lol, add your own caption

Before anyone jumps down my throat, let me explain why I would ask such a question…

Here are Bob’s words:

“That would be my recommendation to him, not to swim internationally. The mess needs to be stopped right now. It can’t go any further.”

Ok, but I’m still a little confused. Does he mean that he won’t swim in any international meets until the ban starts (April/May 2010) or any international meets until FINA deals with all the WRs being set in the super suits? Because it makes a difference.

First of all, Mike probably wouldn’t have done anything international before May anyway. He doesn’t do the World Cup Circuit and he doesn’t really concentrate much on the SC season enough to want to qualify and compete at their World Championships in Dubai. Those are in December 2010 anyway.

So, the next international FINA meet MP would possibly swim in would be Pan Pacs, held in Irvine, CA next August.

So really, what does Bob’s threat mean? From the looks of it, Mike wouldn’t have been doing an international meet before the ban went into effect anyway. I don’t see what he’d be missing. That is, unless this year was the year he was planning to fully commit to doing the World Cup Circuit. I guess that’s a possibility.

But if Bob was referring to not swimming internationally until the rewriting of the record books is dealt with, that could be a significantly longer boycott. I’m pretty sure this isn’t what he’s talking about, but on the off-chance that it is, I thought I’d put it out there. He wants immediate action and probably isn’t going to get it.

So, as you can see I’m quite confused. Anyone care to drop some knowledge on the situation? It’d be greatly appreciated!

A couple of days ago Britta Steffen bettered Libby Trickett’s 100 Free WR. She set the new mark in one of the controversial super suits and had the following words to say afterwards:

“I’m feeling in good shape but this suit is of a different world. This is a really weird piece of equipment, one that I’ve never worn before. You don’t die in the last metres and you feel no pain. Under normal circumstances, this suit should be forbidden, and I expect that by 2010 it will be. I felt like a speedboat in water and never in my life would I have believed that a human could glide like that.”

Then, last night I read a new story about the repercussions of FINA’s swimsuit decisions and saw this:

Germany’s double Olympic champion Britta Steffen set a world record in the 100 metres freestyle Thursday, but predicted it would not last long and complained that futuristic swimsuits are damaging the sport.

Wait. There’s more…

Steffen said the record would last only until the world championships in Rome starting next month, and lamented the impact of high-tech swimsuits even though hers benefitted her on Thursday. “This development is a shame for the sport — where will it all stop?” Steffen said.

Is she effing kidding me? How is she going to benefit from the suit technology, set a freakin’ World Record, and then turn around and complain about what suits like hers is doing to the sport? If she cared that much about the sport perhaps she wouldn’t have swam her race in said suit in the first place!

Hypocrisy at its finest, folks.

Sorry for yet another rant, but I just couldn’t let this one pass me by without speaking up.

Not gonna lie, Ryk Neethling’s book is pretty much the shit.  It’s in my top 5 of athlete books – and that’s quite the list, mind you.  It’s really opened my eyes to what swimmers have to go through to get their justice.  And it really showed me how good US swimmers have it!  But I think the number one reason I love this book is from what the previous owner left for me:

Awesome, no?

Whenever someone here brings up Phelps, my response is, and like any Swim Aid, “uh!” and an eye roll.  Then I get the obligatory response: “Why are you judging him?  You don’t know him!”  Oh how wrong you are!

So I would just like to thank the previous owner of Chasing the Dream for backing the Swim Aids. You, whomever and where ever you may be, you have a place here with us!

Seriously, I laughed so hard water  came out of my nose!  And that hasn’t happened since the fourth grade when my friend Sarah “accidentally” tripped one of our teachers.

P.S. Sorry for the not so great picture quality – my camera doesn’t like to read!

If you don’t subscribe, I highly recommend you pick up this issue. It’s chuck full of Team USA goodness, including a bunch of great shots, articles, and Q&A’s. If you’re an Olympics Whore, like the Swim Aids, you will love it!

And be sure to check out their medal predictions section, towards the end of the issue. I disagreed with many of their picks, but it was still a nice read. And no, I will not be putting my predictions out there. I’m far too lazy for all that.

The Got Milk? ad on Pg. 30 & 31 was nice! Loved seeing the Lochtenator and Maritza in there reppin’ for swimming. I think I might have a new desktop!

Also, if you’re looking for a Swim Aid response re: Jessica Hardy, you aren’t going to get one. I consider Jess a friend and I work with her agents almost daily. In short, we have nothing to say.

The Swim Aid love for Maxie goes back a couple of years when we met — and later rescued — him at a University of Florida post-party following the end of the 2006 Nationals in Irvine. That was a crazy party until “the man” shut it down.

So following the news that Max tested positive, twice, for a banned substance, we don’t know what to say. In an interview with the Kansas City Star, Max says he doesn’t even know what boldenone is. He gives the following statement, which tugs at our heart strings:

“I felt like a plane crashed. I went from being on top of the world. As of right now, it’s all gone. It’s a horrible feeling, something that I’ve never imagined feeling. … As a sportsman, this is the lowest low that you can go.”

The Kansas City Star piece, referenced above, was dated July 17, and stated that that Max’s future with the Israeli team was uncertain. This was also mentioned in an AP story. However, in a newer story by Ha’aretz, it is being reported that he is officially off the team.

It’s tough when newsworthy topics involve people you are friendly with. Max is one of the nicest and sweetest swim boys we’ve come across in our years in the sport. He gives great hugs and also amuses us by looking like he’s smiling when he takes a breath in between strokes.

We hope that whatever the outcome, that he surrounds himself with positive and caring people to help him through this time. We know the Olympics were a major goal for him.

Our dear Ryk, whom the Swim Aids refer to as “The Hotness”, has an autobiography coming out this fall and some snippets are starting to leak.

In the book, titled Chasing the Dream, we will get some insight into his longterm relationship with Miss Amanda Beard a few years back. (Hottest. Swim. Couple. Ever.) We also learn more about how he got into the sport, which was that he almost drowned as a 5 year old. How PVK-esque!

Other topics include the reasoning behind turning down Qatar’s offer to race for them, as well as why he still calls South Africa home.

In other words, I am intrigued. I want to read this book. And I don’t read books. Such power Ryk holds. This has the potential to be simply dangerous!

Also, Ryk recently turned down an offer to be the next “Bachelor” for ABC. He only wants to concentrate of preparing for Beijing, like a good little Olympic athlete. That’s unfortunate, though. And by unfortunate, I mean for us Swim Aids. Because if there’s one thing American TV needs, it’s a healthy dose of “The Hotness”. Maybe Dancing With The Stars will come calling too? I don’t care what show it is. My ass is going to watch. Just keepin’ it real!

But what we do know is that NIKE hasn’t created a suit in line with TYR’s Tracer Rise or Speedo’s LZR Racer and it looks like they are openly acknowledging that fact. I will say that I was feelin’ their suits with the white band from a purely visual standpoint. That black/white combo is hot to me, just ask any of the Swim Aids!

An Associated Press piece announced that the 7 signed athletes will be allowed to compete with the Speedo suit at the upcoming Olympic Trials in 2 weeks. NIKE’s spokesman Derek Kent said the movie gives the swimmers the chance to “experiment with other products, satisfy their curiosity and compete without distractions”.

We’d been hearing that some of Team Nike has already been rockin’ the Speedo, with logo blacked out, so this doesn’t really come as that much of a surprise. (Forgot where I read that, though)

I’m just glad there will be no additional drama for Trials. These athletes don’t need to be worrying about things like that when there’s so much on the line. Kudos to Nike for doing the right thing.

Greeeeeverrrrsss

There’s a lot of press and buzz for TYR’s 2008 racing suit, the Tracer Rise. It will be interesting to see how its athletes perform. We’re big Matt Grevers fans around here. But we’d already noted that he was setting the pool ablaze this racing season; shattering his personal bests at ridiculously fast rate. That was before this suit came out. We’ll be watching to see how much faster he goes, leading up to Trials, now that he has the Tracer Rise.

Mary Descenza broke her first American Record in the suit at the Short Course World Champs in Manchester. To date, only 1 World Record has been set in the suit, on a relay.

With all the competition between the top suit companies, I’m sure it will be well documented when more global/American marks are set and which suit was worn.

If you haven’t, you shouldn’t be too surprised to learn that things didn’t exactly go as planned. The route had to be shortened and moved inland; away from protesters and spectators alike. And on top of that, the ceremony was relocated from the Bay’s waterfront to the San Francisco International Airport.

The heavy presence of demonstrators comes as no surprise, as the torch has been met with the same pandemonium at other stops across the globe.

Swimming’s own Natalie Coughlin was one of the chosen torchbearers. I’d be super-interested to hear her thoughts on this experience amidst all the chaos.

We were going to send our own kiwi to check things out, but her schedule didn’t allow it. It’s just as well, though. Since the schedule and route were changed without alerting the public, she probably wouldn’t have seen anything anyway!