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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What I'd like to know is why the Australian officials had to go get a legal opinion on what "next ranked" means. Surely they had an opinion of their own, it just didn't get the result they wanted. Just about anything would be open to interpretation if you want to go that route. The only place it explicitly mentions world rankings in section 3.3 and that is to finalize the team and break ties. Certainly you can argue they are using world rankings to finalize the team.
If you are looking for the actual criteria, here it is.
3 Nomination of Athletes
For the purposes of nomination to the AOC of individual athletes for selection to the 2004 Australian
Olympic Team ASI will:
(1) only nominate athletes who are, or are recognised by the AOC as, members of the Shadow
Team;
(2) only nominate those athletes it honestly believes have met the requirements described in the
Selection Criteria;
(3) only nominate those athletes who have signed the athlete nomination form issued by the AOC
from time to time;
(4) not nominate more athletes than the maximum number permitted under the Participation
Criteria;
(5) not nominate athletes who have breached the AOC Anti-Doping By-Law and have had a
sanction imposed which has not been completed;
(6) only nominate those athletes who, from 13 August 2003, have been available for sample
collection and have provided accurate and up to date whereabouts information on a regular
basis to ASI and as ASI directs pursuant to the World Anti-Doping Code;
(7) only nominate those athletes who to the satisfaction of ASI have competed in the 2004 Telstra
Australian Swimming Championships to be held from 27 March to 3 April 2004, Sydney;
(8) only nominate those athletes who have met the additional competition results outlined below
at the 2004 Telstra Australian Swimming Championships in those events contested at the 2004
Olympic Games.
Athletes will be prioritised for nomination using the following priorities:
Priority 1: First, second, third and fourth placegetters in finals of the men’s and
women’s 100 metre freestyle and 200 metre freestyle. First placegetter in all other individual
events provided the time swum equals or betters the FINA "A" Qualifying Time Standard for
that individual event (refer Annexure A) for the 2004 Olympic Games.
Priority 2: Second placegetter in the finals of all individual Olympic Events, other than
the men’s and women’s 100 metre freestyle and 200 metre freestyle, provided the time swum
equals or betters the FINA "A" Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure A) for the 2004
Olympic Games.
Priority 3: First placegetter in the final of all individual Olympic Events, where no
athlete qualifies under Priority 1 provided the time swum equals or betters the ASI "B"
Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure A).
Priority 4: Fifth placegetter in the Men’s and Women’s 100m freestyle and 200m
freestyle finals provided they meet the ASI Relay Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure
A).
Priority 5: Second placegetter in the final of the Men’s and Women’s 100m
Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly, where no athlete qualifies under Priority 2 provided
the time swum meets or betters the ASI "B" Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure A).
Priority 6: Sixth placegetter in the Men’s and Women’s 100m freestyle and 200m
freestyle finals provided they meet the ASI Relay Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure
A).
Priority 7: Second placegetter in the final of the Men’s and Women’s 100m
Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly and the fifth and sixth placegetter in the Men’s and
Women’s 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle finals provided they have met the FINA “B”
qualifying standard for the relevant stroke and distance.
NOTE:
1. Where an athlete declines to swim in an event at the Olympic Games for which they are
eligible for selection due to their competition results at the 2004 Australian
Championships the next ranked athlete in that event will be a replacement provided that
athlete meets the relevant qualifying standard. For an athlete that has not already been
nominated to the AOC, the nomination of that replacement athlete is subject to clause 2 of
this agreement.
2. In the case of a tie for a possible position on the team in a given event, a swim off will be
conducted in that event as soon as possible but at a time determined by the Meet Director.
3. In the event that under this nomination procedure more athletes qualify than the maximum
number permitted under the Participation Criteria than the number of athletes being
nominated will be reduced to the required number using the following process:
3.1. Those athletes with the highest priority for selection (ie Priority 1 has preference over
Priority 2 etc).
3.2. If athletes have to be ranked within a priority to reduce the numbers this will be done
using World two per nation rankings with any Australian eliminated from the list (ie.
two per nation rankings that do not include any Australians).
3.3. The following documents will be used to finalise the team and break ties:
3.3.1. The latest available full year ISSA World rankings.
3.3.2. The most recent International Pointscore published by FINA.
There's more at www.olympics.com.au/.../00000906aaf.pdf
What I'd like to know is why the Australian officials had to go get a legal opinion on what "next ranked" means. Surely they had an opinion of their own, it just didn't get the result they wanted. Just about anything would be open to interpretation if you want to go that route. The only place it explicitly mentions world rankings in section 3.3 and that is to finalize the team and break ties. Certainly you can argue they are using world rankings to finalize the team.
If you are looking for the actual criteria, here it is.
3 Nomination of Athletes
For the purposes of nomination to the AOC of individual athletes for selection to the 2004 Australian
Olympic Team ASI will:
(1) only nominate athletes who are, or are recognised by the AOC as, members of the Shadow
Team;
(2) only nominate those athletes it honestly believes have met the requirements described in the
Selection Criteria;
(3) only nominate those athletes who have signed the athlete nomination form issued by the AOC
from time to time;
(4) not nominate more athletes than the maximum number permitted under the Participation
Criteria;
(5) not nominate athletes who have breached the AOC Anti-Doping By-Law and have had a
sanction imposed which has not been completed;
(6) only nominate those athletes who, from 13 August 2003, have been available for sample
collection and have provided accurate and up to date whereabouts information on a regular
basis to ASI and as ASI directs pursuant to the World Anti-Doping Code;
(7) only nominate those athletes who to the satisfaction of ASI have competed in the 2004 Telstra
Australian Swimming Championships to be held from 27 March to 3 April 2004, Sydney;
(8) only nominate those athletes who have met the additional competition results outlined below
at the 2004 Telstra Australian Swimming Championships in those events contested at the 2004
Olympic Games.
Athletes will be prioritised for nomination using the following priorities:
Priority 1: First, second, third and fourth placegetters in finals of the men’s and
women’s 100 metre freestyle and 200 metre freestyle. First placegetter in all other individual
events provided the time swum equals or betters the FINA "A" Qualifying Time Standard for
that individual event (refer Annexure A) for the 2004 Olympic Games.
Priority 2: Second placegetter in the finals of all individual Olympic Events, other than
the men’s and women’s 100 metre freestyle and 200 metre freestyle, provided the time swum
equals or betters the FINA "A" Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure A) for the 2004
Olympic Games.
Priority 3: First placegetter in the final of all individual Olympic Events, where no
athlete qualifies under Priority 1 provided the time swum equals or betters the ASI "B"
Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure A).
Priority 4: Fifth placegetter in the Men’s and Women’s 100m freestyle and 200m
freestyle finals provided they meet the ASI Relay Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure
A).
Priority 5: Second placegetter in the final of the Men’s and Women’s 100m
Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly, where no athlete qualifies under Priority 2 provided
the time swum meets or betters the ASI "B" Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure A).
Priority 6: Sixth placegetter in the Men’s and Women’s 100m freestyle and 200m
freestyle finals provided they meet the ASI Relay Qualifying Time Standard (refer Annexure
A).
Priority 7: Second placegetter in the final of the Men’s and Women’s 100m
Backstroke, Breaststroke and Butterfly and the fifth and sixth placegetter in the Men’s and
Women’s 100m freestyle and 200m freestyle finals provided they have met the FINA “B”
qualifying standard for the relevant stroke and distance.
NOTE:
1. Where an athlete declines to swim in an event at the Olympic Games for which they are
eligible for selection due to their competition results at the 2004 Australian
Championships the next ranked athlete in that event will be a replacement provided that
athlete meets the relevant qualifying standard. For an athlete that has not already been
nominated to the AOC, the nomination of that replacement athlete is subject to clause 2 of
this agreement.
2. In the case of a tie for a possible position on the team in a given event, a swim off will be
conducted in that event as soon as possible but at a time determined by the Meet Director.
3. In the event that under this nomination procedure more athletes qualify than the maximum
number permitted under the Participation Criteria than the number of athletes being
nominated will be reduced to the required number using the following process:
3.1. Those athletes with the highest priority for selection (ie Priority 1 has preference over
Priority 2 etc).
3.2. If athletes have to be ranked within a priority to reduce the numbers this will be done
using World two per nation rankings with any Australian eliminated from the list (ie.
two per nation rankings that do not include any Australians).
3.3. The following documents will be used to finalise the team and break ties:
3.3.1. The latest available full year ISSA World rankings.
3.3.2. The most recent International Pointscore published by FINA.
There's more at www.olympics.com.au/.../00000906aaf.pdf
