Pellegrini! She is the girl with the Midas touch!

It's official, I am learning French and Italian! - BTW, Federica, when you come to America, sign up with CAA as your talent agent and IMG as your modeling agency.

Boy, you are going to make "mad phat bank."

From Poole Swimming Club Masters blog who compares a famous James Bond scene in Gold Finger to the Pellegrini shoot:

"... Signora Pellegrini has now unveiled what she hopes will be her secret weapon and has at the same time added to the controversy over what type of high-tech bodysuits should be permitted in competitive swimming.

[...]

More photos of Federica's birthday suit can be found here. In some photos she appears to be deliberately goading Rebecca Adlington, who is well known for being a shoe obsessive, by wearing a pair of 6-inch heeled Jimmy Choos. ..."

[Link]

Jaked Pronounciation: 'Jaked' rythmes with 'Naked!'

Jaked USA responds to my blog post in a cool way:

Hello Tony,

The rights have not yet been secured. We plan to meet with Giuliano Leone, Jaked’s Sales and Product Director, in Rome at the upcoming World Championships.

Among Americans, Jaked is most commonly pronounced as if it rhymes with "naked." Among Italians, the “a” in Jaked is pronounced “awe”. Jah-ked.

Thanks for the blog post!

[Link]

'JakedUSA.com' is Online! - Will sell suits at the end of July!

From the Jaked USA website:

Hello swimming community. Finally, JakedUSA.com is online and ready to distribute Jaked technical swimwear en masse in the United States.

Currently, our administrators are negotiating with the Italian company regarding the pricing of the suits. Jaked sells full body J01’s (neck to ankle) to Italians for 372 euros, which is approximately 515 dollars. The kneeskin is 336 euros, or about 465 dollars. The aforementioned prices apply to both men’s and women’s suits. We are doing our best to keep prices as low as possible (hopefully under $500) for this new technology.

More updates coming soon.

Good news but I am worried about this sentence: "...our administrators are negotiating with the Italian company regarding the pricing of the suits." This makes me feel that the distribution process is not fully carved in stone yet. I am writing the company to confirm.

Mark Savage on Dara Torres remarkable success: "It's the suit, stupid!"

"... Mark Savage has left a new comment on your [blog] post: "Showdown in Westwood: 'blueseventy' versus the 'Jaked": ..."

Just some food for thought here - Erik Hochstein was 6% faster with the [Jaked] speed suit than he was without it. What if we generalized and applied this 6% difference to an historical swim?

In 1984, Dara Torres set a world-record in the 50 free with a 25.61. In 2008, wearing a speed suit, she set an American record in the 50 free with a 24.07. The difference in the two times? 6%

My take: Dara had a fortune and plenty of time on her hands to stay elite. Plus with new training methods, nutrition, and stretching, I think Mark posts a really good argument.

Mark Savage is a celebrity photography for Corbis living and working in L.A.. Here is a link to some of his work. [Link]

'Go Swim Freestyle with Jason Lezak' is now available! - I suspect this will be the best selling swim technique video ever!

I have a metric ton of swim DVDs and I find that no matter how good the coaches are that are instructing or how good the swim talent is, what makes a swim technique DVD a valuable resource is how well the swim talent is filmed.

The vast majority of technique DVDs I own generally provide only two points-of-view: Front, and side. If the technique filming is exceptionally generous, they may film from a 3/4-view once in awhile but even that is not the norm.

Glenn Mills knows swimming and he has an eye for capturing it on video. This, Go Swim with Jason Lezak, trailer alone practically covers Jason Lezak, our finest 100-meter swimmer ever, from nearly 360-degree views.

I play the Go Swim: Freestyle with Kara Lynn Joyce video at least every other month and I am looking forward to adding this to my library.

Here is a link to the Go Swim with Jason Lezak page: [Link]


Disclaimer: I receive no payment, gifts, favors, or special access for any review I give and I pay for any product I use.

Vanity Fair Italia: Federica Pellegrini on the Cover Painted in Gold!

[UPDATE] My Italian "correspondent" who swims for the National team tells me Federica Pellegrini is coming to America with her boyfriend, Luca Marin.

Below, in Italian, is the text for the photo with a sketchy English translation beneath it:

Original Text:

Roma, 14 luglio 2009 - Dal 18 al 26 luglio a Roma iniziano i Mondiali di nuoto: Federica Pellegrini, la primatista mondiale dei 200 e 400 stile libero racconta incubi, timori, amori e rancori a 'Vanity Fair' che le dedica la copertina in edicola dal 15 luglio.

Translation:

Rome, 14 July 2009 - From July 18-26 in Rome to begin the World Cup swimming: Federica Pellegrini, the worldwide Primat 200 and 400 freestyle tells about her nightmares, fears, loves and resentments in 'Vanity Fair' that devotes the cover in newsstands July 15.

Showdown in Westwood: 'blueseventy' versus the 'Jaked' - Erik Hochstein tests & reviews!

Erik just sent me this, I am posting it without reading it first...

The Suit Showdown a Westwood: Skin vs blueseventy vs Jaked

About the conditions - the Westwood pool is indoors short-course meters without blocks. I did do dives from the pool deck which is about 1 foot above the waterline. The timer did take my time "feet leaving the wall" or a rolling start. I did not want to go from a push because I felt a dive may be a significant part of trying the suits because of the extended underwater. There were 3 other swimmers in the lane - so I did have some waves, but everything fine otherwise.

The Contenders:

Skin has been in the business for 40 years now (at least for me :) ) - skin has been battle tested for decades used to be good enough for all swim meets. Skin can only show it's full potential though once all the hair is removed. Skin HATES all the new contenders for the most part - they represent everything that is wrong with technology and progress.

blueseventy - the new kid on the block is not so new anymore. blueseventy was the new sensation last year. He came out of nowhere and took the country by storm. blueseventy is hip and trendy - he despises anything to do with Speedo and he feels sorry for Skin for being so outdated. My version of the blueseventy is a little older and appears just a little too big right now.

Jaked - the new Italian speedster. Jaked is the Ferrari of swim suits - he fits like an Armani and performs like an Italian sports car. He looks sharp and appears to be the suit of choice for Formula 1 teams (aka top sprinters in the world).

The test:

5x50 Freestyle - 1 Skin, 2 blueseventy and 2 Jaked -- full recovery in between. It took about 5 minutes to get the blueseventy on and about 10 minutes for the Jaked. I did get plenty of rest except for the last 50, since time was running short.

The Showdown:

First swim = Skin = 25.09 -- good start, I have not sprinted all that much, so I would expect a slight improvement on this time for the next few 50s in a regular set.

Second Swim = blueseventy = 24.05 -- "Skin" is in disbelief - how is this possible and how could it be legal.

Third Swim = blueseventy = 23.92 -- "Skin" has left the pool in tears -- Jaked is just waiting for his chance. Jaked is happy to have shown his stuff - he thinks Italians should stick with food rather than speed suits. [LOLz - Tony]

Fourth Swim (after a 10 minute "battle" with the suit) = Jaked = 23.47 -- Jaked wants a check of the timing system. He believes the timer is on the take by the Italian Mafia -- all things Italian must be "connected". The time stands - the swim did not feel all that much different - but 0.45 !!!

5th Swim - not a full recovery = Jaked = 23.80 - felt tired coming home and had to breathe more - even without knowing the time, I would have guessed about 3/10 slower or so.

The Conclusion:

The Jaked has proven to be the winner in the training run -- we will have to wait for race day now....Skin is joining the Craig Lord inquisition movement and Jaked is going back to the drawing board....

Adrian Proszenko of the 'Sydney Morning Herald' and Olympian Craig Stevens review the Arena X-Glide!

[Former Image Deleted]

I blacked out several portions of the article so that I don't violate fair use copyright laws. I could not find the original article online to link to so I am providing a digital copy. If you click on the image, it will enlarge.

When an online version becomes available, I will take the copy down and simply link to it.

Two readers graciously took the time to find the article for me which was very kind.

From the Sydney Morning Herald:

He has agreed to be the guinea pig in The Sun-Herald's experiment. The recently retired freestyler slipped into the latest Arena one-piece, which features a titanium alloy insert in the fabric. If they were available in shops they'd retail for about $1000.

Before diving into the pool of the Sans Souci Leisure Centre, where he is now a head coach, Stevens said he would be happy to post a 50-metre time of about 27 seconds. He was stunned to touch the wall in 25.61s. After a short break, to make sure, he repeated the test in the suit, posting a 25.72.

"To go 25s and then back up and go a second one just a 10th of a second slower, very impressed,'' Stevens said.

[...]

Then it was time for step two of the experiment. After recovering from these exertions, Stevens stripped down to his Speedos and repeated the test. The discrepancy was staggering the times without the suit were about 2.6 seconds slower, while the glide result was more than a metre shorter. Superman had become Clark Kent again.

[Link]

What shocked me was the declaration that the Speedo LZR is obsolete and that the Arena X-Glide, Jaked and blueseventy were practically endorsed by the Sydney Morning Herald as being the best out there.

It's all becoming so clear why TYR is pursuing legal action in French court against FINA for the right to match or better these aforementioned suits.

Amanda Beard is suing 'GoDaddy'

From TMZ:

"... Beard, who used to be the pitchwoman for the site, has filed a lawsuit claiming Godaddy.com unlawfully exploited her name and image on the site without permission -- after the two agreed to part ways. ..."

[Link]

Above is Amanda Beard in a Wild Aid PSA. I actually was going to post a GoDaddy YouTube of her but I was afraid to go there.

Eureka: I found a very thorough review of the Jaked seedsuit!

Zwemsite.nl has a very complete and thorough review of the Jaked swimsuit that all the cool kids are wearing.

Here is a snippet from the review:

"... Our goal was to determine whether the Jaked also works in minioren and juniors on the basis of what we have seen is the answer an unqualified yes. The non-water permeable material which is made Jaked also the youngest swimmer little higher on the water so they are quickly coming. The effect seems to be greatest in butterfly and breaststroke, because the attitude in passing (somewhat diagonally relative to horizontal backstroke and free stroke) there seems to ensure that there is more upward force is created.

When asked how much it saves is no clear answer, which differs greatly per swimmer. But our expectation is that the breaststroke and butterfly 1 to 2 seconds per 50m could, with the effect sometimes can be greater in the slightly less talented swimmers. This group is often naturally deeper in the water and would therefore have benefited more from the uplift of the Jaked. ..."

Here is the link to the English version: [Link]

Editorial: More technical suits means a bigger, better, and a richer sport!

Editorial: Swimming is both a sport and a recreational activity. Swimming is not a religion nor a philosophy.

FINA is not the "Vatican" nor are they our "Confucius."

FINA's sole duty is to steward swimming into the future and not to keep it mired in some forgotten tar pit.

The rules of swimming can change, they are not carved-in-stone on some marble-tablet but rather written down with pencil and paper. These rules are "erasable" and "revisable" so that swimming can change and be as flexible as possible so as to adapt to the changing interests of the competitor and spectator.

If suit rules remain inflexible and revert back to the restrictions of 1975, suit manufacturers will have far fewer profit centers since how much can you charge an athlete for a pair of briefs or jammers versus the variations of the technical suit?

Subsequently, fewer profit centers mean less sponsorship money. A CEO recently told me those very words while sitting in a bar in Lusanne, Switzerland after a FINA meeting.

The oversupply of technical suit makers has made this a great year to be a swimmer.

Talented athletes like Chloe Sutton, Mary DeScenza, Peter Marshall, and best of all, Rowdy Gaines, have energized all venues of American swimming from the age groupers at the local level, the collegiate swimmers, and finally, the masters swimmers.

These deals have demonstrably made our sport bigger as well: On the SPMA.net website, our western zone is boasting over 4000 swimmers now. The biggest number it has ever seen I believe and I attribute this to Dara Torres, Technical innovation and the support form suit manufacturers who write inspiring ads and sponsor both open water events and swim meets.

Jaked, and blueseventy have now become the innovators inspiring the likes of TYR to build better suits such as the A7 and the Titan. Opportunity and a free market for ideas will make the sport bigger and better.

There is now have talk of building a pro-league because of suit interests and suit companies will probably help build it.

The photo above is of the La Brea Tar Pits, about 14-miles from my house. I got the photo from PaperMag Word up: [Link]

If only that mammoth had a speedsuit.

New Masthead For This Week: Jennifer takes flight at the UCLA SCY meet held last spring!

I am loving Mark Savage's swim photography; In fact, Mark told me that Aaron Peirsol is even using a photo from a photo shot they did together on his Facebook page.

Mark Savage Photography: [Link] and another one of his sites [Link]

French Site: 'Pure People' has a high-rez gallery of Frederica Pellegrini

The summary of this French photo gallery goes as follows with my unreliable translation below: "Luca Marin, l'ex de Laure Manaudou, et sa chérie Federica Pellegrini : entre médailles et amour, leur complicité fait des vagues !

My unreliable translation: Luca Marin, EX-bofriend of Laure Manaudou, and his new "sweetie-pie", Frederica Pellegrini, between love and complicity, make waves.

Be sure to click the ' full screen' icon, the photos are really clear.

[Link]

'The Valley Swim Club' offers olive branch after racism allegations - Will allow kids to swim but will they want to?

From CNN:

The development came during a hastily called Sunday afternoon meeting of the Valley Club in Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania. Club members voted overwhelmingly to try to work things out with the day-care center, which accused some swim club members of making racist comments to black and Hispanic children contracted to use the pool, said Bernice Duesler, the club director's wife.

Duesler said the club canceled its contract with the Creative Steps day-care because of safety, crowding and noise concerns, not racism.

"As long as we can work out safety issues, we'd like to have them back," she told CNN.

[...]

"These children are scarred. How can I take those children back there?" she said.

However, Wright's lawyer, Carolyn Nicholas, said the center will give the Valley Club's offer "due consideration" once it is received and looks forward to sitting down with the parties.

[Link]

Cullen Jones has broken the American record in the 50-meter freestyle at the U.S. national championships.

Cullen Jones ROCKS the 50 -free! I am going to go out on a limb and presume The Valley Swim Club inspired him! From AP:

Jones touched in 21.41 seconds Saturday night, lowering the old mark of 21.47 set by Garrett Weber-Gale at last year's Olympic trials.

He edged Weber-Gale in a swim-off for the second spot in the event at the world championships later this month. Weber-Gale was clocked in 21.70.

[Link]

The photo above comes from the website: Dotell Productions which produced a documentary film called Parting the Waters: the best-kept secret in sports!

From Lane 9 News:

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana, July 11. WITH the "Ecstasy of Gold" [From the movie, The Good, the Bad and The Ugly staring Erik Hochstein Clint Eastwood.] playing over the public address system adding to the drama of the western-style showdown, the crowd erupted to the introductions of SwimMAC-Carolina's Cullen Jones and Longhorn's Garrett Weber-Gale as they prepped for the men's 50 free swimoff.

[Link]

From Universal Sports:

"We took a -- not a gamble, but something different. I tried the LZR. I've always felt comfortable in that since last year,'' he said. "Jaked, still, I feel is a really great suit for me. They both fit right, so we're going to see what we can do at worlds. I try not to put too much faith in the suit. I put faith in the work I do.''

[Link]

My take: I am impressed he chose the LZR even though I don't like Speedo. I betcha' he wasn't on the starting blocks thinking, "I want to go to Rome and be a world champion" - I am presuming he was thinking he was going to win for each of those kids denied a chance to swim at The Valley Swim Club due to their race.

I betcha' every single kid denied a chance to swim that day knows who Cullen Jones is now!

I commend USA Swimming and all the people that sent them an email urging them to jump on this.

In the top-10 keyword searches to the blog today, the 'Jaked 01' secured 5 of those spots!

People really want to know more about the Jaked 01. Any article I have ever written about the suit is being pored through like crazy ever since 2009 USA Swim Nationals started.

Marketing-wise I think Jaked is failing to penetrate the US market despite the massive interest due to no US distributor and no English language website. They really need a more fluid sales and marketing arm.

I suspect Jaked is losing up to 2-4 million-dollars in gross sales by not having adeqaute access to the US market. My assumption is based upon Jaked selling between 10,000 to 20,000 suits at 372-dollars rather than 372-Euros.

I am looking at the results of the 100-meter freestyle men's prelim and what a finish that race was!

[Update: It was a prelim race, I thought it was a final.]

Only .06-of-a-second separated the winner in the prelims, Nathan Adrian, from Ryan Lochte and only o.1-of-a-second separated, Lochte, from third place finisher, Matthew Targett.

Wow, it was a very exciting [Prelim] race.

Nathan went out in a 22.86 and came back the the slowest in a 25.24 to finish in a 48.10 but he had enough at the end and out touched, Lochte, who went out in a 23.41 but came back in a 24.75 finishing with a 48.16. Nice pacing, Ryan!

[... deleted]

Prelim Results: [Link]

Tomorrow is the Swim-off between Cullen Jones and [Garrett Weber Gale.]

Zimbio has a great photo gallery of nationals here: [Link]

Michael Phelps scratches in the 100-free!

Michael Phelps scratches in the 100-free and will not swim! Phelps sites a stiff neck he woke up with as the cause.

When asked for comment, Bob Bowman, said: "my bad, I ran out of WD-40!

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. ;-)

Cullen Jones has made a video statement regarding "The Valley Swim Club" denying kids of color to swim in their pool!

Olympic swimmer Cullen Jones and USA Swimming Executive Director, Chuck Wielgus comment - Scroll down to see it : [Link]

50-Free drama at Nationals: Cullen Jones and Garrett Weber-Gale tied at 21.55 - Will go head-to-head in a swim-off!

Cullen Jones/Garret Weber-Gale: Here we have two superheroes from that famous Beijing Olympic 4x100 relay swimming to see who gets to go to the 2009 FINA World Championships in Rome.

Whoever wins, "it's ciao, baby, see me in Roma at Universal Sports!"

So, who do you root for?

It's like Superman versus Captain America, John Wayne versus Clint Eastwood or Shaft versus Philip Marlowe! Two national heroes who not only did Michael Phelps right in that 4x100 relay but did our country as well.

And then there is Nathan Adrian! From Swimming World:

[Nathan] Adrian claimed the A final heat with a time of 21.52, breaking through the 22 second barrier for the first time as his previous best stood at a 22.00 from prelims. The time moved him into the top 10 all time in the world.

"I just try to swim fast and get to the wall first," Adrian said. "To be honest, I was taking it a step at a time. Now, I am going to try to set goals for Rome at this point."

Meanwhile, SwimMAC Carolina's Cullen Jones and Longhorn's Garrett Weber-Gale tied for second with matching 21.55s. The finish set up a swim-off for the second spot for the World Championships team will occur on Saturday.

[Link]

The article has lots more drama with references to past swim-offs, and great swims by Cesar Cielo, who posted a time faster than both Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones, and Frederick Bousquet, who was out-touched by Great Cesar Cielo.

(I almost spelled Great Ceasar's Ghost)

Cullen Jones makes a statement through USA Swimming regarding "The Valley Swim Club"

Here is USA Swimming's statement verbatim:

In response to the recent situation where 65 African American children had their club membership rescinded at The Valley Swim Club in suburban Philadelphia, PA, USA Swimming Executive Director Chuck Wielgus, and Olympic gold medalist and African-American swimmer Cullen Jones have issued the following statements:

"The acts of blatant racism shown towards the young kids with Creative Steps Day Camp in Philadelphia have no place in America and should not be tolerated by anyone. As a member of the USA Swimming's National Team and an African-American in the sport of swimming, hearing about what's happened to these 65 kids is both disturbing and appalling. I work hard everyday through my efforts with the USA Swimming Foundation and Make a Splash to increase the exposure for as well as enhance the number of African-American and Hispanic young people entering the sport of swimming, not just because it's a great sport, but because learning to swim and understanding the importance of being safe in and around the water are life-saving skills that no one should be denied.”

- Cullen Jones, Member of the US National Swim Team and 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist

"The alleged statements of the Valley Swim Club and its president, John Duesler, are disheartening especially as we are working hard to try to increase diversity in pools across America. We do hope this unfortunate incident, or others like it, will not prevent or dissuade young people of color or other minority children from learning to swim. All kids, regardless of ethnicity or economic backgrounds deserve the opportunity to learn to swim and enjoy the sport."

Chuck Wielgus, Executive Director, USA Swimming and CEO, USA Swimming Foundation

[Link]

Swimming World is following this closely, keep your out for news regarding statements, videos and commentary.

Thanks to everyone who contacted USA Swimming yesterday.

Apparently Philadelphia has witnessed swimming pool racism 50-years before and in 1958 it inspired the creation of 'The Nile Swim Club'

[This was originally posted here in September 2008. I am reposting it as a reminded to what travails people of color have had in finding a place to swim in Philadelphia. Everything in brackets represents the updates.]

The Nile Swim Club is celebrating 50-years of service. Snippet from the Herald Tribune: "...It's a scene that wasn't possible more than 50-years ago in Yeadon, a Philadelphia suburb where black households wanting to join the local private pool were turned away because of their skin color.

[ Now fast Forward to The Valley Swim Club in July 2009 where this was said to the parents of African American parents who paid for the right to swim at the facility:

"I heard this lady, she was like, 'Uh, what are all these black kids doing here?' She's like, 'I'm scared they might do something to my child,'" said camper Dymire Baylor.

The Creative Steps Day Camp paid more than $1900 to The Valley Swim Club. The Valley Swim Club is a private club that advertises open membership. But the campers' first visit to the pool suggested otherwise.

"When the minority children got in the pool all of the Caucasian children immediately exited the pool," Horace Gibson, parent of a day camp child, wrote in an email. "The pool attendants came and told the black children that they did not allow minorities in the club and needed the children to leave immediately."

[Link] ]

But in 1958, a group of eight black residents banded together to create the Nile Swim Club. The trailblazing facility is now celebrating its 50th year even as USA Swimming, the sport's national governing body, tries to recruit more minorities and reduce racial lopsided drowning rates. ..."

[ From the Red Cross:

"... Unless children receive proper water safety and swimming lessons - pools, water parks and even bathtubs can be dangerous places. According to the CDC’s latest study on water-related injuries the drowning rate in the US averages to nine people per day. Moreover, a disproportionate number – more than 40% – of those deaths are predominantly in communities of color. A startling statistic considering studies show minority children actually have less exposure to water-related environments¹.

[Link] ]

[ The Nile Club History

Established in 1893, Yeadon, PA, had long been a comfortable, racially diverse suburban community. However, in 1958, when two African-American families applied for membership to the racially exclusive Yeadon Swim Club, club management stonewalled the applicants, indicated that their paper work had become lost and refused to admit them as guests or members of the facility. In response, Yeadon's African-American community solidified and decided to build its own private swim club.

On September 30, 1958, organizers in Yeadon's African-American community established a Pennsylvania non-profit corporation called the Nile Swim Club of Yeadon. After formalizing the corporation, the new club purchased a two-acre plot of ground on Union Avenue in the borough and hired a contractor for the construction of a swimming pool and clubhouse. The facility officially opened its doors for the 1959 season and offered $250 non-interest-bearing bonds and $30 memberships per family.

The club's opening was a significant story of African-American economic self-determination and was closely followed by national media. Celebrities such as Harry Belafonte and Motown's Supremes met with and supported the Club's founders.

[Link]

TYR is Suing FINA!

TYR Proceeds with Civil Action Against FINA

FINA admits to no testing protocol, does not provide test results as requested, rejects suits of similar design to those currently approved

HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA – July 9, 2009 – In the interest of fairness, and out of responsibility to our athletes, TYR has instructed its legal counsel to file a complaint with the Tribunal de Grande Instance de Strasbourg, France. TYR will be asking the court to nominate an independent legal expert to determine why some suits have been approved by FINA while nearly identical suits from TYR were not.

This proceeding comes after multiple, failed attempts to resolve the issue directly with FINA. In question are four swimsuit designs from TYR (model names based upon FINA submittal documents):

1. B1: Neoprene combined with woven material (more than 20% permeable material)

2. B3: Polyurethane combined with woven material (more than 20% permeable material)

3. B8: Seamless Polyurethane with woven backing

4. B9: Seamless Polyurethane with knit backing

These designs are similar to, and in two instances incorporate a greater percentage of permeable material, than suits already approved by FINA.

In addition to the submission of swimsuits, TYR has subsequently provided independent test results for the B8 design from the French Institute of Textile and Apparel that found the material to be of equal permeability to a full polyurethane suit currently allowed for competition by FINA.

"This is a truly unfortunate situation we are all in," says Matt Zimmer, Promotions Director at TYR. "Our athletes are being denied the opportunity to compete on a level playing field. I am holding elite technology in my hands, virtually identical to what other athletes are now using, that I cannot give out due to FINA's failure in their own testing protocol and approval process."

In March, FINA issued their formal Dubai Charter that stated they had, "sought the support of independent scientific experts of worldwide reputation who will notably assist in the determination of meaningful tests." They went on to specifically state, "FINA has established its own independent control/testing programs conducted by a neutral team led by Prof. Jan-Anders Manson, from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) and Laboratory of Polymer and Composite Technology."

Unexpectedly, and without reason, FINA admitted on June 22nd that it has no testing method for air trapping. In a FINA issued press release they wrote, "the Executive found that the evidence of "in use" air trapping effect is complex and that it would require considerable time to create and implement comprehensive control mechanisms and test methods..."

At this time, FINA has not provided TYR with testing results for any of the TYR models submitted as requested by legal counsel. FINA has failed to comply with its own Dubai Charter and has offered no official statement as to why it had shifted the burden of suit testing onto the manufacturer.

Because of this, and in the best interest of the sport, TYR is moving forward with its complaint and will ask a court appointed expert to answer the following questions:

1. Do all of the currently approved suits abide by the rules outlined in the FINA Dubai Charter?

2. How do the suits currently approved by FINA differ from the four suits (B1, B3, B8, and B9) that TYR has submitted?

TYR will now await the opinion from the court.

USA Today: Katie Hoff Opens Up!

I came away from the article thinking that Katie Hoff is overworked, overstressed, and not very happy. Not good news whatsoever. First rule of swimming: Swimming is suppose to be fun and Katie Hoff needs to have some fun!

From US Today:

After returning from Beijing, the 20-year-old Hoff made a coaching change, remaining at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club (NBAC) but choosing to train under Bob Bowman, who also is Michael Phelps' coach.

"He's someone I thought could help me take my career to the next level," Hoff says of Bowman.

Bowman changed her training regimen, adding more work in the weight room and putting her through the same brand of grueling practices he used to mold Phelps. Hoff has sought Phelps' advice on dealing with Bowman's hard-driving style.

"I'm not going to lie, there have been a lot of times where I've been going through some rough moments, days, weeks," Hoff says. "(Phelps) has been good, because he knows Bob really well and he's done this training for years so he knows the ins and outs of everything."

[Link]

Katie, go watch a TV show and relax. In fact go marathon a season's worth of America's Next Top Model on some lazy Sunday and skip your workouts for that day.

Don't go near a pool till your well and you can't wait to get back in.

In fact, It's summer so go fall in love for a couple of months and get some time away from your several "to-do lists."

Then when you are all comfy an relaxed, go call a professional like Natalie Coughlin or Libby Trickett and asked them what they think? Both of these ladies have made tough career decisions when they were on the ropes and it changed them for the better.

July - 2009: "The Valley Swim Club" in Philadelphia denies African American kids the right to swim in their pool despite being paid for that right!

NBC reports in Philadelphia that The Valley Swim Club does not want African Americans to swim in their pool despite being an open membership club.

"I heard this lady, she was like, 'Uh, what are all these black kids doing here?' She's like, 'I'm scared they might do something to my child,'" said camper Dymire Baylor.

The Creative Steps Day Camp paid more than $1900 to The Valley Swim Club. The Valley Swim Club is a private club that advertises open membership. But the campers' first visit to the pool suggested otherwise.

"When the minority children got in the pool all of the Caucasian children immediately exited the pool," Horace Gibson, parent of a day camp child, wrote in an email. "The pool attendants came and told the black children that they did not allow minorities in the club and needed the children to leave immediately."

Oh, it gets worse. There is a philosophy called deconstructionism. The premise is that your brain cannot "measure words" fast enough as they pour out of your head and often times a person will accidentally reveal what they are truly thinking if you deconstruct what they said.

Here is the explanation from the President of The Valley Swim Club in response to the segregation. What do you think he really meant?:

"There was concern that a lot of kids would change the complexion … and the atmosphere of the club," John Duesler, President of The Valley Swim Club said in a statement.

[Link]

Contact USA Swimming and request they speak out against bigotry against swimmers of color: [Link]

Chloe Sutton is going to Rome, baby!

Congratulations to Chloe Sutton who placed second yesterday in the 400-free at USA Nationals; (I know I am a loser for being a day late). What makes this so cool is that she is a Mission Viejo Nadadore and she wears TYR.

She was just 0.43 off the winning time.

To see real time results of the US Nationals here is the link tot he Omega site: [Link]

mark Savage took the photos above of Chloe Sutton at the TYR Swim Meet of Champions held last month. Here is a link to one of his sites: [Link]

Pool Domination Part 2 - LeBron James or Kobe would be so outclassed!

The first 30 seconds suck then the rest really captures what summer is all about. In fact these are the workouts Katie Hoff should be doing for awhile.

I am unclear on the song, sounds like the vocalist from Rage Against the Machine.

Originally found at Digg.com

Katie Hoff: Get a new coach, PLEASE!

This sent in from a reader I have nicknamed "Rain Man;" (which is meant as a compliment and not a slur), since he can call out any time swam in the 1970's swam by a nationally ranked swimmer.

Here is what he had to say about Katie Hoff:

"...Tony - Her time yesterday at Nationals in the 400 free would have won her the gold in the '72 Olympics but not in '76. She was also wearing a speed suit. I wonder what her time would have been yesterday had she been wearing a Speedo from 1976? ..."

[...]

Something is wrong. She is way to talented to be swimming like this. Something is not working, workouts need to adjusted , I want to see her setting records again.

I got the photo and I am following coverage of Nationals through both Universal Sports and Swimming World. Here is a link to the photo gallery where I got the shot of Katie Hoff.

Universal Sports Nationals Day 1 Gallery: [Link]

Dumpster Diving: Converting old construction dumpsters into swimming pools!

I hope that the lining and the filtration is viable, safe and effective. Also that the depth of the dumpster is compensated some how for younger swimmers or those "swimmers" who can't swim.

We all know how dangerous swimming pools can be without proper management or standards .

Here is a snippet from ReadyMade.com:

Jocko wrote me back with a brief synopsis: “We heard about dumpster pools—one was done by Curtis Crowe of the band Pylon in Athens, Georgia a few years ago, and others have done it, but usually smaller—and decided we wanted to do it this summer in Brooklyn as a test site/prototype. We (David Belt, Alix Feinkind, and myself, who are Macro-Sea) heard about in late February. In late May we found the location, and from the time we got the dumpsters to the opening on July 4th was 12 days.

"...We would like to do them in the parking lots of the strip malls and show people that with not too much expense you can creatively reuse what is basically considered urban detritus and make something really cool and fun and also fairly easy to put together.” ..."

[Link]

Fast guys look up when they swim freestyle - the head pushes less water when they do so!

[Update and Rebuttal]

From Anonymous:

"... Almost all of these guys are between 45-to-80-degrees down -- you have to take it from the body-line in the water - NOT the water surface. The second and third US swimmer is going back and forth with the head - you can see how is looking for the wall 6 or seven strokes out. The 3rd French guy - Frederick Bousquet - has maybe the highest head position - maybe at 45-degrees from the body line.

Look at Sullivan - first Aussie on the second lap - that is DOWN, although according to Clay, this would be considered "up" ...? "

Link to NBC Video: [Link]

Original Post below:

That is Ryan Lochte looking up during the 400-LCM IM.

SCAQ Olympian, Clay Evans, has been telling me for several years that looking while doing freestyle is the de facto standard for fast people. Above is a Reuters photo of Ryan Lochte storming the 400 IM at Nationals today.

Note his head position.

I spotted this photo at Universal Sports in a USA Swimming Nationals Day One gallery - a must see: [Link]

If you look at movies of Ian Thorpe, Stefan Nystrand, Alain Bernard, Natalie Couglin, Laure Manaudou, et al. they are not looking down but rather looking up.

Here is where it gets fun, Clay, gets so frustrated trying to get this point across that he hires a carpenter to make him this wooden "gizmo" to prove that a "heads-up" position while swimming freestyle is superior.

I think he spent a couple-hundred-bucks doing it too.

He calls me up and for three weeks straight and he tells me, you have to come out and film this "plank" I had made and put it on the blog. So I finally come out but I forget the camera.

The plank is about 5-feet tall, 18-inches wide, and 6-inches thick. The top portion of the plank has a "head portion", which is simply 12-inches or so of more plank that is on a hinge so the "head portion" can be fixed in a "looking up" position or a looking down."

(You are probably lost so I will film it this weekend.)

So we pull this 80-pound plank with hinges and and such and we push the plank across the water the with the "head portion" of the "gizmo" looking down and the plank buries itself a bit trying to compress the water in front of it which it can't do and consequently goes slower.

Then when we put the "head" position up a specified number of degrees and I was astonished! The back end of the plank came up, the "chest portion" moved down and the plank moved three times farther when pushed.

Clay referenced that surfboards are curved upwards, boats, etc and so should people who swim freestyle.

I then swam a 25 with my head down and then with my head up and I swam faster. Consequently I set a personal best at the Mission Viejo Natadores Masters Meet looking almost up at the "+" at the other end of the pool.

I will film it and show you.

OH NOES! - Garrett McCaffrey is leaving 'Floswimming!'

[UPDATE:] below Garrett's farewell letter is a snippet and a response from Mark Floreani, founder fo Floswimming and other Flo-sports.

This is a disaster and it smells of political nonsense too. It's not hyperbole to say that Garrett created the model that made Floswimming a must-view site. Whoever scoops him up will definitely become a player!

"... As of Monday, July 6th, I no longer work for Floswimming. It's not very easy for me to handle
because for 2 years Floswimming has been my life. Disappointment aside, my objective hasn't changed one bit.

I'm writing this blog to you, the swimming fan, to let you know that I still have every intention of putting myself in the best position to help this sport. The last 2 years have been a swimming education that no one could have received through any kind of curriculum. I've seen our sport from all sides and now more than ever it's a burning passion that I can't imagine a living without. I am a swimming enthusiast for life.

Truth be told, I'm still in a state of shock. I have no idea what Floswimming will become now. I don't know what's in store for me. But I do know that swimming is better off today than it was 2 years ago, and I have no regrets for the time I gave over that period.

I guess we're in a place right now where all we can do is keep swimming.

See you on the pool deck..."

[Link]

I got this report sent to me at work from Michael B., a SCAQ swimmer, and though it is bad news, many thanks.

Response from Mark Floreani:

Life is full of surprises and we all wish that Floswimming and Garrett could of lasted for a very longtime, but as we all learn, sometimes life does not go as planned. Relationships are hard and we did not see eye to eye on a lot of issues that arose. Everyone felt that this would be better. I know at first this is hard to take, we all got used to Floswimming and Garrett and Garrett and Floswimming, but Floswimming will have to a new chapter. We are ready to turn the page and drive forward. We need your help, we need to find a new person to head Floswimming. The job is fun, but it is by no means easy.

[Link]

So It appears that there are at least three sides to this dismissal: Garret's, Mark's and finally what really happened. I say that because both of the two are being quite vague and their paragraphs are filled with emotion.

'You Tube' - Danish National Swim Team working hard at Wall Aquatic Center Flagstaff AZ.

The Danish National Team filmed underwater at the Wall Aquatic Center, Flagstaff AZ. I thank gmb75 at YouTube for posting this video for ultimately this is where all our work occurs, i.e. underwater!

The girl filmed in the middle of the pool has an awesome backstroke turn.

I am kinda likin' the song too.

Here is a direct link to a larger version of the video at YouTube: [Link]

Faces of Victory! - Except for mine - More photos from that 'rockin' Mission Viejo Nadadores Relay Meet

SPMA Regionals is coming: Be very afraid. Mark Savage took these photos yesterday at the Mission Viejo Nadadores Relay Swim Meet.

His work can be sen here: [Link] and here [Link]

New 'SCAQ BLOG' Masthead: Cool or Lame?

There is an old saying that "The cobbler's son has no shoes!" - it means that people who work in a certain business like "making shoes" are so busy making shoes, that they don't make any shoes for themselves or even their own family. Sort of like the swim coach that does not swim.

So, I decided that since I do this sort of stuff for a living, perhaps my blog should have a masthead instead of dry text. Personally I am not sold on this masthead but I want to do a masthead that features a SCAQ swimmer who competes in the masthead area about once a month.

Should I use variations of this one which I would update weekly or go back to the text description?

Your call, it's your blog!

The Mission Viejo Natadores held a great relay meet yesterday

I swam a personal best in the 50-LCM; (:28.4) but I had a rolling start. At 'SPMA Regionals' I am going to try and do a :27.9

Erik, Jenny, Matt, and Arlette set two records but one was DQed. I will post more on this later.

The one on the bottom is me.

The Photos above were taken by Mark Savage Photography. Here is a link toone of his sites: [Link]

Craig Lord is back in the 'dog house' with me - 'The Screaming Swim Viking' is taking his place in the links column!

The Swim Viking has entered the building - Now here is a guy that has written for Timed Finals, Swim Network and has a blog on Floswimming. He likes satire, super heroes, and best of all, swimming.

[...]

He takes more chances than I do calling out the villains in our sport by name and he too posts no advertising on his blog.

Here is a link to his site or you can zip over to his site via the links column: [Link]

Swimming World: "...Professional Swim League has never made more sense than now!"

From Swimming World: A pro league would not only be a lot of fun, it would extract FINA from a horrible quagmire it meandered into:

"... Create a Professional Swim League, and a new aquatic industry will be born.

Just as snowboarding was born out of skiing and then was launched into the X Games, so could a Professional Swim League evolve. We have a responsibility to create an environment that attracts new products and companies into the aquatic family. If we encourage new product growth within a pro league, then advertising and sponsorship dollars would surely carry over into funding pure, traditional competitions.

To limit technology in order to preserve a sport is to limit the growth of an industry. By creating an entirely new racing environment, FINA's world records would remain pure within the Olympic movement, and a new industry would be born.

The time has come to split the pie and make two. ..." -- Brent Rutemiller

[Link]

A lot of people are talking about starting a pro-league, including me, but everyone is just talking, including me, and ultimately just doing nothing, including me!

So I am going to submit an ad hoc road map for a Pro Swim League which I wish I could take credit for, but in reality, these are simple project management tasks that I found here-and-there in project management explanations during a Google search:

0) A mission statement

Example: To land a man on the moon and return him to earth safely by the end of the decade. -- President John F. Kennedy

1) Define the Scope

Budget, operational talent, space, equipment, all of the above from "zero to hero!"

2) Define a Timeline

There will be many timelines within the project but a solid date and venue would really put an impetus on getting it done.

3) Assemble the Project Team

"I's got skillz" - technical experts, operational experts, PR & marketing ninjas, etc.

4) The Project Team Defines all the Necessary Milestones

This includes both the big stuff like, securing the venue and fireworks show, to supplying cookies and milk for the timers.

5) Develop a Baseline Plan

The project leader takes the milestones above and assembles all the necessary milestones in subsequent order. Such as: who is responsible for each step and when are they getting it done. resubmits to the experts for tweaking and finally forms the baseline plan

6) Execute the Plan - Monitor the progression, meet and talk about it, and document everything!

Also, note, have a "Plan-B" , "Plan-C" , and "Plan D" for every milestone execution in case something goes wrong. Especially for the stuff that could not possibly go wrong. The stuff that may go wrong is generally easy to fix. The stuff that can't possibly go wrong is generally really hard to fix.

Steps 1-5 could be developed without a budget if the professionals in steps 3-5 volunteered or deferred their pay. I would be willing to volunteer.

Once a team has a really straight-forward budget in place, plans that include operations, marketing, public relations, television, web, etc., etc., I think money would be easy to find.

Here is a thought, how about the FINA fork up some money as penance for the trouble they have caused.

Other funding sources include suit companies who would provide the teams, then the usual sports media outlets could be considered, of course the casinos, and finally the fans who want to sit in the stands or watch it on pay-per-view.

The person who should project manage this bold idea should be someone with event management experience but a person who does not have event management experience could still do a good job if one of the experts they pick had event management experience.

REVIEW: 'The water is open' website

The Water is Open is a new website by blueseventy which they describe as:

The site covers world-wide news, events, results and hall-of-fame members. A new ranking list for open water swimmers is set to also be launched, scoring athletes based on performances around the world.

There’s also an option to track key events, such as the forthcoming World Championships in Rome, live via Twitter. 22,000 people followed the open water events during the Beijing Olympics without the service having been having been heavily promoted.

So I took it for a test drive: The page is compact and will visually work well on a laptop. The two sections that really stood out for me were: Events and Results, but as mentioned above other content includes News, Rankings, and Hall of Fame.

blueseventy openly acknowledges that they own the site so this is not an "astroturf site" but rather a "grassroots" contribution. I have a sneaky suspicion that Steve Munatones is helping out so that in itself is quite an endorsement if I am correct.

I will say this, the first thing I clicked on, I learned something new. It is called The Beaufort Wind Force Scale which measures sea conditions on a scale of 0-12 with zero being glassy and 12 listed as: "Ride of the Valkyries." (Just kidding, number 12 on the Beaufort Wind Force Scale is 14-meter-plus surf with foam and spray permeating the air but more bluntly, your standard issue big hurricane.

The Beaufort Wind Force Scale (also known as the Beaufort Scale) is a widely-used empirical measure for describing wind velocity based mainly on observed sea conditions. For example, it is used in the following context: The referee made reference to the Beaufort Scale when he made the public announcement about the abandonment of the world championship race.

[Link]

Finally, the site is new so some of the content has to be fleshed out like the Rankings page which empty right now but the rest of the site has valuable info and I definitely have it bookmarked.

For promoters of open water races, I think this site will be vital.

Speedo sponsored athlete: Andrew Lauterstein posted the fourth fastest 100m butterfly swimmer of all time in an 'Arena X-Glide!'

Steve sent us this! Every time I see Steve's name on a comment, I get a bolt of adrenaline up my spine and I think, "crap, I must have screwed up again!"

This is what Steve sent in from Hanson Media:

July 3: NSWIS swim star Andrew Lauterstein has moved himself well into medal contention for this month's World Championships in Rome by breaking the Commonwealth and Australian record for the 100m butterfly at the Giorgio Armani Swim Meet in Milan overnight. DAVID MOASE reports...

Lauterstein became the fourth fastest 100m butterfly swimmer of all time and just the fifth man under 51 seconds when he took 0.2 seconds off his previous best of 51.12 to set the new mark of 50.92.

[Link]

The Georgio Armani meet; How cool is that? I want to swim in that meet... No, strike that, I want to swim at a Bell & Ross swim meet and if you win, you get one of those cool watches that look like they came from a vintage German airplane!

So, this says two things to me: One, the Arena X-Glide is the new Jaked. Two, Speedo is essentially disowning the LZR like Nike did to their product.

For the record, I recommend the athletes sponsored by Speedo simply " ...Live by the sword and die by the sword." To change suits disrespects your sponsors and makes you, the athlete, look unreliable as a product endorser.

i.e. You race in the suit and if you lose, you eat a bunch of humble pie; every, single, freaking, crumb of it! Then you congratulate the winner graciously and you go look and see how many more days left on your contract or you renegotiate for loyalty money. But what do I know? - Not much! - All my medals are tin.

Fall on your sword!

"The Opposite House" Beijing offers an indoor, stainless steel, 22-meter, pool!

The Opposite House is so glamorous and so well designed that it looks like a set from a James Bond movie. I didn't ask to see what a night or a fast weekend would cost since I am sure I couldn't afford it. Never mind, I had to know! It is actually affordable considering they offer you "off the hook luxury." I picked a fast weekend in August and it was only $268 a night for a "creative space." Very nice!

If I can swim in the WaterCube and I can swim the open water venue, this place is on my radar!

Found at NotCot.org.

Aschwin Wildeboer of Spain: World Record 100 back during the 4x100 medley relay!

Maly from France hooks us up with this wonderful Eurosport video of, Aschwin Wildeboer, of Spain swimming a leading off the 4x100 relay with a 52.38 in the 100 back for a new World Record.

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.)

Maly put up an awesome 'Flickr' page with Frederick Bousquet and other Open EDF competitors!

That is Frederick Bousquet; (the French guy who trains in America and is faster than the Australian sprinters ;-) , admiring his times at the Open EDF. Check out these wonderful meet photos at Maly's Flickr page: [Link]!

Scariest "swimming thing" I have ever seen!

At first I thought it was an art installation piece made out of balloons and some sort of "bodily organ" dropped within it for shock value. No, this see-through creature is a sea cucumber and it exists 2500 meters down beneath the Celebes sea! I am not going there anytime soon.

Why are we chasing aliens on other planets when they all live here - balloons included?

Originally spotted at NotCot.org who found it at uniquedaily.com, who found it at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute: [Link]