Swimming Fix

After the excitement of August's major swimming competitions, we find ourselves in a bit of a lull in terms of competitive swimming. Here are some links to keep your swimming fix in order:-

- If you look at the picture at the top of this blog, you'll see I'm a sucker for underwater swimming photos. These photos from the European Championships are some of the best I've seen for a while. Image 22 of 24 of Nikita Lobintsev looking like a torpedo is my personal favourite, closely followed by Image 16 of Sebastien Rouault and Image 4 of Laszlo Cseh's head.

- Chris De Santis, a US collegiate coach and blogger, takes a look at what makes Rebecca Soni so fast, comparing her stroke to Leisel Jones and Amanda Beard. Interesting stuff, particularly the observation 'There is no doubt in my mind- Soni does not pull or kick as hard as either of the other two.'

- Semi retired swim blogger David Rieder announces his August Swimmers of the Month. Agree with most of the picks although I do have one issue:-

Issue.) As good as Nathan Adrian has been this year, I don't believe he has done enough to be anointed 'the best sprinter in the world.' Adrian is not at the top of the world ranks on either the 50m or the 100m Free. Yes he beat Cielo at Pan Pacs, but Cesar did not look on top form on the Freestyles and crucially he has proven himself on the biggest stage of all. Adrian hasn't... yet.

When he came up against the French guys earlier this year he lost to Fabien Gilot and tied with Yannick Agnel at the Paris Open. To be considered the best sprinter in the world I believe you need to be the reigning champion/fastest in the world in either the 50m Free or 100m Free. For my money if I had to pick a 'best sprinter in the world' right now I'd be torn between Bousquet and Cielo with Adrian (as well as Alain Bernard & Fabien Gilot) knocking hard on the door.

- Incase you missed it, ESPN ran an interesting article on Michael Phelps. The reporter stated that 'he is his sport'. This is contentious, but not all together wrong. Certainly opens up an entirely new issue, where would the sport of swimming be if Michael Phelps retired today. Would all the progress and exposure swimming has gained during the Phelps-era subside or would the sport react to Phelps' loss and continue to grow? Interesting one.

Thoughts from the European Swimming Championships - Day Five

- Seriously, what is it with Alain Bernard?

The guy can't swim the final leg of a relay to save his (or France's) life, but steps up heroically when it comes to individual 100m Free finals. First Beijing in 2008, now Budapest in 2010... on both occasions he underwhelmed on the final leg of the relay before producing excellent final swims in the individual.

The 'easy' explanation is that he's selfish and cares more about his own performance than the team's. This I suspect does a huge disservice to Bernard. In Rome 2009 he showed that when tucked away in the less pressured spots of the relay he can produce the goods (his split of 46.46 swimming the second leg was the fastest of the race). I would suggest the odds of Bernard going last on the 4 x 100m Free relay at Worlds next year currently sit somewhere between slim and none.

- Is Sebastien Rouault now ready to make the next step up to compete with distance freestyle's main players? (Mellouli, Zhang, Park, Cochrane, Peter VDK). Rouault acheived the 800/1500 Free double with both victories in world leading times. Talent has never been a problem for Rouault who was a European Junior medalist as well as NCAA champ in 2006 (beating Peter VDK, Larsen Jensen, Michael Klueh and Ous Mellouli in the process).

Rouault's problem appears to be inconsistency. He swam very well in 2006 when he took silver at Europeans in 14:55. In 2005 he swam pretty well at Worlds with a 15:08 but then at 2007 Worlds he swam 15:24 and in Beijing in 2008 swam 15:21.


- 2010 is 'The Year of the Soni' when it comes to women's Breaststroke (especially over 200m), however Anastasia Chaun did a great job of bridging the gap between Soni and the rest of Europe. Going into Europeans on a 2:26, Chaun swam a perfectly paced race (splits of 34.0, 36.2, 36.7, 36.5) to finish on the third fastest time in the world this year (2:23.50).

Chaun's swim denied us of what I can only assume is a rare/never seen before Scandinavian Top 3, with all medals come from a different Scandinavian country. Instead we saw Norway take silver, Denmark take bronze and Sweden take fourth.

Paris Open - Recap

The Paris Open is over for another year. In NFL Draft style, I thought I would grade some of the star swimmers that were on display:-

Michael Phelps - C

Phelps himself is reported to have said he was 'disgusted' with his swims in Paris. That might be going a little far for a non-tapered event but certainly highlights the less than stellar year Phelps has had so far. Its a measure of his greatness that he can be upset after swimming 1:55.70 in the 200m Fly, 1:58.95 in the 200m IM, 49.44 in them 100m Free and 1:47.24 for the 200m Free.

Cesar Cielo - A

Just when it looked like Fred Bousquet was starting to establish himself as the no.1 50m Freestyler in the world, Cesar Cielo re-affirmed his supremacy. Of all the textile records in swimming, Alex Popov's 21.64 was the most iconic. Popov, wearing briefs, stunned the world with the time in 2000. Whilst Cielo's 21.55 will not go down in official record books, it will help towards Cielo going down as one of the sport's greatest sprinters. In his relatively short career (he is still only 23) here are Cielo's acheivements:-
Olympic Gold - 50m Free, Olympic Bronze - 100m Free,
World Champion - 50m Free and 100m Free,
World Record Holder - 50m Free and 100m Free,
Textile Best Time - 50m Free.

Alain Bernard - D

Bernard was the face of this year's Paris Open and despite lowering expectations before this meet I expected him to come out fighting this weekend. I predicted that Bernard would win the 100m Free and make the top 3 in the 50m Free, in the end he had to watch both finals from the stands. 22.73 and 50.44 are less than encouraging heat swims with Europeans not too far away. Bernard has a history of not getting it right in the heats and missing finals, something which might just come back to haunt him at major competitions in the future... He also has a habit of swimming fast (in finals) at the big meets.

Camille Muffat - B+

As I've mentioned before, Muffat, 20, is one of the most underrated female swimmers currently. Muffat took victory in the 200m Free (1:56.92) and 200m IM (2:11.18) and second in a tight 400m Free (4:05.49). Muffat moved to 2nd in the world on the 200m Free, 3rd on the 400m Free and 4th on the 400m IM.

She is also showing a tremendous level of consistency. She holds 5 of the Top 25 times in the 200m Free, 4 of the Top 25 on the 400m Free and 7 of the Top 16 times on the 200m IM.

Ranomi Kromowidjojo - B

Kromowidjojo underlined her favourite status for European's with strong performances in the 50m Free (24.54) and 100m Free (54.08). Kromowidjojo owns the Top 3 times in the 100m Free this year and after Therese Alshammar's 24.27 owns the next 3 fastest times in the world on the 50m Free. Excitingly for Dutch swimming enthusiasts, Kromowidjojo is still just 19 years of age.

Elizabeth Simmonds - B

In the 200m Back Simmonds came out on top in likely her only LC duel with American youngster Elizabeth Pelton in 2010. With the major global meets fast approaching Simmonds has shown herself to be the woman to beat on the 200m Back. She currently owns 6 of the Top 10 times in the world this year. Simmonds' fastest time this year of 2:06.79 is just 0.17 secs off Krisztina Egerszegi's textile best time of 2:06.62 set at the 1991 European Championships. Expect this to go at Commonwealths, if not at Europeans.

Nathan Adrian - B+

Nathan Adrian put in some strong times in Paris that certainly whet the appetite ahead of US Nationals and Pan Pacs in August. 22.01 on the 50m Free and 48.83 on the 100m Free are very strong times for Adrian's stage of the season.

Yannick Agnel - A

2010 was already a breakout year for Yannick Agnel but he made the world take notice by taking down Michael Phelps in the 200m Free. He bettered his own best time in the world this year in the 200m Free with a 1:46.30. With 3 of the top 4 times in the world this year on the 200m Free some might see him as favourite for the Europeans. I personally think Paul Biedermann will get the better of him in Budapest but to be swimming these times at the age of 17 is remarkable. He is also showing his strength in the 100m Free with a 2nd placed (tied with Adrian) finish in a time of 48.83.

Here's a stat worth keeping a close eye on over the next few years - Head-to-Heads vs. Michael Phelps in Finals - Agnel - 2, Phelps - 0.

Camille Lacourt - B+

Lacourt won the 50m Back (24.82) and 100m Back (53.73) at Paris. In doing so he took down some major competitors (Liam Tancock, Randall Bal, Aristeidis Grigoriadis). Lacourt's emergence could be very interesting for the French 4 x 100m Medley Relay team's chances. The freestyle team is well known and that leg of the relay is certainly taken care of. With Hugues Duboscq offering a strong Breaststroke and Lacourt now offering the French a world class Backstroke leg the Butterfly leg is the one piece missing in the puzzle. If Clement Lefert, Romain Sassot or even Fred Bousquet can keep the French within striking distance before handing over to Bernard or Gilot the French could cause a major upset this year or next.

A Speed_Endurance Exclusive Start List for 4e OPEN EDF de Natation 2010 - Paris Open & Preview

This year's Paris Open has turned into one of the most anticipated meets of 2010. The lack of a major global competition this year means that this meet represents one of the few chances to see some of the world's best compete head-to-head in LC metres. This is no more apparent than in the men's sprint events.

The event organisers deserve a Toulouse-Lautrec sized 'chapeau' for their ability to draw the world's top male sprinters. Competing this weekend are the French contingent of Fred Bousquet, Alain Bernard, Yannick Agnel and Fabien Gilot, Brazil's sprint sensation Cesar Cielo, South Africa's Roland Schoeman, Trinidad's George Bovell, Italy's Filippo Magnini, Poland's up and coming sprinter Konrad Czerniak and most impressively the American duo of Nathan Adrian and.... wait for it..... Michael Phelps.

Phelps is set to compete in the 100m Free, 200m Free, 200m Butterfly and 200m IM. Whilst it is exciting to see swimming's biggest star race each and every time, especially on foreign soil, it's his decision to go up against the world's best in the 100m Freestyle that is perhaps the biggest talking point. Phelps will have to produce something very special to get the better of the swimmers listed above, especially given his relatively (by Phelps' high standards) slow start to 2010.

The women's events see the French going up a small but strong Dutch, British and American contingent. Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Femke Heemskerk and Hinkelien Schreuder head up Holland's challenge with Elizabeth Simmonds and Francesca Halsall representing Britain's interest. The US women include Allison Schmitt, Felicia Lee and Elizabeth Pelton with more international star power being added by Sweden's Therese Alshammar, Romania's Camelia Potec and Serbia's Nadia Higl.

The French will be looking to Camille Muffat, Coralie Balmy, Alexianne Castel and Aurore Mongel to fend off their international challengers.

Start List here (speed_endurance exclusive)

Results will appear here

Predictions

Women

Women

50m Free

1. Ranomi Kromowidjojo
2. Hinkelien Schreuder
3. Femke Heemskerk

100m Free

1. Ranomi Kromowidjojo
2. Francesca Hansall
3. Femke Heemskerk

200m Free

1. Camille Muffat
2. Femke Heemskerk
3. Allison Schmitt

400m Free

1. Camille Muffat
2. Coralie Balmy
3. Allison Schmitt

800m Free

1. Camelia Potec
2. Grainne Murphy
3. Nuala Murphy

50m Back

1. Elizabeth Simmonds
2. Theodora Drakou
3. Alexianne Castel

100m Back

1. Elizabeth Simmonds
2. Alexianne Castel
3. Elizabeth Pelton

200m Back

1. Elizabeth Simmonds
2. Elizabeth Pelton
3. Alexianne Castel

50m Breast

1. Moniek Nijhuis
2. Maria Michalaka
3. Kate Haywood

100m Breast

1. Nadja Higl
2. Moniek Nijhuis
3. Maria Michalaka

200m Breast

1. Nadja Higl
2. Alena Alexeeva
3. Fanny Babou

50m Fly

1. Therese Alshammar
2. Francesca Halsall
3. Melanie Henique

100m Fly

1. Francesca Halsall
2. Aurore Mongel
3. Kim Vanderberg

200m Fly

1. Aurore Mongel
2. Lara Grangeon
3. Francesca Segat

200m IM

1. Camille Muffat
2. Lara Grangeon
3. Francesca Segat

400m IM

1. Grainne Murphy
2. Lara Grangeon
3. Francesca Segat

Predictions

Men

50m Free

1. Fred Bousquet
2. Cesar Cielo
3. Alain Bernard

100m Free

1. Alain Bernard
2. Cesar Cielo
3. Michael Phelps

200m Free

1. Michael Phelps
2. Yannick Agnel (Phelps v Agnel is the race I want to see above all others)
3. Sebastaian Verschuren

400m Free

1. Sebastien Rouault
2. Federico Colbertaldo
3. Massimiliano Rosolino

1500m Free

1. Sebastien Rouault
2. Federico Colbertaldo
3. Anthony Pannier

50m Back

1. Liam Tancock
2. Camille Lacourt
3. Randall Bal

100m Back

1. Liam Tancock
2. Camille Lacourt
3. Jeremy Stravius

200m Back

1. Eric Ress
2. Nick Driebergen
3. Aristeidis Grigoriadis

50m Breast

1. Lennart Stekelenburg
2. Fabio Scozzoli
3. Alessandro Terrin

100m Breast

1. Hugues Duboscq
2. Alexander Dale Oen
3. Fabio Scozzoli

200m Breast

1. Hugues Duboscq
2. Scott Spann
3. Alexander Dale Oen

50m Fly

1. Fred Bousquet
2. Roland Schoeman
3. Konrad Czerniak

100m Fly

1. Konrad Czerniak
2. Joeri Verlinden
3. Albert Subirats

200m Fly

1. Michael Phelps
2. Dinko Jukic
3. Stefanos Dimitriadis

200m IM

1. Michael Phelps
2. Dinko Jukic
3. Todd Patrick

400m IM

1. Dinko Jukic
2. Sebastien Rouault
3. Anthony Pannier

Ian Thorpe - Considering comeback for 2012?

The Herald Sun reports today that Ian Thorpe, 27, is considering a surprise comeback in time for London 2012.

It's understood Thorpe, 27, discussed his plans with Australia's current batch of crack male sprinters - Eamon Sullivan, Andrew Lauterstein, Ashley Callus and Matt Targett - at the Commonwealth Games trials in Sydney last month, allegedly saying: "Let's get the 4x100 in London."

I say this happens... Just three days ago at a sports convention in Dubai Thorpe revealed “I’ve walked away, not retired”. Thorpedo is media-savvy enough to know how this will have been taken and to have the story break so soon afterwards tells me that we'll get the welcome return of this century's first global swimming star.

Assuming it does happen, several questions remain:-

A) Will he get back into the kind of shape he needs to be to make the Australian team?

- Look at Geoff Huegill. Thorpe might not even be the biggest surprise comeback Olympian on the 2012 team.

B) Will he focus only on the 4 x 100 Free relay?

- If Thorpe can get down to a mid-48 on the 100 Free (what it will probably take to qualify comfortably for the Aussie team) then I'm guessing he could also swim a pretty mean 200m Free. You can add the 4 x 200 Free relay to his list. When it comes to individual events I think Thorpe needs to be in with a real shot at a medal (probably Gold) for him to consider it. The individual 200m Free would probably be the most suitable event for him and as a result his participation might depend on what Phelps/Biedermann/Agnel/Isotov etc. are producing. The endurance needed for the 400m Free might be a step too far even for Thorpe. I don't see him being able to match Cielo/Bernard/Sullivan for speed in the individual 100 Free.

C) Will Thorpe's presence be enough to win Gold for Australia in the 4 x 100 Free relay in 2012?

- It will certainly give the team a boost and should help Australia but it still might not be enough to claim gold.

France have to be considered favourites with the USA a close second. So far this year the fastest 4 French 100m Freestylers are:-

A Bernard - 48.32 (World Rank 1)
F Gilot - 48.52 (W.r. =2)
W Meynard - 48.79 (W.r 5)
Y Agnel - 48.99 (W.r 8)

This doesn't even include the seriously talented A Leveaux, F Bousquet, B Steimetz and G Mallet.

Australia's top 4 in comparison:-

E Sullivan - 48.52 (W.r =2)
T D'Orsagna - 49.35 (W.r 18)
J Magnussen - 49.43 (W.r 19)
K Richardson- 49.47 (W.r 25)

The US team will always challenge and have a wealth of talent available. (Phelps, Adrian, Walters, Grevers, Weber-Gale, Jones, new guys coming through... Lezak!)

D) If Thorpe does comeback, is it the best news in 2010 for the sport of swimming?

Yes.