Double Olympic champion Rebecca Adlington posted the fastest time since the non-textile suits were banned, when she yesterday won the 800 freestyle at the British Gas Championships 2011, with a time of 8:20.23. “I would have loved to have scraped under 8:20 but hopefully it’ll come at worlds”. Read SwimNews.com.
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Phelps training vertical kicks with 10 kg weights
Funny video here, where Michael Phelps first demonstrates training vertical kicks wearing 10 kg weights, and Japanese Hisayoshi Sato then tries doing the same.
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Behold Ordinskaya, one of the World’s largest underwater caves
The Ordinskaya Cave is the longest underwater cave in Russia, only 20 meters at its deepest, but exceeding 3.5 kilometers in total length. The distance between the entrance lake and the furthest known underwater point equals 1 kilometer and 50 meters, with a diameter of 60 meters in the biggest underwater chamber, but with so clear water that two divers swimming at the opposite ends of the chamber can still see one another. Source: scaq.blogspot.com
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Bowman on North Baltimore’s preparation for big swims
Interesting interview here with coach Bob Bowman, CEO of North Baltimore Aquatics Club, about his swimmers preparations for last weekend and how it sets up for the summer. Estimating the level of rest that the swimmers got before the Indy meet, where 10 is total rest, Bowman says that Phelps was at 4 or 5.
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Klim is the Comeback Kid
A segment out of Network Ten‘s news broadcast, interviewing Michael Klim and his coach Rohan Taylor, plus exercise scientist Jeremy Oliver.
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The story of amazing Grace
USA Swimming has this fantastic story about Grace Waller, who in 2008 was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. She had to have her kneecap removed, and 6 inches of her femur plus muscle, but still managed to swim through it, switching from breaststroke to long-distance freestyle, ending up with setting the high school record in the 500 freestyle. Amazing.
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Britons focus on turns and dolphin kicks
Today’s British 200 medley champion James Goddard admits accordingly to SwimNews.com that the americans have been killing them underwater, and that they are therefore focusing hard on turns and dolphin kicks.
“We compared my backstroke to Ryan Lochte’s backstroke. The swimming speed was exactly the same. He just took 1.3 or 1.4 out of me on the turns alone. So that’s a massive wake-up call and that’s what we’ve been working on all year.”
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British champion, the 2nd time he swam 50 butterfly
It was only this season that 20-year-old Jack Marriott started to train seriously, increasing from 3 to 6 sessions a week, while studying engineering at Oxford University. He had swum a little when he was younger, but this was only his 2nd time competing in long course 50 butterfly, when he on Sunday became British champion with a time of 24.33, best time in Britain this year, and 6th best time ever. His very first attempt landed a title as British university champion, with a time of 24.56, qualifying him for the 2011 British Gas Championships. Britons don’t accept non-olympic events as qualifications for Shanghai 2011, but tomorrow there is the 100 butterfly.
Here is a video with the swim and following interview (at approximately 8:52)
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Can gene tests tell if kids can be sports stars?
According to USA Today, marketers of genetic tests claim that they can predict if kids are born to be elite athletes. Some customers say the test results help them steer their children to appropriate sports. But skeptical doctors and ethicists say the tests are putting profit before science and have a much greater price tag — potentially robbing perfectly capable youngsters of a chance to enjoy activities of their choice. Read USA Today.