Swimmer's Daily

  • December 18, 1975: This is no casual swim: astronauts Carolyn Griner, Ann Whitaker, and Mary-Helen Johnston train in the Neutral Buoyancy Simulator to help design new experiments to conduct in the challenging environment of space.

    Unlike many early space agency programs composed of all-women teams, the program had nothing to do with testing the suitability or limitations of women in spaceflight. Instead, it relied entirely on their knowledge and expertise to solve problems, not their biological characteristics as test subjects.

    Read io9

    Scientists in Training

  • After chasing for so long the gold medal, Gary Hunt (GBR) finally got the world title in Kazan (RUS), winning the men’s High Diving competition, with a total of 629.30 points. The British star (31 years old) had been second in both the 2013 Worlds in Barcelona (ESP) and last year, also at the Kazanka venue, during the first edition of the FINA High Diving World Cup. On both occasions, Hunt finished second to Orlando Duque, from Colombia, who made some mistakes in Russia and could not enter the podium (he was sixth) Normally praised for his consistency, Duque was quite regular in the last two rounds of the competition, but was not so solid in the inaugural three dives on Day 1. This time, Hunt did everything almost perfect and successfully allied solid execution with very high degrees of difficulty in his combinations.

  • Costs were raised across the board last month as part of an annual pricing review with an off-peak casual swim now costing £4.95 for an adult – a rise of £1.45.

    A group exercise session, which includes pilates, yoga or water workouts, has risen by £5 to £12 a session for those paying as they go – a hike of 71pc.

    A spokeswoman for the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), which helps run the centre and consulted on the price rise, said the move was to help support running costs and said prices were still lower than in other Newham pools.

    But the hike has already hit some families hard.

    Read Newham Recorder

    Photo by Images George Rex

  • Aussie swimmer Cam McEvoy is the fifth fastest 100m freestyle swimmer in history. We meet the Commonwealth Games gold medallist away from the pool to chat sports, cartoons and lifesaving on the Gold Coast, in this Team Speedo video Q&A.

  • “It’s like a heavyweight title fight”, that’s how defending Olympic 200 metre butterfly champion Chad Le Clos has described his showdown with Michael Phelps in Rio next year. The South African pipped Phelps to gold in London by 0.05 seconds, but Phelps has recorded the fastest time of 2015, so how does he feel about his great rivals recent form.

    Listen to BBC

  • A quick internet search for ‘girl dives with sharks’ will throw up the name Ocean Ramsey. This will surely contain videos of her swimming alongside great white sharks, as well as images showing her close interactions with marine life.

    But there’s more to this girl than that – a life spent in the ocean has led her to become a professional freediver, scuba instructor, marine biologist and model.

    She’s also keen to share her passion for shark conservation, and this is where her amazing imagery and internet prowess are put to good use.

    Read Redbull

  • Eugene Finney went to the hospital after bumping into a shark off the coast of Huntington Beach, California. His doctors discovered he had a tumor.

  • Four years after a highly successful short course swimming Europeans in Herning, the year-ending continental showcase will revisit Denmark. This time the capital will host the event, according to the LEN Bureau’s decision: Copenhagen’s presentation convinced the members that another great success was in sight, thanks to the efforts of the Danish Swimming Federation and Sport Event Denmark. The event will be staged in the brand new Royal Arena, its construction is to be finished next year and the swimming bonanza would be the first sport meet in state-of-the-art facility.

    After the vote, LEN President Paolo Barelli praised the Danish bid. “We are really pleased to return to Denmark: after the highly successful event in Herning 2013, we are sure that the 2017 edition will be another hit. Copenhagen is not just a beautiful city and capital of a magnificent country, but has also become the capital of sport by staging a handful of great events in succession. LEN is really happy to be part of these series and even more proud that our continental showcase will be the first sport meet held in the brand new Royal Arena. We have to be grateful for the great efforts of the Danish Swimming Federation and Sport Event Denmark, we know we are going to work with dedicated professionals once again.”

    The LEN Bureau has allocated age-group events as well. The 2017 European Junior Synchronised Swimming Championships will be hosted by Belgrade (SRB), the men’s junior water polo Europeans will go to Malta. In 2018 Helsinki (FIN) can organise the European Junior Championships both in swimming and in diving while in 2019 the continent’s best junior swimmers and divers will compete in Kazan (RUS) and the 2020 edition will visit Aberdeen (GBR). The 2018 Masters Europeans in all disciplines is to be staged in Kranj and Bled (SLO), as per the decision of the LEN Bureau.

    Press release from LEN

  • See swimacrossamerica.org