2012 SUMMER GAMES EDITION OCTOBER 2012 —VOLUME—VOLUME 5353 NO.NO. 10 “The daily news of swimming” Check us out online at: www.SwimmingWorldMagazine.com COMPLETE $3.95 USA • $4.50 CAN AQUATICS COVERAGE AND SPECIAL PHOTO ISSUE EXTENDED COVERAGE AT SWIMMING WORLD.COM TURBO COMPRESSION ENGINEERED IN FABRIC PURSUIT OF GOLD ROM STRAPS "! " "! "! ' !$ ! ! !" !$'!"#$ !!"! !#! " #' ! (## $ !#!% "! #!! !!!! ! " &" $ "" !$ ANATOMICALLY ENGINEERED FIT BONDEDFINISH LEG AVAILABLE NOW BONDED & FOUR-WAY LOCK SEAMS LESS DRAG LESS TYR.COM EVEN NATURE’S LAWS WERE MEANT TO BE BROKEN NIKE FLEX LT You don’t have to be a scientist to know the competitive advantage of this revolution in elite performance suits. Created from one piece of bonded fabric, the Nike Flex LT helps destroy drag and lets you slice through the water in a completely streamlined, stabilizing no-seam suit. With bonded seams and a compressed fit to help keep water out, it’s the optimum option in lightweight swim technology. 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Stott INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS Africa: Chaker Belhadj (TUN), Glen Byrom (ZIM); Australia: Wayne Goldsmith, Ian Hanson, Graham Senders; Europe: Norbert Agh (HUN), Camilo Cametti (ITA), Federico Ferraro (ITA), Oene Rusticus (NED), 3TEVEN3ELTHOFFER'%2 !NDY7ILSON'"2 Japan: Hideki Mochizuki; Middle East: Baruch “Buky” Chass, Ph.D. (ISR); South Africa: Neville Smith (RSA); South America:*ORGE!GUADO!2' !LEX0USSIELDI"2! PHOTOGRAPHERS/SWTV -ICHAEL!RON 0ETER"ICK "ILL#OLLINS 4ONY$UFFY 4IM-ORSE Andrea Nigh, George Olsen, Reuters, Getty Images OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF: PUBLISHER P.O. Box 20337 Sedona, AZ 86341 ENDORSED BY: Phone: 928-284-4005 SWIMMING WORLD MAGAZINE (ISSN 0039-7431). Note: permission to reprint articles or excerpts from contents is Fax: 928-284-2477 prohibited without permission from the publisher. The publisher is not responsible for errors in advertisements. Microfilm www.SwimmingWorldMagazine.com copies: available from University Microfilms, 313 N. First St., Ann Arbor, MI 48103. Swimming World Magazine is listed in the Physical Education Index. Printed in the U.S.A. © Sports Publications International, October 2012. 6 October 2012 PICTURED » With the swimming competition occupying the center circle of the 2012 London Olympics, no swimmer fared better than Michael Phelps, who announced his retirement, effective at the conclusion of his fourth Olympiad. He capped his competitive career with six Olympic medals—four gold and two silver—and raised his career Olympic medal count to 22, a record unlikely to be touched. 2012 OO LLYYMMPPIICCSS Eight Days of Excellence BY JOHN LOHN From July 28 through Aug. 4, the best our sport has to offer supplied plenty of enticing storylines to a rabid fan base. 8 October 2012 As seen at the American 4cam Swimming Coaches swimpro AAssociationssociation WWorldorld CCliniclinic 20201212 topseller SwimPro Platinum 600TV line custom made camera + accessories* SwimPro Floorcam 600TV line custom made SwimProX 600TV line custom made camera + accessories* camera + accessories* SwimPro Basix 600TV line custom made camera + accessories* HUGE 2000Gb hard drive recorder * see swimmingcam.com for accessories list. TV not included. Customised packages available contact Swimpro for more details. #%' ) #**'% ( '%'#" ##%!#("' '%-+ ( '" ! #""')', ( #% * !#("' &#$$# ( ')* #)*'% ! ' "!% &'& % View your live video stream on your iPad, iPhone, Android device & laptop...ptop... wirelessly! Check out our website for demos, coaches tips and more information on all SwimPros’ products! swimmingcam.com and Carl Lewis. ONDON— Phelps didn’t go without his struggles. In addi- The wait tion to his medal-free showing in the 400 IM, he was Lis long, upended by South African Chad Le Clos in his signa- and some- ture event, the 200 butterfly. Taking a page from the times grueling. Some individuals master’s playbook, Le Clos, a rising multi-event star, plunge into the golden pot at the chased down his idol over the final lap. end of their aquatic rainbow. Others Phelps, however, bounced back, prevailing in his realize quite the opposite, a painful sting final three events, including three-peats in the 200 IM of gloom and doom. The Olympic Games and 100 fly. By capturing three consecutive Olympic tend to be polarizing, with not much of a crowns in those events, Phelps became the first man to middle ground when it comes to satisfac- achieve the feat, and the first individual of either gen- tion. It’s the harsh reality of an event that is a der to pull off a trifecta in two different events. quadrennial focal point. His final bow came in the 400 medley relay, where The 30th edition of the Olympics did not he joined Matt Grevers, Brendan Hansen and Nathan disappoint when it came to London from late Adrian for one more gold medal. It was the proper July through the middle of August. And not surpris- ending for what has been a fairytale career, a sym- ingly, the swimming competition occupied the center phony orchestrated by longtime coach Bob Bowman circle of the greatest five-ring circus on Earth. that started with a 15-year-old qualifying for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. As the 2016 Olympics in Rio THE PHELPS FAREWELL de Janeiro near, some fans hope—and some are con- We all knew it was coming: the end of an era. Long vinced—Phelps will make a return to the sport he has before the London Games, Michael Phelps announced dominated for more than a decade. his retirement, effective at the conclusion of his fourth But the greatest Olympian in history says Olympiad. Truthfully, the North Baltimore Aquatic he’s done, and there is no reason to doubt Club standout had no incentive to return, his master- him. piece of eight gold medals at the Beijing Games in 2008 “I’ve been able to do all I wanted,” Phelps an impossible feat to match. said. “I put my mind to different goals Yet, Phelps opted for one more Olympic outing, a and was able to achieve them. Together, seven-event slate being his way of saying goodbye. (Bowman) and I managed everything. While it didn’t start well, thanks to a fourth-place If you can say that, there’s no need to finish in the 400 meter individual medley—possibly keep going.” suggesting a disastrous conclusion to a splendid career—Phelps ultimately came through in fine FINGER-POINTING form. Should we have expected anything else? After Mouths went agape. all, this is a guy who has wowed time and again. Rebounding from his slow start, Phelps capped his competitive career with six Olympic med- als—four gold and two silver—and raised his career Olympic medal count to 22, a record unlikely to be touched. With medal No. OLYMPIC SWIMMING 19, Phelps passed Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina as the most accomplished Country Gold Silver Bronze Total Olympian in history. More, his 18 United States 16 8 6 30 career gold medals are double Japan 0 3 8 11 his closest rivals, including China 5 2 3 10 two of the most distin- Australia 1 6 3 10 guished names in France 4 2 1 7 sporting history: Netherlands 2 1 1 4 Mark Spitz Russia 0 2 2 4 South Africa 2 1 0 3 Great Britain 0 1 2 3 10 October 2012 Jaws bounced off the tables in media row. Did that just happen? Yes, it did. With a closing leg the likes of which has never been seen before in the 400 IM, China’s Ye Shiwen dazzled on the opening night of competition. Overhauling American Elizabeth Beisel on the free- went out and reaffirmed that style leg, the 16-year-old powered to the gold medal in status in a big way. En route to 30 a world record 4:28.43.