I just watched day 1 of the USA Swimming Trials: USATF SUCKS

This is what Athletics Canada does at Nationals. There's a play-in round before the semis for those without the trials standard - fastest play ins fill the semis so there are 24 starters in the semis. Good system.

Swim meets are a showcase of efficiency. In comparison to the champions ship meets which have several minutes between heats, mist USA swimming meets have 15 seconds or less between heats. They start the next heat before the other swimmers are out of the water. It’s go! Go! Go! My kids have swim for 8 years and my oldest just started track. I’m absolutely floored by the little sense of urgency all the old guys in hats had for moving the meet along.

On another note wrt the event program. My 14-yo regularly swims 4-day meets with 2-3 events per day and prelims in the morning and finals in the evening. He and most other swimmers can set personal bests all the way through the meet. It’s becomes harder as they get older and their training becomes more focused on timing rest and peaks for championships but it still gives you a sense for how much easier it is to swim multiple events. In comparison, when he doubled with the 1600 and 800 he added 9 seconds in his 800 to his PR. Granted, he’s undertrained but even if he becomes a running great, he can’t run the volume and get PRs all weekend in multiple races a day.

Track also requires more specialization. Can get a swimmer dominating at many distances or multiple events but it does noT translate to track.

That said, track is actually way more interesting. In swimming they may not even see their opponents. In freestyle they are only breathing to one side so they are blind to half the pool. They have to swim their fastest to win. Say what you want about tactical races in track but I find the tactics a lot more interesting. Rowdy helps a lot with swimming. He’s a treasure. Track could benefit!

If your kids are not seeing the other competitors in a freestyle race because they are only breathing to one side they have had some poor coaching.

And now a 2nd world record of the trials. I wonder if any track records will be broken this year...field events don't count.

Speaking of Berkoff, how about that 2nd place in the 100 fly? Redemption! And it was fast, she was with Smith until the breakout off the turn.

Crowd was wild again--in fact, they were even wild during the 100m prelims, iirc.

Here's the 100 fly, you just don't get this in track, not even indoors:

Can anyone explain why the USA only get two swimmers per event in the Olympics & Track & Field gets three? Same number of names.

Among other things, imagine of East Germany was still in the industrial doping business. It would devalue the entire sport. That is essentially the situation distance running is in today.

Nah, there is the big deal with China and all the swimmers who tested positive but weren't banned because they claimed to WADA that there was some contaminated food. "Surely they couldn't ALL have been doping!" was essentially their argument, and WADA bought it. So crooked.

So swimming does have its current E. Germany.

Yeah, it sucks that the swimmers only get to send 2. Not sure, but I think it was put in place by FINA so that no one country could dominate and potentially sweep the podium.

One big difference at swim trials vs track trials is the qualification: in track it is top 3 each semi + next 2 fastest times--but in swimming it is just top 8 times.

It's like that from prelims, too: the top 16 times.

This is kind of insane, because even the top athletes go hard right from prelims (although yes, the very top know how fast they have to go to advance, and don't necessarily kill themselves...but otoh look at Huske in the prelims this year...). This year we saw a WR in the semi's.

I'm not sure how they qualify in the Olympics, but trials really weeds out those who can't handle rounds. And the best are still the best in finals, which is where Smith just set her WR.

Swimming's toll on the body is different than track. There is no pounding and they can recover quicker. Hence, being able to go hard in every round.

I can't be sure, but I think it is the fee the host city has to pay to USATF that scares away potential cities from hosting the OT, or any of the major national championships. USATF should implement a 'profit-sharing' model where the host city splits the revenues (after expenses) with USATF (of course, it has to be profitable to begin with).

I am sure Nike wouldn't mind draping their banners all over a stadium in Indy, Philly, NYC, Boston, etc.

Yeah, plus conditions don't really vary among rounds and between lanes in the pool.

WR in backstroke last night, Berkoff 2nd

If you want efficiency, check out the Penn Relays. Probably a thousand high school 4x4 relay teams (often 12-16 teams per heat - no starting blocks) in about three hours. By the time the last heat runner crosses the finish line, the gun is ready to go off for the next heat. Exciting, as compared to NBC which can barely show two events within the first 30 minutes.

There have been a few meets where there has been speculation that water circulation made some lanes better or worse.

And we have a swim off this morning for 6th place in the women’s 100 free. The winner goes to Paris as part of the relay pool as long as there’s roster space available and it looks like there should be, loser goes home.

Fun stuff!

*BACKSTROKE And of course Berkoff is a good backstroker. It's in her genes.

In swimming you will sometimes have chase starts at meets, where a heat will start when the previous heat is on their last length...imagine that in track!

I rather hope that if Laure Manaudou and Fred Bousquet’s daughter takes up a sport, it’s like javelin-throwing or volleyball or handball or something other than swimming because the expectations for her in the pool would be incredibly intense based on family gene pool. (Many swimming world records, Olympic golds and world championships among Laure, Fred, and Uncle Florent)