Dara Torres pimping pistachios!

I am probably the last person to see this, huh?

Michael Phelps keeps his word - Speedo now needs speedsuits more than ever!

Note to Michael Phelps: I respect you more now than I ever have for you are the greatest pro-swimmer ever. You the greatest not because you lost today, but that you kept your word despite the consequences. Both your moral and ethical integrity were more important than a win and that is commendable. You will own that record once again!

Mr. Paul Biedermann and Ms. Britta Steffen, thank you! You just saved the speedsuit.

From the Baltimore Sun:

Shockingly, it was Olympic swim star Michael Phelps who was left in Biedermann's powerful wake today at the World Championships at the Foro Italico sports complex. Biedermann, of Germany, not only beat Phelps in a convincing manner, but he took away Phelps' world record in the 200-meter freestyle.

Biedermann went 1 minute 42 seconds, and Phelps was second in 1:43.22. Last summer, Phelps won this race in a world-record 1:42.96 at the Olympics in Beijing and Biedermann was sixth in 1:46.

[Link]

Britta Steffen set her world in the 100 free wearing an Adidas Hydrofoil; Paul Biedermann beat our very best, Michael Phelps, wearing an Adidas as well. Dara Torres is now wearing an Adidas and now records are falling further.

Speedo will now be forced to lobby hard to get speedsuits legal again because if speedsuits are indeed outlawed, Speedo may never hold another world record for at least a generation. That's right, 30-years!

How ironic that Speedo will now be the ally of those that want the suits like myself.

USA Today Article: Dara hurt Speedo's feelings! - Schubert wants asteriks! - Swimming keeps growing!

Dara Torres grew up in a 22-room mansion; like she needs Speedo's money. Trust me, whatever suit she wears, that is the one she believes in. Dara wants to win:

"... At the U.S. championships, Torres strained her relationship with sponsor Speedo by donning a Jaked for the 50 free final, which she won. Speedo's senior vice president of marketing, Craig Brommers, would not comment on the ramifications of Torres' decision, citing contractual privacy.

[Didn't they say it was okay? --Tony]

"It's just a very uncomfortable situation," says Torres, who was undecided on what she will wear for worlds when the team left for a training camp in Italy. "I just needed to try a different suit to see what everyone was wearing and how I felt in it." ..."

But then there is Schubert evangelizing his new position about speedsuits:

U.S. national team coach Mark Schubert calls world records set since the start of 2008, when Speedo introduced its LZR, "artificially aided." He would like them to include an asterisk or be kept on a separate list, then erased when they are broken by someone not wearing a controversial suit.

[Link]

Logically, how does a person like Schubert who hard sold athletes to wear a LZR or face losing out on a gold medal in Beijing suddenly find "religion" and state with a straight face or without frothing at the mouth that speedsuits are "...forces of evil in a Bozo nightmare?" -- (Beck from the song: Loser)

Suits worn in the women's 50-Free: Dara wears Jaked - Amanda wears the TYR - A7

Joan Rivers of Oscar night red carpet fame is at USA Swimming Nationals and she sent me this report form last nights woman's 50-free:

"...Dara Torres wins the 50-free in a time of 24:43 wearing a midnight black, Jaked 01, while incongruously accessorized with a Speedo cap and goggle set.

Amanda Weir placed second dressed elegantly in an A7 TYR accessorize by solely by TYR. Red carpet photographers were all over her.

(AP says Dara was wearing a Speedo LZR on Thursday but USA Today has a photo of her wearing a Jaked: [Link] )

Kidding aside, what does this tell us: TYR is quite "fluid" in bringing products to market whereas Speedo had to literally outsource their athletes to Jaked and Arena. This move by Speedo is a complete capitulation and explains the "burning bush" that both Alan Thompson and Mark Schubert saw when they decided to become "purists" rather than pro-LZR. Their conversion stinks of money if you ask me.

Amanda Weir, white courtesy telephone please: I'm sold, the TYR A7 is for sale now and I am buying one since Weir set a personal best, has now entered the top 20 of the fastest 50-free times ever and the A7 will match my SCAQ silicon black cap, or so says, Joan Rivers. ;-)

Jaked Suit Failure: Seam splits up the rear of the pelvis area!

Poor woman! Brought her to tears as well. If I was the official I would have looked the other way and let her race or I would have held up the race up so she could change. Think Dara Torres hooking up Therese Alshammar in Beijing when she held up the race so Alshammar could change.

The incident was unintentional and one's "rear-end" is not a "modesty violation."

The woman was gracious and apologized and I hope we see her swim soon.

Rob of Robaquatics sent us this from the Dailymail.co.uk.

(She is embarassed enough; I won't mention her name.)

2000 Sydney Olympics: WR in the womens 4x100-free relay with Jenny Thompson, Dara Torres, Courtney Shealy and Amy van Dyken

Jenny Thompson's wall work is amazing.

There are no "off-meets" for Dara Torres! - Every meet counts!

I was scolded in a comments section a few posts back for criticizing Ryan Lochte, and Katie Hoff for doing mediocre at the 2009 Charlotte UltraSwim Grand Prix.

I praised Frederick Bousquet for his victory in the 100-free and for knowing full well that a victory over Phelps would add tremendous value to his both his name and swimsuit.

I was told, it was an off-meet and that it did not matter. I was told to look how they both do when they swim a big meet like World Championships or Nationals. That opinion is valid and morally correct but it is not a correct business decision.

Dara Torres swam no "off-meets" to test her butterfly or new technique: She came to a meet that was "off every body's radar" and consequently Dara captured the American record in the 50-meter 'fly.

If both Hoff and Lochte had Dara Torres' business savvy, they should have come prepared to sweep all of their events and while Lochte would have looked like the "giant killer" to the clueless media for beating Phelps, Hoff would have had a satisfying return post Beijing.

Fred Bousquet understood the gravity of beating Phelps and I have a feeling he is now bigger than both Amuary Leveaux and Alain Bernard in France at this time.

In tomorrow's sport page Torres will have garnered lots of ink and/or electrons on our computer screens and her sponsors are going to be stoked! She may even be on national TV and I bet she gets a bonus. Hoff and Lochte will have to wait.

Dara Torres just swan a 25.8 in the 50-meter fly for a new American record!!

Amazing! The "Terminator" does it again but this time in the 50-meter 'fly.

From Swimming World Online:

"... During long course meter swimming in prelims, Torres clocked a time of 25.84. That performance wiped out Jenny Thompson's 26.00 set back in 2003 in Barcelona. Torres will be gunning for Marleen Veldhuis' world record of 25.33 set back in April..."

[Link]

Overhead on deck after the swim:

Kyle Reese: The 600 series had rubber skin. We spotted them easy, but these are new. They look human... sweat, bad breath, everything. Very hard to spot. I had to wait till [she] moved on you before I could zero on [her].

Sarah Connor: Look... I am not stupid, you know. They cannot make things like that yet.

Kyle Reese: Not yet. Not for about 40 years.

Sarah Connor: Are you saying it's from the future?

Kyle Reese: One possible future. From your point of view... I don't know tech stuff.

Swimmers age gracefully! - Dara and Owen Wilson enjoying a tennis game together!

Though these two are close in age, look how much younger Dara looks. I guess Mike Freshley's law applies here: "Show me a runner who is 70 and they look like 90. Show me a swimmer who is 70 and they look like 50."

Swimmers age gracefully!

Found at the Great Tennis Photos Blog: [Link]

Voting has begun at 'USA Today' for 'The AAU James E. Sullivan Award!'

USA From Wikipedia: "...The AAU James E. Sullivan Award, known as the Oscarof sports awards, is presented annually in April by the United States Amateur Athletic Union to the most outstanding amateur athlete from any sport in the United States. It was first awarded in 1930, making it older than the Heisman Trophy. The award is named for the AAU's founder and past president, James E. Sullivan.

From USA Today:

Men's 4 x100 freestyle relay team, Swimming
The U.S. relay team of Michael Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones and Jason Lezak beat France in the final in a world-record time of 3 minutes, 8.24 seconds. It was the first of Phelps' relay medals in Beijing and his second overall. He would go on to win a record eight gold medals. ..."

[Link]

You can place your vote in the left hand navigation area. I for one voted for the Olympic 4x100 freestyle relay over Dara Torres but I did consider her. :-P

Dara Torres swimming and winning despite a "creaky" knee!

Dara Torres qualifies he win at Austin. From Associated Press:

"...But there were questions. Thursday was the first real chance to test some repaired body parts. She's had three separate operations since the Olympics, repairing ailments to her left thumb, right shoulder and left knee.

The shoulder and thumb are "great," she said, but the knee remains creaky.

Not that it could be too bad. Earlier in the day, she set a personal best of 21.64 in the short course 50-yard freestyle. That race was used as the preliminary to the 50 meters at night. While the early race was two short laps with a turn, the final was a straight shot across the pool. ..."

"I love competition. I don't know where my peak is yet. I want to keep swimming until I reach my peak or until my body wears down," she said.

[Link]

I don't know why she qualified her win like that? Maybe the press was angling for injury issues for whatever reason?

Dara Torres is motivated and will swim at the '2009 World Championships' if healthy

From AP News: The 41-year-old, who won three silver medals at the Olympics in August, wouldn't commit to competing again when the Beijing Games ended. But Torres said Monday at USA Swimming's annual Golden Goggle Awards banquet that if she can stay healthy, she hopes to race at the world championships next summer. [Link]

Dara torres signs 3-million-dollar deal with nutritional supplement company 'Living Fuel.'

From Sameer Reddy at Newsweek: "... Media pundits seized on the deals as a chance to knock Phelps down a few pegs, holding up Dara Torres' (who recently sealed a $3 million two-book deal for a memoir and health and fitness book) taste for LivingFuel, which she plugged during an appearance on Late Night with Jay Leno, as a more admirable example of athletic endorsement. ..." [Link]

As for me: I should not get on my high horse here for if I was offered 3-million-dollars to eat some crow or drink some snake oil, It's a possibility that I could be leased for such an endeavor.

I could not even finish up the rest of the article. They bring up Michael Phelps, Amanda Beard, and others. We all know the real reasons that individuals become Olympians and it has nothing to do what you can buy in a bottle and how you cow is flavored at a fast food restaurant : [Link]

Dara Torres PSA commercial

Britta Steffen going all out with a nice rotation and her pull is outside her center line!

That is how it's done Dara Torres; a nice rotation and a strong catch outside your center line like we see Britta Steffen doing it, like we see Kara Lynn Joye doing it, like we see Rada Owen doing it! You can too and you are going to have to do it in Rome 2009 if you want to win. So start doing drills! :-P

Dara may be stronger but Britta beat her by way of a superior freestyle technique and the fact that she was seemingly immune to pressure. I spoke with someone close to the German team who said that she was expected to deliver for Germany despite how amazing Trickett and Torres can swim. The fans expected it, the team expected and she came through in a big way! What is best about her win is that we will see a probable rematch between the three in Rome!

No wonder Dara Torres needed shoulder surgery! - Look at the angle of her elbow!

A very 'old school' stroke. She is pulling past her center-line and there is very little rotation in her hips! She should be way more on her side by the time her pull gets that far into the stroke. God! Her poor shoulder. :-[

Also, look how strong she is; very impressive! Note the vacuum of air above her left shoulder as her arm rips through the water! That's real power! I understand that she is 6'0" tall and I believe that her shoulders are wider than her hips which is anatomically unusual for a woman. This works out great if you are a swimmer but will punish you when bearing children. With her short cropped hair, amazing physique, and skin, I bet she looks like a rather tall and muscular 16-year-old boy from behind.

The photo comes from an ESPN article titled: "What the Future Holds" which has this interesting snippet: "...It was just such a competitive instinct that has kept Torres swimming throughout the years, unable to retire at the first news conferences after her races in 2008, when she said she was unable to absolutely rule out a return in 2012 in London (now known as New Atlantis). ..." [Link]

I believe she could return but it would be in her best interest to redesign her stroke with the help of a "Rada Owen" or a "Glenn Mills."

'Flickr' photoset of the 2008 US Olympic Training camp in Singapore!

This photo is titled: 'Dazzling Team Shot' - The girls of the 4x200 relay. What I like about this shot is not what it reveals; (though I like that too), but rather what our athletes wear to workout. Michael Phelps, for instance, seems to be wearing a pair of quasi-plaid briefs whereas Dara Torres prefers a more 'Wonder Woman' look.

Swimmers like Coughlin, Kara Lynn Joyce, Cullen Jones, Brendan Hansen and many others are featured here in richseow's photoset on flickr.com

If you go and look, leave comments for the guy, we need more candid and less staged photography like this.

'CBS Market Watch': Ian Thorpe on his Michael Phelps prediction - Alexander Popov on Dara Torres!

Also in this article are thoughts by Michael Phelps, Natalie Coughlin and Katie Hoff who have opinions too but these quotes stood out:

Ian Thorpe: "...Thorpe quickly replied that he had not said that Phelps could not win all eight events but that he had thought, given the nature of the competition that it would be nearly impossible. Phelps nodded in agreement as Thorpe added, "I've never been so happy to be wrong about something."..."

Alexander Popov asked if Dara Torres inspired a comeback: "... the Russian replied. No nagging voices in the back of his head? Popov answered, "The voices in the back of my head say, 'Don't do it' and I listen to those voices."..." :-P [Link]

As boring as the photo above is, this is a rare moment of seeing some of the greatest swimmers that have ever existed; and of course, that includes Popov.

I got the photo from Omega's press section.

'New York Times' - Masters Swimmers are getting FASTER!

But we all knew that, didn't we? Dara Torres has really put the spotlight on our sport.

See that 60-year-old looking guy to the right? Well he is not 60-years-old; He's 75-years-old and he is a masters swimmer named Stanley Shechter out of New York. Recently he swam a 100 free SCY in a 1:12.57. Keep in mind that the average life expectancy for a male born today is something like 76-years-old but Stanley apparently is going to last a heck of a lot longer than that.

Snippet from the New York Times: "...Chief among the reasons that Masters swimmers are becoming faster, say coaches, researchers and swimmers themselves, are improved stroke mechanics and new training methods emphasizing intensity over distance. This is good news both for those who like to race, and for those taking to the water for fitness at any age.

As people age, they lose muscle mass and cardiovascular capacity, which declines at a rate of 1 to 1.5 percent annually. But for those who exercise regularly, the rate of decline is slower, researchers say.

“Before, it was thought that athletes peak at 25,” said Scott Trappe, the director of the Human Performance Laboratory at Ball State University. “But now this whole paradigm is getting shifted. People are paying attention to their own fitness and nutrition.” ..." [Link]

I know I have said this quote a least two or three dozen times now from Mike Freshly but this article inspires me to say it again: "Show me a runner who is 70-years old and he looks like 90! Show me a swimmer who is 70-years-old and he likes like he is 50." The above photo illustrates that nicely.

Chris B. sent us this article and it was very appreciated.

Freestyle technique: Torres versus Trickett!

Dara Torres freestyle pull crosses well over her mid-line. That surprised me and it has got to hurt her shoulders. If you watched the underwater slo-mo of Trickett and Torres side by side, Trickett has less wobble and a spectacular looking stroke.