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
Former Member
"Gimbutis is Latest Swimmer Pursued by Qatar -- December 15, 2005
BERKELEY, California, December 16. THE wildfire that Qatar has ignited in its recruitment of top-flight athletes could be spreading following a report in the Lithuanian newspaper, The Lietuvos Rytas. According the newspaper report, Rolandas Gimbutis is on the cusp of accepting a lucrative offer to swim for Qatar, which recently acquired the services of Croatian Duje Draganja.
A two-time Olympic sprinter who trains at the University of California under the tutelage of Mike Bottom, Gimbutis has reportedly been offered $10,000 per month to represent Qatar. The 24-year-old has apparently given a verbal acceptance to the offer and could soon sign a deal. Gimbutis’ father discussed the advantages of accepting the offer in the newspaper story. "
Maybe Qatar should hire Mike Bottom as their head swim coach--they may be two Berkeley swimmers away from a relay medal.
"Gimbutis is Latest Swimmer Pursued by Qatar -- December 15, 2005
BERKELEY, California, December 16. THE wildfire that Qatar has ignited in its recruitment of top-flight athletes could be spreading following a report in the Lithuanian newspaper, The Lietuvos Rytas. According the newspaper report, Rolandas Gimbutis is on the cusp of accepting a lucrative offer to swim for Qatar, which recently acquired the services of Croatian Duje Draganja.
A two-time Olympic sprinter who trains at the University of California under the tutelage of Mike Bottom, Gimbutis has reportedly been offered $10,000 per month to represent Qatar. The 24-year-old has apparently given a verbal acceptance to the offer and could soon sign a deal. Gimbutis’ father discussed the advantages of accepting the offer in the newspaper story. "
Maybe Qatar should hire Mike Bottom as their head swim coach--they may be two Berkeley swimmers away from a relay medal.
