Kosuke Kitajima

Originally posted by kiwi surfer If as claimed Kitajima has been doing this for several years can someone tell me how many times he's been D/Q. In the press conference he said that he had never been cautioned or disqualified.

These things happen in every sport; no umpire or referee is 100% perfect. I'm sure that they've realised their mistake - as long as they learn from this and try to do better next time - then that's fine.

Nice post Rob C. and others too. I'm throughly enjoying all the swimmimg even though our guys aren't even performing PBs. I loved watching the Mens 100 Free Relay. I never usually support South Africa in any sport, especially so as they beat us at rugby a few days earlier. Now there's a sport where you will see constant "cheating" and it's something that continues in every game until the referee steps in. My question re previous Kitajima D/Qs was more to make the point that if he hadn't been then he's clearly swimmimg legally, albeit pushing the rules to the limit. Nothing wrong with a bit of innovation. Cough cough. From a distance it appears Hansen has come out of this with a lot of credit.

Originally posted by Gareth Eckley Even the British commentators saw it, and their swimming knowledge is quite poor. :( Adrian and Andy have both medalled @ the Olympics so I think it is harsh to say their knowledge is poor, I would however say that the 'facts' they quote are often wrong! And they are not as easy on the eye as Sharon! P.S. Are you swimming @ Sheffield www.sportcentric.com/.../0,11040,4716-150621-167837-61042-0-file,00.pdf in October?

If as claimed Kitajima has been doing this for several years can someone tell me how many times he's been D/Q. If he hasn't been why not ? Otherwise I'd suggest he's not only the fastest breaststroker but also the smartest.

I think the wind has been a significant factor in all the events, so, yes, it's still true that if Hansen was close to his Trials time he would have won, but I think that would require an outstanding swim at this pool. Think about it. Breaststroke is probably affected by the wind more than any other stroke because you're lifting more of your body out of the water and consequently into the wind.

kiwi surfer If you are interested in finding out how many times Kitajima has been D/Qed, I would suggest you contact the Japanese swimming federation (www.swim.or.jp). They should be able to direct you to this information. I’d be interested to hear what you find out. So please keep us posted. As for sour grapes… Yea, I’m sure that is somewhat the case for most of us Yanks. And I doubt we would be as upset if it had been Hansen who has used an illegal kick to win the race, or maybe we would have. For me the bottom line is we are seeing the greatest swimmers in the world doing their best in the Olympic pool. I’m glad to see Thorpe swim the 400 Free and Kitajima in the breaststrokes, the races would be somewhat diminished without their presence.

In baseball, the rule book is explicit about where the strike zone is. Yet, whether a specific pitch in a specific baseball game is a "strike" or a "ball" is decided by the ump. Each ump has a slightly different size to what he calls as the strike zone. A pitcher, through trial and error searches out the edges of each umps strike zone. Pitches that are consisently called "strikes" are defacto "legal" pitches that the pitcher can (and probably should), with clear conscience, throw during the game. Similarly, while the swimming rule book is explicit about what is and is not allowed, whether or not a specific motion a swimmer executes in a specific competition is legal or illegal is decided by the officials. If, repeatedly during international competition, under close scrutiny, with common knowledge on the part of the officials that he does this, Kitajima's "pitches" are consistently called as "strikes", then he can (and probably should), with clear conscience, throw them during the game. After seeing the race do I wish the "strike zone" being called was a bit smaller? Sure. But until it is, I'll take a cue from Hansen and not whine about it.

Since when does participation in a discussion in a swimming forum on swimming technique and a controversial swimming event constitute whining?

Originally posted by botterud Since when does participation in a discussion in a swimming forum on swimming technique and a controversial swimming event constitute whining? I was commented about my self. Whining is in the ear (or eye) of the beholder. If it sounds (or reads) like whining, then it is whining. For whosoever the footwear is properly sized and shaped, don it.