How many guys from other countries does it take to win a National Championship?
Good thing they all attended classes on campus the entire year..... :-)
Makes everyone feel proud to see the American Record holder on the 4th place podium.
Parents
Former Member
Perhaps a better question is, would I be comfortable sending my son to swim for a team consisting largely of foreign athletes? Assuming a good fit otherwise with the coach, program and school, my answer is: absolutely! He would learn a lot.
Good question. Say there's a hypothetical American kid deciding where to go to school and swim. He is 6'4 and growing with dinner-plate hands, and is thought to have potential to be a world-class sprinter. He, his parents, club coaches, and USA Swimming have an interest in optimizing his ability.
He has a chance to train at a not-so-hypothetical university program with a (non-US) sprint coach who has produced recent olympic medalists and finalists, and some of those olympians are currently on the team or have recently left/graduated but are still training with said coach (or at least maintain close ties). Still others in the program are on national teams for other (lesser) swimming powerhouse countries, also bringing unique training and racing experiences.
How is this not a good scenario for the hypothetical American kid and for USA swimming? Seems a good way to optimize his potential. Not to say he couldn't be great elsewhere, but if it were my kid it would seem pretty sweet, even if it meant a partial, rather than a full ride.
Perhaps a better question is, would I be comfortable sending my son to swim for a team consisting largely of foreign athletes? Assuming a good fit otherwise with the coach, program and school, my answer is: absolutely! He would learn a lot.
Good question. Say there's a hypothetical American kid deciding where to go to school and swim. He is 6'4 and growing with dinner-plate hands, and is thought to have potential to be a world-class sprinter. He, his parents, club coaches, and USA Swimming have an interest in optimizing his ability.
He has a chance to train at a not-so-hypothetical university program with a (non-US) sprint coach who has produced recent olympic medalists and finalists, and some of those olympians are currently on the team or have recently left/graduated but are still training with said coach (or at least maintain close ties). Still others in the program are on national teams for other (lesser) swimming powerhouse countries, also bringing unique training and racing experiences.
How is this not a good scenario for the hypothetical American kid and for USA swimming? Seems a good way to optimize his potential. Not to say he couldn't be great elsewhere, but if it were my kid it would seem pretty sweet, even if it meant a partial, rather than a full ride.
