du groupe élite et chez nos éducateurs des inquiétudes, le Conseil d’administration regrette fortement que cette situation ait affecté Guy LA ROCCA.

Après quelques semaines de réflexion, le Conseil d’administration et le directeur sportif ont décidé d’en tenir compte, et de proposer que le nouveau schéma d’organisation du groupe élite, articulé autour de deux entraineurs, se mette en place avec GUY LA ROCCA et Arkady VYATCHANIN en abandonnant le recrutement d’un second entraineur extérieur au club.

Les compétences et les résultats obtenus par Guy LA ROCCA ces dernières années n’ont jamais été remis en cause au cours de cette réorganisation, l’objectif du C.A. était de lui permettre de récupérer après ces deux années intensives.

Guy La Rocca travaillera donc en étroite collaboration avec Monsieur Arkady VYATCHANIN sous la responsabilité de Monsieur Damien CHAMBON, directeur sportif du NC ALP’38. Le Club renouvelle toute sa confiance en Guy LA ROCCA, et compte sur lui pour diffuser son expérience du haut niveau auprès des autres éducateurs de la structure, et permettre ainsi à celle-ci de poursuivre ses objectifs ambitieux. Mounier secrétaire du NC ALP’ 38 Pour le C.A.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: Au N.C. Alp’38, on déclare la paix et on se sert un double coach

By Reid Carlson on SwimSwam

On September 14th the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) issued a press release signalling its intent to end the nearly three-year suspension of the delinquent Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), following a recommendation from WADA’s own Compliance Review Council (CRC). Today, the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), led by newly-appointed CEO Sarah Hirshland, released a statement expressing its hopes that WADA will make a decision that restores athletes’ confidence in the international anti-doping system, as well as the Olympic and Paralympic movements.

Because RUSADA and the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) have remained committed to a largely semantic argument that there was never a State-sponsored doping scheme in Russian sports as alleges the 2016 McLaren Report, WADA’s CRC has determined that the requirements for reinstatement of RUSADA may be amended to bring the organization back into the fold. As one Russian sports official puts it, so long as RUSADA can demonstrate that it is “technical capability to perform its duties in benefit of all clean athletes of Russia and the world” then it ought to be reinstated.

USOC CEO Sarah Hirshland released the following statement regarding WADA’s recommendation to reinstate RUSADA as a compliant anti-doping body:

“We hope that WADA can reach a conclusion on RUSADA that will give athletes a firm belief that when they compete, it will be on a level playing field, without any doubts. Anything that stops short of satisfying that will not only be a huge disappointment to the USOC and American athletes, but to the entire Olympic and Paralympic movements.”

Following the new standards for RUSADA’s reinstatement, the organization may find itself re-legitimized if it:

1. Accepts the validity of the IOC Disciplinary Commission’s report, also known as the Schmid Commission’s report, and
2. Gives one “independent expert” access to the Moscow lab, its samples, and data.

These demands differs slightly from those of the original RUSADA Roadmap to Compliance, though the WADA CRC maintains they fall within broad enough parameters of the Roadmap to allow for the re-admittance of RUSADA. Originally, RUSADA was commanded to publicly accept the findings of the McLaren Report, though former ROC President Alexander Zhukov repeatedly refused to accept this admonition of crimes committed by the State. Additionally, RUSADA was ordered to allow WADA officials access to the Moscow Anti-Doping lab, its samples, and data, which the organization also refused.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: USOC Responds to WADA Recommendation to Reinstate RUSADA

By SwimSwam Partner Content on SwimSwam

Set of the Week is courtesy of FINIS, a SwimSwam partner.

This week’s set comes from Randy Kasir, a former swimmer & current Business Development Representative for FINIS.

First half of the ladder is freestyle then climbing down is IM.

25 – EZ
50- Freestyle swim down, head up coming back
75- Freestyle Kick
100 – Sprint
125 – Free Pull
150- Build by 50
175 – Sprint on even 25’s
200 – Freestyle breathe every 5th strokes
200 – IM
175 – Fly/Free, Back/Free, Brest/Free, Free
150- 50 Fly, 50 Back, 50 Brest Build within 50
125- Stroke no free pull
100 – IM Sprint
75 – Kick Fly/Back/Brst
50 – Fly swim down, head up Fly coming back
25- EZ

For more awesome workouts, visit FINIS’ Training Tips & Workouts page today!

About FINIS, Inc.

John Mix and Olympic Gold Medal swimmer Pablo Morales founded FINIS in Northern California in 1993 with a mission to simplify swimming for athletes, coaches, beginners and lifelong swimmers around the world. Today, FINIS fulfills that mission through innovation, high-quality products and a commitment to education. FINIS products are currently available in over 80 countries. With a focus on innovation and the fine details of swimming, FINIS will continue to develop products that help more people enjoy the water.

Set of the Week is courtesy of FINIS, Inc., a SwimSwam partner.

Read the full story on SwimSwam: FINIS Set of the Week: Climb the Ladder