black swimmers

At least in the United States, there is a long and appallingly recent history of segregation against people of color in swimming pools, and so for decades they did not have the same opportunities as white people. This statement is true and for a great history lesson on this subject I would suggest reading the book "Contested Waters" by Jeff Wiltse if you really want to learn the history of this subject. You can order it here and read the reviews. Amazon.com: Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America (9780807871270): Jeff Wiltse: Books My question: has someone understood why there are no black swimmers at the top of the world rankings? is there a physiologic reason? I am not sure if I totally agree with this statement. It is true as a % compared to other sports that would be accurate, but to say there are no black swimmers at the top of the World Rankings would be false. I think of swimmers like Cullen Jones, Maritza Correia, Anthony Ervin, Sabir Muhammad, Bryon Davis, Jeff Commings, Michael Norment, Chris Silva, and Nate Clark. All of these swimmers I have mentioned have either been World and American Record holders, NCAA Champions or finalists, Olympic Trial finalists and Olympians, and USA National Team members. I have left off a lot of other Black swimmers but the point I am making is there has been progress since the late 1960's. As stated besides the social reasons, there are theories that there are not enough black swimmers as role models for younger black children and they tend to relate to the successful black athletes in other sports such as football, basketball, and track. Swimming is starting to get roles models but needs a lot more to be able to get black children interested in swimming compared to those other sports. These are just some observations but I am sure there are others out there also.

At least in the United States, there is a long and appallingly recent history of segregation against people of color in swimming pools, and so for decades they did not have the same opportunities as white people. This statement is true and for a great history lesson on this subject I would suggest reading the book "Contested Waters" by Jeff Wiltse if you really want to learn the history of this subject. You can order it here and read the reviews. Amazon.com: Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America (9780807871270): Jeff Wiltse: Books My question: has someone understood why there are no black swimmers at the top of the world rankings? is there a physiologic reason? I am not sure if I totally agree with this statement. It is true as a % compared to other sports that would be accurate, but to say there are no black swimmers at the top of the World Rankings would be false. I think of swimmers like Cullen Jones, Maritza Correia, Anthony Ervin, Sabir Muhammad, Bryon Davis, Jeff Commings, Michael Norment, Chris Silva, and Nate Clark. All of these swimmers I have mentioned have either been World and American Record holders, NCAA Champions or finalists, Olympic Trial finalists and Olympians, and USA National Team members. I have left off a lot of other Black swimmers but the point I am making is there has been progress since the late 1960's. As stated besides the social reasons, there are theories that there are not enough black swimmers as role models for younger black children and they tend to relate to the successful black athletes in other sports such as football, basketball, and track. Swimming is starting to get roles models but needs a lot more to be able to get black children interested in swimming compared to those other sports. These are just some observations but I am sure there are others out there also.