Foreign swimmers training in the U.S.

Former Member
Former Member
There has been a lot of discussion since Athens about foreign swimmers training in the United States. Most of them attend U.S. Universities, receive athletic scholarships, and compete at NCAA's. Some notable examples include Duje Draganja (Cal), Fred Bousquet and Kirsty Coventry (Auburn), Markus Rogan (Stanford), and the South African sprinters (Arizona). Some train in the U.S., but don't compete for a university (Inge de Bruijn). All of these athletes benefit from U.S. coaching, from training with U.S. swimmers, and in some cases, from financial support provided by U.S. entities (athletic scholarships). They all turn around and then win medals for other countries. A couple questions: 1) What do you think about this arrangement generally? 2) Is it of benefit or detriment to U.S. swimming to have these foreign athletes training and competing here? 3) Should we be giving athletic scholarships, which are a scarce resource in swimming, to foreign athletes who will represent their own countries internationally instead of U.S.-born swimmers who will represent us internationally? I'm sure there are other issues, but these come directly to mind.
Parents
  • I'm sorry I can't lighten up about war with a dozen dead soldiers this week in Iraq. I'm sure the families of those soldiers would gladly trade the horrors of a swim practice for their children back. I would happily agree the physical training for combat of elite soldiers is comparable to that of elite athletes. Having an army ranger in the family I think the two are similar in some regards.
Reply
  • I'm sorry I can't lighten up about war with a dozen dead soldiers this week in Iraq. I'm sure the families of those soldiers would gladly trade the horrors of a swim practice for their children back. I would happily agree the physical training for combat of elite soldiers is comparable to that of elite athletes. Having an army ranger in the family I think the two are similar in some regards.
Children
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