Today, I read a fantastic new article from the South Florida Sun Sentinel on our resident BAMF, Dara Torres. Everything was going swimmingly (pun intended) and then I read the following few lines:

“Why am I doing this? Because I can,” said Torres, who started training seriously in August. “There are people who come up to me and say they don’t understand why I am doing this — why don’t I let the young ones get their glory?

Are there seriously people out there that believe Dara should let the young’uns have their turn? These might be the same people that think that Mikey P. shouldn’t compete in money meets, because “other people need the money more”. Using this logic, perhaps the US 800 Free Relay should just not race in Beijing. After all, they’ve won every major race the past 3 years. It has to be someone else’s time to shine, right?

I’m sorry. I was unaware that previously meeting one of your goals meant that you need to hang up the suit and move on. Isn’t the competitive spirit what drives athletes in the first place? The sense of accomplishment and ongoing motivation from swimming a best time or standing atop a medals podium is worked deeply into the psyche of swimmers from an early age. And as long as they still have the desire and dedication to compete and succeed, they should stick with it; especially if they are having fun! I just don’t buy the whole “step aside” argument. Neither does Dara.

But you know what? If I am faster than them, then I deserve to be on the team.

Swim on, Dara. Swim on.

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