25 WAYS TO SPRINT A FASTER 25 AND JUNIOR SWIMMER FEBRUARYSwimmingWorldSwimmingWorld 2004 VOL. 45 NO.2 $3.95 USA $4.50 CAN Olympic Trials: The Ultimate Reality Show High School Kids at the Big O’s Perfect Your Start Leisel Jones Aussie World Record Holder 02> 7425274 81718 GET YOUR FEET WET AT WWW.SWIMINFO.COM Wind Tunnels. That’s so ‘90s. It’s out there. ©2004 TYR Sport, Inc. All Rights Reserved. There is no other place like it in the world. Research and development included use of the annular flume located in the Center for Research and Education in Special Environments at the University of Buffalo. The resulting suit technology is now in patent application, something unique to performance swimwear. Always in front. February 2004 Volume 45 No. 2 SwimmingWorldSwimmingWorldAND JUNIOR SWIMMER FEATURES YMCAs—A Springboard for Olympians 16 By Kari Lydersen Most people may not associate elite swimming programs with YMCAs, but many of America’s Olympians got their start at their local Y. Cover Story Lethal Leisel 20 By Stephen J. Thomas In Sydney, at 14, Leisel Jones became the youngest swimmer to make the Australian Olympic team in 24 years, and won a silver medal. Now she’s aiming for gold in 2004. (Cover photo by Jeff Crow, Sport•The Library) The Ultimate Proving Ground 24 By Tito Morales Not all countries select their Olympic swimming teams the same way, but in the U.S., the rules are simple: if you succeed at Trials, you’re in; if you don’t, you stay home. DEPARTMENTS COLUMNS Technique Coaching 6 Editor’s Note 7 The Start 26 Tech Tip: Breaststroke (Part II) 8 Lane 9 28 25 Ways to Improve Your 25 31 The Official Word Junior Swimmer By Phillip Whitten 54 For the Record 11 Speedo American Relay 58 SwimMart 12 NAG Record Setter Camp Listings 60 Calendar 13 Be My Valentine 33 Swimming World’s 31st Annual 61 Classified 14 TYR Age Group Swimmers 62 Parting Shot of the Month Rankings 48 NAG Top 16 (Long Course) High School 18 Sudden Impact By John Lohn SWIMMING WORLD AND JUNIOR SWIMMER (ISSN 0039-7431) is published monthly by Sports Publications, Inc., 228 Nevada St., El Segundo, CA 90245. Periodicals Postage Paid at El Segundo, CA and at additional mailing offices. Rates: $3.95 a copy ($4.50 in Canada); $29.95 a year in U.S.; $40.95 a year all other countries (Canadian subscribers must add 7% GST). Foreign international money order in U.S. funds payable at 228 Nevada St., El Segundo, CA 90245. Postmaster: send address changes to Swimming World, 228 Nevada St., El Segundo, CA. Subscribers: send change of address six weeks before moving day. Please indicate zip code. Send label from last issue with address change. Request for missing issues older than two months from current date will be honored only when accompanied by payment. Note: permission to reprint articles or excerpts from contents is prohibited without permission from the publisher. Not responsible for errors Page 28 in repeat advertisements after first insertion. Microfilm copies: available from University Microfilms, 313 N. First St., Ann Arbor, MI 48103. Swimming World is listed in the Physical Education Index. Printed in the U.S.A. © Swimming World and Junior Swimmer, February 2004. 4 SWIMMING WORLD AND JUNIOR SWIMMER FEBRUARY 2004 Arizona Sports Ranch Swim Camps “Where the Best Come to Get Better” Competitive Stroke Swimming Specialty Camps Camps Girls & Boys 9-18 Girls & Boys 9-18 • 8 Weekly Sessions • Butterfly June 6 to July 31 June 6-12 and July 4-10 “The ASR Competitive Ranch House Suites. Swimming and Stroke • Covers All Strokes • Backstroke 2 Rooms, Private Bathroom Specialty Swim Camps bring June 13-19 and July 11-17 Air Conditioning, Single Beds together great young • Covers All Turns Fridge, Roommate request OK! swimmers for some out- • Breaststroke standing workouts, learning • IM Format Training June 20-26 and July 25-31 experiences and lots of fun! • IM Formt Stroke You will create competitive • Freestyle Work and Drills June 27-July 3 and July 18-24 friendships with swimmers from around the country. ONLY ONLY $475 per Week $500 per Week “Coaches, we have some great things to say to your swimmers that they need to “The Best” hear! Example, the Short • Daily Video Session to Explain in Talk, “How to Treat and great detail the Stroke Patterns used by the great Motivate Your Coach!” We swimmers! will do a good job with your •A Great “Short Talk” Series for knowledge, skills, swimmers! and motivation. “Come join us in the fun!” •Daily Stroke Sessions to apply and reinforce the Video and Short Talk Sessions. Bob Gillett ASR Owner and Swim Coach •“Flex-Lane” Training to adjust each swimmer’s workload to just the right distance and intensity Video Taping Project levels. Even the most advanced swimmers will A video taping is made of each swimmer: front, side, return back to their home programs in great condi- underwater and above tion! water. An instructional •Limited Camp Size, Only 32 Swimmers per Week video is produced for each • Fun Evening Activities: movies, mall, water park. individual swimmer using graphic and voice overlays. •Video Taping using the “Video Swim Blaster!” This teaching tool is worth • Computer Assisted Race Evaluation–you will “Each year when I was grow- the cost and effort of the learn exactly what you must FOCUS upon for entire camp. It is a sensa- ing up, I loved Swim Camp at tional opportunity for a top Improvement! the Sports Ranch! I really developing swimmers! • 50 Meter and 25 Yard Pools. No Pool Limitations! enjoyed making such great friends with swimmers from •Safe and Secure with all facilities on the ASR 10 all over. What a great experi- acre site: Ranch House, Pools, Everything! ence! It will help you get •Ranch House Guest Suites: each unit has two better and be motivated! I still love meeting all the kids!” rooms, bathroom, sink and small fridge for snacks! Misty Hyman • FREE Airport Pickup and Return in the ASR Van! 2000 Olympic Champion– •Easy, fun weekend stay-overs! 200 Fly Weekend trip to the Grand Canyon. Register TODAY! Arizona Sports Ranch, 19232 N. 38th Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85050 (approx. 15 min. north of Phx. Intern. Airport) Voice: (602) 569-1457 Fax: (602) 569-1414 E-mail:[email protected] www.sportsranch.com EDITOR’S NOTE By Phillip Whitten SwimmingWorldSwimmingWorldAND JUNIOR SWIMMER EDITORIAL AND PRODUCTION Athletes Caught in a P.O. Box 20337, Sedona, AZ 86341 (928) 284-4005 • (928) 284-2477 fax e-mail: [email protected] Catch-22 Website: http://www.swiminfo.com Publisher . .Richard Deal e-mail: [email protected] Chief Executive Officer . .Brent Rutemiller e-mail: [email protected] his is the first part of a two-part dione, their protestations had the Editor-in-Chief . .Phillip Whitten (480) 874-9364 e-mail: [email protected] editorial on a taboo topic: swim- ring of truth—in part because such Senior Editor . .Bob Ingram Tmers who test positive on drug microscopic quantities have e-mail: [email protected] tests despite, apparently, not having absolutely no effect on perfor- Executive Art Director . .Karen Deal taken any illegal substance. mance, and in part because the pat- e-mail: [email protected] Production Assistant . .Judy Jacob tern of their performances, by and e-mail: [email protected] Just about ten years ago, large, are inconsistent with drug- Advertising Production Coordinator . .Betsy Houlihan Swimming World launched a cam- taking. (This is in stark contrast with e-mail: [email protected] paign to alert the world of interna- the pattern we observed among MARKETING, ADVERTISING, tional sport to the fact that China Chinese and East German swim- SUBSCRIPTIONS AND ADMINISTRATION was systematically doping its swim- mers.) 228 Nevada St., El Segundo, CA 90245 mers. It was an uphill battle, but So we decided to investigate. (310) 607-9956 • (310) 607-9963 fax eventually severe penalties for dop- Turns out, we were beaten to the Subscriptions . .Pennye Monk • ext. 104 e-mail: [email protected] ing were imposed and the integrity punch. More than a year ago, the Merchandise Manager . .Marsha VanAmersfort of our sport was preserved. IOC and WADA conducted a broad ext. 106 • e-mail: [email protected] It was a proud chapter in the study of the manufacturers and dis- Advertising and Marketing proud history of this magazine, and tributors of legal supplements. Toni Blake • (310) 607-9956 • ext. 110 e-mail: [email protected] it led directly to the creation of the They found that about 18 percent One Tempo, Kim Miller • (602) 418-2102 World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) of the companies were selling legal e-mail: [email protected] and a serious attempt at fighting the supplements that were tainted with Printer . .Schumann Printers, Inc. scourge of drugs in sport. But it’s not illegal, performance-enhancing sub- Published by Sports Publications, Inc., publishers of always a good thing when a moral stances. That’s about one in five! Swimming World and Junior Swimmer, Swimming Technique and SWIM Magazines. impulse is transformed into a This doesn’t mean that every fifth bureaucracy. Bureaucracies have a pill sold by Company A was tainted. Contributors: Dana Abbott, NISCA; Tony Duffy, photog- universal tendency to abandon their It means that one in five companies rapher; Sam Freas, ISHOF; John Leonard, ASCA; Josh creative spirit. sold some legal pills, powder, liquids Jeffrey; John Lohn; Kari Lydersen; Tim Morse, photograph- er; Mary Wagner, USA Swimming. Recently, we began to notice a dis- or capsules that were contaminated. Foreign Correspondents: Africa: Chaker Belhadj; turbing pattern: several swimmers These legal products, taken by an Australia: Forbes Carlile, Stephen J.