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.
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  • Former Member
    Former Member
    CraigIII, No one on this thread has ever suggested any racist or negative international thought. The issue is not whether foreign athletes can and should be able to train in the US. This is widely accepted. The concern is that we are funding their experience at the expense of US citizens applying for the same position on the collegiate team. Again, invite all the foreigners over to train you want. Just don't have US colleges pay their way. John Smith
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  • Former Member
    Former Member
    CraigIII, No one on this thread has ever suggested any racist or negative international thought. The issue is not whether foreign athletes can and should be able to train in the US. This is widely accepted. The concern is that we are funding their experience at the expense of US citizens applying for the same position on the collegiate team. Again, invite all the foreigners over to train you want. Just don't have US colleges pay their way. John Smith
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