Australian Olympic champion Cate Campbell has given some choice words in regards to FINA at a press conference in Budapest, according to SwimVortex. Though she’s not racing in Budapest at the 2017 World Championships, Campbell is aiming for a comeback next summer, and her opinions on FINA reflect the same sentiment from many world-class swimmers that we’ve seen of late.
“I think the fact that they haven’t ever requested an athlete’s opinion on anything,” said Campbell, when asked what her biggest concern is about the international governing body for swimming. She reminds everyone, though, that “we [the swimmers] are essentially FINA’s assets. Without us there is no FINA and I think sometimes that can be forgotten.”
“We are linked to FINA; we are part of FINA and FINA can use us to promote things, so I feel like we should be able to have a say in how they are governing and who governs it and which issues are being raised and which issues are being dealt with.” This is similar to the premise upon which Katinka Hosszu‘s open letter to start an international pro swimming union lies, and an opinion that has echoed across the swimming world recently.
Campbell’s time on the Athletes’ Commission of the Australian Olympic Committee has helped her see everything at play in such a sizable administration. “There are so many cogs spinning and people pulling in different directions that athletes do just get lost because it does become about making money as opposed to swimming. I feel like that’s a fundamental part of their constitution that they’ve forgotten.”
Campbell, who joined Hosszu’s Global Association of Professional Swimmers (GAPS) along with recent World Champions Adam Peaty, Ben Proud, and Sarah Sjöström, does think more can be done than outlined in Hosszu’s June letter. Still, she wants to focus on those details later. “There is a lot more to flesh out in terms of what we would like but for me I joined because athletes should have a say in organisations. Too often they are run by people who are out of touch with the sport or have their own side games to be made from it. For me it was about supporting athletes having a voice and we can work out the details after the [World] championships.”
Though she alludes to more changes other than Hosszu’s proposals, Campbell did admit that FINA‘s world cup changes were “arrogant.”
When asked about the recent Olympic event additions, Campbell was far more supportive of the 50s of strokes (which were not added) over the distance events (which were).
“I don’t agree with the fact that they are Olympic events. Obviously I support the athletes who are in them 100% but you’re putting a huge burden on the distance swimmers. That is a huge mileage they’re having to swim. They will be swimming kilometres at race pace… In terms of spectators, 50s are fun. They are races people can relate to. Pretty much everyone has swum 50 metres at some stage in their lives and can say ‘oh, look, they swam 10sec faster than me …’ Most people will never have time to swim a 1500 in their lives. From a viewing spectatorship I don’t think it was a clever move.”
“you’re putting a huge burden on the distance swimmers. That is a huge mileage they’re having to swim. They will be swimming kilometres at race pace… ”
I respected everything she had to say except for that quote. She talks as if having more chances to race and more chances to medal is a bad thing. Last time I checked, I have never heard Katie Ledecky say “I hope they don’t add the 1500 for women, I just don’t have the energy.” Likewise, Sun Yang would never say “I don’t want to swim the 800, that’s one more race against Mack Horton that I can’t afford to lose.” Distance swimmers have always been seeking more chances to race, it’s literally… Read more »
Swimmers need to do what Tennis players did in the 1970s and organize. Until that happens they will always be at the mercy of FINA.
I think that she is alluding to the fact that FINA dictates rather than governs… I do wish that FINA would have added all 50 meter sprinting strokes as opposed to mixed relays for the next Olympics but I like the distance event additions.
I think 10 x 400 ims with 60sec compulsory rest then off again . Maybe put some obstacles so they have to clamber up .If I ever watch the Olympics again – I want real entertainment . .Hungarians would be very good .don’t you think?
It’s good to see a GAPS member speaking out, who did not join GAPS in fact…according to Swimvortex 🙂
BTW I loved to see Maglione’s face while conducting Katinka’s medal ceremony. That was just rich.
Our dear Craig….
Thankfully no additional 50s were added. The Olympics isn’t just for swimmers and their fans. There would have been way too many events/medals if they did this which would cheapen swimming to non-swim fans at the Olympic level. The 50s would help her as a sprinter, so of course she wants them. She fails to realize that the distance events balances male and female events which every other event has. It also opens opportunities e.g. guys who can’t do the 1500, but can go past 400, 800 might finally be their sweet spot.
I’m not really a fan of the chaotic mixed relays, but that is another opportunity for sprinters not distant swimmers.
I would like to see the same type of representation and voice from the athletes who comprise the “assets” of FINA’s Diving discipline.
FINA may lack transparency and athlete input, but Australians like Cate should also cast a jaundiced eye on the stupendous bloat in their native government- backed administration bodies. Of Australia’s 53 member team in Budapest, only 31 are swimmers, the remaining 22 support staff. That’s a farcical 40% non-swimmers. The only profession seemingly not represented in that tricky pot-pourri of minders is hair stylists.
The Australian taxpayer spends proportionately more on its swimmers than any other nation, yet results do not reflect it. Our several international champions are paupers compared to local first grade footballers, of whom there are several thousand.
Of the $38 million spent on the so called Performance Pathway to Rio, an infinitesimal ratio found… Read more »
You raise a good point – that essentially the entire system has corruption in it, top to bottom, at some level. What about WSA – the fledgling World Swimming Association? http://www.worldswimming.org/
The first few lines of the WSA charter contain a dire contradiction: that coaches are “shepherding” it into existence. It is currently coaches (at least in Australia) who have their snouts in the trough of public funding via their incremental hijacking of SAL over the past decade. It is coaches who are siphoning off potential revenue for swimmers.
Once again, it is a case of swimmers deferring to authority and trusting that if they keep their noses down and tails up, they will be looked after.
If the WSA wants to succeed, it will appoint experienced administrators from beyond partisan interests of coaching and traditional administration.
This is good. Cate and Katinka are good voices to open a dialog with FINA. FINA looks to be as corrupt as FIFA, but without the big money because it is only big in Olympic years.
Dale Neuberger, the American lobbyist, needs to quit FINA or TSE Consulting ASAP. He can’t do both.
I do agree that the 50s should have been the additions rather than mixed relays and M800/W1500. Plenty of amazing, powerful athletes are getting left out of the meet without 50fl/50bk/50br, whereas adding the 800/1500 is just another event for the distance swimmers that have already qualified. And the 50s are exciting. Sometime the 1500 can be a bit of a slog to sit through.
I understand that leaving out 50s of the strokes may leave out more power-oriented swimmers, but regarding the addition of distance events as just another race for those already qualified ignores the huge difference between an 800 and a 1500.
It may be true that many swimmers who qualify in the W800/M1500 would also qualify in the W1500/M800, but can’t the same be said of the 50s? Many of the athletes swimming the 50s can also be seen racing in the 100s. Leaving athletes out happens in both distances. (Even though this might not happen for the US women with ledecky and smith)
Furthermore, the 800 and 1500 are completely different events. Yes, both require a lot of stamina… Read more »
I agree with much of what you say, but the difference in energy system of an 800 vs 1500 (both distance events – but in general, if you’re good at one, you’re good at the other) rather than 50 vs 100 (not easy to be good at both) is massive. There are a lot of crazy talented sprinters out there that are amazing at a 50, but can’t hold their speed for a 100. And there are others, such as Vlad Morozov for example, who has focused on 50fr/100fr for so long, but would probably be more successful internationally if he focused on for example, 50fr/50bk, but he hasn’t done that because of the 50bk not being part of the… Read more »
The difference isn’t nearly as “massive” as you say it is. Distance swimmers can swim both the 800/1500 because they put in the extra work to be good at both. In fact, many of them put in more power work so that they’re able to go down as far as the 200 free (both Ledecky and Smith are examples). It could even be argued that the 800 is better suited to those who train for the 400 rather than the 1500. Both Clark Smith and Zane Grothe excelled in the 400/800, but did not appear in the 1500 at world trials. If you take a look at the men’s distance results, you’ll actually see a mix of 400 freestylers and… Read more »
Your last sentence saying that the 800/1500 equalized the events for M/W, while the 50s just adds more events IS EXACTLY THE POINT!
The 50 m dash does not exist in track & field at the Summer Olympics as opposed to the 800 m and 1500 m.
If you want to play it that way, the 50’s are most comparable in time to the 200 in track and field. Can’t base it on distance, the duration of the event is what matters here.