A whisper campaign to boycott the Sochi Olympic Games in Russia?

Senator Lindsay Graham got the the "B-word" or the term "boycott" out in front when he complained about Edward Snowden fleeing to Russia for political asylum. Snowden is the NSA contractor who leaked "gigabytes" worth of documents proving that our secret FISA court and its secret judges, have allowed the NSA and the FBI the complete right to spy on the citizenry of the United States without a search warrant. (Yes, we are all suspects now.)

Graham recently ranted that we should boycott the Olympics unless Russia turns Snowden over. When a noted polling college found that more Americans view Snowden as a whistle-blower rather than a traitor the concept of threatening a boycott of the Olympics unless Russia complied became nothing short of a dead duck floating face down in the water.

Now, I am seeing an article from the Windy City Times that states LGBT groups (Lesbian Gay Bi-sexual, Transgendered) are calling for a boycott of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games.

I am curious to see if  President Obama will now use LGBT issues to "mull over" a possible boycott for "human rights purposes" of course as a disingenuous reason to negotiate over Snowden return to the US; It seems like something he would do.

From the WIndy City Times:

"... Legislation prohibiting the dissemination of "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" in Russia passed in late June. Activists suggest that the law will give authorities a wide berth in interpreting what "propaganda" actually entails, and fear that even so much as a public declaration of being gay would be in violation of the law. Foreigners are subject to the rule as well; they can be fined, detained for 15 days and deported.

Some organizations had been urging IOC to come out more forcefully against the laws. In mid-June, after the legislation had passed the Duma, Boris O. Dittrich, advocacy director of the LGBT Rights Program at Human Rights Watch, asked IOC to "to press the authorities to state publicly that, as Olympic Host, Russia will ensure, without distinction, the safety and the freedom of expression and association of all athletes, coaches, fans, and others who will attend the Sochi Games. ..."

[Link]

The purpose of the Olympic Games is to promote peace through sport and get us talking to one another. Their official phrase for this endeavor is:

"...To cooperate with the competent public or private organisations and authorities in the endeavour to place sport at the service of humanity and thereby to promote peace..." 

The IOC fired up their PR department to discuss this. They said this:

"...The International Olympic Committee is clear that sport is a human right and should be available to all regardless of race, sex or sexual orientation," the statement said. "The Games themselves should be open to all, free of discrimination, and that applies to spectators, officials, media and of course athletes. We would oppose in the strongest terms any move that would jeopardize this principle. ...” 

 [Link]

They don't state any action they would take but I suspect they feel the same way most of us do and would maintain a clearer head than Lindsay Graham. I suspect if any athlete mentioned they were gay or whatever, the IOC would have their back.

Boycotting the Olympics is always a bad idea. It does nothing but drive nations apart. Currently our Russian relations are strained enough and to boycott now would be a blow not just to Russia but a blow to the LGBT issues, American commerce, and most especially the athletes themselves. Nobody would win except for Lindsay Graham.

Let me back up, how would it be a blow to LGBT issues? The best avenue for those with LGBT issues is to go to the Olympics and anytime they get a forum to speak, mention that they miss their significant other or their LGBT parents. This in itself will make it a bigger and a more accessible issue since it would be televised globally and the IOC would protect them.

Next, why do I have a "push-up bra" ad from Germany in the upper-right of this post? Meet Andrej Pejic, a MAN who models womens' clothes and accessories. He would be outlawed for "promoting" his "whatever" in Russia under current laws.

YouTube: Wavepool Lifeguard Rescue: Can you find the victim fighting for their life before the lifeguard does?

I nailed it, can you? Make sure you watch it in full screen. I am very impressed with how fast the lifeguard reacted. He had no warning this was going to happen when we the viewer do.

I found this on Reddit and it has a great drowning thread on this video: [Link]

Death by swimming - Open water deaths happening again thissummer!

I hate drowning stories especially when the people who drowned were skilled or were suppose to know what they were doing.

Coroner: York County man drowned during Harrisburg triathlon Sunday:

The individual was declared to have died by way of a pre-existing medical condition. This could have been avoided if the athlete knew before hand via a thorough medical examination.

Next, the distance was short, less than a 1000-yards. That's barely a warm-up for most of us but a formidable swim for 50% of the triathletes doing that sport.

I did the Ironman in Kona a million-years-ago and I had to have a resume of accomplishments to be accepted into that race. I do not think it would be unreasonable for triathlon directors to expect and/or demand some swimming experience via Masters Swimming.

From The PA Patriot News:

... Reed was taken to a local hospital after he was pulled from the water around 7:30 a.m. Sunday and was later pronounced dead.

On Sunday, a representative from the coroner's office said it did not appear Reed had drowned, but that he had a pre-existing medical condition. When prompted about that today, a county spokeswoman said the coroner would not elaborate, citing medical privacy laws. ..." 

[Link]

South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham is willing to boycott the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi Russia!

Lindsay Graham is  the senior Senator for the state of South Carolina. Politically he voted for the recently overturned Defense of Marriage Act. (He is not married and has no children.) In 2008, he served as national co-chairman of John McCain's failed 2008 presidential bid and later supported the bank bailouts instead of those with underwater mortgages.

Generally speaking you can't get more Republican than Lindsay Graham and this Republican dropped the following "bomb" yesterday:

On July 16, 2013, Graham suggested the United States should consider boycotting the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia because of "what the Russian government is doing throughout the world." Source NBC News: [Link]

Then he upped his game with some by serious "carpet bombing" of the Olympic ideal and our strained relations with Russia here:

“I would. I would just send the Russians the most unequivocal signal I could send them,” Graham (R-S.C.) said when asked about the possibility of a boycott.

“It might help, because what they’re doing is outrageous,” he said. “We certainly haven’t reset our relationship with Russia in a positive way. At the end of the day, if they grant ... [Edward Snowden, NSA whistler blower] asylum it’s a breach of the rule of law as we know it and is a slap in the face to the United States.”  Source: The Hill: [Link]

Wow, a leading member of the US Senate wants to boycott the 2014 Olympic Games over a guy that most Americans consider a whistle blower rather than a traitor. (Is this really 2013?)

"a new Quinnipiac University poll... Snowden — who is currently seeking political asylum while holed up in Russia — is viewed as a "whistleblower" by 55% of poll respondents. Only 34% view him as a "traitor. ..."  Source Business Insider: [Link]

I would not put it passed the Obama administration to float this idea given the lengths they are going to catch this whistle blower.

Again, the US government is at odds with the people, the athletes, and what is a moral good for our world at large - Lindsay Graham is leading that charge.

FINA preparing to set open water temperature limit and it is irrationally high!

Cruel, stupid and dangerous! What "genius" at FINA even remotely thought that 88-degrees-Fahrenheit is a safe temp to swim in?

From Associated Press:

ROME (AP) Swimming's governing body is preparing to set a fixed maximum water temperature that doesn't meet U.S. standards that were introduced after the death of American swimmer Fran Crippen.

At meetings in Barcelona this week, FINA is about to set an upper limit of 31 degrees Celsius (87.8 Fahrenheit) for open water events. 

USA Swimming set a domestic limit of 29.45 Celsius (85 Fahrenheit) in the wake of Crippen's death during a sweltering 10-kilometer race in the United Arab Emirates in October, 2010. 

[Link]

Here is a question: When USA Swimming purchases the services of a lobbyist does some of that money make its way into a politician's coffers?

If so, would love to know which political party USA Swimming prefers. According to a reader email it appears to be the Republicans.

When I mentioned that USA Swimming had purchased the lobbying services of  Nielsen Merksamer a Sacramento based lobbying firm hired to kill Senate Bill 131; a bill that would extend the statute of Limitations on child sex abuse lawsuits, one reader had something to say and it is a curious thought too.

This reader mentioned to me in a private email; (they wanted to remain very anonymous), that two California politicians named Steve Knight out of Antelope Valley and a former trial lawyer named Don Wagner in Orange County, California did the following to suppress SB 131 probably at the behest of USA Swimming and the Catholic Church.

 "... [Steve] has two kids in USA Swimming. If anyone should have common sense it should be Knight. Last year, as vice chair of the Republican Caucus he was on board to kill Beall's bill. His committee vote was chicken S*** and cowardly. He abstained. He knew that it took a majority of the committee members to get it out of committee so his abstention was really a NO vote. Would be interesting to see which California legislators, if any, have received money from Colorado Springs. That's one of the first orders that will come from the lobbyists. Send money to key legislators. ..." 

Don Wagner out of Orange County. He is a former lawyer who made millions suing people and now claims this holier than thou attitude about these bills. He blames trial lawyers, says they are job killers, etc..."

There you have it... Has USA Swimming hired lobbyists with member donations to make the requisite political "donations" for them to get this billed killed or "modified"?

Translating "Emoji" into a Giant Light Show at the Beijing Water Cube

By using Chinese social network data, artists are using color to reflect the current moods of the Chinese public via a light show at the Beijing Aquatics Center or Water Cube

From YouTube:

"... Ancient Chinese texts and social media meet in a new giant light show at the Beijing National Aquatics Center. "Nature and Man in Rhapsody of Light at the Water Cube," an installation created by artist Jennifer Wen Ma and lighting designer Zheng Jianwei, uses a computer program to translate I Ching and the collective mood of the Chinese people into a stunning real-time light display on the building's exterior. ..." 

You can learn more here: [Link]

Scan: Gwen Stefani signs the yearbook of fellow swim team member in high school

If this scan is real I am just loving the fact that Gwen Stefani loved being on a swim team.

Allegedly this image is a scan of what she signed in a fellow swimmer's yearbook.

Loving the drawing of Stefani's toes; very Picasso. ;-)

Shoot iPhone Swim Selfies with a GoSwim Waterproof Case

Look at what deal i missed out on...

From GoSwim:

The Optrix XD5 Waterproof iPhone 5 case, along with a monopod, has allowed me to film swimmers during lessons and in workouts, with more ease and clarity than I've experienced with any other products. Period. This inexpensive combination of products gives me the ability to "track" swimmers better than anything I've ever used. The "magic" of this case is the wide-angle lens on the back of the case. It's like having an Olloclip on your phone, but with a waterproof case. With the Optrix combination, you're now able to shoot video of your swimmers in Lane 1, and get the entire body in the frame.

[Link]

English Channel Swimmer dies: "Channel swimmer was 'just wonderful', says her devastated father" - The Telegraph

Susan Taylor Channel Swimmer from Stuart Ritchie on Vimeo.

I HATE drowning stories and every summer they haunt me but the worst of all are when an accomplished swimmers drowns while carefully attacking our favorite discipline.


From the Telegraph:

The 34-year-old accountant from Barwell, Leics., undertook the challenge to raise money for Diabetes UK and Rainbows, an East Midlands children’s hospice. 

Arthur Wright, 68, described his daughter as "just wonderful" and said he was devastated by her death. The family had celebrated Mrs Taylor's and her brother's birthday at a restaurant last Thursday, he said, and he last saw his daughter on Friday night.

[Link]

I personally know three channel swimmers; two English Channel and one Catalina. No swimmer approaches a channel swim halfheartedly. This is a devastating loss of a women who was trying to help others.

What can be done?

Devices called "smart watches" are about to become more ubiquitous. They will measure all sorts of bodily rhythms. blood pressure, breathing, heart rate and oxygen saturation. I encourage all open water swimmers to use them and for their support crews as well for these watches will be able to relay data via Bluetooth or WIFI to support boats

Does USA Swimming & the Catholic church have sinister or benevolent interests in killing California Senate Bill 131?

Here is some history behind California Senate Bill 131, and when you know the history of this legislation suddenly the motives become clear as to why USA Swimming and the Catholic Church wants this bill amended or more accurately "crucified and buried."

It's my opinion that USA Swimming, the Catholic church and their lobbying firms are using a lobbying strategy that claims they want SB 131 to be a tougher bill but really they want to add an amendment so tax dependent and expensive that the bill can NEVER pass.

To condense the purpose of SB 131 into one sentence:  "... This legislation would provide a one-year revival window from 2014-14 for certain victims who were previously barred [due to a legislative error] the right to seek justice for the abuse they suffered as children. ..." [Link]

USA Swimming and the Catholic church argue that SB 131 does not go far enough, that the child abuse offenders should be jailed as well as sued. Now, that sounds commendable and noteworthy however this bill was never meant to be a child protection bill - It was meant to correct an error in a previous bill from 2002 known as SB 1779 which accidentally barred certain adults from filing lawsuits against the Catholic church. This bill would fix that error and that is the sole purpose SB 131. Once again this is a bill to correct a mistake that segregated certain victims from seeking civil justice.

The California Coalition Against Sexual Assault which supports SB 131 and explains it as follows:

"... In 2002, SB 1779 ...opened a one year window commencing on January 1, 2003 for those whose claims had been previously barred, to bring their claim. However, due to a California Supreme Court decision (Quarry v. Doe), one group of victims was not able to avail themselves of either the one year window or the amended statute of limitations. For those victims, who in 2003 were over the age of 26 and had not yet made a causal connection between their adult injuries and their childhood sexual abuse, there was no time period within which they could bring a claim. SB 131 would revive a one year retroactive window that captures these Quarry-type victims, so they can have their day in court and seek justice against their abusers.

Let me "land this plane" and summarize my opinion as to why both USA Swimming and the Catholic church are using non-candid or disingenuous reasons.

What is not stated or broadly known about California politics is that California has a severe incarceration problem. Read as overcrowding and health costs. It's cost between $52,000-and-$82,000 per adult or child to "cage" an individual per year. California jails are overcrowded and the legislature doesn't like it.

The costs of jailing people is prohibitive. So with a clever angle to stall this bill in the appropriations committee both organizations are going to try to get the concept of "incarceration costs" into this bill which as stated above would get it killed.

Both organizations have no problem with victims that were accidentally excluded from seeking justice. So, by making SB 131 an incarceration bill, both organizations can lament in public when it goes down in flames that the poor, poor victims got no justice but they will toast in private with donor sponsored Champagne that many victims were denied the right to sue.

So, when USA Swimming increases member fees, perhaps the money is going to lobbyists?

USA Swimming hires two mercenaries to "Kill Bill" - or more specifically California Senate Bill 131

Before the California Senate is a Senate Bill numbered SB 131 - This legislation would extend the statute of limitations for child sex abuse victims to file lawsuits against their abusers. It is wonderful legislation and California elected officials up and down the state in some pretty serious swimming communities are all for it.

Jim Beall, a Democrat from San Jose, is SB 131’s principal author. Ricardo Lara, Democrat from Long Beach, and Assembly member Nancy Skinner, a Democrat out of Berkeley, are both co-authors.

Why is this bill important? Diana Nyad said it best, sometimes children are not allowed to come forward or are afraid to come forward. In Nyad's case it was both:

From Out Magazine:

"... Her anger was no tantrum played out on a tennis court. “I was swimming every stroke with anger at that man and that sexual abuse,” she says. “That man” was her high-school coach back in Florida, an Olympian and Hall of Fame vet, and “that sexual abuse” was the four years of rape she endured under his tutelage. “I was so naïve. I hated him and loved him and felt humiliated and denigrated and so afraid, so terrified to be the last one left or the first one there in case I might be taken or attacked. ..." 

[Link]

Now here is where USA Swimming comes in: Two political mercenaries, otherwise known as lobbyists, have been hired by USA Swimming to help "Kill Bill SB 131. Their names are Jim Gross and Gene Urbin from renowned lobbyist firm Nielsen Merksamer.

Instead of endorsing this bill, USA Swimming wants it erased. One has to question why would they want child victims to summarily lose the right to seek the justice or compensation they so deserve? This bill is between victim and abuser yet USA Swimming wants to get into the middle of and run this bill of the California Senate floor. One must ask why?

The short answer is that they fear liability but why do they feel liability? The only logical answer I come up with is that there are individuals or a specific individual at the "top of the food chain" at USA Swimming that is directly involved or directly knew such abuse was occurring.

Correct me if I am wrong.

Ice hole swimming: This should cool you off on this hot summer day!

Don't try this at home or at all - these guys are NOT professionals but they are really good at being crazy.

Britain's Swimming Stars turn GB Superheroes for an Aquatics Promotional Poster

British Gas did a 'Free Swimming' campaign last year whereas those who signed up in some registry that declared their support for the British aquatics team would be able to "...take the plunge" for free in more than 700-pools across the country.

I wonder if it boosted more participation in British pools?

This video is a behind the scenes look at the photo shoot and how they got their dramatic images.

From Digital News Agency:

Swimmer Rebecca Adlington, open water swimmer Keri-anne Payne, diver Tom Daley, water polo captain Fran Leighton, disability swimmer Sascha Kindred and synchronised swimmer Katie Dawkins teamed up to produce a stunning image, which shows that Britain’s best aquatic talent is ready for the challenge ahead.

[Link]

Miami Fashion Blog: Mercedes-Benz Fashion Swim at the LUXE show

Hey any swimmers out there born in the middle or late 1990's, they make a reference in this video to swim designs of the 1970's. What I found so amusing is that the models they chose to model these swimsuits have the same bodies as the average girl did in the 1970's I kid you not. Bagels, burgers and donuts, were half the size as well.

If you don't swim, start! You you do swim, don't stop!

The overriding reason minority parents gave for not allowing their kids to participate in swimming lessons, even if they were free, was fear.

I like the way the YMCA approached this problem. Instead of finding out that minority children or poor people can't swim, the YMCA finds out why they can't swim and addresses it. Good job on them. 

The YMCA has seemingly found a way to get the whole family involved and that shared or communal learning experience binds families together as well as educates them.

Cullen Jones above who had a similar story to those featured in the article.

From Minnesota Public Radio:

Lindsay Mondick, aquatics director for the Greater Twin Cities YMCA, helped researchers convene focus groups in the Twin Cities. She says the overriding reason minority parents gave for not allowing their kids to participate in swimming lessons, even if they were free, was fear.

"If a parent was very fearful of the water, they're not going to bring their child to the water because, one, they will have a fear that they won't be able to get in and help them. And then that translates to the child. So it's kind of a cycle that isn't ever fixed because that parent will never seek out resources to have them swim," she said. 

[Link]

On a side note, I suppose the dominating population in Minnesota is white so to hear the term "minority" is so funny and actually an obsolete concept in Los Angeles where English speaking only is just 40% of the population and a language other than English is 59.8%.

Largest algae bloom ever or biggest 'algae 'ka-bloom' ever has plagued swimmers at China beaches!

The image above is not a golf course fairway but rather an algae bloom of "biblical proportions."

How do I define "an algae bloom of "biblical proportions?" This 'ka-bloom' is so large that is is about half the size of Rhode Island or twice the square area of Los Angeles.

The bloom is not dangerous but who wants to swim in grass; though it might make make for a fantastic photo of a group fo swimmers doing butterfly with a turbulent contrail streaming behind them.

From APF:

"... The State Oceanic Administration said on its website that the algae, enteromorpha prolifera, started to appear a week ago and had spread across an area of 28,900 square kilometres (7,500 square miles). The previous largest bloom was in 2008 when it affected around 13,000 square kilometres, it said. ..." 

[Link]

I am told that algae blooms are attracted to lots of phosphorus and China has lots of it and somehow it's finding it's way into the water. Personally I feel that if China is going to accept large amounts of phosphorus to sink into their water via run-off or whatever, they should perhaps consider harvesting the algae and aggressively protect the ocean life they depend upon.

You can do interesting things with algae and one of them is that you can convert into oil simply by cooking it. (It only takes one minute to convert algae into oil.)

This algae bloom is safe to swim and swimmers are not at risk. However, when this algae runs it's course and dies, imagine an area twice the size of Los Angeles smelling like rotten eggs? Yep, it's "swan song" will be named sulphur.

Elham Asghari: "My [open water] 20km record has been held hostage"

Elham Asghari: gave an interview to The Guardian regarding her 20km national open water record
that was rejected by Iranian swim officials simply because of their considerations regarding her body shape.

From The Guardian:

"...On a Tuesday morning in June, Elham Asghari stepped into the tidal waters of the chilly Caspian sea in northern Iran to swim 20km in full Islamic dress. But her record-breaking nine-hour feat has not been recognised by national authorities because she is a woman.

"Although I [stuck to] the full Islamic dress code and had swimming officials present at all times, [the authorities] said no matter how Islamic my swimming gear, it was unacceptable," she told the Guardian. "They said the feminine features of my body were showing as I came out of water. ..."

[Link]

The thing about sports is that they are not suppose to be politically correct. If you followed the rules, wore the right uniform, and committed no violations you're gold despite how you looked doing it.

I have no problems with Islamic dress but how can a society like this prosper when their female population has rules placed upon it that can be interpreted by personal consideration or whim rather than by a set of definitions?

Imagine if an IOC official or officials disqualified Dara Torres because she looked like a 15-year-old boy rather than their own the personal definition of an adult woman as illustrated in a Renoir painting?

Personally I think Dara Torres is amazing and extraordinarily alpha but these hypothetical officials would be disqualifying her on the basis of their own personal bias and opinion rather than by a set of rules.

The SCAQ blog wishes Elham Asghari the best luck and hopes that the Iranian swimming regime she swims under comes to their senses.

Happy fourth of July!

To their credit SwimSwam apologizes for copy/pasted Swimming World article - It will never happen again.

The best part is the quality control aspect of the apology: 

"...EDITOR’S NOTE: Today, SwimSwam became aware, through a post that appeared on blogger Tony Austin’s site scaq.blogspot.com, that an article which appeared our site, “Six 2012 Olympic Swimmers Nominated for Ten Espy Awards”, was copied, in large part, from an article that appeared on SwimmingWorldMagazine.com.  SwimSwam’s Contributor Agreement is clear on this point, and each contributor must agree that anything he or she publishes on SwimSwam.com is their original work; in this instance, it was not. 

We apologize for this and any confusion it may have caused.  Please read the original article on Swimming World here. ..."

"SwimSwam" obviously plagiarized and the person that plagiarized from "Swimming World" should issue an apology ASAP

Above are two screenshots, one from Swimming World and the one below it is from SwimSwam. (Click to enlarge.)

On June 27th 2013: Swimming World published the following article: [Link]

On June 30th 2013: SwimSwam copy/pasted the above article from Swimming World and by making just a few modifications called it their own. [Link]

SwimSwam obviously plagiarized and the person that plagiarized from Swimming World should issue an apology as soon as possible and the article should be taken down with said apology in it's place.

I know all about plagiarism, not only have I had work stolen from this blog twice that I know of and I watched my father go from a used car salesman in the San Fernando Valley to the International Editor of the Hollywood Reporter.

I wrote this blog post and I am updating here about my father and his plagiarism some years ago. It applies to this recent incident and the behavior of a lazy writer at SwimSwam:

Texas Swimmer spanks Timed Finals [For Plagiarism]

My dad started out as a used car salesman and eventually became the international editor for the Hollywood Reporter. He had a syndicated radio program in Australia and Lee Marvin once tried to punch him out. A pilot TV show was made from one of his books, and he broke the story that Walt Disney was dying of cancer before the mainstream media knew how ill he was.

Every morning before school he would get me up at 5:30 A.M., throw some clothes at me, and we would drive from newsstand to newsstand to see which one had gotten the Hollywood Reporter or the Daily Variety first. He would hand me 50 cents so I could buy them for him and then we would return home for breakfast.

At the kitchen table or sometimes a diner he would underline sentences from the Army Archerd column in The Daily Variety, and then do the same thing to the guy who wrote the gossip column for The Hollywood Reporter. I forgot his name.

One morning, I got fed up with getting up so early so at breakfast I asked "what are you doing, you underline these sentences every morning?" He replied back, "I am writing my column." And I said, "No you not, you're copying, you're cheating!" (I was in the 2nd grade.) It didn't go over well and I never asked again. Ultimately my dad plagiarized his way into entertainment journalism. 

Well, that is what Scott Goldblatt, the editor of Timed Finals, is being accused of doing by the swim blog, Texas Swimming. I have accused him of it too and I understand that a particular writer for the Australian press is getting wind of this sort of nonsense as well.

All Scott has to do to alleviate this criticism is to ensure he credits his sources. If he doesn't, he and the parent company of Timed Finals, the Wasserman Media Group, are going to become irrelevant to swimming.

My dad shamefully got away with it circa the 1960's, but in the age of the internet whereas everything is databased, that isn't going to happen.

Here is a link to the Texas Blog spanking. The photo to the right is the Texas swimmer himself: [Link]

Baltimore Sun: "Michael Phelps has no plans to return to competitive swimming" - Lochte is suspicious!

Rival and reality TV star Ryan Lochte jumps in with a prediction like a weatherman telling you for sure it's going to rain.

From the Baltimore Sun:

"...Man, people will believe anything that's written, anything that's on TV," Phelps said. "There's nothing in the works with me coming back to swimming. This is a part of my life I'm enjoying. I've never had freedom like this. I live on my own time. I play golf three or four times a week. I wake up whenever I want. I have a few things to do here and there, but mostly my time is mine. I'm not thinking about changing that.."

[Link]

France 24: "Iran swimmer’s time goes unrecorded: “Her bathing suit was too revealing” - Perhaps 13-pounds worth of garments wasn't enough?

This swimmer was layered with clothes. So much so that if I wore as many garments in an open water swim as she does I would be sincerely worried about the drowning risk for Elham Sadat Asghari is wearing more than 13-pounds worth of swimming attire.

This post has nothing to do with Muslim values or modest swimsuits for thousands of Iranians; presumably most of whom are Muslims, are supporting her Iranian record.

From France 24:

Her problems began in 2010, when she decided to swim around Kish island in three days. A representative for the sports ministry came to watch. Elham had only swum 5 kilometres when out of nowhere, police boats rammed into her and those accompanying her. The shock seriously hurt one of her legs, and her hip was lacerated by boat propellers. [FRANCE 24 could not independently verify these claims.] If her father hadn’t helped her, she surely would have drowned.

After this, Elham was in a bad place. Her injuries healed, but emotionally, she was a mess. She decided to say goodbye to swimming. But those of us close to her encouraged her to swim again. After undergoing therapy, she began to practice anew. For a long time, she swam 5 kilometres every night and ran 12 kilometres every day.

[Link]

San Diego: Suspect arrested after all-night swim to avoid Coronado police

Running from the police is really stupid but swimming from the police is totally absurd especially if you are blazing on some drug. I bet it was meth'?

From the  L.A. Times:

Soon officers, divers, police dogs and a helicopter were deployed. Still, the man kept swimming, initially heading south toward Silver Strand Beach, two miles away, before reversing course. 

All night and early into the morning, the suspect swam, stopping occasionally to hurl an epithet at the officers, authorities said. 

[Link]  

SCIENCE DAILY: An ahlete's ability to manage goals, as well as his skill, determination & motivation makes a successful athlete.

According to new research by UK universities Birmingham and Southampton and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council:

“Our experiments showed the importance of a person realising early enough when it was better to continue striving for a goal or when it was best to let go and adopt another similar goal,” said Professor Nikos Ntoumanis, an exercise and sport psychologist from the University of Birmingham. “Our research also showed that the reasons behind a sportsperson’s goal are important to know, not just the actual goal.” 

[Link]

The article uses professional tennis player Andy Murray as an example but this study applies to most athletes since athletics is summarily goal-based.                                                                      

Example: most swimmers won't make it into the Olympic Games or go pro since only two athletes are chosen nationally but many athletes may be able to get a scholarship to college. (That in my opinion is a better option). Most swimmers may not be able to make it to Olympic trials but they can win some races or better their times. (I fall in the 'try to better my times' category). Some swimmers may be that swimmer who always places fourth, fifth, or last, but perhaps the commraderie or the social aspect of swimming provides lifelong friends, discipline and follow-through or a social network that can be leveraged into a better life.

There is also lifeguarding opportunities, coaching, or perhaps starting your own club.

The crus of the study is to let go of the concept failure and make your swim goals more fluid and real.

Digital life saving device: A Swimband transmits an ultrasonic signal to a computer that alerts lifeguards that a swimmer has been submerged too long...

New divice alerts lifeguards with audiovisual signals or sirens if a potential victim has been submerged longer than 20-seconds. Welcome to the age of analytics...

From CBS:

NEW CANAAN, Conn. (CBSNewYork) – A Connecticut town has installed a cutting edge swimmer protection system at one of its very popular swimming holes.

As WCBS 880 Connecticut Bureau Chief Fran Schneidau reported, officials in New Canaan became the first municipality to implement a high-tech second layer of protection for swimmers.

[Link]

I went to the company website and I was impressed. See the video above. Here is a link to the Wahooo Sensor product site with some information on how it works:

The Wahooo Sensor is a highly sophisticated microcomputer that measures time of submersion down to 1/1000th of a second. The Sensor determines the critical moment in time when a submerged swimmer is at risk of drowning—before the event is allowed to escalate.

The system generates two types of alerts: First, when a swimmer is submerged for a preset period of time (considered by experts to be "precarious") a discreet Yellow Alert serves as initial notification of a potential event. If the swimmer remains submerged for an additional preset period of time (considered to be "at risk" by experts), a more urgent Red Alert is indicated. Each and every time, staff is aware of the situation. A situation that otherwise could have been missed with tragic results.

The Wahooo SMS accurately and reliably alerts your staff to the risk of a possible drowning rather than indicating a drowning already taking place. When seconds are the difference between life and death, this can mean everything in preventing an event from escalating into a tragedy.

[Link

Big air on Bali wave - Yahoo billing it as the "...greatest surf trick of all time"

There was a time when skateboarding emulated surfing. Alas, it is now the other way around now. Surfer John Florence has pulled of a a "big air" move that some are calling the greatest trick ever.

Surfing as an apparel phenomena is circling the drain.Perhaps that is why skateboarding is being embraced.

Coach Bill Jewell gets 3-year ban form USA Swimming!

Contents of the letter that Susan Woessner sent regarding Bill Jewell's 3-year ban. ...

Richard Pierson, General Chair
Mary Jo Swalley, Membership and Registration
Jeri Marshburn, Safe Sport Southern California Swimming


Mark Schubert, Head Coach
Patrick Gillespie, Board President
Golden West Swim Club
Re: Bill Jewell

18 June 2013

Dear Richard, Mary Jo, Jeri, Mark, and Patrick:

This letter is to inform you that on Monday, June 10, USA Swimming member coach Bill Jewell waived his right to a National Board of Review hearing and accepted a three-year membership ban, effective immediately, as requested by USA Swimming for violations of the USA Swimming Code of Conduct. USA Swimming’s case against Mr. Jewell was based on a pattern of inappropriate behavior, including making sexually explicit comments toward athletes and other individuals affiliated with the club. There was no allegation of or evidence to support inappropriate sexual touching.

If you need assistance now or in the future with communications to your Golden West Swim Club membership or your local media, please let me know and we will connect you with USA Swimming communications staff.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Respectfully,

Susan Woessner Director of Safe Sport


c: Bill Jewell

Chuck Wielgus, Executive Director

John Morse, General Counsel Lucinda McRoberts, Esq. Elizabeth Hoendervoogt, Safe Sport Coordinator

Japanese pop culture adopts swimming - KyoAni Streams "Free!" a slice of life Anime with lots of Swimming.

Swimming is HUGE is Asia. The future of this sprt and what suits we wear will be determined there in the coming years. Unlike here, the sport has been adopted by their popular culture artists.

Free! is a slice-of-life anime form Japan with lots of swimming, cheesecake images of shirtless boys, and a soap opera story-line about two friends becoming competitors.

There will be a sub titled version eventually put up on YouTube

From Anime News Network:

"...The anime's story revolves around Haruka when he is in high school. After years of separation, his childhood friend Rin challenges him to a swimming match, showing Haruka his overwhelming power. Not wanting it to end like this, Haruka gathers together Makoto and Nagisa once again, and also brings a new member named Rei Ryugazaki to create the Iwatobi High School Swimming Club. Haruka, Makoto, Nagisa, Rei, and Rin come together for a story of swimming, youth, and friendship...." 

[Link]

The Mitch Ivey sex abuse victim interviewed at Swim Swam!

Everything you do and everything you say has a consequence. There is plenty of poetry, songs, and
philosophical verses that have said the same thing only way better than I can and with more emphasis on the consequences part.

I read the Ceci Christy article at SwimSwam with great anticipation and by the fourth paragraph that anticipation soured into a severe disappointment.

Christy interviews Suzette Moran who at 16-years-of-age had an ongoing sexual relationship with her 33-year-old swim coach, Mitch Ivey, and as of today asserts that it was a consensual relationship and that Moran "...did know what she was doing... That she does not see herself as a victim... And never felt she should report their sexual relationship..."

Proverbial mouth drop and a face palm.

Snippets from SwimSwim:

But, Ms. Moran is adamant that she did know what she was doing. Seven months into the affair, she moved to Concord Pleasant Hill Swim Club where Mr. Ivey coached and continued their relationship. From the beginning, their affair was “fully consensual,” and she “never felt forced to do anything. 

Ms. Moran holds herself completely accountable for her actions and does not see herself as a victim. She says she never felt she should report their sexual relationship.” 

But here is where the writer refuses to challenge her...

".... And, regardless of her maturity level and consent, Ms. Moran recognizes that a 33-year-old coach having sex with a 16-year-old swimmer is wrong and constitutes abuse.  

"...Ms. Moran says it is disturbing to her that USA Swimming has not tried to contact her at any point over the years. “It is clear that they made no effort to locate me. ..."  

[Link]

I am the guy that made the official complaint for Moran and others like her so they could get some justice served cold to their assailant, Coach Mitch Ivey. How do you think I feel that she did not come forward to report this abuse to the cops and feels that she had a consensual relationship with a predator with no regrets?

If you accept that Ms Moran never came forward to report this abuse to the police nor USA Swimming because she did not see herself as a victim, why does she state such consternation that USA Swimming never contacted her either?

Sex has consequences for the immature: Pregnancy, disease, and the emotional fallout for those not mature enough to deal with the break-ups or otherwise. Abused boys and girls have been known to commit suicide, indulge in drug abuse, alcoholism and other risky behaviors after being sexually abused.

Presuming she had a "consensual" relationship or believed she had a "consensual" relationship was something she should have kept it to herself. This bit of information does no victim any good whatsoever and signals that perhaps she needs to reexamine this relationship with a professional in the subject.

I don't like attacking victims...

I am on the side that USA Swimming management needs a reboot and people like Berkoff and Wielgus have got to go for this same non-reporting and non-action. Ms Moran's rhetoric, if it was reported accurately, summarily states and unintentionally hints that for some girls, like herself, what she did is okay due to her "special circumstance" and believe me it is not okay. Lots of young girls read that site, and many who have "crushes" on their coaches could get in trouble thinking that their crush too is due to a "special circumstance..."

At the very least she admits the relationship existed and this alone should get him banned we hope.

Coach Mitch Ivey, you're finally busted! - "Suzette Moran confirms intimate relationship with former Olympic swim coach Mitch Ivey starting when she 16-years-old"

I filed this complaint against Mitch Ivey on April 5th 2011.

More on that later. Was sent this press release minutes ago:

Suzette Moran confirms that she had an intimate relationship with former Olympic swim coach Mitch Ivey starting when she 16 and that USA Swimming has never contacted her.

SAN JOSE, CA – June 10, 2013 -- Attorney Robert Allard and a former 16 year old swimmer who had an intimate relationship with former Olympic coach Mitch Ivey are calling on Congress to investigate USA Swimming as a result of its failure to investigate and protect swimmers from predators. Allard has learned that the USA Swimming investigation of Mitch Ivey was quietly closed nearly one year ago with no action taken against the coach due to "inconclusive evidence".

According to Nancy Hogshead-Makar, Senior Director of Advocacy, Women’s Sports Foundation and Professor of Law, Florida Coastal School of Law, she provided the names of people that would be helpful in the investigation of Ivey, including Suzette Moran to a USA Swimming investigator in 2011.

Suzette Moran, then 16 years old when she started having a sexual relationship with Ivey, recently confirmed that USA Swimming never contacted her either for this investigation or at any time since her story went public on ESPN's "Outside the Lines" in the early 1990's.

Moran issued the following statement:

"It has come to my attention that over the past few years USA Swimming has been investigating swim coaches for misconduct. After reading articles about various coaches, it appears that USA Swimming is having a difficult time understanding how to conduct comprehensive investigations. I was recently advised that they have cleared Mitch Ivey from any inappropriate actions. It seems that once again they have overlooked several pieces of evidence.

USA Swimming has never contacted me in regards to their investigation of Mitch Ivey. While I do not see myself as a victim, the fact remains that I started having a relationship with Mitch Ivey at 16 and it continued for several years. The relationship was consensual, and completely open to everyone in USA Swimming, family, and friends. It crossed the world of USA Swimming with the ESPN special that I appeared in back in the early 90’s.

The fact that USA Swimming closed their file without trying to contact me is disturbing. It is reminiscent of the Catholic Church. I am very easily located via Facebook, Linkedin, Spokeo, Classmates, and my high school. ESPN found me through the UCLA Athletic Department. It is clear that they made no effort to locate me.

It saddens me that after all of the controversy, Mitch has made the choice to continue to coach, and a team has hired him. It concerns me that the entity who should be investigating and protecting swimmers from predators is still not doing their job, even after such coaches as Andy King and Rick Curl have been incarcerated.

I am publicly asking for Congress to step in and investigate USA Swimming."

Allard stated that "the leadership at USA Swimming continues to demonstrate that it is utterly incapable of resolving the glaring sexual abuse issue within its ranks." Allard pointed to a 2010 email from USA Swimming's Technical Vice President David Berkoff which identifies Ivey and Moran by name as an example of an improper sexual relationship between a coach and his minor swimmer.

"There is absolutely no excuse for USA Swimming to not interview Ms. Moran. We located her with little effort. In our view, USA Swimming’s leadership doesn’t want to know the truth because it doesn’t care about the truth. These leaders would rather boast about what have proven to us to be worthless rules and 1-800 numbers that they have developed and falsely hold themselves out as champions of sexual abuse victims. These leaders have repeatedly failed the sexual misconduct test and need to remove themselves from office. If they don’t voluntarily resign, Congress should intervene and force them to. This simply has gone on for way too long.”

Jellyfish flame fractals I have been rendering

Building a fine project which will be printed on an unusual surface in sculpture form. Will do about 16-pieces.

I am using an open source flame fractal program that relies on heavy math calculations to render shapes and composites. I have tweaked the math in such a way to create jellyfish.

For The Win: Australian woman will attempt world-record swim from Cuba to Florida

I promise that the first person to complete this swim will be a swimmer from down under!

Per Capita both Australia and New Zealand produce the best swimmers, sailors, surfers, lifeguards, PERIOD. These guys "own" the topic of water.

The only topic Australia sucks at is literary fiction but that is a topic for a book blog. (Can you name a famous literary author from Australia? Germaine Greer does not count.)

"... [Chloe] McCardel’s team has studied Nyad’s previous attempts in hopes of avoiding some of the hazards she faced along her way.

From For the Win:

"Because it’s comparatively early in the summer, we believe that we’ve got less chance of running into box jellyfish," McCardel said. "They’ll be hanging around but we won’t be running into multitudes of them like Diana did in the past."

McCardel completed a double crossing of the English Channel in 2010 but was unable to become the first Australian to complete a triple crossing (three nonstop swims) in two previous attempts. She estimates that if all goes well, the swim will take between 55-60 hours, an amazingly long time for a person to be in constant motion. ..." 

[Link]

David Berkoff crafts more tall tales to the Missoulian Newspaper.

David Berkoff gave an interview to the Missoulian website. The bulk of the interview was essentially Berkoff explaining why he has no culpability in his failure to report Rick Curl to the police let alone USA Swimming. It also includes a full and complete admission that he was convinced Rick Curl molested Kelly Currin:

“I assumed [Rick Curl] was long gone and would never come back to the United States because his past was catching up to him. That was my suspicion. " -- David Berkoff

Note, David Berkoff is a lawyer and he admits in the above quote that he knew all about Rick Curl's past and had suspicions that Rick Curl would stay in Australia to avoid arrest. Obviously this lawyer named David Berkoff never heard of extradition nor phoning the police. Instead he was willing to wait.

The sadest thing about this interview is that he never once apologized to Kelly Currin which is very reminiscent of Chuck Wielgus refusing to apologize on the ABC News program 20/20 to the Victims in the Andrew King case.

When Berkoff was confronted by the Missoulian with his email statements he made to Jeff Chida and Mike Saltzstein about Mitch Ivey molesting swimmers and Kely Currin being molested by Rick Curl, Berkoff refuses to take full responsibility for his statements despite that all the quotes therein were printed in their full and complete context.  He belittles these emails twice by stating that Kelly Currin's pro-bono attorney, Robert Allard, "cherry picked" these emails so as to indict his character.

No David, you have indicted yourself:

“We were talking about what do we do to change USA Swimming?” he said. “(Allard) has all these emails and cherry picks the ones he thinks are damning.

The above is patently false. What Berkoff was talking about in these emails, and I read each one, was a conversation he had with Pablo Morales and Matt Biondi; (Morales has categorically denied the conversation), about how outraged he was over the Kelly Currin being molested and Mitch Ivey "banging swimmers."

On face value this an outrageous statement:

“I put these emotional emails out there, kind of shooting first and checking for bodies later, and I was asked to submit a proposal in 2010 to the board. That’s what promoted USA Swimming to adopt (enhanced) background checks, mandatory training on code of conduct and a 1-800 number to call in and report incidents.”

This proposal he submitted in 2010 was posted on the Swimming World message board and should be held up side-by-side with what I wrote on January 31, 2010 here: [Link].

Finally, Berkoff takes complete and total credit away from Susan Woessner's Safe Sport team as if he was the guiding force for both its policy and implementation. This personally disgusts me. His title at USA Swimming is Technical Vice President or something or rather and to claim he was the focal point for the implementation of such policies is a stealing credit for work he did not do. Berkoff has no subsequent child protection bullet points in his resume yet he is claiming he has some now.

From the Missoulian:

“John Leonard was on the subcommittee and told me he was opposed to an all-out ban on swimmer-coach relationships because he had married one of his former swimmers. I finally threw in the towel out of frustration because no one wanted to stand up for background checks or banning coach-swimmer relationships.”

Berkoff clarified the email on Thursday.

“We were talking about what do we do to change USA Swimming?” he said. “(Allard) has all these emails and cherry picks the ones he thinks are damning.

“I put these emotional emails out there, kind of shooting first and checking for bodies later, and I was asked to submit a proposal in 2010 to the board. That’s what promoted USA Swimming to adopt (enhanced) background checks, mandatory training on code of conduct and a 1-800 number to call in and report incidents.”

[Link]

Now, if you have made it to the bottom of this blog post, do you really believe David Berkoff was the sole reason why USA Swimming has a 1-800-number to report instances of sexual abuse and conducts mandatory background checks? Could it be just a bit of outrageous bragging on his part?  (I think so too.)

I for one see him as a politician trying anemically to take credit for something way outside his expertise thereby degrading the teams who were responsible so as to further his own career.

The Disney character "Pinocchio" comes to mind.

Brian Pawlowicz, Tom Ugast, Pete Morgan, & Art Davis heard USA Swimming board of director Paris Jacobs report: - "Pay no attention to that blogger behind the curtain!"

Irv Muchnick just sent this to me in an email:

"... Here’s what NCAP’s Brian Pawlowicz, Tom Ugast, Pete Morgan, and Art Davis heard committee administrative chair Paris Jacobs report:

"Please note, there is a lot of false of information and many ‘attackers’ out there looking to blame USA Swimming. If you have questions, come and ask. You can call USA-S Executive Director, Chuck Wielgus or USA S President Bruce Stratton. Call Paris to ask questions; just don’t automatically assume that what you are ready or hearing is accurate. There are bloggers out there that are attacking our Sport. USA Swimming is ahead in Safe Sport when compared to all other National Governing Bodies. There is a lot of good going on in our sport we need to remember the good and ask questions in order to stay informed...."

Well that shows me! Or does it?

My opinion is that you listen and read everybody and then form your own opinions. The opinion I value the most happens to be the one that originated from a tormented Rick Curl victim named Kelly Currin.

So, what do you think about that? Mr. Brian Pawlowicz, Tom Ugast, Pete Morgan, Art Davis? I don't see you posting Ms Currin's point of view to set the record straight. As Ms Paris Jacobs? All I saw was Chuck Welgus, and David Berkoff spouting scripted rhetoric with incomplete facts.

In fact take the opinion of Susan Woessner, USA Swimming Safe Sport Executive who called the police to get Rick Curl arrested when Mr. Brian Pawlowicz, Tom Ugast, Pete Morgan, Art Davis and Ms Paris Jacobs of the Rick Curl club that Curl founded did not. Ms Woessner also graciously thanked Kelly Currin.

Then take the opinions of former USA Swimming National Coach, Mark Schubert, who said Chuck Wielgus knew of the Rick Curl molestation of Kelly Currin in 2007 and both did nothing about it. Then take the opinion of "Mr. Pants on fire," David Berkoff, who emphatically stated he knew about the molestation of Kelly Currin in the 1990's and was so "gosh, darn, mad" about it that he did "nothing" or "something" about it depending on which version he happens to be bragging or testifying under oath about.

Now, with a straight face Mr. Brian Pawlowicz, Tom Ugast, Pete Morgan, Art Davis and Ms Paris Jacobs explain why some of the people at USA Swimming have no business being blamed?

Shame on all you all and any members of the NCAP club that are willing to drink your "Rick Curl flavored Kool Aid."

Will the real David Berkoff please stand up?

Work-wise and family-wise I have been underwater. The timing of such distractions has been terrible and unfortunately I have been missing in action as a swim blogger.

In the past week a lot has happened: Kelly Currin's statement has completely changed the Zeitgeist in regards to child protection. The Washington Post editorial board has called for a Senate investigation into USA Swimming, Coach Bill Jewell is under investigation thereby validating Coach Dia Rianda's credibility and executives at USA Swimming are going on the record in open letters and interviews to "set the record straight."

David Berkoff is one of these executives and he just delivered a contradictory statement to his home town paper, the Missoula Independent, that is so outrageous that I have to publish what he said and compare it to what what he has written previously and has testified to under oath.

In his home town paper David Berkoff is quoted as saying

From the Missoula Independent:
[David Berkof] says he has no intention of resigning from the national board nor of stepping down from his position at MAC.

“The premise for them asking me to resign my position is that they claim I knew about Kelley Davies being molested by Rick Curl. I didn’t know. I heard rumors,” says Berkoff, who adds that he’s never met either person. “There’s a huge difference. You can’t accuse someone of a crime and call for an investigation based on fourth-hand and third-hand information.”

[...] 

When Berkoff served as an athlete representative on the USA Swimming board in the early 1990s, he says he was instrumental in creating a subcommittee tasked with addressing abuse. He also takes pride in helping to shape USA Swimming’s “Safe Sport” program, which now includes enhanced background checks and lifetime bans for offenders.

“There are a lot of good people who are working hard to make the sport safer, and I count myself among that group,” Berkoff says. 

[Link]

Mr. Berkoff is a lawyer and the idea that he must have a “victim” come forth to report a potential crime simply does not wash especially if it is a crime against a minor. Berkof's rhetoric is "smoke and mirrors. " This “victim-only” rule is an “old wives tale” that both Berkoff and Chuck Wielgus keep pushing and have been trying to pass off as a fact for far too long. Hence, it is time for them to go.

Though it is inconvenient to accuse an innocent person of abuse, it is far worse to allow a child to be abused because you are reluctant to speak out. The suspicion of a crime can be reported anonymously. Let the professionals based upon the anonymous report determine what happens next.

Berkoff wrote,

"... 22 years ago—when I was a 24 year old swimmer—I confronted a problem that I saw as unjust. I formed the first abuse subcommittee in 1991 and the committee’s work formed the basis for the Code of Conduct. I quit the Board for several reasons in 1992. ..."

I read the transcript of a video deposition Berkoff gave on January 26th of 2012 - Berkoff was  NOT on a “Sex Abuse Sub-Committee in 1991 nor was he a USA Swimming board member during 1991. He admitted as such in his video deposition. What he was doing during that period of time was training for the Olympics. [Page 178 of said deposition.]

Though Berkoff states emphatically that he “formed the first [sex] "abuse sub-committee" in 1991,” a statement he mentioned in emails to Jeff Chida, Mike Saltzstein [See the image above] he testified under oath of doing NO such thing.

Moreover, there are NO official committee meeting minutes or otherwise that can be presented to prove anything he says is true. Nothing, and it appears to be all lies and after going through his deposition I could only find this "shred" of an explanation that he gave regarding the formation of a “Sex Abuse Committee”:

Question: Whose idea was it to form this subcommittee?

David Berkoff: I don't know if it was mine or whether somebody just said, hey, who is interested in doing this. I don't recall. [Page 178] 

In January of this last year Berkoff had no idea if he formed a “abuse sub-committee” but in a rebuttal letter to this blog he produced a firm date, which was not only incorrect but he takes credit for being the originator. Repeat, under oath he says that he had NO idea if he formed this “abuse sub-committee” at all.

Question: [When Asked about a letter to Ken Stopkotte and Mike Saltzstein]  Quote, As you all know, it took seven years from the date we formed an abuse subcommittee in 1992, end quote. 

When you say "we," who were you referring to when you wrote this in July of 2010?

David Berkoff: Yeah. Probably U.S.A. Swimming in general.

Question:  And why did you use the words "abuse subcommittee"?

David Berkoff: I really didn't know what else to call it. It wasn't a formal committee. All I know is it was a group of us who I recall meeting once, maybe twice discussing these issues in a very frank and open manner. And what I recall of it I've testified to before, and the only person I can recall actually being there was John Leonard [...]

Question:  Was the topic of implementing a formal Code of Conduct discussed during this meeting?

David Berkoff:  I don't know if there was actually some discussion of a formal Code of Conduct. I do believe that we did discuss the issue of whether or not we should have some kind of formal statement on abuse of swimmers.

What stands out the most for me is the “...Formal Code of Conduct...” that Berkoff so brazenly take credits for in his rebuttal. What Berkoff said in a  rebuttal in a note he sent to this blog is that...

“...the committee’s work formed the basis for the Code of Conduct...”

...But that completely conflicts with what he answered in his deposition above. When asked directly about this “formal code of conduct” he make it clear that it may have never been discussed.

After reading his emails and his quotes to the press, I don’t believe him. I think he is lying and his accomplishments within USA Swimming seem to be a "multiple choice option".  When under oath he seems non-committal, but when running for office or defending his positions he pulls out the red,white & blue colors of the USA Swimming logo and seems self-assured and confident.

His quotes to the Independent appear to me to be scripted and conflict with everything he said under oath and emails to associates.

Yes, the Senate should look into USA Swimming and focus their attention on three members: Chuck Wielgus, David Berkoff and John Leonard.

New York Times: "Abuse Victim Seeks Ouster of U.S. Swimming Officials"

(Updated to correct typos and to acknowledge with a link that Pablo Morales knew nothing of this abuse nor having any sort of conversation with David Berkoff regarding this topic. )

Karen Krouse wrote a piece in the New York Times regarding Kelly Currin's victim statement published here and elsewhere. I think she nails it and what she nails best is Kelly Currin's desire to remove USA Swimming officials who knew of her abuse and did nothing about it. Nothing!

From the New York Times:

“...While I was battling demons from the childhood molestation, Wielgus, Berkoff and Coach Schubert contributed to the glorification of Rick Curl by allowing him to coach at one of the most prestigious swim centers in the country for almost two decades, supporting his induction into the swimming Hall of Fame, and providing him with center-stage status at the 2012 Olympic trials,” Currin said in her statement Thursday.

She said in her statement that Berkoff, a two-time Olympic medalist in 1988, knew by the early 1990s about sexual relationships between coaches and under-age swimmers, including Curl and Currin. Her statement said Schubert told Wielgus about Curl’s conduct in 2007, though Wielgus has testified that he did not learn about it until 2010. She said she filed a claim against Curl with USA Swimming in 2011, but USA Swimming said that did not happen until 2012. ..."

[Link]

Let's talk about David Berkoff. The image above is the email discussed at the New York Times which David Berkoff sent to Jeff Chida summarally acknowledging he knew of the abuse that Kelly Currin had suffered. (John Leonard, CEO of the American Coaches Swimming Association is mentioned as well.) However, when Berkoff was placed under oath and asked to discus this topic, he became vague, non-committal and contradictory.

To really throw some gasoline on "David Berkof's flaming pants" Pablo Morales denied ever drinking beer with David Berkoff let alone having any knowledge regarding Currin's abuse or who was involved. His denial can be read here:  [Link]

So one must ask: How did he know about it? Who really told him? Why didn't he come forward? Why is it that he has an executive title at USA Swimming?

I had a debate with David Berkoff on this blog and quite frankly it is demonstrably that what Berkoff has said and done when compared to what he testified to under oath conflict with one another

See this post:  [Link]

Berkoff should be asked to resign - Even the Pope of the Catholic church resigned so he could get out of the way for a new Church to emerge. Berkoff should too. Resignation would bring USA Swimming into the present and give the Safe Sport initiative truer meaning.