Should USA Swimming recruit?

Enough already with the bickering about NCAA scholarships. You argue until you're blue in the face over pennies in the grand scheme of things. Lest we all forget, Paul started this conversation about Qatar paying European athletes a whole lot more money than a college scholarship to swim for their country. That is the real cheese. That may change the nature of our sport. We in swimming have not yet got our heads around the fact the Olympic Committee threw out the shamatuerism rules several years ago. We still think that there is no money in world class swimming, because there never has been any in the past. That was only true because the Olympics kicked you out of the pool if you took any. That is no longer the case. There is professional open water swimming in Australia because the very best can earn a living in prize money and endorsements. There is professional triathloning the world over because the very best can earn a living in prize money and endorsements. We are just now taking baby steps in generating prize money and endorsements in swimming. Like it or hate it, Qatar's action is changing the terrain. AND, looking at this from another angle, just how much of a swimmer's career is supported by 4 years of a college scholarship? How about all the money mom & dad put into club swimming? How about all the support before a swimmer heads off to college? I don't hear much call for U.S. clubs and high schools to kick off of their teams all the non-U.S. citizens on the argument that we are spending "American" dollars to support other countries' future Olympians. However, I think the ages of say 10-18 have a lot more to do with creating a world class swimmer than finishing school from 18-22. The skin-deep jingoism about college scholarships is so tiresome. Who cares?! This affects so few swimmers in any meaningful fashion. Matt

Enough already with the bickering about NCAA scholarships. You argue until you're blue in the face over pennies in the grand scheme of things. Lest we all forget, Paul started this conversation about Qatar paying European athletes a whole lot more money than a college scholarship to swim for their country. That is the real cheese. That may change the nature of our sport. We in swimming have not yet got our heads around the fact the Olympic Committee threw out the shamatuerism rules several years ago. We still think that there is no money in world class swimming, because there never has been any in the past. That was only true because the Olympics kicked you out of the pool if you took any. That is no longer the case. There is professional open water swimming in Australia because the very best can earn a living in prize money and endorsements. There is professional triathloning the world over because the very best can earn a living in prize money and endorsements. We are just now taking baby steps in generating prize money and endorsements in swimming. Like it or hate it, Qatar's action is changing the terrain. AND, looking at this from another angle, just how much of a swimmer's career is supported by 4 years of a college scholarship? How about all the money mom & dad put into club swimming? How about all the support before a swimmer heads off to college? I don't hear much call for U.S. clubs and high schools to kick off of their teams all the non-U.S. citizens on the argument that we are spending "American" dollars to support other countries' future Olympians. However, I think the ages of say 10-18 have a lot more to do with creating a world class swimmer than finishing school from 18-22. The skin-deep jingoism about college scholarships is so tiresome. Who cares?! This affects so few swimmers in any meaningful fashion. Matt