Michael Andrew goes pro at 14

just once I would like to see a sports star harangue god for not supporting them when they lose. lol. Because sports performances must be a high priority when there are (low priority) starving children in the world...

May God help him. :cool:

just once I would like to see a sports star harangue god for not supporting them when they lose. :lmao:That's EXACTLY what my husband keeps saying! I couldn't agree more...

I remember going to a U of Michigan meet against Stanford in 1990 and seeing Chas swim against Erik Namsnik and Eric Wunderlich and being soundly beaten. The whole point of this is just because you are a great age group swimmer, it does not translate to being a future Olympian. Chas placed top 6 in 3 out of 4 years in the NCAA and won the 200 *** at USA Nationals and was a great swimmer in his own right, he just never made it to the Olympics. Chas was a GREAT swimmer. He's actually on my Facebook and doing well with a beautiful family. I remember being at some of the same meet and being in awe of him, especially when we were young teens. I swam with Wunderlich at Dynamo here in Atlanta and his name caught my attention in your post. Wunderlich was also could have been a GREAT distance swimmer. He was up until he started specializing in breastroke. Some of the other age group "freaks" I remember is Leif Winnerstrom, Tripp Schwenk, and Joey Hudepohl.

why do you people care if athletes speak about God, or Jesus? why would something like this bother you? do you think Tim Tebow or Kurt Warner care what you think? starving children have absolutely nothing to do with their faith. just because they outwardly thank God doesnt mean that they or God dont care about starving children. why does the mention of God outside of a church function offend people? has zero to do with you. I am not a super Christian but i certainly have no issue with folks voicing their faith. all you tough internet assassins - go voice your displeasure regarding this to their face in person. dont hide behind your keyboards. do you folks feel big ripping on this kid and his family? he is a swimmer. hes just a kid.

Wunderlich could have been a GREAT distance swimmer. He was up until he started specializing in breastroke. I have to feel sorry for any swimmer who has to choose between being a breaststroker or a distance swimmer.

@ aloha - I hardly think my comment qualifies me as a "tough internet assassin." Speaking as a former die-hard evangelical, I have come to realize over the years just how crazy it sounds to many people when you use your sports platform as a place to preach. It comes off as arrogant and silly, really. As if the God these people believe in is invested in imbuing these athletes with spectacular athletic ability so they can preach to the world, while he/she is not managing to do anything about millions of starving children. If you don't understand how obnoxious that is, I don't know what to tell you.

again, why do you care that this kid and/or his family use his platform (if thats what you want to call it) to preach (did the kid preach to you in that interview?)? does that honestly bother you? does Tim Tebow bother you? really? all the nonsense going on in this world and this stuff bothers you? if you dont care for Tebows "platform" dont listen or watch it. quite simple actually. you used the words arrogant, silly, obnoxious. mighty big of you. and exactly what are you doing to feed the millions of starving children of the planet?

He's already given up his college eligibility so he's not going to get a Speedo contract like Katie Hoff's that includes college tuition, etc. Why not?

OK, I see what you're saying now. I don't remember Hoff's deal, but you probably remember correctly.