Those connected to social media (and in 2016, who isn’t?) will remember yesterday’s most important ballot – the one posed by @SwimSwamNews on Twitter. Throughout the day, we put forward polls asking SwimSwam readers to weigh in on the most pressing questions in the sport.
Now, the votes have been counted. Here are the results:
Item 1: Worst Event
Polls are open! First up: Prop. 72 – Which is the worst event in swimming? #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
As expected, 400 IM wins in a narrow fight with the 200 fly. A popular write-in choice was 200 back, but the ballot only had room for 4 candidates. And how many among us could actually swim a 200 breast without going backwards?
Item 2: Best Fad
#Election2016 Ballot question 2: What was the best social media fad for swimmers?
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
The Mannequin Challenge is all the rage at the moment, and young voters really turned out to put it over the top. Plus, it takes much less physical effort than dancing the Harlem Shake. That’s great for swim team taper videos.
Item 3: Presidential 50 Breaststroke
The Key Race of the 2016 #swimswamthevote Ballot: Who would win in a 50 breaststroke? #ElectionDay
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
Points to reader Kevin Stevens who had maybe the most accurate prediction:
@swimswamnews Where's, "Both would be DQ'd two strokes in"?
— Kevin Stevens (@kevdog) November 8, 2016
Item 4: Sprints vs Distance
The age-old swimming question: Who has it tougher? #ElectionDay #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
Coming from a former sprinter, ya’ll got this one wrong.
Item 5: Gym Class Heroes
Your gym class is picking teams for a friendly swim meet. You are a captain. Who do you pick first? #ElectionDay #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
All the World Cup wins in the world couldn’t win this one for Hosszu, who theoretically could swim every event and let you and your friends take the whole gym period off. But it’s hard to go against Ledecky, who basically makes a team unbeatable across the freestyle distances.
Item 6: Gym Class 2: Electric Boogaloo
Gym class round 2: Picking teams for a friendly swim meet. You are a captain. Who do you pick first? #ElectionDay #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
Maybe a bit of a pro-American slant in our voting base, especially with the uber-versatile Hagino getting just 9% of the vote. Then again, Murphy is the only double Olympic gold medalist on the ballot and one of two world record-breakers.
A notable follow-up on a graduated senior many wanted to bring back and draft for their gym class team:
Gym class poll follow-up: Michael Phelps has retired from gym class. No drafting the GOAT. #ElectionDay #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
Unofficial Exit Poll 6.5:
Which is more painful? Fave for swimming both prelims/finals of the 400 IM, RT for following the U.S. presidential election #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
Political commercials vs twin 400 IMs: No matter who wins, we lose.
Item 7: Swimming Presidents
#Swimswamthevote ballot continues: Which American swimmer pairing would you vote for as President/VP?
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
This was the race of the night, with the race too-close-to-call between Ledecky/Franklin and Adrian/Ervin for most of the polling period. Neither is a bad choice – Katie and Missy might give the most unflinchingly positive and uplifting campaign speeches in history, and the Cali sprinter boys epitomize the concept of cool.
Disappointingly, the breaststroker vote just didn’t show up for Miller/King, though they did sweep Indiana’s electoral votes with ease.
Item 8: Pain
Which is the worst, assuming you swim the entire race: #ElectionDay #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 8, 2016
Voters went with length on this one, picking the 15+ minute race that didn’t count over the shorter hurdles. It proves the competitive nature of swimmers that the DQ proved worse than burning eyes and potentially sinking to the bottom of the pool and drowning in the list of swimming pitfalls.
Item 9: Hot or Cold
Maybe the most important question of all… #ElectionNight #swimswamthevote
— SwimSwam (@swimswamnews) November 9, 2016
There you have it. Standardized vocabulary is locked in. Swim coaches take note.
Missed the boat on this year’s ballot? Make sure to register to vote (aka follow our Twitter account @SwimSwamNews) to stay on top of all the pressing polling issues in the sport of swimming.
