Another triathlon open water death! - The USAT must demand swim time standards for all first time triathletes!

It's imperative that the USAT demand swim time standards for all first time triathletes.

From the Examiner.com:

There has been another death due to triathlon this past Sunday, again during the open water swim portion. A first time triathlete, Kim Schmidt was found dead in Lake Winneconne in Wisconsin on Sunday, the third death this summer during triathlons in Wisconsin alone.

[Link]

Has the USAT; (US Governing body for triathlons), reached a point where a swimming related death occurring once a month or more has become an acceptable casualty?

I stand by my comment that all first time triathletes must meet a set swim-time standard by way of a sanctioned USA Swimming swim meet or a United States Masters Swimming swim meet before competing in a triathlon that contains a swim longer than 500 meters.

I think the end result of the USAT instituting such a rule would not only prevent senseless tragedies and higher insurance rates but would grow each of our sports exponentially.

A triathlete should be a master off all three events before combining them as one. Hence, athletes must master the swimming portion.

Triathlete dies in New York during the swim portion of the New York City Triathlon

From the New York Times: "... Bill Burke, the race director, said rescuers pulled Neiva from the river about three-quarters of the way through the 1,500-meter swim portion, ...

“Other swimmers noticed the gentleman in the water, and they were actually waving and signaling for the nearby jet boats to come assist them,” Burke said.

He added: “We did have life support on the boats that were monitoring the swim course. There’s medical staff on those boats, so if the guy had a situation in the water, he’s getting the best medical care. ...” [Link]

I noticed that most of the swimmers were wearing wetsuits as well. Isn't the water in the Hudson warm this time of year? A wetsuit in 70 degree water sounds awful. I wonder what happened to this guy?

UPDATE: I am still rattled about this. This is happening more and more and it is distressing. I was a triathlete in my 20's but I never mastered any of the three sports involved. I was always too busy going back and forth from one event to the other, doing "bricks" and ultimately to tired to concentrate on technique for any of the events, etc. etc. Ultimately I was just surviving and consequently I felt rushed and I was injured a lot.

I think if you took a poll among triathletes asking them what is their weakest event, I bet more than two-thirds would say the swim. Hence, if you want to be an effective triathlete, you MUST master your weakest event. In fact you should be in such good shape before an event like this that you would feel the need to swim 500 yards or so before the race.