Daniel Torres Samaniego, born on June 9, 1991, from Mexico and excels in the discipline of backstroke swimming. He is the former Mexican record for the 50 and 100 meter backstroke event.
Torres was born in Chihuahua, Mexico, in 1991, he graduated from the University of the Incarnate Word in 2015. While he was at the university, he swam for the Incarnate Word Cardinals and received seven individual and four relay CSCAA All-American honors during his two years in NCAA Division-II.
In the 2015 Pan American Games, Torres made it to the finals in the 100-meter backstroke, and he also competed in the 4×100-meter medley relay.
In the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games, Torres swam in the 50 and 100 backstroke events, reaching the final and placing 6th in the 100 backstroke and winning the gold medal in the 4×100 freestyle relay.
He was a 2-time champion at the 2023 US Master Swimming Spring Nationals in Irvine, CA in the 30-34 age group.
Multiple Olympic Champion and World Record Holder, Adam Peaty, has decided to leave its former swimsuit sponsor, Arena and is now part of the most powerful swimming brand in the world: Team Speedo.
Certainly, these are news that not a lot of people were expecting to hear. Since the beginning of Peaty’s career the British swimmer has always been using Arena when it comes to the biggest competitions on earth.
In 2015, when Adam Peaty first broke the 100 meter breaststroke world record, he was wearing Arena and the partnership between the two parties seemed stronger than ever after the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games. Nevertheless, things never last forever and that has to be accepted.
What does it mean for Adam Peaty to join Team Speedo?
3x Olympic Champion, Adam Peaty, is joining the swimming brand with the most history and most relevancy in the world. Adam Peaty will be joining athletes like Dressel and Ryan Murphy. Speedo certainly is the biggest brand out there! Congratulations.
What does it mean for team Speedo to sign the British Olympic Champion?
For Speedo it means honor and legacy. The brand has always had the best swimming stars like Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Dressel and now Peaty. More than 60% of Olympic Gold medalists at Tokyo used Speedo swimsuits, which is crazy to think!
Speedo 4×100 Medley Relay:
Imagine a relay with:
Ryan Murphy – Backstroke
Adam Peaty – Breaststroke
Dressel – Butterfly
Duncan Scott – Freestyle
WR would be broken!
Let us know in the comments if you want to see this happen?
In February swimming is not only about racing fast, but sharing experiences that motivate the younger generations to pursue their goals. This is exactly what the Copa Heller did: reunite the best Mexican and worldwide swimmers to provide a great show to the Mexican swimming community.
This might be something that the tournament has achieved in the past, however, for the first time in many years it was seen how the younger Mexican generations can challenge international and national olympic swimmers.
The international tournament count with the presence of swimmers like Miguel Chávez, Ricardo Vargas, Miguel de Lara, Héctor Ruvalcaba, Ángel Martínez, Melissa Rodríguez, Gabe Castaño,Michael Andrew, Dylan Carter, Sydney Pickrem, Hosszu, Chase Kalisz, Emiliano Mora, Maria Mata Cocco, among many others.
For the upcoming generation of swimmers, it is amazing to be able to race against your idols. It is a motivation booster that just a few people can actually experience and that was clearly seen in the performance of these young Mexican kids.
Women’s 200 butterfly:
Katinka Hosszu, Olympic silver medalist in this event from the 2016 Rio Olympics, could not handle Mata Cocco’s impressive swim of 2:12.81. The Mexican swimmer made it very clear that she is at the level of the best in the world.
Men’s 200 butterfly:
With an impressive 1:57.59 the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Champion, Kalisz, was the only one on the field to break the 2-minute barrier. Behind him his Georgia teammate, Litherland was second, and Mexico’s 200 fly specialist and LA Current start, Ruvalcaba, performed an impressive 2:02.32: considering his excellent altitude training with the rest of the Mexican National Team.
Men’s 50 backstroke:
Michael Andrew won with a solid time of 25.14, however, the two younger Mexican stars, Montoya and Godinez provided an amazing show to the public and made a statement that the younger Mexican swimmers are improving everyday. Montoya swam a great 27.15 while Carlos touched the wall in a time of 27.62.
Men’s 200 breast:
Probably one of the most expected races of the whole meet, due to the presence of the second fastest 100-meter breast specialist of all time in Arno Kamminga, Miguel Chávez and Miguel de Lara.
The Dutch swimmers touched the wall first in an impressive time of 2:11.49, while Chávez and Miguel de Lara finished almost at the same time with solid performances of 2:17.37 and 2:17.88, respectively.
Considering the altitude, the time of the season and the times achieved, most swimmers had an outstanding competition. For both, international and Mexican competitors the future looks promising and the 2023 World Swimming Championships in Budapest are expected to be fast.
Let us know in the comments who was your favorite swimmer of the competition!
The FINA World Swimming Championships are back. The international swimming federation just announced that a couple of weeks ago in a statement saying that the most important swimming competition of the year was going to be carried out in Budapest, Hungary.
The competition will happen from July 14 to July 30th, 2022. This will be the third time in a row that the Long Course World Swimming Championships are organized in Budapest. The previous occasions where in 2019 and 2017, where Dressel and Peaty were the stars of the meet respectively.
Budapest is one of the fastest competition swimming pools in the world. Here Caeleb Dressel broke Michael Phelps’s 100 fly world record for the first time, Sjöström broke the barrier of 52 seconds in the 100 freestyle, Milak destroyed the 200 butterfly world record in 2019 and finally, Adam Peaty made history by swimming under 26 seconds the 50 breast in 2017.
FINA has posted the top times for the competition and after analyzing them, it seems that the committee is giving more opportunity to upcoming young swimmers.
Comparison of the Tokyo 2021 Vs 2022 World Champs “A” Standards
Men’s Times:
Tokyo 2021 “A”
Budapest 2022 “A”
50 free
22.01
22.18
100 free
48.57
48.77
200 free
1:47.02
01:47.06
400 free
3:46.78
03:48.15
800 free
7:54.31
7:53.11
1500 free
15:00.99
15:04.64
100 back
53.85
54.03
200 back
1:57.50
1:58.07
100 fly
51.96
51.96
200 fly
1:56.48
1:56.71
100 breast
59.93
59.75
200 breast
2:10.35
2:10.32
200 IM
1:59.67
1:59.76
400 IM
4:15.84
4:17.48
The men’s times had a huge change in the freestyle events. The 50 free had a huge increase of 0.17, which will help more swimmers to qualify directly to the swimming competition.
Mexico has a huge potential here with Gabriel Castaño and hopefully more young swimmers. In the mix we can see Andres Dupont, Billy Cruz and Mariano Jasso.
In the breaststroke events Mexico has potential as well. Miguel de Lara, Miguel Chávez, Andres Puente and Emiliano Mora will be fighting for those positions.
Backstroke for Mexico is also very strong with Diego Camacho. The young swimmer from BYU had an amazing fall in 2021 and is looking to finally represent Mexico in the big stage.
In events like 200 and 400 IM, and the big distance events Mexico counts with Ángel Martínez, Héctor Ruvalcaba and Ricardo Vargas. The three have been training amazing and their future looks very promising. Certainly they are very capable to swim under the “A” cut, and some have already done so.
Women’s Times:
Tokyo 2021 “A”
Budapest 2022 “A”
50 free
24.77
25.04
100 free
54.38
48.77
200 free
1:57.28
01:58.66
400 free
4:07.90
4:10.57
800 free
8:33.36
8:37.90
1500 free
16:32.04
16:29.57
100 back
1:00.25
1:00.59
200 back
2.10.39
2:11.08
100 fly
57.92
58.33
200 fly
2:08.43
2:09.21
100 breast
1:07.07
1:07.43
200 breast
2:25.52
2:25.91
200 IM
2:12.56
2:12.98
400 IM
4:38.53
4:43.06
On the women’s side is also very interesting to see the swimmers that can achieve these standards. Maria Mata Cocco, Melissa Rodríguez, Ayumi Macias, Regina Caracas, Celia Pulido y muchas otras más están en la contienda por conseguir los tiempos debajo de la marca mínima requerida para clasificar directo.
The best breast specialist of Mexico, Melissa, has already been under the “A” cut required for Budapest 2022 and now her job will be to demonstrate to the younger generations that anything is possible. Ayumi is very close to that 1500 free “A” cut with her time posted in Lima 2019, while the rest of the swimmers certainly have the quality of swimming at the international level but will have to improve a little bit more.
Let’s see how many swimmers can achieve these “A” standards for Budapest 2022!
For Latin America is a huge opportunity and I can assure you that Mexican swimmers are more than ready.
Bruno Moreno interviewing Olympic & World Champion Adam Peaty at ISL 2020.
MY STORY:
“I will work until everyone knows my name”. This is what I, Bruno Moreno Gutiérrez, told my family when I turned 17 years old. Growing up in a very competitive environment, allowed me to understand that the world is full of prepared people and that if I really want to pursue my goals, hard word, dedication and values will be needed during the process.
I’m not afraid of facing those challenges, because my winning mindset keeps me motivated to represent my name, company and values at the best of my abilities.
The skills I possessed are due to my commitment to become a better person every single day. One of my goals is to create an impact on my community and I was fortunate to have the opportunity to start doing that at a young age in the sports industry. At only 12 years old I became a national junior level swimmer and three years later I won my first national age-group medal.
Swimming was the sport that chose me and I could not be more proud of what I achieve as a swimmer in the pool. Maybe I did not go to the Olympics or won a world championship medal, but all the state and national awards I achieved were the result of honest work and discipline that I invested in the pool and gym every single day of my life.
I will never give up, and I’m aware that I might not be the best in everything I participate in; but I can assure you that no one will work as hard as I do. Not only that, but no one will use their resources or opportunities as I do. I’m always learning, paying attention and using my time with wisdom, because in my opinion what you do with your time; determines your future.
At only 18 years old I was studying, at one of the most prestigious business schools in the world: Hult International Business School and I was an analyst and commentator for the International Swimming League. The main is reason of achieving this is my education. Apart from being an athlete, I learned 5 different languages: Spanish, German, French, Italian and English. Certainly it was challenging to do, however, as I mentioned before nothing scares me.
That is what I thought before my grandmother passed away. She raised and helped me all my life and instead of being depressed, I started my own business where I help students to get college scholarships in all over the world.
I want to be an example of the future generations and demonstrate to them that nothing is impossible. I’m the perfect example of that.
At the beginning everything was a dream, however, I decided to make it a reality. I achieved my goal of studying overseas, I’m making an impact on people while making profit and people are starting to know my name. I know this is only the beginning of something great, but patience will be needed.
As Michael Phelps said: “is what you do in the dark that puts you in the dark”, and I plan to keep doing that. I just the need an opportunity, that is all and once I get it; everyone will know my name.
Swimming is one of the most popular sports in the summer Olympics, however, not all viewers are necessarily involved in the aquatic community; but after interacting with it they all fall in love with it.
This is exactly what Skills NT’s mission is: to increase the amazing swimming community by providing useful information, teaching people how to swim and creating an impact in and outside the water.
Who is making a contribution?
Being aware of your followers and appreciating them is one of our values, therefore this month’s special award goes to Antonio Sosa.
As mentioned before, the mission of making the swimming community even bigger is the main goal, and now it can be said that Mr. Sosa is a new member of it. You might we wondering, how is he contributing to the articles if he has never been part of the aquatic community?
Well, he has influenced my life, like no other people have.
A Tribute to a Family Member: a Great Person Making an Impact:
He is a great person, an individual who has goals and that is never afraid of trying something new. He is the perfect example for the younger generation that anything is possible, because his determination, character and mentality allow him to think outside the box and achieve great things.
Even though, he is not an Olympic swimmer, he has the same mindset; the mindset of never giving up, to always pursue the main goal. This has allowed him to achieve unique recognitions that make him one of the most successful young entrepreneurs from his country and university. I personally admire and respect him a lot. He has gave me so many ideas and taught me new skills, that all I can say is thank you Mr. Sosa, thank you very much my friend.
WORK HARD & SUCCESS WILL COME:
Michael Phelps one said: “is what you do in the dark, that puts you in the light”, because he was aware that hard work and discipline overcome talent.
Now imagine if you have a great skill set and your passion and discipline are even bigger than your natural abilities; then the world has to be worried, because once you are ready, people for sure are going to know your name.
MOTIVATED, just like Mr. Phelps
Mr. Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time, and his success started at a young age, just like the recognition of Mr. Sosa. He might be young, but his experience, determination and skills are out of this world, and it is just a matter of time until he makes a huge statement and the entire planet knows his name.
He is motivated, just like Michael Phelps was when he passed to his first Olympic final in Sydney 2000. Antonio is ready for the next chapter in his life. He has no need to find the path for success, because he is already in it.
Even though, Mr. Sosa never practice swimming as a high-performance sport, he is still making a huge impact on his hometown, college and aquatic community. This is just to show you, that anything is possible.
If you want to start swimming today, do it; if your main goal is to be an Olympic champion but you are afraid of the challenge, don’t be and start training today. Your mentality and actions determined your future. Definitely Mr. Sosa is the clear representation that being involved in new industries and being a leader and example within the community, differentiate him from other people.
It has been almost 3 years since the last World Swimming Championships and people cannot wait anymore. Not only fans are waiting for this competition to happen, but athletes really want to carry the momentum they have built in the past few months, and have the best championship of their lives.
The Olympic Games were a huge breakout meet for a lot of young stars and these athletes are becoming the face of the high-performance swimming community. Some of these swimmers achieved gold medals at the Olympics, while others were just out of the podium.
That being said, this would be the appropriate swimming meet to see if these young stars matured and can use their Olympic experience to finally medal or become world champion.
What can we expect from the swimmers?
Since the pandemic at the beginning of 2020, professional and high level swimmers have only had the Olympics in Tokyo as the major long course meet. Even though ISL, occurred in 2020 and 2021, swimmers have only had one opportunity to prove themselves.
On one hand some of them achieved their goals in Tokyo and now are in the process of taking a break and coming back to proper form.
On the other side, young talented athletes have been gaining experience in international competitions to be on the best form, mentally and physically, to confront the biggest swimming meet of 2022 or at least that is what everyone was expecting.
FINA might postpone Worlds:
The most desired swimming event of the year might not happen, according to sources (SwimSwam, 2021).
The international competition was supposed to be organized by Japan in the city of Fukuoaka, however, due to a recent increase in COVID cases in the Asian country, officials are really considering to push the meet to 2023.
There was a reunion, where the FINA bureau discussed the current scenario of Japan and it appears the it is very likely that the World Championships who are scheduled for May 13, to May 29, 2022 are going to happen until next year.
From the perspective of the Japanese Government and the committee, it is a very reasonable decision because since the Olympics Japan has had considerable increase in COVID cases.
Japan was one of the first countries to face the pandemic and so far is one of the few countries that has implemented a lot of regulations in order to prioritize the health of its citizens.
The new variant, Omicron, is very contagious and the last thing FINA and the committee want is a swimmer to test positive.
On the other hand, if these news are seen from the perspective of the athletes, coaches and fans; the outcome is very different.
Swimmers just want to race, get the opportunity to achieve their goals. This mentality of wanting to be better each competition is just amazing and is a characteristic that most swimmers possessed. specifically the new generation.
These young male and female swimmers like Michael Andrew, Andrei Minakov, Milak and Regan Smith; are becoming the face of the sport and therefore, have a huge responsibility with the entire swimming community.
Even though the desire of racing is very high, athletes, coaches and fans need to understand the current health situation of the world.
Everyone knows the preparation that it is required to compete at a World Championships and postponing one year the event, is not the ideal plan, nevertheless, the world already saw what happens when you give swimmers one more year of preparation.
One thing is sure, whenever the World Championships happen; they are going to be the fastest.
Swimming is one of the most watched disciplines at the Olympics, however, people never realize how taxing it can be. To become a professional swimmer one requires character and a lot of discipline to be able to face the obstacles that the journey will bring.
Even though the process is long and difficult, it does not affect the mentality of most swimmers, because they know that the reward at the end will be priceless.
Swimmers can train more than 14 sessions per week:
Swimming is considered to be a low impact sport and a discipline that requires a lot of aerobic training, therefore swimmers’ training sessions can have a large volume of yards and can be up to 10k in some occasions.
Most of swimmers who achieved the Olympic dream, started to get involve in the sport at an early age and this definitely could have helped to get through to taxing training sessions.
The aerobic and anaerobic capacity in swimming are crucial, however, without the appropriate aerobic training a swimmer cannot develop power and explosiveness in the water.
This being said, high performance swimming sessions are hard and not all people have the facility and ability to do them. Training, as a swimmer, to compete at a World or Olympic level is not an easy task.
One must be very patient, because the journey will have tears and blood; and trust me, it will be more mentally taxing, than physically.
Sprinters & Distance Swimmers: Is there a big difference?
Even though all are called swimmers, that does not mean they are all doing the same type of sessions. According to the event, a swimmer will require a certain stimulus during training, therefore in most teams athletes are divided in short and long distance specialists.
On one hand the professional sprinters focused more on power, the reason being that these type of athletes compete in the 50`s, 100’s and in some occasions the 200’s.
On the other side, distance swimmers have sessions with a mix of both aerobic and anaerobic workouts.
Some people might argue that one is harder than other, nevertheless, the reality is that they are both very different training styles.
A swimmer, regarding if sprinter of distance specialist, is going to be positively affected when practicing these training methods because the athlete is receiving a different stimulus than the one he or she were already used to, and therefore the development of new physical capacities could be easier.
Sprinter Vs Distance Swimmer: A Week of kilometers in the pool:
(SwimSwam, 2018)
The information given by the graph, is based on Michal Andrew’s swimming sessions prior to his participation at the Tokyo Olympics where he won Gold with team USA. These results are being compared with Paltrinieri’s, the Olympic Champion from Italy.
Andrew is a swimmer whose training is more focused in ultra-short race pace training (USRPT), therefore his sessions are around the 3,300 meter; while distance swimmer like Paltrinieri whose specialty in the pool are the 800 and 1500 freestyle tends to swim within the 7,000 km mark per session.
Ryan Lochte: Most difficult swimming workout
One of the most decorated Olympians of all time is Ryan Lochte, whose swimming technique and endurance are one of the most impressive of all time. This is due to the amount and high quality training that has done in the past few years.
The Olympic and World Champion Titles are no easy task at all, due to the amount of dedication that is needed; not only in the pool, but outside of it.
This being said, the water workouts are extremely important and some of them might seem impossible to get through, therefore the next swimming training will demonstrate that Ryan Lochte is out of this world. He is just capable of doing unique things!
The most challenging swimming workout of Ryan Lochte:
4 rounds:
2x 100 fly @ 1:30 all out
2x 50 back @ :50 all out
100 free @ 1:20
400 IM @ 5:00 from the blocks
The 400 IM Olympic Champion of London 2012, Lochte, was capable of suffering the pain of this crazy workout. He averaged 4:28’s in the 400’s IM, which confirms that the American swimmers is not human.
Would you be able to do this swimming workout?
Let us know in the comments the hardest swimming workout you have done!
Beginning of a new era: Mexican Swimming Federation
Bruno Moreno Gutiérrez
Swimming: a beautiful sport
Swimming is one of the most demanding sports out there. Physically and mentally is very challenging, due to the amount of time that athletes dedicated to the sport. The amount of time and dedication that swimmers invest in their diet, rest and training influences their overall performance a lot.
This being said, swimmers know that only hard work, dedication and persistence would position them at the top, therefore they take their responsibility very serious: it is a full time job. In countries like the United States, Japan or Australia swimming is a very recognized sport and athletes are treated like professionals, they receive a fair salary for their performances and have access to high quality facilities.
Countries where sport’s performance is a priority:
What do the United States, Japan and Australia have in common? In comparison to Mexico, these countries are all swimming forces and therefore, are always in the fight for that first place on the medal table.
Results can be demanded to these swimming federations, because they support seriously their athletes, coaches and staff. For example, APA USA Swimming gives all, American swimmers who are ranked within the top 16 in the world, between $2,163 and $3,224 every month (ANDERSON, 2019).
These are swimming federations whose main interest is related to helping their athletes, nevertheless, there are some countries that only ask for results without the presence of a plan. Unfortunately, this is the reality of the Mexican Swimming Federation (FMN).
The reality: telling truth is hard
“There has never been a plan, a project whose main focus is to help the development of high-performance athletes.” These are words from multiple times national medalist, AJ Nadadores, Morelos & Mexican swimming team coach: Joel Rodríguez.
A claim that perfectly describes the Mexican Swimming Federation during the past few years, precisely when the COVID 19 Pandemic started.
Mr. Todorov, the current president of the FMN, has disappeared from his charge for almost two years, therefore the communication between the federation and its best swimmers stopped.
The current president pf the FMN, abandoned his main responsibility, which was to provide all support needed to the Mexican swimmers who were looking to qualify to the Tokyo Olympics.
Even though this occurred, the mentality and hunger of the Mexican senior national team was the same. The swimmers all came together as a team with the objective of representing Mexico to the best of their abilities on the Olympic stage.
Mexico’s Swimming National Team:
Melissa Rodríguez, Tokyo 2020 Olympian for Mexico, is the clear example that hard work, dedication and determination always pay off. She was fortunate to accomplish what might only be a dream for the majority of the people, which is to compete at the Olympics.
Now she uses her platform to inspire the next generation of swimmers. When giving her opinion she is always honest, even if that includes expressing the instability of the FMN. “The FMN is lacking interest for the athletes, they never put the swimmers as their first priority. There is no current relationship.”
Even though this is a disappointing situation, Melissa and national team members like Ángel Martínez or Gabriel Castaño are still chasing their goals. They had great results at both, the Olympics and the most recent World Short Course Swimming Championships in Abu Dhabi.
Historic Results:
In the World Championships celebrated in Abu Dhabi the Mexican team has amazing results, specifically the breakout swimmer of the entire meet: Ángel Martínez. The Cali Condors’ swimmer had an outstanding ISL season that motivated him to achieve a final in the men’s 200 meter butterfly where he placed 7th.
This was a historic performance for Martínez Gómez and Mexico, making the president of FINA to be interested in the current situation of the Mexican Swimming Federation.
Historically, Mexico is not known for being a country specialized in swimming, however, these group of swimmers are starting to break the stereotype.
The best female breaststroker, Melissa Rodríguez, mentioned: “the motivation is personal, the expectations need to be increased so the future generations can succeed.” This already can be seen in the pool, and definitely FINA, ISL and other world organizations are noticing it.
The Future of the FMN:
FINA’s president already sees the potential of what the Mexican swimmers can achieve in the following years, with the appropriate support and facilities. The world already witnessed of what Mexican swimmers can do, just like at the 1968 Mexico Olympic Games where Mexico took gold in the men’s 200 breaststroke.
The current FMN President, Todorov, and his colleagues need to abandon their positions immediately. A federation with a different mentality and work ethic must be created if a change is really the desired outcome.
The talent is already here. Mexico can definitely become powerhouse in swimming if the required support is granted to athletes.
The change must start now, and just as Joel Rodríguez said: “if a plan doesn’t exist, Mexican swimming is going to go nowhere. The lack of a winning culture and mentality doesn’t allow coaches and swimmers to improve.”
When is this change of mentality going to start? Mexican swimming needs a new beginning.
What is your opinion about the situation in Mexico?
Swimming is a very hard sport and preparation is key to have the best performance. It doesn’t matter if the swimming meet is a state championship or the World Championships, taper is a crucial part of the process to get the result you have been training for years. Taper is when swimmers rest their body by decreasing the volume in the pool and gym, and this normally occurs at the end of the season.
There is this way of thinking that one should train a lot of yardage and then rest, to be able to compete at the maximum level. This has become so popular among swimmers and coaches that it is now a stereotype, where people depend on the amount of yards that they swim every single day.
This perspective about swimming training has been around for a couple of decades, however, the COVID 19 Pandemic made swimmer to stop their training. Not because they wanted, but because of the lockdown established by the governments, forcing all establishments to close.
Get out of the comfort zone:
Not being able to train made swimmers who were used to swim a big amount of yards every single day to struggle physically, but even more mentally.
When a routine has already been established and you are used to a certain stimulus while training, it is very difficult to abandon that routine, therefore most high-level swimmers used all resources available to keep training in and outside the pool.
This sacrifice was with the purpose to keep being in good shape to be able to assist to the Olympic Games during the summer of 2020, however, COVID 19 case increased all around the world and this forced the IOC to postpone the games for the next summer.
A new and different environment: The current situation of the Games
Now that the swimmer knew about the decision of the IOC, the lack of motivation arrived because there was no competition to train for. At the same that this decision was made public, training centers and pools closed in most countries due to regulations against COVID19, forcing swimmers to be out of the water for several weeks.
Swimmers usually do not take big breaks, because this sport is very jealous and it requires a lot of hard work and dedication, therefore most analysts were expecting regular performances if the Olympic Games were going to happen in the summer of 2021.
This being said, the skills and capability of the athletes were never in doubt, but what was concerning most people was the lack of time in the pool prior to the games.
Never doubt swimmers: they are incredible athletes
Once the first night of finals in Tokyo happened, the doubt about mediocre races immediately disappeared. The Australian women dominated the 4×100 free relay and they set a new world record with a time of 3:29.69 (NBC Sports, 2021). This race was just a little taste of what it was going to happen. Dressel and McKeon broke Olympic and World records and were the stars of the entire meet.
The following two tables (male and female) will compare the results of the 100 fly, back and free in the past three Olympic Games (2012, 2016 & 2021).
Men’s Results
100 fly
100 free
100 back
Tokyo 2021
49.45
47.02
51.98
Rio 2016
50.39
47.58
51.97
London 2012
51.21
47.52
52.16
Women’s Results
100 fly
100 free
100 back
Tokyo 2021
55.59
51.96
57.47
Rio 2016
55.48
52.70
58.45
London 2012
55.98
53.00
58.33
(FINA, 2021)
*The tables show the time of the winner in the respective races. Compared to 2012, in the last games it took a 49.45 (new WR) to get the gold. Dressel’s 2021 time is 1.76 seconds faster than Michael Phelps’ time in the final of the London 2012 games.
On the women’s side, McKeon set a new Olympic record with her incredible 51.96. She became one of the few women to break the barrier of the 52 seconds.
Tokyo 2020: waiting a year was worth it
In summary, the Tokyo Olympic Games were a complete success. Athletes had a safe stay in the Olympic Village and were able to perform at their maximum level, by following the great protocols and norms established by the IOC, the Japanese Olympic Committee and the Japanese government.
Even though swimmers experienced a forced break of several weeks due to the pandemic, their times were incredibly fast. This was the first time in a while that most of the best swimmers in the world stopped their training just a few months before the start of the most important swim meet that occurs every 4 years.
This being said, these results have brought doubts about the way of training and coaching. Is it really necessary to swim a big volume of yards?
The swimming philosophy is weird and not even swimmers can explain it. Maybe this was what it was needed: a break that could revolutionize the way swimmers train. There has been some swimmers that have been dealing with over training symptoms and even depression, therefore coaches should definitely consider to give swimmers more rest. We do not need another pandemic to show that rest is needed of you want to perform at your best.
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