Others may know too, but semi-finals were added to the Olympic program in 2000. Would it actually be more accurate to say that they were reintroduced in 2000? This is related tothe Phelps/ Spitz comparison. I seem to recall that semi-finals were part of the Olympic program in the 70's. But evrything I read says otherwise. Does anyone know the history of semi-finals in the Olympic program.
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Former Member
The smartest thing they had done was to get RID of the semi-finals. All sporting events that have quarter-finals, semi-finals, finals, etc. implies that the winners of the semi-finals get into the finals. However in swimming this is just a wasted step, because they simply take the top 8 times from the two semis. If you feel the need to have semis, why not be more like track.. take the top 3 from each semi and the next 2 fastest times?
It's rubbish, just a way to add more "premium" night time swims to the program. It's also adding more races for the athletes and is another deterrent to swimming multiple events. I could imagine Phelps, Hoff, or Coughlin swimming more races if they didn't have to deal with so many semi-finals. Lochte too. They need to change the system and make the semi-finals meaningful, or scrap them and use the P/F format.
I could go on all day about this but I'd rather hear others' opinions.
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Former Member
The smartest thing they had done was to get RID of the semi-finals. All sporting events that have quarter-finals, semi-finals, finals, etc. implies that the winners of the semi-finals get into the finals. However in swimming this is just a wasted step, because they simply take the top 8 times from the two semis. If you feel the need to have semis, why not be more like track.. take the top 3 from each semi and the next 2 fastest times?
It's rubbish, just a way to add more "premium" night time swims to the program. It's also adding more races for the athletes and is another deterrent to swimming multiple events. I could imagine Phelps, Hoff, or Coughlin swimming more races if they didn't have to deal with so many semi-finals. Lochte too. They need to change the system and make the semi-finals meaningful, or scrap them and use the P/F format.
I could go on all day about this but I'd rather hear others' opinions.
