If I am reading this right, Swiminfo.com is reporting that Craig Stevens is indeed going to back out of the 400 and leave it up to Australia Swimming to "pick another member of the Olympic Team" to swim that race in Athens. If I am ANY other country, swimmer, the 3rd place finisher at the Trials or an organization interested in ethics, then I am raising a stink on this one!!!! Thorpe DQ'd and the Aussies are going to skirt the rule and get him in anyway. They would be relegated to the status of Ben Johnson, Rosie Ruiz, and the 60+% of MLB who are on steriods! This is FREAKIN' UNBELIEVABLE. I have no respect for any of the aforementioned and if this happens, none for Ian Thorpe and the Australian swim federation (or whatever official name they hide behind) are in that seeming, stinking pile.
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Hey Aquageek,
True they allowed the NBA players in (and of course more recently NHL players into Ol)ympic hockey. But I don't think that the US Olympic basketball comittee decided after the OLympic team tryouts to look at the team and say ' yeah these guys are good but we really should send the NBA players to be more competitive and then redo their selection with NBA players on the eve of the games so to speak. Another point in allowing the 'professional' athletes to play in their respective sport helped level the playing field a little to the then soviet communist countries. Their respective team/players would have been considered professional athletes (Vlad the hockey goalie would be a major in the army, his military job was not that of a pilot but a hockey goalie, so in essence he was a professional hockey player in the guise of an army officer). If I recall correctly under the old USA AAU rules some amateaur athletes would have gotten in trouble for being an Olympic swimmer and earning a living as a swim instructor or Alpine skier giving ski lessons. They would have been seen as professional athletes even though they were not earning a living racing in their respective sport but the fact of getting paid for doing something close to their sport (Can't remember what the Hoopla was on high jumper Dwight Stone but I believe it was close to these guidelines). Anyways I think it would be bad form for Thorpe to even consider taking a spot in the 400 free or for Australia swimming to even consider letting Thorpe swim.
Hey Aquageek,
True they allowed the NBA players in (and of course more recently NHL players into Ol)ympic hockey. But I don't think that the US Olympic basketball comittee decided after the OLympic team tryouts to look at the team and say ' yeah these guys are good but we really should send the NBA players to be more competitive and then redo their selection with NBA players on the eve of the games so to speak. Another point in allowing the 'professional' athletes to play in their respective sport helped level the playing field a little to the then soviet communist countries. Their respective team/players would have been considered professional athletes (Vlad the hockey goalie would be a major in the army, his military job was not that of a pilot but a hockey goalie, so in essence he was a professional hockey player in the guise of an army officer). If I recall correctly under the old USA AAU rules some amateaur athletes would have gotten in trouble for being an Olympic swimmer and earning a living as a swim instructor or Alpine skier giving ski lessons. They would have been seen as professional athletes even though they were not earning a living racing in their respective sport but the fact of getting paid for doing something close to their sport (Can't remember what the Hoopla was on high jumper Dwight Stone but I believe it was close to these guidelines). Anyways I think it would be bad form for Thorpe to even consider taking a spot in the 400 free or for Australia swimming to even consider letting Thorpe swim.
