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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I realize this is idealistic and/or naive - but my belief is you get credit for what you do not for what you are capable of doing. Thorpe should be out of the running becasue of his disqualification (false start). No law / rule has been broken by the Aussie swim federation in choosing Thorpe, they are free to choose whoever they want to swim. But this choice would discredit the whole idea of having a qualifying /trials meet. Why fake it, pick your team from who you think should go and not put up some dog and pony show.
The great thing about sports is all the what if's. Thorpe could false start again or maybe Stevens will have the race of his life or better yet some swimmer from Europe / Asia / South America could be an outside smoker and win it all. There have been lots of situations where the best team / person didn't win for some reason, thats the fact of life. Look what happened in wrestling in the 2000 Olympics (Gardner or Garner that beat the reigning olympic champion). I still think it would be bad form on Australia to let Thorpe swim.
I realize this is idealistic and/or naive - but my belief is you get credit for what you do not for what you are capable of doing. Thorpe should be out of the running becasue of his disqualification (false start). No law / rule has been broken by the Aussie swim federation in choosing Thorpe, they are free to choose whoever they want to swim. But this choice would discredit the whole idea of having a qualifying /trials meet. Why fake it, pick your team from who you think should go and not put up some dog and pony show.
The great thing about sports is all the what if's. Thorpe could false start again or maybe Stevens will have the race of his life or better yet some swimmer from Europe / Asia / South America could be an outside smoker and win it all. There have been lots of situations where the best team / person didn't win for some reason, thats the fact of life. Look what happened in wrestling in the 2000 Olympics (Gardner or Garner that beat the reigning olympic champion). I still think it would be bad form on Australia to let Thorpe swim.
