Though this topic has received some attention in various threads over the years, it is the dead of winter, and I think that those of us in the Northeast, at least, could do with a little blood boiling to warm up the extremities!
To this end, I am wondering how many of my fellow swimmers have had swim times disallowed ex post facto in USMS sanctioned meets, and if so, for what reason?
As some of you who read my blog may recall, I have had a number of TT-worthy times disallowed for various reasons over the years, ranging from lack of timeliness in submitting the paperwork, to swimming a couple races in the "Open" category.
Recently, I have had my first and only All American swim retroactively yanked, some five weeks after the Top 10 list was officially published. Obviously, this is not as bad as those unfortunate souls who have had World Records declared ineligible for consideration.
Nevertheless, it does sting. I invite you to read the details of my De-All'ing (from my perspective) here: byjimthornton.com/.../
Note: I do not question the right of USMS to have rules more stringent than USA-S and FINA. What I do believe is unfair to us swimmers is when these rules apply to us but not to those in charge of making sure that all the i's are dotted and the t's crossed when they secure sanctions for meets and collect the meet fees. My own AA-rescinded swim was done at Michael Phelps's famous pool, the North Baltimore Aquatics Club, in a meet that had a USMS sanction number. Skip Thompson, who traveled from Michigan to swim in this meet, told me he asked about the pool measurement and was told that it was on file. There were no bulkheads involved. I did not make the mistake of swimming in an "open" event. I feel I did everything right this time!
I also feel that the USMS rule book is so dense and complex that it's hopeless for swimmers to know if they are complying. I feel like the mole in a game of bureaucratic whack-a-mole!
Anyhow, if you have your own examples of TT or All American or even World Record times that were rescinded after the fact, please use this thread to post them!
While Jim and others like to portray USMS as heartless automatons characterized mostly by a slavish devotion to rules
I disagree with you, though, that there would have been resigned acceptance from Jim if the times from this meet had been missing from either the preliminary or final TT list. The outcry would have just begun a month earlier. And as an FYI, I didn't know about this situation until a couple days before Jim did.
I highly doubt Jim views USMS as "heartless." If you read his screed, you know that he's had several meets worth of times that have been thrown out in the last couple years. So he feels snakebit. I think this is a fairly normal reaction in the circumstances. (Remember She Man/CreamPuff who quit USMS, among other reasons, because she said her times never seemed to count?) To be sure, he would have been disappointed -- as would anyone -- if his time was missing or deleted from the preliminary TT list) and made inquiries. But as Mollie notes, we all know this can happen and Jim was worried it might. In fact, he waited until the the list was "final" before declaring himself an AA and writing a story for Men's Health about the experience. (Btw, that story would have been good publicity for USMS.)
Given our current rules, it doesn't seem like USMS had any choice but to pull the times in this instance given that the pool was short. But I don't see the problem in letting Jim express his frustration. He'll move on, and continue his self-described quest of sustained mediocrity. Hopefully, he'll grab another AA at some point.
While Jim and others like to portray USMS as heartless automatons characterized mostly by a slavish devotion to rules
I disagree with you, though, that there would have been resigned acceptance from Jim if the times from this meet had been missing from either the preliminary or final TT list. The outcry would have just begun a month earlier. And as an FYI, I didn't know about this situation until a couple days before Jim did.
I highly doubt Jim views USMS as "heartless." If you read his screed, you know that he's had several meets worth of times that have been thrown out in the last couple years. So he feels snakebit. I think this is a fairly normal reaction in the circumstances. (Remember She Man/CreamPuff who quit USMS, among other reasons, because she said her times never seemed to count?) To be sure, he would have been disappointed -- as would anyone -- if his time was missing or deleted from the preliminary TT list) and made inquiries. But as Mollie notes, we all know this can happen and Jim was worried it might. In fact, he waited until the the list was "final" before declaring himself an AA and writing a story for Men's Health about the experience. (Btw, that story would have been good publicity for USMS.)
Given our current rules, it doesn't seem like USMS had any choice but to pull the times in this instance given that the pool was short. But I don't see the problem in letting Jim express his frustration. He'll move on, and continue his self-described quest of sustained mediocrity. Hopefully, he'll grab another AA at some point.
