Swimmer's Daily

  • kasper-og-leaSunday 22 September during warm-up at the Horsens Cup in Horsens, Denmark, 18-year-old Kasper Vitten from the Copenhagen Swim Club discovered a swimmer in cramps on the bottom on the pool. He immediately dove down and got 15-year-old Lea Mo Føste Andersen from Randers Swim Club out of the pool, where she received CPR for a suspected heart attack.

    Lea Mo Føste Andersen herself remembers nothing from the incident, except that she began feeling unwell during the warm-up. “I suddenly felt like I was suffocating, but it probably took only a few seconds until I lost consciousness,” she says to Horsens Posten.

    Tuesday 15 October at a reception at the Horsens police station, Vitten received 2000 Danish Kroner (USD 365) from the police as a token of appreciation for saving young Lea’s life. “Anyone would probably act, but you did the right thing by being super fast to get Lea up to the surface and shout for help,” said Deputy Police Inspector Lars Peter Madsen.

    Read for instance Horsens Folkeblad, Horsens Posten and Hovedstadens Svømmeklub, via SwimNews.dk

    Post by Hovedstadens Svømmeklub.

  • jacco-verhaerenSee swimming.org.au

    Swimming Australia President John Bertrand AM and CEO Mark Anderson have today announced Jacco Verhaeren as the new National Head Coach to work under Director of High Performance Michael Scott.

    Born in the Netherlands, the 44-year-old Verhaeren will officially start in the role in January ahead of the 2014 BHP Billiton Aquatic Super Series in Perth, with the Australian Swim Team also set to compete at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacs on the Gold Coast next year.

    Having coached seven Olympic medallists, including Pieter van den Hoogenband to dual gold in Sydney 2000 and the 100m freestyle gold in Athens 2004, Verhaeren is currently the Technical Director of the Dutch Swimming Federation.

    At the London Olympics Verhaeren coached Ranomi Kromowidjojo to gold in the 50m and 100m freestyle and the Dutch women to silver in the 4x100m freestyle relay behind Australia while Kromowidjojo went on to win gold in the 50m freestyle at this year’s world championships in Spain.

    Swimming Australia President John Bertrand said the appointment of Verhaeren as the new National Head Coach is another step in enhancing a world’s best approach for the sport.

    “To become the best in the world requires four key links in a chain. World class administration of the sport, world class technology, world class athletes – both as individuals and as a team – and world class coaching,” said Bertrand.

    Read more on swimming.org.au

    Image courtesy of Miho NL, CC BY 3.0

  • Hungarian Swimmer Katinka Hosszu confirms her desire to set more records at the FINA Swimming World Cup meet at the Hamdan Sports Complex in Dubai.

  • “The people of New York City thank Diana Nyad during her 48-hour swim for the Americares Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund! It’s not too late to give — visit http://swimforrelief.com/”

  • Impressive, read for instance the Register

    Marine science instructor Jasmine Santana was swimming along the coast of Catalina Island when she came across the huge beast, which was actually a rare oarfish, but nonetheless the “discovery of a lifetime”, according to local news network KTLA.

    The oarfish, a type of elongated lampriform fish, looks like a giant snake. It was dead when Santana found it, having apparently succumbed to natural causes.

    “It took 15 or 20 of us to pick it up,” said Jeff Chace, a programme director at the Catalina Island Marine Institute, where Santana works.

    http://youtu.be/1DXS5dVU58c

  • putin white tank topRead for instance Gay Star News

    A US gay swimmer has written a flirtatious letter to the Russian president in hopes to persuade him to treat LGBT people with ‘grace, compassion, and respect.’

    ‘As much as a world leader, you are an international celebrity as a proud, buff dude. Millions who admire sportsmen have seen photos of you shirtless.’

    This is how four-time gold medalist Richard Alther began his letter to Putin, published in the Huffington Post.

     

    Image of ‘downright hot’ Putin courtesy of Jedimentat44, CC BY 2.0

  • Anthony Ervin participated in a Q&A at the 2013 American Swim Coaches Association’s world clinic, talking about training and life lessons learned in the past 10 years.

  • jacco-verhaerenDutch media is abuzz, see for instance nos.nl, nieuws.nl, omroep brabant

    On January 1st 2014, Jacco Verhaeren will leave his job as technical director of the Dutch Swimming Federation KNZB, for a possible head coach job in the Australian Swimming Federation.

    44-year-old Verhaeren garnered fame as coach of Olympic champions Inge de Bruijn, Pieter van den Hoogenband and Ranomi Kromowidjojo, among others.

    He worked for years as head coach of the National Swimming Institute of Eindhoven (NZE), since 2006 combining that with being also the technical director at the KNZB. Late last year he decided to quit as swim coach to concentrate on the job at KNZB, having extended his contract until Rio 2016.

    The KNZB has announced a press conference Thursday morning, waiting until to explain the departure of Verhaeren.

    Image courtesy of Miho NL, CC BY 3.0

  • Medal winners in the women’s 50 meter backstroke at the FINA 2012 World Swimming Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. From left to right USA’s silver winner Olivia Smoliga, China’s gold winner Jing Zhao and Poland’s bronze winner Aleksandra Urbanczyk. See the result list here.

    The Istanbul 2012 women's 50 back medal podium