Swimmer's Daily

  • Opinion on The ROAR …

    In case you might have not known, a huge event that will determine our national squad for a world championship has begun.

    Some of the best athletes in the world in this sport will take to a Sydney Sports Centre and most Australians wouldn’t have a clue.

    In case you don’t know what I’m talking about (you can be forgiven), the Australian Swimming Championships have begun. But thanks to the incompetence of Swimming Australia a few years ago, this event, once a huge part of Aussie sporting life, is off the radar.

    Read more here on theroar.com.au

  • FINA has updated its Rules and Regulations for the FINA 10km Marathon Swimming World Cup 2011 – 2013, drawing in particular attention to point 5.1 of Participation / Entries & Competition Format:

    5.1 Entries: Entries will be accepted only from National FINA Member Federations which must also enter a coach for each respective swimmer. The role of the coach is to represent the swimmer at the Technical Meeting, coach the swimmer during the practice, and most importantly, feed the swimmer during the event. The FINA Technical Delegate together with the Chief Referee will accept entries and register only swimmers accompanied by the respective coach who is in charge of swimmer recognition during the race. A swimmer without a coach present will not be allowed to start the race.

  • Kylie Palmer knocked out the national record in the women’s 200 free today at the Australian Long Course Nationals, in a touch-out triumph over now-former record holder Bronte Barratt, 1:55.73 to 1:55.74. Both swimmers eclipsed Barratt’s 2008 record of 1:56.60 also matched by Stephanie Rice in 2008. The quality was sky-high in Sydney, with Palmer and Barratt posting best and second best time this year, 4 other Aussies under 1:58, and all 8 finalists under 2 minutes. Via SwimmingWorld Magazine, results here.

  • Sun Xiaolei twice lowered the national record in the men’s 50 back at the Chinese Long Course Nationals in Wuhan today, first to a 25.12 in prelims, and then with a victorious time of 25.02 in the finale. Read more here on SwimmingWorld Magazine.

  • At the Spanish Open today, Mireia Belmonte García completed what was a strong meet with a national record time of 2:10.26 in the 200 IM, behind only Australia’s Alicia Coutts’ 2:10.06 and China’s 14-year-old Ye Shiwen’s 2:10.11 this year. And in the 400 free, Melanie Costa Schmid downed the Spanish record with a 4:07.09, moving into 11th place in the world rankings this year. Via SwimmingWorld Magazine and SwimNews.com

  • With Danish rival Mads Glæsner having scratched the 1500 meter freestyle, Pál Joensen of the Faroe Isles cruised to a dominant victory at the Danish Open tonight, in a time of 15:21.86 ahead of Denmark’s Anders Lie in 15:40.47 and Viktor B. Bromer in 16:01.71. Pál still trains all but except a few weeks a year in a 4-laned 25 meter pool in his hometown Vágur, on the most remote island of the Faroe Islands, all together only 50.000 inhabitants in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. Results here

  • China’s Sun Yang won the 800 freestyle at the Chinese Nationals today, posting incredible 7:44.12 compared to Sebastien Rouault’s 7:54.95 world’s best this year. Zhang Lin’s world record of 7:32.12 is still far ahead, but commenters at SwimmingWorld Magazine say from Chinese media, that Sun will no swim the 800 in Shanghai, saving his energy for the 1500, and that his swim now seemed like practice for the 1500. One commenter predicts a 14:20 in the 1500, compared to Grant Hackett’s 14.34.56 world record from 2001.

  • At the New Zealand Championships in Auckland tonight, US-based Lauren Boyle smashed the national record in the 400 freestyle, with a 4:07.61 nearly two seconds inside her record of 4:09.45 from the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. In the 100 butterfly, 15-year-old Sophia Batchelor became the first from her country to crack the minute, winning in 59.54, just 0.19 shy of the cut for Shanghai. First night Kiwi qualifiers for Shanghai are Lauren Boyle in the 400 free, Natalie Wiegersma with a 2:15.02 in the 200 IM, and Glenn Snyder with a 1:01.49 in the men’s 100 breaststroke. Sources: SwimNews.com and Swimming New Zealand.

  • Suffering from a recent bout of swine flu, Emily Seebohm collapsed today at the end of the Australian Championships women’s 100 backstroke final, managing silver in 1:00.08 inside the Shanghai cut, but then given oxygen and placed in a wheelchair. Coach Matt Brown told reporters that she had “knocked herself into the ground” and would now withdraw from the rest of the meet. Belinda Hocking won in 59.55. Source SwimNews.com, results here.