Meg Keller-Marvin, Author at International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF)

International Swimming Hall of Fame Ceremonies a “Go” for this Year – USA Only, October 9th!

by MEG KELLER-MARVIN
26 August 2021,

The International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) has made the decision to move forward with its annual events to induct new honorees into its esteemed Hall and honor its Paragon Award winners.
The events will be combined into one evening on October 9th, and will honor only those living in the United States due to Covid-19 travel restrictions. The evening will honor 14 people, including 5 ISHOF Inductees, 4 Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame (MISHOF), 4 Paragon Award winners, and 1 Lifetime Achievement award.
The International honorees and award winners who will not be recognized this year due to travel restrictions, will be celebrated next year (2022) on October 14 and 15th in Fort Lauderdale.
Brent Rutemiller, CEO of ISHOF announced the decision to move forward when he sent the following letter to those being honored.
Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the restrictions in travel to the United States, we have made the tough decision to induct only USA Honorees this year on October 9th, in Fort Lauderdale.

We have also decided to induct the Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame USA Honorees and honor select USA Paragon ISHOF Award winners that are associated with the competitive sports on the same evening to create a meaningful and manageable three hour event.
As a result, all international honorees and other award winners will now be inducted with the class of 2022 on October 14 and 15th 2022, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This is the current list of individuals who we will honor on October 9th, 2021 (This Year)

Saturday afternoon – Tour Aquatic Complex and Presentation of new ISHOF Buildings.
Saturday evening – Honoree Ceremony hosted by Rowdy Gaines and Debbie Meyer

International Swimming Hall of Fame HonoreesBrendan Hansen – SwimmingRebecca Soni – SwimmingElvira Khasyanova– Synchronized (Artistic) SwimmerDavid Marsh – CoachBob Duenkel – ISHOF Contributor
Masters International Swimming Hall of Fame HonoreesClay Britt – Swimming David Cotton – Diving Kerry O’Brien – Coach Contributor Rose Cody – Artistic Swimming
Paragon and ISHOF Specialty AwardsEddie Reese – 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award Teri McKeever – Competitive Swimming Dave Burgering – Competitive Diving Betty Hazle – Synchronized Swimming Lynn Comer Kachmarik – Water Polo

HOTEL INFORMATION
Host Hotel: Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa
Upscale retreat with private beach access, two pools, four restaurants, full service spa and oceanside bar. Location of the Saturday evening induction ceremony. ¼ mile south of the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
3030 Holiday Drive, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 525-4000
Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $259 per night
Book your group rate for International Swimming Hall of Fame
NOTE: RESORT FEE IS INCLUDED in the $259 rate
Courtyard by Marriott Fort Lauderdale Beach
440 Seabreeze Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316 (954) 524-8733
Special ISHOF Guest Rate of $169 per night
Honoree Ceremony October 9, 2021Start Date: Wednesday, October 7, 2021End Date: Tuesday, October 12, 2021Last Day to Book: Friday, September 15, 2021
Book your group rate for Honoree Ceremony October 2021

Tokyo Olympics Analysis (U.S. Women): Lots of Medals, Youth and Potential for Future Brilliance

by DAVID RIEDER

Tokyo Olympics Analysis (U.S. Women): Lots of Medals, Youth and Potential for Future Brilliance

It’s true — the American women won just three gold medals in swimming at the Tokyo Olympics, their fewest at any major international meet in recent memory. Katie Ledecky brought home the inaugural Olympic gold medal in the women’s 1500 freestyle, and she earned her historic third straight gold in the 800 freestyle. 17-year-old Alaska-native Lydia Jacoby shocked the world by winning the 100 breaststroke. But the Americans were shut out of gold medals in the relays and in the remaining individual events.
But was this a poor performance in Tokyo? No way. Not even close. Look across the board, and you see an incredibly strong performance by one of the most well-rounded swim teams ever assembled.
Back at the 2016 Olympics, the Americans won eight gold medals and 15 overall medals. This time, the total was 18 medals, although the comparisons are slightly skewed because of an additional event (the 1500 free) on the Olympic program. That total included eight silver and seven bronze, and American swimmers also finished fourth in additional four events. Two American swimmers finished among the top four in eight out of 14 individual events, which is incredible, and of the 28 American individual swims, all qualified for the semifinals and 25 of them advanced to finals.
To only focus on the gold-medal count and lack of relay wins would be an absolute disservice to this American women’s team and the enormous strides taken in just the past two years. Let’s go stroke-by-stroke and see what happened.
Freestyle
In an unexpected twist, sprint freestyle turned out to be the weakest of the disciplines for the American women in 2021. It was a strength in 2019 when Simone Manuel captured world titles in the 100 free and 50 free, but she was diagnosed with Overtraining Syndrome and was not the oft-dominant sprinter of years past. With Manuel struggling, Abbey Weitzeil stepped up and qualified for very fast finals in the 50 free and 100 free and supplied the go-to leg on the 400 free and 400 medley relays. Cate Campbell edged Weitzeil for gold in the medley, but Weitzeil’s 52.49 split was elite.

Katie Ledecky picked up two gold medals and two silver medals in her third Olympics — Photo Courtesy: Grace Hollars/USA Today Sports

While the Americans had depth in the 100 free, plenty to earn an Olympic medal in the 400 free relay, no one came to Tokyo with a faster best time than 53.5, compared to four Australians under 53. It was the same story in the 200 free where American depth did not measure up to Australia on paper, but Americans like Paige Madden and Katie McLaughlin raised their game significantly and Katie Ledecky was amazing on the anchor leg while Australia underperformed in that event. Given the setup in the freestyle events, the Americans did great to walk away with bronze in the 400 free relay and silver in the 800.
Regarding the longer events, Ledecky did her thing in the 800 and 1500, and she swam one of the best races of her career in the 400 free on the way to the second-fastest mark of her career and best time in five years, only for Ariarne Titmus to be a little bit better. No shame in that. Ledecky and Erica Sullivan provided one of the U.S. highlights of the Games with the 1-2 finish in the 1500, and Katie Grimes was impressive in finishing fourth in the 800 as a 15-year-old.
Backstroke
The results here were fine and in line with pre-Olympicsexpectations, even if you would assume the swimmers were not thrilled with their times. Regan Smith took bronze in the 100 back in 58.05 behind rivals Kaylee McKeown and Kylie Masse after setting the Olympic record in the semifinals. Rhyan White took fourth in the 100 back before White and Phoebe Bacon ended up fourth and fifth in the 200 back, just behind Australia’s Emily Seebohm.
Going forward, American backstroke is still in really good hands. Smith will be motivated to get back to her world-record-setting level from 2019 in both backstroke events, and both White and Bacon were first-timers to the major international level on an upward trajectory. There is more college-aged depth back home with swimmers like Katharine Berkoff and Isabelle Stadden. These were the most competitive events in the country prior to Olympic Trials and will remain so, despite just one Tokyo medal.
Breaststroke

Lydia Jacoby was the shocking gold medalist in the women’s 100 breaststroke in Tokyo — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

All American women’s breaststroke swims in Tokyo earned medals. That’s a far cry from the 2016 Games, when no American women were in the final of the 200 breast, but in Tokyo, Lilly King became just the second American to ever break 2:20 while Annie Lazor dashed home to earn her first Olympic level, a bronze. A few days before that, King had been a little off her game in her signature 100 breast, and she ended up not winning the event for the first time at any meet in six years. But then, in an absolute stunner, Lydia Jacoby continued her meteoric rise to win gold.
This group had realistic hopes of a big Tokyo performance, and they completely delivered.
Butterfly
The teenagers representing the U.S. in the 100 butterfly were not perfect in their Olympic debuts. 18-year-old Torri Huske was mere hundredths off her American record in the event, at 55.73, but in the most unlucky of finishes, she ended up fourth by 0.01. Huske was then about four tenths slower in swimming the fly leg on the mixed and women’s 400 medley relays at the end of the week. Meanwhile, Claire Curzan could not replicate her form from the spring and from Olympic Trials as she was 10th in the 100 fly.
In the 200 butterfly, the Americans were aiming to win their first Olympic medal since the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, and they won two behind gold medalist Zhang Yufei of China. Hali Flickinger, one of the best in the world in the event since 2018, took bronze while Regan Smith stormed ahead to win silver become the second-fastest American in history in the event. Zhang became the fastest performer ever in a textile suit in the event, so she was never going to be caught. Silver and bronze was an A+ performance for the Americans in the event.
Individual Medley

Hali Flickinger and Emma Weyant embrace after both won medals in the women’s 400 IM at the Olympics — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

It’s no secret that the Americans had been in the midst of a rough stretch in the women’s IM events, particularly the 400 IM after the retirements of Rio silver medalist Maya DiRado and stalwart Elizabeth Beisel. Since 2016, they had won just one medal at the World Championships, a 200 IM bronze by Madisyn Cox in 2017. And none of the swimmers qualified for the IMs in Tokyo had ever previously represented the U.S. in IM in at a World Championships or Olympics (and other than Hali Flickinger, all were national team rookies).
But the Americans rocked it in the IMs. Sure, they benefitted from generally slower finals than we’ve seen in the IMs at major meets in recent years and from Katinka Hosszu’s drastic decline this year, but they still got the job done. Yui Ohashi turned out to be the IM star of the Games (and also Japan’s only gold medalist in the pool), but Emma Weyant fought her all the way to the finish in the 400 IM. Three days later, Alex Walsh did the same thing in the 200 IM, coming up only 0.12 short of the Japanese winner. Flickinger (400 IM) and Kate Douglass (200 IM) each secured bronzes.
The IM results were by far the biggest surprise for the U.S. women this year, given the struggles of recent years. And Weyant, Walsh and Douglass — all current or soon-to-be Virginia Cavaliers — all competed at the Olympics at 19 years old (Walsh turned 20 three days after the 200 IM final). All of them will be back.
Overall
The U.S. women’s 400 medley relay team that concluded the meet with a silver medal represented this women’s team in a nutshell: good, even if not quite quick enough to secure Olympic gold, and really, really young.
Two years earlier at the World Championships, Regan Smith had forced her way onto the U.S. women’s medley relay by virtue of her performances, and she combined with veterans Lilly King, Kelsi Dahlia and Simone Manuel to set a world record. Smith was the youngest swimmer in that group by five years.

The U.S. women’s 400 medley relay team after taking silver at the Tokyo Olympics — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

By Tokyo, Smith was the only member left as Lydia Jacoby, Torri Huske and Abbey Weitzeil had earned their way on. Now, Weitzeil, at 24, was the oldest by five years. The American women took 10 teenagers to Tokyo, and eight of them earned at least one medal.
All of these swimmers have years of college swimming ahead of them, so you expect them to continue to grow and improve. And the gap between the Tokyo Olympics and the next edition of the Games, in Paris in 2024, is just three years, the shortest ever. Compared to the massive turnover of the U.S. team from the 2016 Games to 2021, we could see a lot of familiar faces back again in Paris.
And the Tokyo Games were hard for the swimmers, more stressful than even the normally very-high-pressured Olympics, thanks to the restrictions induced by the COVID-19 pandemic — swimmers totally secluded, no families in Japan and so on. The swimmers who got through these Games should be so well prepared for a more normal Olympics in 2024, should they make it back to this level.
Despite all that, the American women still won 18 medals, finished 2-3 four times and stacked up medals in breaststroke, butterfly and IM events that had been obvious weaknesses in the not-too-recent past.
So even though the gold-medal count was not quite as impressive as normal, this was a really good American women’s team and perhaps just the beginning for a group that could carry the torch for years to come.

Tokyo Olympics Analysis (U.S. Men): Dressel Shines, Finke Stuns on Biggest Stage

by DAVID RIEDER

Tokyo Olympics Analysis (U.S. Men): Dressel Shines, Finke Stuns on Biggest Stage
For the first 85 meters of the 100 freestyle final, Caeleb Dressel breathed every stroke to his left side as he opened up a big lead. But when he passed the red buoy on the lane marking 15 meters to go, Dressel put his head down and spun. Gold or bust.
Dressel got it done, touching six hundredths ahead of Australian rival Kyle Chalmers for his first individual Olympic medal, gold. At that point, with his hardest individual race out of the way, and the pursuit of at least individual perfection was definitely within his capabilities. Indeed, Dressel held off Kristof Milak for gold in the 100 fly and produced the largest margin of victory ever in the 50 free. He finished the meet with five golds and a spot in history, capturing the attention of a U.S. general public only now appreciating Dressel’s greatness that swimming fans have watched and appreciated on the NCAA level and the World Championships level for years.
His first and last golds of the week came as part of U.S. relay efforts in the men’s 400 free relay and men’s 400 medley relay, and while he anchored the mixed 400 medley relay to fifth, poor strategic decision and not swimmer performances doomed that relay.

Ryan Murphy, left, and Caeleb Dressel after the U.S. men’s medley relay win — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

So Dressel was the star. But beyond the 24-year-old superstar from Florida, the ability of his U.S. men’s team to win a bunch of medals in the first Olympics without Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte was in question. Realistic projections saw just four American men winning individual medals in Tokyo: Dressel, IMer Chase Kalisz, backstroker Ryan Murphy and first-time Olympian Michael Andrew. In comparison, 11 American men stood on the podium by themselves five years earlier in Rio.
As it turns out, there were six American men’s medalists. On day one, Jay Litherland used an amazing surge on the final length to capture silver behind Kalisz in the 400 IM, and Kieran Smith hung on in an extremely tight 400 freestyle final to earn bronze. Murphy did not repeat as Olympic champion in the backstroke events, but he made the medal podium in both.
And some guy named Bobby Finke was pretty fast on the last length in the 800 and 1500 freestyle finals.
The Americans ended up with six individual men’s gold medals, one more than in Rio, but only 10 total medals compared to 14 at the prior Games. They missed the podium entirely in five events, compared to just one in 2016. Plus, in a not-entirely-unexpected but still-avoidable finish, the American men took fourth in the 800 free relay, missing the podium in an Olympic relay for the first time ever.
While the U.S. men captured more golds than the U.S. women — eight (including relays) to three — the women’s team was stronger and more well-rounded and is better set up to move forward into the future. The men? Dressel’s historic performance covers up some significant flaws. Let’s go stroke-by-stroke to determine what went well and what was disappointing.
Freestyle
Here, the Americans matched or exceeded all expectations. In the sprints, Caeleb Dressel was twice golden. Michael Andrew took fourth in the 50 free, and Zach Apple missed the 100 free final, but he was brilliant anchoring the 400 free and medley relays to gold. The 200 free, considered a trouble spot for the U.S., saw massive improvements this year as Kieran Smith continuously improved his best time and eventually dropped into the 1:44 range, becoming the third-fastest American ever behind Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.
After months of discussion about whether the 800 free relay would become the first U.S. relay to miss the podium at the Olympics, that’s exactly what did happen, largely because of a gamble to use Apple on the third leg that did not pay off. But finally, after years of stagnation, the event is pointing up for the U.S., largely because of Smith’s improvement and swimmers like Drew Kibler who made big improvements in 2021.

Bobby Finke after capturing Olympic gold in the 1500 free — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

In the longer freestyles, another big recent talking point was the unprecedented situation of just one American man making the “A” cut in the 400 free before Jake Mitchell did so in a solo swim-off at Olympic Trials. In Tokyo, both Smith and Mitchell made the 400 free final, and after Smith promised he would raise his swimming to match the level of his competition in Tokyo, he did just that on his way to a bronze medal. Smith’s results had him on track to be the most impressive performer on the team halfway through the meet, at least until another Florida Gator stole his thunder.
Look, Bobby Finke was a medal contender in the distance races prior to the Olympics, particularly in the 1500 free after a 14:46.06 at Olympic Trials. Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri might not be at his best following a bout of mononucleosis, so maybe Finke could take advantage. But winning two gold medals, overcoming huge deficits on the final length with splits of 26.39 (!!) in the 800 and 25.78 (!!!) in the 1500? Absolutely stunning. Every Olympics brings at least one total shock for Team USA, and for Tokyo, Finke was it.
Backstroke
Here, Ryan Murphy made a return to the Olympic podium with bronze in the 100 back and silver in the 200 back, but as the defending gold medalist in the events, he definitely had been hoping for more, particularly in the two-lap race. Compounding his frustrations was the fact that all the swimmers who beat him in an individual event were representing a country (Russia) banned from the Olympics for a state-sponsored doping program.
Murphy was his usual solid, consistent self on the leadoff leg of both medley relays (the mixed relay fiasco certainly not his fault), and after Hunter Armstrong (100) and Bryce Mefford (200) swam impressive races to take second behind Murph at Trials, Mefford managed to back that up with a fourth-place swim in Tokyo, while Armstrong had a tough go in his first major international meet, barely qualifying for the 100 back semifinal. Armstrong’s Tokyo best of 53.21 was more than seven tenths off his Trials time of 52.48.
Breaststroke

Michael Andrew — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

The Americans had not won a medal in a global-level breaststroke race since the 2017 World Championships, and Tokyo brought more letdown here. Michael Andrew had medal hopes in the 100 breast, but he could not get within a half-second of his American record of 58.14 from Trials and ended up fourth. Nic Fink was an outside medal contender in the 200 breast but ended up fifth. Andrew Wilson took eighth in the 100 breast and missed the semifinals in the 200 breast.
However, after a rocky week at his first Olympics, credit to Andrew for bringing his A game on the 400 medley relay at the end of the week. Despite questions of the U.S. coaches turning to Fink instead, Andrew managed a 58.49 split that kept the United States close to Great Britain and Adam Peaty, close enough that the last two legs were able to close out a gold medal.
Butterfly
The Americans expected one medal in butterfly, and indeed, Caeleb Dressel delivered gold in the 100 fly and lowered his world record to 49.45 (despite a glide into the turn and a very long finish). He needed almost every bit of that to hold off Kristof Milak, who was closing the race harder than even Michael Phelps ever did.
Aside from Dressel, the retiring Gunnar Bentz finished seventh in the 200 fly final while Zach Harting (200 fly) and Tom Shields (100 fly) were both eliminated in the semifinals. Such has been the reality of American men’s butterfly since Phelps retired following the 2016 Games, with no real medal contenders emerging. Michael Andrew’s 100 fly best time this year was only 0.06 off Noe Ponti’s bronze-medal winning time, but that was never a realistic possibility for Tokyo with Andrew’s busy event schedule at the end of the meet.
With only three years until the next Olympics in Paris, the Americans will continue searching for help in butterfly. Maybe Trenton Julian, who recorded the seventh-fastest time in the world in the 200 fly Tuesday, will play a role in that, but 1:54.71 is not quite on the elite level yet.
Individual Medley

Jay Litherland, left, and Chase Kalisz after the U.S. 1-2 finish in the men’s 400 IM — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA TODAY Sports

The U.S. IM performance in Tokyo is a tale of two extremes. Chase Kalisz and Jay Litherland finished gold-silver in a shockingly slow 400 IM final to open the meet, and that gave the Americans an initial spark. But by the time the 200 IM rolled around, it was a different story. Kalisz, the 2017 world champion in the event, dropped to a very disappointing 12th. Michael Andrew, who held the world’s fastest time prior to Tokyo, faded to fifth in the final, more than two seconds off his best time.
Going forward, Andrew will certainly face questions about the 200 IM, despite his obvious talent, since he has the propensity to touch well under world-record pace at the 150-meter mark but then fade badly on the freestyle leg. His last 50 split in the Tokyo final was 30.69, the slowest in the field by one-and-a-half-seconds and more than three seconds behind the split of gold medalist Wang Shun.
In the future, Carson Foster looks to be the standard-bearer for the U.S. in the 400 IM. He swam the world’s fastest time (4:08.46) just 24 hours before the Olympic final, where no one beat that mark. But the 200 IM looks a little more murky with the uncertainty about Andrew following his Tokyo disappointment in the event.
Overall
Caeleb Dressel was all he was hyped up to be. Bobby Finke was one of the breakout stars of the Tokyo Games. Kieran Smith only left Tokyo with one medal, but he showed something in rising to the Olympic level with his performances. With that trio of Florida Gators, the Americans are feeling understandably excellent about the freestyle events. In the free relays, the 400 free relay remained on top and despite the disappointment of finishing fourth in the 800 free relay, there are some building blocks.
Ryan Murphy remains as the key building block in backstroke, and the future has some promise in the IM events, but breaststroke and butterfly (aside from Dressel) continue to look not great for the United States. There are no obvious waiting-in-the-wings candidates in these events like Carson Foster in the 400 IM.
After a normal Olympics, it doesn’t make sense to look too far ahead, but the 2024 Paris Olympics are just three years away. Maybe that’s still too early, but the comparison is the U.S. women’s team, whose 10 teenagers gained huge and valuable experience in Tokyo that many will likely bring back onto the team in 2024. The only teenager on the men’s team in Tokyo was Jake Mitchell, who took eighth in the 400 free.
The men might have won more gold medals this year, but the women’s team is positioned well across the board peering ahead a few years. Many of the Tokyo stars are likely to return and again contend for gold medals in Paris, but as for the rest of the team, let’s see how these next few years unfold.

5 Eye-Popping Stats That Defined the Tokyo Olympics; Including Fastest Men’s 100 Freestyle Ever

by DAVID RIEDER

Five Eye-Popping Stats That Defined the Tokyo Olympics; Including Fastest Men’s 100 Freestyle Ever
Twelve years ago, the 2009 World Championships saw the sport of swimming taken to insane new levels of speed as swimmers embraced full-body, polyurethane suits that would be banned from the sport months later. Swimmers broke 43 world records that week, seven of which still stand. Most of the finals and podiums were faster than any other heat in history. In particular, in the men’s 100 freestyle saw two-time defending world champion Filippo Magnini swim a 48.04 and finish ninth. You did not get into the final unless you swam under 48 seconds.
That never happened again until the Tokyo Olympics. The cutoff time to make the 2016 Olympic final was 48.23. At the 2017 World Championships, 48.31, and two years later, 48.33. But in Tokyo, Serbia’s Andrej Barna swam a 47.94 in the semifinals — and placed ninth.
Andrei Minakov, Zach Apple and Thomas Ceccon all swam 48.0s. Teenagers Jacob Whittle and Joshua Liendo were in the 48.1 range. Canada’s Yuri Kisil touched in 48.31, which would have at least tied for eighth at each of the past two World Championships, and that was good enough for 15th place.
On the other side of the brutal cutline for the final, France’s Maxime Grousset placed eighth in 47.82 — the exact same time that won bronze at the World Championships just two years earlier. So while Caeleb Dressel and Kyle Chalmers almost exactly repeated their epic gold-medal battle, the rest of the field behind them had massively elevated the level of competition.
But the men’s 100 free was not the only Olympic race that featured some crazy statistics. Here are four more.

Regan Smith Faster Than Any Other 100 Backstroke World or Olympic Champion

Regan Smith after claiming bronze in the women’s 100 backstroke final at the Tokyo Olympics — Photo Courtesy: Robert Hanashiro/USA Today Sports

In 2019, Regan Smith led a gigantic leap forward in the 100 backstroke when she swam a 57.57 leading off the women’s 400 medley relay at the World Championships. But in 2021, Smith struggled in the backstroke events while Australia’s Kaylee McKeown and Canada’s Kylie Masse caught up. In the Olympic final, Smith could not keep pace with those two rivals as McKeown won gold in 57.47, just two hundredths off her month-old world record, and Masse was second in 57.73. Smith earned bronze in 58.05.
That time would have won every previous major international final ever.
At the last World Championships, Masse’s gold-medal-winning time was 58.60. The world record at the time belonged to Kathleen Baker at 58.00, and at the Worlds before that, Masse had broken an eight-year-old supersuit world record with her 58.10. Smith finishing three tenths away from silver shows just how much that event has improved in an incredibly short period of time. So while Smith’s time did not stack up to her previous remarkable swims, it was still remarkable by any standard other than this year’s.

Kristof Milak Beats Almost Every Phelps Winning Margin

Kristof Milak racing butterfly at the Tokyo Olympics — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

Prior to the men’s 200 butterfly final in Tokyo, Kristof Milak’s suit ripped, and he had to change last-minute. The 21-year-old Hungarian competing at his first Olympics said that messed with his focus and killed his chances of going after the world record of 1:50.73 he set at the 2019 World Championships. Based on his amazing 100 fly performance (49.68, making him the second-fastest man ever), you have to believe Milak could have pushed for a 1:49 200 fly, as insane as that sounds.
But he merely swam a 1:51.25, breaking Michael Phelps’ Olympic record and swimming faster than any other man ever had. And he won by 2.48 seconds over Japan’s Tomoru Honda. Phelps won three Olympic golds in the event in 2004, 2008 and 2016, and the biggest margin of victory in those races was 0.67 in 2008. So Milak’s margin was three times greater! In an off race.
Meanwhile, Phelps won five world titles in the 200 fly (2001, 2003, 2007, 2009 and 2011), and while three of those victories were by more than a second, only once did he win by more than 2.48 seconds. That was in 2007, at arguably his best meet, when he smashed the world record by 1.61 seconds and won by 3.04.

Hosszu’s Dropoff Leads to Slower IM Finals
A lot of events at the Tokyo Olympics included unprecedented displays of speed. Not the women’s IMs. Katinka Hosszu was incredibly fast in both IMs at the 2016 Olympics, with her 4:26.36 in the 400 IM (a world record) and 2:06.58 in the 200 IM (just off her world record of 2:06.12), and she was still strong in sweeping the world titles in both events in 2017 and 2019, with 2:07s in the 200 IM and 4:29s and 4:30s in the 400 IM.

Japan’s Yui Ohashi after winning Olympic gold in the women’s 200 IM — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

No one was close to those marks in Tokyo. Japan’s Yui Ohashi won both gold medals, but her winning times were the slowest times required to secure a global-level gold medal in a long time, 4:32.08 in the 400 IM and 2:08.52 in the 200 IM. times barely surpassed the silver-medal times from the 2019 Worlds. She was well off the times required to win silver at the 2016 Olympics (Maya DiRado’s 4:31.15 in the 400 IM and Siobhan-Marie O’Connor’s 2:06.88 in the 200 IM). Ohashi herself has been faster in the 200 IM in the past.
In fact, Ohashi’s winning 200 IM time in Tokyo was slower than the winning time at the last three Olympics and slower than the winning time at every World Championships since 2011. In the 400 IM, every world champion has been faster since Katie Hoff at the 2007 World Championships.
Of course, who cares? Ohashi has the most important accolade, the two Olympic gold medals that are the crowing achievements of her great career.

Gold Medalists Not Present at the Last World Championships
In Tokyo, two men and one woman stood atop the podium in an individual event after not competing at all at the 2019 World Championships. Both were freestylers: 18-year-old Tunisian Ahmed Hafnaoui, who won the 400 freestyle, and 21-year-old American Bobby Finke, who was stormed past the field on the last length of the 800 free and 1500 free to win two gold medals. That comes with a slight caveat, however, as Finke actually swam at the 2017 Worlds (as a 17-year-old) before missing the team in 2019.

Lydia Jacoby was the unexpected 100 breaststroke gold medalist in Tokyo — Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher/USA Today Sports

The surprise women’s winner was, of course, American Lydia Jacoby, whose shocking emergence culminated with her upset win in the 100 breaststroke in Tokyo.
Every other gold medalist had competed in Gwangju two years earlier, while at the last Olympics, all men’s champions had been at the previous year’s World Championships while one women’s champion who was making her major meet debut. That was Canada’s Penny Oleksiak, the 16-year-old who tied for gold in the women’s 100 freestyle.
Ten additional swimmers got onto the Tokyo podium after not qualifying for Gwangju, and those swimmers all had different circumstances. Seven made their major meet debut in Tokyo at the age of 21 or younger: Australia’s Brendon Smith, Japan’s Tomoru Honda, Switzerland’s Noe Ponti and Americans Emma Weyant, Alex Walsh, Kate Douglass and Erica Sullivan. The USA’s Annie Lazor was also making her debut at a major meet, albeit at the age of 27, while Australia’s Emily Seebohm rebounded in her fourth Olympics after failing to qualify for the 2019 Worlds. France’s Florent Manaudou was in his first major meet back after a three-year retirement.

Friday, July 16, Ft. Lauderdale Sun Sentinel: Pool for the stars: New Hall of Fame complex on the way with dive tower to the sky

FORT LAUDERDALE — Just a block from the ocean, a swimmer’s paradise with sparkling pools and the tallest dive tower in the USA is taking shape to the tune of $47 million.

When the new Swimming Hall of Fame complex opens, all eyes will be on Fort Lauderdale, fans say.

Avid local swimmer Debbie Rosenbaum knows exactly when the pools closed: April 13, 2019. And she knows when they are set to reopen: sometime in September 2022.

“We can taste it, even though it’s that far away,” said Rosenbaum, a Fort Lauderdale paralegal whose 26-year-old son started swimming at the pool at age 5 and is now a national champ.

Rosenbaum started swimming laps at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center five years ago to help her get over a divorce and never stopped.

“Whatever is happening in your life, when you’re in the water and swimming, you just forget about whatever else is going on in the world,” she said. “It’s one of the best things you can do for yourself. When you get out of the water, you think, ‘I can fight the fight and keep going.’”

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Olympians have done laps there. Kids have learned to swim. And tourists have been coming since the complex opened in 1965.

All the fun stopped when the renovation got under way more than two years ago. But when the complex reopens, it’s going to be bigger and better than it was back in its glory days, city officials say.

A crane hoists the top piece of the new diving tower at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center on July 1, 2021. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

“All I hear from people is the real excitement about it,” Commissioner Steve Glassman said. “People are really psyched about the project. We were at one point the diving and swimming capital of the world. Bottomline, I think that expression ‘If you build it, they will come,’ that’s going to be exactly what’s happening here.”

The complex, at 501 Seabreeze Blvd., south of Las Olas, is getting new pools, a new dive tower, an open-air amenity deck, new locker rooms and a new grandstand and bleachers for spectators.

The dive tower alone costs $5 million.

City leaders say it’s worth every penny. The tower, with its flared platforms, resembles a ship’s hull and stands nearly nine stories high.

Divers will do their thing — reaching speeds up to 60 mph in three seconds — from a 27-meter diving platform, the tallest in the western hemisphere. But first they’ll have to climb 162 steps to the top.

The tower has nine platforms in all so divers of all levels can use it. When all is said and done there will be a new competition pool, new diving pool for the dive tower and a renovated training pool.

New museum on way

Big change is also in the works for the nearby International Swimming Hall of Fame, which shares space on the same 5-acre peninsula that juts into the Intracoastal Waterway.

The nonprofit hopes to bring a new museum to town, said Brent Rutemiller, CEO of the Hall of Fame museum and a former national swim team coach.

An illustration shows the planned International Swimming Hall of Fame, which shares space with the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center on the same 5-acrepeninsula that juts into the Intracoastal Waterway. (Arquitectonica/Arquitectonica)

“Without a doubt it’s going to be the No. 1 aquatic destination in the world,” he said. “We expect all the eyes of the international swim community will be focused on Fort Lauderdale. Our goal from Day 1 is to make this the top destination in the world for aquatic sports.”

The $90 million project calls for two new buildings that would open in 2025, if all goes as planned, said Mario Caprini, CEO of Capital Group P3 of Florida and a partner in the project with Hensel Phelps Construction — the same contractor handling the renovation of the aquatic center.

The Hall of Fame wants to knock down its two-story welcome center on the east side fronting Seabreeze Boulevard and its two-story museum to the west overlooking the Intracoastal.

‘Long time in the making’

The west building, built at a cost of $64 million, would have five floors but stand closer to 10 stories with a height of 105 feet, Rutemiller said. The $26 million east building would also have five floors but stand 94 feet high.

“It will be visually stunning,” Rutemiller said. “This has been a long time in the making.”

The museum, on the third floor of the west building, would include a restaurant on the top floor with a 360-degree view of Fort Lauderdale, the ocean and Intracoastal.

There would be space for a ballroom, meeting space and tenants as well. A teaching pool hidden underneath the grandstands would sit next to an open plaza and gift shop.

Parking for 202 spaces would be on the second floor, with event space and offices on the fourth floor.

The building on the east would serve as a welcome center with a coffee shop on the ground floor. The second floor would have a viewing area of the competition pools to the west and the ocean to the east. The third floor would have a meeting room and offices. More offices would occupy the fourth floor. The top floor would serve as a rooftop terrace open to public.

The financial model hinges on space for tenants, Rutemiller said.

The plan was presented to the city in September 2020 by Hensel Phelps Construction.

Under the proposal, the developer would pay for construction, but the city would guarantee the loan for both buildings, Rutemiller said.

Over the course of the 30-year loan, the city would contribute an estimated $5 million, Caprini said.

“We intend on funding 100% of the project,” he said. “It will be a master lease with the city over 30 years. After 30 years the buildings would revert back to the city for $1. And they are free and clear.”

The pools at the Aquatic Center would stay open during construction, Rutemiller said.

Work continues on the new diving tower at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center on June 16, 2021. The tower will accommodate springboard diving at 1-meter and 3-meter heights, platform diving at 1-meter, 3-meter, 5-meter, 7.5-meter and 10-meter heights and high diving at 15-meter, 20-meter, 24-meter and 27-meter heights. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Residents of the 15-story Venetian condo a block to the north are abuzz about the plan to build such a tall Hall of Fame museum, said John Burns, association president.

“The higher it goes, the more it blocks views people have had for a long time,” Burns said.

Larry Burnette, who lives on the 14th floor of the Venetian, hopes the height gets scaled back.

“I thought the design of the building was quite beautiful,” he said. “I just wonder if it’s not too big.”

Rutemiller says residents will get a chance to share their opinions in the coming months as the project moves forward.

Great expectations

Time was not kind to the Fort Lauderdale Aquatics Center.

By the mid-1980s, the complex began showing some age. By 2011, the grandstands were condemned after being deemed structurally unsound. Netting was installed to catch falling pieces of concrete.

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That was the last year the Hall of Fame pool hosted a major national championship, said Laura Voet, manager of the aquatic center. Temporary portable bleachers were brought in to accommodate smaller crowds, but Fort Lauderdale lost its rep as the diving and swimming capital of the world.

Then in April 2019, the pools finally closed to make way for long-awaited renovations.

“People are anxiously awaiting the reopening,” Voet said. “We all are. Countless people from all over the world and the local community have learned to swim here. Anyone can swim here. It’s not just for elite athletes. Your grandmother can swim here. And an Olympic athlete can swim here. You can come here and you can be swimming next to a superstar.”

Every day people stop by to ask when the pools will reopen, Voet said.

“They used to swim here and they can’t wait for it to come back,” she said. “It will be worth the wait.”

Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com or on Twitter @Susannah_Bryan

Happy Birthday Michelle Ford!!!

MICHELLE FORD (AUS) 1994 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: 1980 Olympic Games: gold (800m Freestyle), bronze (200m Butterfly); Two World Records (800m Freestyle); 1978 Commonwealth Games: gold (200m Butterfly), silver 400m and 800m Freestyle), bronze (200m Freestyle and 4x100m Free Relay); 1982 Commonwealth Games: gold (200m Butterfly), silver (800m Freestyle); Four Australian National Championships (200m Butterfly).
Crazy about the water since age four, she was touted as the coming superstar of Australian swimming, and at age 13 she broke nine records, six state and three national, all in three days. Two of those records were by Shane Gould and Jenny Turrall. That same year she earned a spot on the 1976 Olympic team, the second youngest Australian ever to do so. Just one year later, she set her first world record in the 800 freestyle. Little did she know her times in the 800 free would someday beat the times swum earlier by the immortal Murray Rose and John Konrads.
This blonde haired, blue eyed beauty continued her winning streak at the 1978 Commonwealth Games, taking a gold in the 200 butterfly, two silvers in the 400 and 800 free and two bronzes in the 200 free and 400 freestyle relay.
But Michelle Ford’s greatest memory is winning the gold medal in the 800 freestyle and bronze in the 200 butterfly in the Moscow 1980 Olympics. “Competing in the Olympics helped define everything I am today,” she said. Ford was named Amateur Athlete of the Year in 1980. Her name is cast in gold as the Australian women’s team has not won a gold in the Olympics since 1980.
Ford’s Olympic gold did not stop her. She went out hard and fast in the 1982 Commonwealth Games (her second) to take the gold in the 200 fly and silver in the 800 free. During the course of her career, she won four Australian National Championships.
Michelle Ford was a swimmer who made many coaches look great including Hall of Famer Don Talbot, Bill Sweetenham in Australia and Don Lamont at the University of Southern California. Michelle was elected to the International Olympic Committee Athletes Commission 12 person board and was a member of the Olympic Academy from 1984 to 1988. She retired from active competition in 1985 and two years later was invited to work with the Olympic Museum in Switzerland. In 1988 she edited the FINA learn to swim manual.
Ford has used her master’s degree in sports psychology to manage the growth and budgeting of 15 sports as the head of the University Association of Switzerland. Impacting three countries (Australia, Switzerland and the USA) her fluid and elegant style in and out of the water are her trademark.

August 13th – Happy Birthday Agnes Kovacs!

Agnes Kovacs (HUN) 2014 Honor Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: 1996 OLYMPIC GAMES: bronze (200m breaststroke); 2000 OLYMPIC GAMES: gold (200m breaststroke); 1998 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (200m breaststroke); 2001 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (200m breaststroke), bronze (100m breaststroke); 1995 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: silver (4x100m medley), bronze (100m breaststroke); 1997 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke); 1999 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (50m breaststroke, 100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke); 2000 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: gold (50m breaststroke, 100m breaststroke), silver (200m breaststroke); 2006 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS: bronze (50m breaststroke, 100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke); 1999 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (25m): silver (50m breaststroke, 100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke); 2002 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS (25m): bronze (100m breaststroke); two-time EUROPEAN SWIMMER OF THE YEAR: 1997 and 1998; HUNGARIAN SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR: 1997-2000.
Born in Budapest, Agnes Kovacs learned to swim when she was just two and a half years old, and loved the water from the very start. When she was just nine years old, her swimming teacher, Bea Szucs recommended she join the program at the Kőér St. Pool where she made rapid progress. At the age of 13 she had her first success in the Hungarian National Age Group Championships and as a fourteen year old, she won the European Junior Championship in the 100 yard breaststroke. Within days of her fifteenth birthday, she won the Olympic bronze medal in the 200 meter breaststroke in Atlanta, in 1996.
Following in the wake of Hall of Famer Krisztina Egerszegi, Agnes would be named Hungary’s best female swimmer and her country’s Sportswoman of the year for the next four years. Dominating the 200 meter breaststroke in all international competition from 1997 to 2000, she won gold at both the FINA World Championships in 1998, and then the Olympic gold medal, in Sydney, in 2000.
Following her Olympic success, Kovacs won her event again at the 2001 FINA Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, before moving to the United States to attend Arizona State University. When she left ASU in 2005 it was as a fifteen-time All-American, as the schools top senior female athlete, and with a degree in supply chain management.
Returning to Hungary, she rejoined the national team program and was a crowd favorite, winning three medals at the 2006 European Championships in the same pool where she first learned to swim twenty-two years earlier, on Budapest’s historic Margaret Island.
In addition to her Olympic and NCAA success, Agnes won a total of 25 medals at the European Championships, long and short course, and was a 53-time Hungarian National Champion from 1996 through 2007.
For Agnes, the support of her family was key to becoming a top level swimmer. She is currently married and lives with her husband and son in Hungary, where she is a PhD student at the Semmelweis University Faculty of Physical Education and Sports Sciences.

Russell McKinnon Named Chairman of International Swimming Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee

by MEG KELLER-MARVIN

13 July 2021, 07:49pm
The International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) has named Mr. Russell McKinnon, of Western Australia, as the new Chairman of the ISHOF Selection Committee. The position became available after the retirement of Mr. Camillo Cametti of Verona, Italy who stepped down after 25 years of service.
McKinnon has been a member of the ISHOF Selection Committee for over 22 years and is more than qualified to step into the position.
When asked to serve as Chairman, McKinnon said, “I have always enjoyed my liaison with ISHOF and had flights booked to attend last year’s induction — my first. I wanted to see one of my nominees inducted — Jon Sieben. I enjoy being immersed in the histories of people involved in the aquatic community and in my role as a Member of the FINA Media Committee.”

“Russell has been a member of the FINA Media Committee since 1999 and has attended and covered well over 100 major aquatic events including the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, Universiade, and European Championships. He is a regular attendee at the FINA Convention, galas, FINA World Championships, water polo events, FINA Short Course Swimming World Championships, World Cups, Grand Prix Diving Super Final, as well as Artistic Swimming events. We believe this experience gives him great insight into the ISHOF selection processes. We look forward to his leadership.” – Brent Rutemiller, ISHOF CEO

Mckinnon has already tipped his hand as to his desire to emphasize the “international” aspect of ISHOF when he expressed his belief that many top athletes are falling by the wayside and not enough non-USA people are getting recognized. He would like to improve that balance. The other members of the selection committee represent all aquatic sports and has representation from multiple international destinations.
McKinnon is a Life Member Water Polo Western Australia Inc (AUS) and a Life Member Taranaki Water Polo Board (NZL).

Camillo Cametti Steps Down After 25 Years as Chairman of the ISHOF’s Selection Committee

by MEG KELLER-MARVIN

13 July 2021
The International Swimming Hall of Fame would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Camillo Cametti for his dedicated service as the Chairman of the ISHOF Honoree Selection Committee for the past 25 years. He began serving as Chairman of ISHOF’s Selection Committee in 1996, the year of the Atlanta Olympic Games.

Camillo’s influence, knowledge and wisdom will be sorely missed by the International Swimming Hall of Fame family. He served the aquatic community well. Anybody who ever had the privilege of meeting or working with Camillo walked away with greater perspectives. Of all the people that I have met and work with over the years, I cannot think of a finer gentleman who radiated confidence and respect more than Camillo. He remains the epitome of a true journalist dedicated to aquatic sports. Thank you for your service! – Brent Rutemiller, ISHOF CEO, Swimming World Magazine Publisher

Photo Courtesy: ISHOF

Cametti worked as an international journalist for almost 50 years. As a former swimmer and water polo player from Verona, Italy, it was only natural that he was drawn to aquatics and became very successful at covering and promoting aquatic athletes.
He has been at every Olympic Games in a journalistic capacity since 1972 beginning in Munich, Germany and ending in Rio in 2016 for a total of thirteen Olympic Games. In addition to the Olympic Games, Cametti has covered most and attended all the FINA World Championships since their inception in Belgrade, in 1973.
He has served a Founder, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief for various swimming magazines such as FINA’s The World of Swimming, the Italian Swimming Federations’s FIN News, Il Mondo del Nuoto, and La Technica de Nuoto.
He has been a contributor to Italy’s main sports daily La Gazzetta Dello Sport, Italy’s main television “RAI”, Italy’s main sports magazine, Guerin Sportivo, FINA Magazine, FINA Aquatics World and more. He has been a lecturer at both national and international clinics and seminars on sports journalism related to aquatics.
In addition to his journalist prowess, Cametti has served as a Board Member for the ITALIAN SWIMMING Federation (FIN), as a member of the IOC ORIS Working Group for Aquatic Sports and Chairman of the AIPS Swimming Commission (1990-2002). He was a member of the FINA Technical Swimming Committee from 1998 to 1996, and was the first to propose the recognition of the short course competitions and world records as well as the introduction, recognition and acceptance of prize money in selected competitions.
Camillo Cametti is fluent in four languages.

Happy BIrthday Pam Morris!

PAMELA MORRIS (USA) 1965 Honor Synchronized Swimmer
FOR THE RECORD: U.S. SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING NATIONALS: 1965 Indoor Titles (solo, duet, team); 1965 Outdoor Titles (solo, duet, team).
In the young sport of synchronized swimming so popular in the United States and Canada, the quality and quantity of competition has improved dramatically since the sport began its national competition in 1946, adding solo in 1950. Ruth and Gloria Geduldig of the Chicago Town Club were the first indoor and outdoor duet champions.
June Taylor and Beulah Gundling respectively won the first four indoor and outdoor solo titles, but in the entire 16 years of three way competition, only one girl, Pame Morris of the San Francisco Merionettes has been a triple winner. Pame accomplished this difficult combination of individual and team performance twice, winning solo, duet and team titles (the synchronized swimming hat trick) in both the 1965 indoor and outdoor championships at Houston, Texas and Maumee, Ohio. Pame’s duets teamed with Patty Willard. These two great performers were joined in the winning San Francisco Merionettes team competition by Margo McGrath, Rhea Irvine, Patsy Mical, Carol Redmond, Kathie McBride and Sharon Lawson.
In recognizing the recently retired Pame Morris as an honoree, the Swimming Hall of Fame acknowledges synchronized swimming as a mature sport in the swimming framework of aquatic sports.

**Please note: this bio was written the year the honoree was inducted, 1965.