This is why anyone commenting on a female athletes weight should be flogged.
+1. Someone needs to flog the authors of the piece about Leisel Jones. Or at least send them a link to the article about Dagny and this thread...
Dagny Knutson's Journey:
How an All-Consuming Eating Disorder Shoots Down a Rising Star
Parts 1 - 4
Part 4: A World Champion's World Crumbles -- August 25, 2012
If you have an adolescent daughter and you want to understand what her world is like, you should read Reviving Ophelia. Still relevant despite the fact that it was written before social media, reality TV, etc.
Her demise in terms of swimming was a source of speculation for a couple of years. I often wondered what happened given her astonishing early career. Now I understand and it is heart breaking. Whether or not she stays in the pool is mostly irrelevant at this point. I hope she can overcome this terrible problem.
Agreed. This is a difficult problem to overcome. Having gone through this battle as a teenager and college student, it is a very long road to recovery that sometimes feels as though it won't happen.
I don't care if Dagny swims again at any level. I just hope that she is able to overcome and live a long, healthy life.
Some of the female UT swimmers in the 80's & 90's had eating disorders because the coach weighed them each day and punished them, if he felt they were heavy.
I was one of those swimmers. I swam for Paul Bergen in 79 & 80 at UT & eventually quit because I got tired of getting weighed every Monday morning & then having to run 10 miles around Barton Springs if my weight wasn't where he thought it was supposed to be. I became anorexic & got down under 100 lbs - guess what? my swimming wasn't the only thing that suffered. I struggled with anorexia until I was about 34 years old. I still look in the mirror and see a fat person. And I still wonder if I deserve to eat sometimes.
I was one of those swimmers. I swam for Paul Bergen in 79 & 80 at UT & eventually quit because I got tired of getting weighed every Monday morning & then having to run 10 miles around Barton Springs if my weight wasn't where he thought it was supposed to be. I became anorexic & got down under 100 lbs - guess what? my swimming wasn't the only thing that suffered. I struggled with anorexia until I was about 34 years old. I still look in the mirror and see a fat person. And I still wonder if I deserve to eat sometimes.
Celeste,
I'm so sorry. You deserve to eat. I'm glad you stopped struggling.
I was on Longhorn Aquatics those same years. We ran and swam together.
What were your events?
Ande
you ever see this?
www.swimbrief.net/.../deena-deardurff-schmidts-heartbreaking.html
Did Coach Bergen use the same weigh-in protocol for the male swimmers?
No, he coached Longhorn Aquatics Sr group, HS boys struggle with gaining weight and strength. He coached a few post grad men
