Swimming Finals at the World Championships in Barcelona, Spain
Former Member
The finals of the first day, show:
.) in the men 400 meter free final, Thorpe (Aus.) went 3:42.58 for #1, Hackett (Aus.) went 3:45.17 for #2, and Coman (Rom.) went 3:46.8x for #3;
Coman -who is my fellow countryman, and I was telling you about him for years-, defeated Rossolini (Ita.) of the 2000 Olympics fame, Keller (U.S.) and Carvin (U.S.);
.) in the women 400 meter free final, Simona Paduraru (Rom.) finished #7, with a fast time;
.) in the 4x100 men free relay, Russia won;
the fastest split was by Frenchman Frederic Bousquet at 47.03 -which is the second fastest split in history-, and fast splits (in the 47s) were recorded by Alex. Popov (Rus.) and Jason Lezak (U.S.);
.) in the 4x100 women free relay, U.S. won, anchored by an ace 53.xx from Jenny Thompson (U.S.).
He! he! he! :D ho! ho! ho!
I post this, ahead of www.swiminfo.com and www.swimnews.com who are sandbagging...
Parents
Former Member
Thorpe is judged by higher standards, just like Tiger Woods, because he is an extraordinary talent. When he doesn't set world records he won't get the press (unless it's the Olympics). That doesn't mean that swimming fans don't appreciate his talents. Thorpe is a great middle distance freestyler but if the 100 is an "off" event then once can't claim he is the greatest freestyler ever. Murray Rose, his fellow countryman, was able to beat the best in the 100 through 400--and he reportedly couldn't do more than 2-3 dips or pull-ups!
Thorpe is judged by higher standards, just like Tiger Woods, because he is an extraordinary talent. When he doesn't set world records he won't get the press (unless it's the Olympics). That doesn't mean that swimming fans don't appreciate his talents. Thorpe is a great middle distance freestyler but if the 100 is an "off" event then once can't claim he is the greatest freestyler ever. Murray Rose, his fellow countryman, was able to beat the best in the 100 through 400--and he reportedly couldn't do more than 2-3 dips or pull-ups!
