This is a story that first broke a few weeks ago, but with a lull in the international swimming circuit for a few days, we thought that now would be a great time to examine it.
In early April, Swimming Australia chief Kevi Niel announced that his organization was going to try and lure the great Michael Phelps to Sydney for their second-annual Summer Swim Series in January of 2012. The first event of the meet held this year was wildly successful on every level, and is credited with renewing National enthusiasm for the sport after an overall lackluster year in 2010 for the Dolphins.
The Australians were reportedly near a deal to bring Phelps in this past year, but were unable to work out the timing with his “schedule” (training or otherwise) to land him down under. This meet has a fantastic format where the athletes are split up (via draft) into four different teams, with each one captained by a different Australian swimming legend. The captains and some of their celebrity friends even get in on the action with legends-and-stars relays. The two-day event is surrounded by a ton of pomp and fanfare that really gives the sport back to the fans (something that is often forgotten).
The meet would be an awesome battle with incredible timing. Australian superstar Ian Thorpe is expected to make his first competitive return at November’s Singapore Grand Prix stop, but this meet would likely be one of his first major long-course competitions since his comeback. It would be about 2-months out of the Australian Olympic Trials, so presumably he and Phelps would both presumably be very focused.
It would also be a great teaser for the Olympics and the two swimmers’ potential battle in the 100 and/or 200 freestyles in a rematch of their Athens 2004 “Race of the Century” in the 200 free (which was won by Thorpe). In fact, it appears that this might be one of our only chances to see the two most popoular swimmers in the history of the sport to race again: Thorpe has said his individual focus will be on the 100 and helping Australia’s relays, and it’s going to be very tough for Phelps to fit the 100 free into his schedule at the London Olympics: the semi-finals precede the 200 fly finals, where he will have a shot at history in becoming the first man to ever win 3-straight golds in the same event, and the 800 free relay.
The rivalry grew, even without head-to-head battle in 2008, after Phelps revealed that he used public comments by Thorpe, about whether or not Phelps’ quest for 8 golds was doable, as bulletin-board motivational material. Phelps had used Thorpe as an idol early in his career.
What would be even more exciting is if an arrangement is made where Thorpe makes the return trip for, say, a final tuneup at one of the USA Swimming Grand Prix meets. Though we don’t know exactly how Thorpe will look in his return to the pool, and as of late Phelps has been supplanted by Ryan Lochte as the star of USA Swimming, a head-to-head battle between Phelps and Thorpe would earn a near-Pavlovian salivary response from casual and hardcore swim fans alike.
In response to Craig about the 100m freestyle, I don’t think of the 100m freestyle as an open event within the US, at least when it comes to the top spots (in the same way as the 200m free). It seems as though the US can produce a B relay or maybe even two consisting of 48.5-49.2 swimmers (just as it can probably do with with 1.47 swimmers), there aren’t that many swimmers that can qualify with times that are world challenging.
Apart from Adrian and Phelps, America must search hard for swimmers capable of going sub48. There’s always Lochte, but its going be a extremely hard to go sub 48 while also staking a legitimate challenge at Phelps’ 400IM… Read more »
There’s no way lochte doesn’t swim the backstroke on that relay. He went 54.08 inseason at the Indianapolis Grand Prix in a speedo. He is a pure shave and taper guy, he kills himself inseason so he doesn’t put up spectacular times. I say that 54.08 is at worst a 53.5 with a suit on and once he tapers, that’s at worst a 52.5. And I think probably more in the range of 52 low, 51 high.
I wonder what kind of financial carrot is being dangled in front of Phelps and company for this event.
I want to say something about the 100m back. There is no way its the most open event ‘worldwide’, I think at the time being Gold, you can pretty much give to Camille Lacourt unless someone decides to make a statement by going sub 53 before the WC. Otherwise, the medals will be a huge scramble between as much as 7 or 8 other swimmers that are pretty much within half a second of one another.
I think that Thoman is frequently underlooked as a LC swimmer, he swims great inseason, but has yet to put it together at Nationals. However, upon missing selection he always puts up times that are very close to peirsol’s at an equivalent meet like… Read more »
Exactly, those are the sort of “out of the box” ideas that seem to get a lot of resistance. Everyone wants to swim for themselves, everyone’s afraid of having to swim a race that doesn’t fit into their schedule, or feeling pressure to not scratch an event.
I think what it would come down to is this: Nobody would care about where everyone is in their tapers. It would really be ALL about racing. It would sort of take that idea from the JAX 50, and blow it up a ton. You could even put event limits on it, so that nobody is pressured into swimmin 25 races on a weekend.
I’ve heard from some friends downunder how absolutely huge… Read more »
Back to the original story, is this premise of this meet not awesome? I don’t understand why something like this doesn’t happen like every year, maybe excluding Olympic years. Having some of the worlds best swimmers split up into teams via draft and then watching them go at it? It would be like NCAAs except way better. Even if the times weren’t necessarily there you could count on some awesome races. Anyone fast enough to be considered for a meet like this would hate losing, even if its just for bragging rights. Televise the draft and the meet, get some good commentary (AKA no rowdy gaines or bob costas) and I bet swimming becomes more than a once-every-four-year sport in… Read more »
8 gold medals I meant to say, not 7.
What I wonder is how condensed Phelps’ lineup of events will be in London. Between cutting back some events and the risk of not even qualifying for events, it should be very interesting to see what he’ll actually swim.
100 freestyle – You sort of have to assume Nathan Adrian will take 1 of the 2 spots. Phelps has shown he can be one of the fastest, but this is honestly open between 3-5 legitimate choices. This will be a hard race just to qualify for.
200 freestyle – He does not own the world record anymore, but do think his training till put him in the top 2 in this… Read more »
I think Lochte, assuming the USA coaches deem it appropriate, will be on the Medley Relay. How can he not? Outside of Phelps and Piersol, I don’t think when it’s gametime at trials or the Olympics anyone will beat Lochte in 100 backstroke. You have guys like Thoman, Grevers still out there, but If you go Lochte, Gangloff/Shantau/Spann, Phelps, then Adrian/anyone else who might be as fast as Adrian, how does that not win? The weakest position is breastroke, but you’d have arguably the fastest back half of the race by far. so even if they are a little bit behind (as they were against the Japanese in ’08), they should be able to make it up and finish for… Read more »
Grevers is the only one who I see as being able to take that relay spot from Lochte. He was the Beijing silver medalist, afterall, and does still have a solid 6 or 7 inches on Lochte. But it’s the last race of the meet, and there’s no conflicts for Ryan, so it’ll probably be a Grevers-prelim and a Lochte-final.