On the recent broadcast of www.deckpass.com there was some interesting dialogue on age group swimming, Gary Hall Jr, and yes my hero, Jack LaLanne...
Okay... not to digress, but... Sullivan's breakthrough was from technical improvement, not an increase in power output... just an observation.
Jack LaLanne is my hero...
If you swim for fun, you'll always be a winner! Keeping the focus on personal improvement is a great way to hold the "passion" without making comparisons to others. That concept of winning, only being the absolute freaky best, that concept is dysfunctional. If you are in the water regularly, you'll always be a winner; you can feel great about what you are doing.
Swimming is a unique experience, and mastering the water is a joy.
Parents
Former Member
I think it is useful to go back to first principles: what is the goal for participation in sport? For some the goal is to produce the best possible national team for the Olympics. For some the goals are about staying or becoming healthy and fit. If your goals are about health and fitness then rewarding participation makes perfect sense.
I think the idea that there are winners and losers in "real life" is also a bit dangerous. Contrary to the "second place is the first loser" philosophy, I don't think that the person that comes in seventh at the Olympics is a loser any more than I think the CEO of the seventh biggest company in the world or the seventh richest person in the world is a loser. I think that any system that produces a tiny tiny number of "winners" and huge masses of "losers" is dysfunctional.
I think it is useful to go back to first principles: what is the goal for participation in sport? For some the goal is to produce the best possible national team for the Olympics. For some the goals are about staying or becoming healthy and fit. If your goals are about health and fitness then rewarding participation makes perfect sense.
I think the idea that there are winners and losers in "real life" is also a bit dangerous. Contrary to the "second place is the first loser" philosophy, I don't think that the person that comes in seventh at the Olympics is a loser any more than I think the CEO of the seventh biggest company in the world or the seventh richest person in the world is a loser. I think that any system that produces a tiny tiny number of "winners" and huge masses of "losers" is dysfunctional.
