Olympic Talking Points To Impress Your Non-Swimmer Friends

As swimmers and swimming fans, we have respectfully endured dozens of culturally-significant sports-fan events, March Madnesses, FIFA World Cups, World Series, and NFL playoffs, over the last three years. But, with the Rio Olympics looming near, we know it is almost our time to shine. Soon, the athletes we admire will rocket to the forefront of the world’s athletic consciousness and we’ll go back to overhearing conversations about Ledecky, Phelps, and flipturns from laymen on the street.

So, to add to the fevered anticipation of our upcoming moment in the sun, here are talking points to impress your non-swimmer friends going into the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Timeless Classic

Phelps versus Lochte in the 200 IM: It’s the final (and this time we’re serious) matchup between two of the greatest swimmers, perhaps two of the greatest athletes, in history, and only one will come away with Olympic gold. However, while all your friends’ eyes will be on the red-white-and-blue, you’ll know that the real threat is the 21-year-old Kosuke Hagino out of Japan, who can even swim a world-ranked race with a pause to adjust his goggles.

The “Awwwww” Factor

The Campbell Sister Act: Only one thing is more heartwarming than seeing a pair of teammates embrace after racing against each other for all they are worth: seeing a pair of siblings embrace after racing each other for all

Bronte and Cate Campbell celeberate medals in the 100 free at the 2015 FINA world championships Kazan Russia (photo: Mike Lewis, Ola Vista Photography)

they’re worth. Let’s just add that Aussies Cate Campbell and Bronte Campbell are the top two swimmers in the world in the monstrously competitive 100 free. Even the NARPiest of the NARPs can appreciate this story. (That’s Non-Athletic Regular Person.)

Everyone Loves an Underdog

If not Ledecky, then who? If your friends have been paying even a remote amount of attention, they know Katie Ledecky. She is, in fact, better at swimming than anyone is at anything. But, during Ledecky’s 400, you’ll know that it’s worth saving back some attention for Leah Smith, who has the chance to become the third woman in history under 4:00. Then show your friends this adorable video of Smith’s teammates after she made the team.

Young and Hungry: If there’s one story that everyone loves in the Olympic season, it’s a teenage stand-out. At just 16-years-old, Penny Oleksiak qualified for more Olympic events than anyone else on her Canadian team and should prove a vital swimmer on the relays. She also could make a big jump in the 100 fly.

The U.S. and Aussie Men’s 400 Free Relays: Okay, commenters, I admit it’s a little bit silly to put the Australian and American men’s relays under the “underdog” heading, but the boys in red-white-and-blue and the Aussie gold-and-blue are coming in after exceedingly lackluster finishes at the 2015 World Championships. The impending victory from either team will be even sweeter when you mention to your friends that the American men are rebounding from an 11th place and the Aussies from 13th at the last Worlds competition.

Let’s Get Technical

Peaty and the “Fast” Breaststroke: Anyone can see it. Watch Great Britain’s world record holder and gold-medal favorite Adam Peaty take on the 100 breaststroke. It’s all in the stroke rate. At the 2015 World Champs, Peaty took 47 strokes in a championship final field that averaged 42. He brings the speed without losing breaststroke efficiency, and that’s why he’s the best in the world.

More Off-Beat Techniques: Beyond Peaty are a huge group of swimmers with noticeably different techniques that even non-swimmers can see. Take your pick of Cammile Adams‘s side-breathing butterfly; Ruta Meilutyte‘s insane off-the-block reaction time; Katie Ledecky‘s loping, man-like stroke; Michael Phelps‘s underwaters; Molly Hannis‘s upward dolphin-kick breaststroke;

Rio Officials and the “Lochte Turn“: New in the past year is the so-called Lochte rule for freestyle turns in the IM. You can see a primer here, but you can impress your friends by predicting multiple DQs in the IM events. If the number of disqualifications at the U.S. Olympic Trials are any indicator, there should be a few.

Stats on Stats on Stats

Ledecky Has Swam: All ten of the fastest ten women’s 800 freestyles in history (7.5 seconds faster than anyone else has ever gone). Eight of the fastest ten 400 freestyles in history. Six of the ten fastest (non-Olympic) 1500 freestyles in history. She is also a favorite for gold in her off-event 200 freestyle and a contender for the American 4 x 100 relay. It’s time the whole world knows to bow down.

Dana Vollmer Gave Birth to Her Son, Arlen: Just 17 months ago. Now, she is a medal favorite in the 100 fly. And (though she won’t swim it in Rio), she went her lifetime best 50 free in April, 13 months after the birth of her son. It was tempting to put this under the “Awww Factor” heading, but really, it is just plain badass.

It’s the Coach that Counts: Head coach Eddie Reese of the University of Texas has had at least three of his swimmers on an American Olympic relay in four of the five last Olympics. This year, he’ll be repping Americans Townley Haas, Jack Conger, and Clark Smith, along with Singapore’s 100 fly medal favorite Joseph Schooling. 

Rio Olympic Troubles

Not-So-Safe Host City: The community both outside and inside major Olympic sports loves to speculate on the Olympic host city and whether the event will all crash and burn. On the less optimistic (but maybe more interesting) side are a huge list of Rio’s troubles leading up to the Games. Take your pick of any of these: body parts washing up on the Copacabana Beach (the site of Olympic beach volleyball and open water swimming); a mosquito-infested warm-up pool (in the midst of blood-borne Zika panic); or 2,036 murders in the first four months of 2016 alone.

Night Owls: And, while this isn’t exactly Rio’s fault, it is interesting that swimming will hold finals at 10 pm local time, not exactly the peak time for performance, in order to accommodate the U.S. broadcasting schedule.