2012 Olympics: Swimming

www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/.../31447.asp Grevers was faster than that in the morning, compared to Lochte's, um, has Ryan Lochte ever done a 100 freestyle before? I'm a bit emotional right now, having just watched the 4x100 relay, so forgive me. That was a disaster. At least when Bernard gave away the lead in 2008, it was to the fastest split in world history. The Frenchman swam great, but there is no excuse for putting a middle distance swimmer like Lochte on as the anchor leg of a 4x100. He's the hot swimmer right now and is on every magazine, but the coaches have to be more clear-headed than that. Matt Grevers should have been on that relay, with Phelps as the anchor leg. I know this is not fair of me, as hindsight is 20/20. This wasn't as bad a decision as leaving Gary Hall Jr off the relay in 2004 in favor of Ian Crocker. But this was pretty bad. Lochte's leg was probably the slowest, if you factor in the relay start. He's our best male swimmer right now, but he's middle distance, not sprint. The coaches need to do some serious soul searching right now.

P.S. 42 Spoiler space, man! :shakeshead: PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT Do not shower with your Olympic medal. No good will come of it. www.nbcolympics.com/.../brazilian-breaks-medal-in-shower.html

"After a few hasty phone calls and apologies, Olympic officials agreed to supply a replacement for the 23-year-old." nbcolympics Replacements are marked "Replica". It should have withstood the impact however, made in China? :bolt:

Phelps as anchor? Going into the relay, all you knew is that he died in the 400 IM and swam slower than he did at Trials, and you're going to have him anchor? I'm glad Phelps split well, but that's pure hindsight. Don't sell Agnel's split too short, a 46.7 in jammers isn't all that much slower than Lezak's split in a full-body cheating suit. It was a risky move that backfired, complicated by the fact that Troy is the head US coach. Hindsight is wonderful, but everyone here acting like they know so much more than some of the best coaches in the world is just plain ridiculous, and a little sad. All we need is some belching and beer to complete the picture. Having Grevers on the relay would almost certainly not made any difference. On paper the Australians should have crushed everybody, but relays have their own magic. Sheesh, the French swam a great relay -- and so did the US by the way -- time to give them credit rather than just bash a coaching decision. The French swam great, and Lochte did his very best, and everyone should respect him for that. But Lochte should never have been put in that position. He was the slowest person on that relay, once you back out the start, which tells you all you need to know about the coach's decision, given he was in the anchor position. Lochte is a brilliant swimmer and has earned every bit of success he has, but he rarely swims the 100 and did not know how to pace it. His coach should have known that, recognizing Lochte's fantastic 400 IM did not mean he was ready to swim a fast 100. Phelps's slow 400 IM merely proved he is not prepared to swim 400s; it did not prove he is generally unfit. A conversation with Bob Bowman could have confirmed this. Phelps should have been in the anchor position.

Grevers swam the 100 backstroke much closer to the relay, so he wasn't exactly fresh either. He went 47.54 in the morning and Lochte went 47.74 in finals. The US lost by 0.45 seconds. I'm not buying that Grevers, who had raced much more recently, would have improved the result.

Brendan Hansen gets sportsman of the year, at least in my book. He learned what most athletes never do: that the joy is in the journey, and every day he gets to swim so masterfully is a blessing.

Relays often don't follow form. When Bill Russell was asked how his Celtics kept beating the Lakers even though they didn't match up well, Russell spoke for all athletes with his reply ---"I guess that's why they keep score."

WTF! I knew who won the 100 back but my husband was not "spoiled" and was waiting to watch it. NBC just spoiled it in a Today Show ad for tomorrow. Way to go, NBC. :bitching::bitching::bitching:

WTF! I knew who won the 100 back but my husband was not "spoiled" and was waiting to watch it. NBC just spoiled it in a Today Show ad for tomorrow. Way to go, NBC. :bitching::bitching::bitching: I saw that, I couldn't believe they did it. And in the commercial break right before the race.

The 200 Free final tonight is going to be insane. Some many different ways this thing can go.