I realize this thread will create a lot of controversy.
Over the past five years I have worked very hard to develop clubs and increase membership in USMS. The very fabric of my work and others in this area is building relationships and comradairre within the LMSC and or Club. Small clubs and large teams are proud of their "elite" swimmers and boast of their successes. With this said, it is very disturbing to me as I read through the FINA World Championships Physch Sheets to see the number of elite swimmers "jumping ship" to other clubs to swim on "elite" relays. If USMS had "Team USMS" I would have no problem with everyone coming together for a team effort. I don't have a problem with four guys coming together who swam in college using the Worlds as reunion of sorts. Where I have problem is the swimmer or swimmers who have been a member of a club or LMSC for years and because of individual egos leaves his team. What this says to me is our "elite" swimmers ego is more important than his or her club. How do you think the other 3 swimmers who normally swims on the relay with the "elite" swimmer feels. We are good enough througout the year, however we are not good enough for the Worlds. Instead of swimming for his or her club so all members of the club can be proud of the "elite" swimmers accomplishments, it is more important to this swimmer he or she represent someone else at the Worlds for personal gratification. If the relay team does win and breaks a WR the record does not show USMS as the record holder, but the name of a club the swimmer transferred too.... what a shame...
It is regretable I bring up this discussion, but it tears at the very fabric of the USMS mission regarding building club or LMSC relationships...I realize what these swimmers are doing is within the rules.. I just think it is wrong.
Mel
Mel:
I know you brought this up back in 1988 and it seems to me nothing as changed in 18 years except maybe someone is not funding elite swimmers across the country for a Team USA club for the purpose of smashing USMS and World Records. I remember I had met some foreign swimmers in my age group at the meet you ran in 1992 and they were giving me the business about this practice at dinner. They told me that there national governing bodies forbidded them to do this practice and they thought it was elitist, controlling, and imperialistic that we were permitted by our USMS rules to do this. That as the largest masters national governing body of swimmers that we already have an advantage with our strong clubs and be permitted to build National Club teams is not playing on an even playing field. Most of them said to me that in their rules they have to swim Unattached for a year to switch clubs and then when they want to switch again they have to swim Unnattached for a year again to get back with there original clubs.
Mel:
I know you brought this up back in 1988 and it seems to me nothing as changed in 18 years except maybe someone is not funding elite swimmers across the country for a Team USA club for the purpose of smashing USMS and World Records. I remember I had met some foreign swimmers in my age group at the meet you ran in 1992 and they were giving me the business about this practice at dinner. They told me that there national governing bodies forbidded them to do this practice and they thought it was elitist, controlling, and imperialistic that we were permitted by our USMS rules to do this. That as the largest masters national governing body of swimmers that we already have an advantage with our strong clubs and be permitted to build National Club teams is not playing on an even playing field. Most of them said to me that in their rules they have to swim Unattached for a year to switch clubs and then when they want to switch again they have to swim Unnattached for a year again to get back with there original clubs.
