Dara Torres-Amazing

she already has taken additional tests. what more can she do to prove her innocence? unless she fails a test just give up with this and hope that she keeps on getting better.

I'm not to sure if blood doping would have as much impact on swimming as it does on longer aerobic events such as cycling or running....but the article in SI awhile back and a couple of other publications over the last couple of years about cyclists using this technique (storing their own blood then injecting the day of a race) was pretty intriguing....more info at: en.wikipedia.org/.../Blood_doping

Out of curiosity, how close would the normal person be to this level vs a top level athlete The normal range for hemoglobin in a male is 14-17, in a female 12-15. Polycythemis is defined as hemoglobin greater than 18.5 for men, 16.5 for women. It's been claimed that an athlete training at altitude could (rarely) achieve these levels. More likely it would be due to blood doping or epo.

She might have been reading this thread... www.indystar.com/.../article No need for that to quell any discussion! The amazing thing about her 50 free is she didn't even have a very fast start! Amazing time!

Did any of you see her at Nationals last year in Coral Springs? The woman had just had a baby less than 6 WEEKS prior and her tummy was maybe 0.25" from completely flat. Probably less. Hello, six freakin' weeks after giving birth??? You wanna talk outliers???? I saw the lack of pooch with my own eyes. I have no problem believing she is dope-free. Go Dara!

Looking at other individual sports (Cross country skiing, cycling, track & field, rowing, tennis) it is possible to find Olympians in their 40s. The amazing - disturbing - part of the story is the 6 year break. I believe that a similar comeback was made in speed skating where Dr. Erhard Keller (Olympic champion 68 - 72) managed to duplicate his previous best time over 500m at the age of 38 or 39 after having taking a break of many years. Here we have a roughly similar story from the past, except that the good doctor's best time was not competitive anymore when he posted it. And there are a handful of athletes who have switched sports but continued to compete at the Olympic level. Take Sheila Taormina, for example: 1996 Olympics (age 27): Gold in swimming (Women's 4x200 relay) 2000 Olympics (age 31): 6th place, triathlon 2004 Olympics (age 35): 23rd place, triathlon (she also won the ITU World Championship title that year) 2008 Olympics (age 39): trying to make the Olympic team in modern pentathlon (épée fencing, pistol shooting, 200 m freestyle swimming, a show jumping course on horseback, and a cross-country run)

Thank you Barb. Can we now put this thread out of its misery (or at least bring it back on-topic)? Skip Montanaro

I am a friend of Dara's. I live in Coral Springs and swam with Dara while she was in her third trimester, the only way I could even stay on the same lap with her! She now trains with an international group of Olympic hopefuls at Coral Springs. Dara is a natural talent with an amazing work ethic and the sponsors to afford to train to the max. Dara definitely does not dope. She has already been subject to multiple testings by USA Swimming, at meets and unannounced at her home. She is volunteering for additional testings and for anything they want to test her for to quiet all the naysayers. Dara is the real deal! :cheerleader:

I agree with this statement completely geek. Not everyone's going to be the best...but we can all strive for our personal best. Every kid I coach knows that somewhere out there, ...there's always a bigger fish in another pond. Reward only comes from a job well done. Rising to the top of the ranks is something that very few will ever experience. Putting gold medals aside, ...swimming is about fun, health, setting goals, and the satisfaction of reaching them.

So "innate ability" doesn't diminish over time? That's rather vague. I would think "ability," just like other things, would diminish at least somewhat over time? I think that one needs to really break down what is being discussed here. If we are talking about strength and flexibility/mobility then I have no doubt that she can regain equal levels of these abilities at 40, especially considering the fact that she has maintained a high level of fitness and not had a real break per se. As for cardiovascular capacity, I don't really know for sure. Can somebody provide specific information as to why a 40 year olds cardiovascular system will not permit them (naturally) to swim the times that Dara is swimming? Technique is something that can obviously be learned and improved at any age so that is a non-issue. Regarding drugs...is the concern that she used drugs to enhance her strength as she began her comeback? Does a 40 year old really need drugs to develop the strength she has? My guess would be no.