Note from Convention Education Athletes!

Hello everyone.

April and Kekoa would like your input on the following matter...


Hey Athlete Reps!

It's April and Kekoa from the Convention Education Committee. We will be having our committee meeting in a month or so and we wanted to ask a few questions:

1. Is there anything you want to see at convention that you feel the athletes have been missing out on in the past?

2. Is college 101 and or 201 necessary? redundant?

3. We are planning on having a "energy drinks" talk. Is there anything in particular that you athletes would like to gain from that?

4. Last year we ran a "Future Tech: Law Issues and Legal Risks" session. For those of you who may not remember it was mostly a session on how facebook (or social networks in general) and other forms of technology have an impact on athletes. Would you be interested in hearing about this again?

5. What other types of special sessions would you swimmers feel you could personally gain from?

We are asking you these questions because although we design the informative meetings, we would really like them to benefit your needs. Thanks for your thoughts and opinions in advance!

Thanks,

Kekoa and April


Please respond to them via email at:

April Robinson chimpanzee_swim@hotmail.com

Kekoa Taparra ktaparra@gmail.com

Thanks,
Chris Thompson
AEC Recruitment and Leadership

USA Swimming's next BIG Idea!

It’s time to think about London 2012 and the future of USA Swimming!

Chuck Wielgus and company are looking for the next Big Idea and would like your help. The Big Idea search is now open to everyone.

Over 70 ideas have been submitted. You can find them on SwimNetwork.com

Feel free to comment on the existing ideas or submit one yourself!

Swimming vs. Winter Games Sports

Sometimes I feel spoiled when I explain our sport to others. It's so straight forward. You're not judged on the design of your suit, the path of your stroke, or the amount of water you displace. You may do things to alter anyone of those aspects in training and in race preparation, but once the race starts its simple - touch the wall first without cheating and you win. Swimming typically avoids headlines like the ones dispatched from the recent Vancouver Games - Nodar Kumaritashvili, 21 year old Georgian Luge Slider Dies in Practice Run , and Dutch Speed Skating Coach costs Sven Kramer Gold. And our sport knows that it at the end of a race two athletes (or two teams) are tied, they both equally deserve the medal they were fighting for.

But how protected are we from some of the headlines from this past winter Games? How different is an organizing committee building a track an unsafe 5% (up to 15 mph) faster than any other track used in international competition, and an organizing committee ignoring the issue of water quality on open water courses leading to athletes being exposed to unknown toxins for nearly two hours and as a result having ongoing health issues for the rest of their lives. USA Olympian and AEC member, Kalyn Keller, feels strongly about this topic. If inherent risk is avoidable, isn't it the responsibility of FINA (and furthermore, USA Swimming) to do something about it?

Michael Phelps / Youth Olympic Games / Under Armour

We are about as far away from the summer Olympics and Michael Phelps still continues to make headlines. Its been a little less than 2 years since his record breaking 8 gold medals, and its a little over 2 years until the last Olympics in which he will compete - something he has been saying since Beijing. But it comes as no surprise that he has broken the mold of seasonal Olympics and is a household name anywhere the Olympic rings are displayed.

Last week Phelps was announced as the Ambassador of the Youth Olympic Games. The YOGs are a new IOC initiative to reinforce the values of the Olympics in 205 nations through the fair play and participation of youth athletes. The inaugural YOGs will take place on August 14-26, 2010 in Singapore. For more information (or to vote on the official medal design) visit the official site.

Secondly he can be seen in the latest Under Armour commercial. I gotta tip my hat to Peter Carlisle of Octagon who is likely the one most responsible for engineering this relationship. Marketing outside of the typical swimming brands, when there is a reason to do so, is a great move. Swimmers are known for their work ethic, which is great connection with UA's training mantra and the company is based in Baltimore, Phelps' home town. With a limited number of swimwear brands endorsing US athletes, and the number of athletes getting swimwear manufacturers down. It's great to see swimmers like Phelps diversifying his endorsements.

So tell me this, what would Phelps' Combine results be? Is his 40 on land faster than his 40 under water? Is 2012 when he enters the draft with the hopes of being picked up by the Baltimore Ravens?