Pool and Open Water Swimming: Do Not Swallow the Water

[bosawks]

1 minute ago, sab85 said:

That Phelps kid is pretty good, huh? Adrian, Miller, and Murphy aren't bad either.  Congrats to the US men!

Mad respect to Adam Peaty. That was impressive.

Phelps laying his head on Nathan Adrian's chest? Aww...

Who wouldn't want to lay their head on Nathan Adrian's chest....

[MyAimIsTrue]

Fuck you Rowdy for saying the anchor was winning the gold for Phelps, with complete disregard for the other guys.

[Matt K]

13 minutes ago, Daisy said:

Okay. check this out. 

Phelps is retiring (please) with 28 medals. 
That's the amount USA won in 2004. holy cow. 

To add even more perspective Phelp, if he was a country, at the current medal count he would be at #10 (with a tie with France and Hungary) for most gold medal

Edited August 14, 2016 by Matt K

[selkie]

1 hour ago, Rinaldo said:

That was (as already noted) a Ledeckyan blowout for Paltrinieri. 

I don't know much (or anything!) about long distance racing, but the underwater shots of Paltrinieri intrigued me. (I guess I wasn't really paying attention to this during the corresponding women's race.) He barely seemed to be kicking at all -- just a minimal motion every few strokes. He kept up that pace solely with his arms. Is that standard?

Anyway, kudos to him and his teammate Detti. And Connor J too.

There's normal variation in the number of kicks you take per two arm strokes- some every two ,some every four, a some every six. For most people, flutter kick requires a lot of energy to generate a decent amount of propulsion from it, so the bulk of swimming is done with the arms. Sprinters kick more visibly because their events are short enough you can turn on the afterburners; distance swimmers typically kick less in order to preserve energy for the longer races.

One thing you can't really see on camera is just how efficient that a light looking-kick like mid-race Ledecky or Paltrinieri  can really be. Give them a kickboard, get out a stopwatch and check the times, and a lot of kicks that look pretty indifferent can generate more power than something splashier.

Edited August 14, 2016 by selkie

[superdeluxe]

1 minute ago, Ohwell said:

Yay Nathan Adrian!  Brought it home!

Are we done with Michael now?  Please?

Please.  Doesn't Costas have to do an interview with him, the"fiancee", the obnoxious mother, and the unfortunately named baby?

And thanks to PhelpsMania, I've come to hate Michelle Tafoya.  She didn't bother me much during Sunday Night Football, but now...

[tanyak]

3 minutes ago, MyAimIsTrue said:

Fuck you Rowdy for saying the anchor was winning the gold for Phelps, with complete disregard for the other guys.

Exactly. They said that twice. Stop.It.

I love seeing Nathan smile. It's like his eyes and whole face smile. So cute!

[Cherpumple]

14 minutes ago, Daisy said:

Okay. check this out. 

Phelps is retiring (please) with 28 medals. 
That's the amount USA won in 2004. holy cow. 

I just checked out his other accomplishments on Wikipedia...

- In five Olympic games, he's only not medaled in two events: (200m butterfly in 2000 and 400m IM in 2012). That's a 93% success rate.

- He set 39 world records (29 individual), which is more than any other swimmer, and 7 of them are still valid.

That's incredible!

[legaleagle53]

54 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

I don't remember hearing the Italian anthem before. Very catchy! (And very Rossini-an.)

It's one of my favorites.  I learned it years ago when I first started studying Italian.

Edited August 14, 2016 by legaleagle53

[Dots And Stripes]

Murphy told Michelle after the race that it meant a lot to him to race with Phelps who he's looked up to since Athens. Phelps is a legend to these guys and he has delivered for NBC for years. Credit to the whole team for putting in excellent performances, but Phelps has earned the adulation tonight with a career of dominance. 

Edited August 14, 2016 by Dots And Stripes

[jjj]

6 minutes ago, Cherpumple said:

I just checked out his other accomplishments on Wikipedia...
In five Olympic games, he's only not medaled in two events: (200m butterfly in 2000 and 400m IM in 2012). That's a 93% success rate.
- He set 39 world records (29 individual), which is more than any other swimmer, and 7 of them are still valid.
That's incredible!

It really is astonishing -- and unlikely to be seen again, that one swimmer can win so many different races.  CBC also did a Phelps tribute before the relay, and used all the superlatives to talk about him.  I'm sorry so many of you only get to see the NBC coverage, because Phelps really shines all by himself when the coverage is more subdued. 

Here is a little Nathan Adrian background on where his family is for the Rio Olympics:  http://www.kiro7.com/web/kiro/news/local/family-of-nathan-adrian-to-watch-his-rio-swims-from-home/418193697

Edited August 14, 2016 by jjj

[KenyaJ]

18 minutes ago, Daisy said:

they didn't do this well. ;) 
They did what they normally do (laugh). only won 1 extra medal this meet than they did in London. it's amazing. 

LOL. Point taken. They equaled their success in London. My point was that I wasn't expecting them to do that, especially with everyone expecting an Aussie "comeback" this year. I expected Team USA to win the most medals of any country, I just thought there would be fewer of them. I'm thrilled to be wrong, because this team was incredible. I'm so proud.

[Ohwell]

No doubt Phelps is a legend, and I take nothing away from his accomplishments.  I don't even mind the adulation for tonight.  But I just hope it's the last damn night. 

[Daisy]

3 minutes ago, KenyaJ said:

LOL. Point taken. They equaled their success in London. My point was that I wasn't expecting them to do that, especially with everyone expecting an Aussie "comeback" this year. I expected Team USA to win the most medals of any country, I just thought there would be fewer of them. I'm thrilled to be wrong, because this team was incredible. I'm so proud.

(laugh) sorry, I was being a brat (I was looking up something re: Australia too). 

I don't know how y'all do it, but dang can y'all swim. London and Beijing USA had 31 medals. Athens you had 28 like I mentioned - but you average 25+ in the pool, with the next best country only hitting 10. (Australia's big spike was 20 - but that was in Beijing (oh hold on...yah in Sydney y'all had thirty-three). so I guess they just wanted to do better than.... you know. eight. (I think Canada ate into some of their medal haul. Sorry Australia). 

[Cherpumple]

6 minutes ago, jjj said:

I'm sorry so many of you only get to see the NBC coverage, because Phelps really shines all by himself when the coverage is more subdued.

This is 100% true. Of course the BBC announcers are excited to see him, but they're not falling all over themselves about him and don't get any interviews. They let his swimming speak for itself, and it always does. I certainly didn't need all the added hype to make my jaw drop when he won his race the other night by a full body length... in his fifth Olympics. He does NOT need the added media hype to show why he's the greatest!

[Rinaldo]

The online announcers are having to vamp and fill and repeat during this long interlude before the final medal ceremony. They do it well, but they must be thinking "Please please let this end soon."

[photo fox]

24 minutes ago, MyAimIsTrue said:

Fuck you Rowdy for saying the anchor was winning the gold for Phelps, with complete disregard for the other guys.

Yeah, seriously. Ugh.

Credit where it's due... I thought that post-race interview was as genuine and sincere as I've ever seen Michael Phelps be. Now, please stay retired, so that can be my last Olympic memory of you. 

Truth be told, I don't dislike Phelps - outside of a couple of monumental mistakes he's made in his personal life. He seems like a decent, if boring, guy. (I love what someone said up thread about him being a dolphin without the personality.) His teammates all seem to love him, and if anyone was fed up with the hype, I'd think it would be them.

BUT...

I hate the Phelps Phenomenon, and so much of what it says about sports today. The medal counts. The emphasis on individual achievement, even in team/relay competitions. The way NBC picks a dozen "horses" and rides them into the ground, to the exclusion of other athletes. The celebrity status given to certain athletes' families.

None of that is Phelps's fault, of course. I do think he/his mother/his "people" fed the hype beast early on, perhaps thinking they needed to "cash in", not thinking his career would go on so long. And then the media doubled down again and again. 

So I wish Michael Phelps, the incredibly gifted and dedicated athlete, all the best. But I hope we never see a "phenomenon" like him ever again.

[Daisy]

Very well said @photo fox

I stated my reasons for not liking him (i can't even with DUI's) but i totally respect his athletic achievement. but please just go away. (or if there is a next Michael Phelps (or Usain Bolt, or Nadia Commeanci or whatever) please just let them be normal. and treat everyone equal. 

[blackwing]

Good swims by the U.S. to close out the swimming.  Congrats to Simone Manuel, Connor Jaeger, and the relay teams.

Disappointed for Ryan Cochrane and the Canadian women's relay team, but Penny Oleksiak will hopefully continue to be the star of Canadian swimming in 2020.

[jjj]

Michael Phelps hype is kind of like Christmas hype (not the religious part, but the decorations and the gift-giving and the carols and the parties).  Some people can't wait for Christmas to be over (are we DONE yet?) and some people want to leave the lights blinking for an extra month.  No one really likes the hype, even when they love everything about Christmas.  Too much hype takes away from whatever "true meaning" Christmas has, but it is not the fault of Christmas.  I'm very sorry we will not have the Phelps phenomenon to anticipate again.  But glad I got to see it from start to now.  He is not finished, although finished racing.  This CNN piece talks about his efforts to bring more and more children into competitive swimming to highlight the sport, and there surely will be another spurt in membership after this week.  http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/13/sport/michael-phelps-legacy-rio-2016-olympics/ 

[Dots And Stripes]

4 minutes ago, Daisy said:

Very well said @photo fox

I stated my reasons for not liking him (i can't even with DUI's) but i totally respect his athletic achievement. but please just go away. (or if there is a next Michael Phelps (or Usain Bolt, or Nadia Commeanci or whatever) please just let them be normal. and treat everyone equal. 

Emphasis mine. I totally get what you're saying about spreading the love, but part of the Olympics is about excellence. While it's true that just competing is an achievement for some, medals are awarded to the top 3 (give or take) for a reason. It is impossible to treat all thousands of athletes equally anyway. 

The Olympics is also a tv show at this point. Stars make it easier for the audience to follow. IMO, NBC is actually pretty good at researching the athletes ahead of time so that when Ryan Murphy or Simone Manuel has a big moment they're ready to fill us in on who these people are. Even discounting past performances, Phelps' performance this year would have earned him star status. Winning is part of the game, and while it's important to realize winning isnt' the only thing, it is still very much part of the Olympics.

[Cherpumple]

Wow, I didn't realize that Nathan was such a giant!

[selkie]

Nice to see the USA men's medley with the 'Thank you, Rio!' banner after the medal ceremony. Always good to let your hosts know when you've had a wonderful time in their house.

[legaleagle53]

9 minutes ago, jjj said:

Michael Phelps hype is kind of like Christmas hype (not the religious part, but the decorations and the gift-giving and the carols and the parties).  Some people can't wait for Christmas to be over (are we DONE yet?) and some people want to leave the lights blinking for an extra month.  No one really likes the hype, even when they love everything about Christmas.  Too much hype takes away from whatever "true meaning" Christmas has, but it is not the fault of Christmas.  I'm very sorry we will not have the Phelps phenomenon to anticipate again.  But glad I got to see it from start to now.  He is not finished, although finished racing.  This CNN piece talks about his efforts to bring more and more children into competitive swimming to highlight the sport, and there surely will be another spurt in membership after this week.  http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/13/sport/michael-phelps-legacy-rio-2016-olympics/ 

And we'll still be hearing about him 20 years from now when that generation of Olympic swimmers talks about how they all grew up watching and being inspired by him.  Heck, if Boomer shows even a fraction of his father's talent, we may well be hearing "GO PHELPS" in 2036 and beyond!

And congratulations to the Australian women for winning the silver just now in the women's 4x100 relay (I understand that some obscure team from the Western Hemisphere won the gold.  Ho hum.)!

[sab85]

2 minutes ago, selkie said:

Nice to see the USA men's medley with the 'Thank you, Rio!' banner after the medal ceremony. Always good to let your hosts know when you've had a wonderful time in their house.

I remember them doing that in London too.  I agree,  it is a nice touch.  And Adrian didn't look so big back then cause he had actual giant Matt Grevers beside him. 

[jjj]

12 minutes ago, legaleagle53 said:

And we'll still be hearing about him 20 years from now when that generation of Olympic swimmers talks about how they all grew up watching and being inspired by him.  Heck, if Boomer shows even a fraction of his father's talent, we may well be hearing "GO PHELPS" in 2036 and beyond!

There was a cute story about a woman in Baltimore who had her picture taken with Michael Phelps at a high school sports banquet when they were both in high school and she won "Female Athlete of the Year" -- and because he had already been to the Sydney Olympics while still in high school, apparently every young athlete (his age) at the banquet wanted to get their picture taken with him, and she said he was very agreeable -- for about 70 pictures.  And she said they all bring out their pictures and tell the story every four years!  When I saw the picture with Joseph Schooling, I was charmed, and realized that thousands of young swimmers have a trophy like that.  So, buckle up, everyone, because U.S. Olympic medalists (and a few from other countries) will be displaying their old Michael Phelps photos for the next few Olympics!   Fine by me!  ETA:  Here is a link to the article -- and the picture looks like a cute dorky prom photo!  (P.S. - she married an Olympian in another sport!)  http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/high-school/varsity-letters/bal-kelsey-twist-schroeder-loves-that-she-once-shared-the-stage-with-michael-phelps-20160812-story.html

And the Baltimore Sun says, "This is the way it should end"  http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/olympics/bs-sp-schmuck-column-0814-20160813-column.html 

Edited August 14, 2016 by jjj

[KenyaJ]

I just saw on Lia Neal's Instagram that Aaron Piersol was in the stands, watching as Ryan Murphy broke his record. How cool. At trials, they said he'd asked for the phone numbers of the top backstrokers, because he expected his record to fall and wanted to call and congratulate the swimmer who did it. He's so gracious and awesome.

In advance of Michael's last race, NBC posted all of his Olympic races through the years. I loved seeing Aaron in the IM relays. He will always be a huge favorite of mine.

[caprice]

53 minutes ago, jjj said:

It really is astonishing -- and unlikely to be seen again, that one swimmer can win so many different races.  CBC also did a Phelps tribute before the relay, and used all the superlatives to talk about him.  I'm sorry so many of you only get to see the NBC coverage, because Phelps really shines all by himself when the coverage is more subdued. 

Here is a little Nathan Adrian background on where his family is for the Rio Olympics:  http://www.kiro7.com/web/kiro/news/local/family-of-nathan-adrian-to-watch-his-rio-swims-from-home/418193697

Having lived in Bremerton, I've been taking a special pleasure in cheering for Nathan.

[Dots And Stripes]

6 minutes ago, jjj said:

There was a cute story about a woman in Baltimore who had her picture taken with Michael Phelps at a high school sports banquet when they were both in high school -- and because he had already been to the Sydney Olympics while still in high school, apparently every young athlete (his age) at the banquet wanted to get their picture taken with him, and she said he was very agreeable -- for about 70 pictures.  And she said they all bring out their pictures and tell the story every four years!  When I saw the picture with Joseph Schooling, I was charmed, and realized that thousands of young swimmers have a trophy like that.  So, buckle up, everyone, because U.S. Olympic medalists (and a few from other countries) will be displaying their old Michael Phelps photos for the next few Olympics!   Fine by me! 

And the Baltimore Sun says, "This is the way it should end"  http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/olympics/bs-sp-schmuck-column-0814-20160813-column.html 

Katie Ledecky has a picture with Michael from when she was around 9 years old. She looked so excited.

[againstthewind]

Just now, caprice said:

Having lived in Bremerton, I've been taking a special pleasure in cheering for Nathan.

Lucky you. He'd probably need a restraining order for me.

 

I'm watching some of the old Phelps races  - I was actually on a cruise in 08 and we were streaming THE RELAY on really shoddy wifi. The whole room erupted when Lezak touched first. That was great to watch again.

[Cherpumple]

6 minutes ago, Dots And Stripes said:

The Olympics is also a tv show at this point. Stars make it easier for the audience to follow. IMO, NBC is actually pretty good at researching the athletes ahead of time so that when Ryan Murphy or Simone Manuel has a big moment they're ready to fill us in on who these people are. Even discounting past performances, Phelps' performance this year would have earned him star status. Winning is part of the game, and while it's important to realize winning isnt' the only thing, it is still very much part of the Olympics.

1st bolded point: I love that they focus the attention on specific athletes each time the Olympics rolls around. To be honest, I don't follow or give a crap about most of these sports at any other time, so when I'm deciding which ones to watch during the Olympics, some of the decision is based on whether or not I've heard of any participants. And years later, I remember the people way more than I remember specific performances or races. I think Phelpsmania is an anomaly because of both his longevity in the sport (which increases name recognition) and his amazing success. There have been sooooo many times that other athletes have been hyped to the max, but they turned out to be a flash in the pan or didn't perform nearly as well as expected, so NBC had to backtrack or spin the story in a different way, and they have been mostly forgotten by the public. I don't think we'll see the likes of Phelps for a long time, but I can't imagine the media pulling back too much on the personal stories in general. Hopefully it will be more evenhanded next time.

2nd bolded point: So true, and to put things in perspective, the BBC commentators are ecstatic because this has been the most successful Olympics EVER for team GB in the pool, and they've won 6 medals... which is the same number that Phelps won.

[sab85]

6 minutes ago, KenyaJ said:

I just saw on Lia Neal's Instagram that Aaron Piersol was in the stands, watching as Ryan Murphy broke his record. How cool. At trials, they said he'd asked for the phone numbers of the top backstrokers, because he expected his record to fall and wanted to call and congratulate the swimmer who did it. He's so gracious and awesome.

That's classy as all hell. 

That Lezak swim is still my favorite Olympic swim ever. 

[shantown]

Michael Phelps has been incredible to watch and has earned all his success. I can't imagine all the pressure that surrounded him, especially to get a gold on his last event. I can't wait to see Ledecky, Manuel, Murphy, etc continue to shine in the coming years. It's so exciting to see an athlete be so at the top of their sport and seem to love it so much! I'm all aboard the Olympics hype train right now. Channeling my inner Leslie Jones I guess. :)

[Bewitched]

1 minute ago, Cherpumple said:

There have been sooooo many times that other athletes have been hyped to the max, but they turned out to be a flash in the pan or didn't perform nearly as well as expected, so NBC had to backtrack or spin the story in a different way, and they have been mostly forgotten by the public.

Dan and Dave anyone.   (US decathlon  athletes from 1992).  Huge ad campaigns with them and then only one made the Olympics. 

[jjj]

8 minutes ago, Dots And Stripes said:

Katie Ledecky has a picture with Michael from when she was around 9 years old. She looked so excited.

Here is a link -- Katie met some impressive sports folks as a child!  I'll bet she still has the poster Michael signed all those years ago: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/photos-young-katie-ledecky-meets-michael-phelps-and-michael-jordan-123143419.html

2 minutes ago, Bewitched said:

Dan and Dave anyone.   (US decathlon  athletes from 1992).  Huge ad campaigns with them and then only one made the Olympics. 

Oh, man, was that REALLY 24 years ago???!!!  What a bust of a PR effort! 

[Cherpumple]

That's exactly what I was thinking! I wasn't sure how many remembered that ill-conceived ad campaign. Bonus points because they're advertising the Reebok pump high tops. Ha!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKJkfE1M9wA

Edited August 14, 2016 by Cherpumple

[katisha]

1 hour ago, Daisy said:

(laugh) sorry, I was being a brat (I was looking up something re: Australia too). 

I don't know how y'all do it, but dang can y'all swim. London and Beijing USA had 31 medals. Athens you had 28 like I mentioned - but you average 25+ in the pool, with the next best country only hitting 10. (Australia's big spike was 20 - but that was in Beijing (oh hold on...yah in Sydney y'all had thirty-three). so I guess they just wanted to do better than.... you know. eight. (I think Canada ate into some of their medal haul. Sorry Australia). 

It's fair to say that a lot more was expected of the Australian team this time around. I think the pundits were basing predictions on the times our swimmers have posted in the last couple of years as well as their efforts at the most recent world championships. It looks like neither of those things have been accurate predictors of performance in these Olympics. I'm sure the swimmers did their best, but when they swim miles off their personal best times it's pretty mystifying. All they had to do was repeat the world championship results and/or swim their personal best times and the results would have been very different. We may never know why so many of them didn't manage this but no doubt the post-mortems will start soon.  The Campbell sisters are a case in point. World record holder + world champ should not = no individual medals.

[backgroundnoise]

Quote

IMO, Phelps has earned his coronation this week.

Not at the expense of all the other athletes who got nary mention, much less entire sports teams completely ignored, IMO.   Even half the screen time devoted to following his every move would have been excessive (and a tenth of that given his family).   He definitely earned his medals, ceremonies, and some interviews, but viewers deserved better than NBC delivered this week.  YMMV.

[katisha]

Just heard that the medal presentation for the men's 4x100 medley relay was hugely delayed because US television wanted it to go to air at a certain time because michaelphelps. Surely not?

[jjj]

5 minutes ago, katisha said:

Just heard that the medal presentation for the men's 4x100 medley relay was hugely delayed because US television wanted it to go to air at a certain time because michaelphelps. Surely not?

No, because they often show the medal ceremonies after they actually occur -- so it does not matter when it happens. 

[Domenicholas]

6 minutes ago, katisha said:

Just heard that the medal presentation for the men's 4x100 medley relay was hugely delayed because US television wanted it to go to air at a certain time because michaelphelps. Surely not?

I thought it was because they were checking on Cody Miller because he was feeling lightheaded.  I think?

[tanyak]

I was just really irritated by the shabby treatment of the relay teams.  From the other night when they made them all stand there while they talked about his individual race first to tonight.  When Nathan touched the wall, Rowdy start screaming that he had just gotten Michael his 23rd gold medal.  Never mind that Nathan had just won himself a gold medal as well. And I also heard "Michael Phelps and the rest of [that particular] relay team" way too many times this week. Teams with veterans Nathan and Ryan Lochte, for crying out loud, someone who has 12 Olympic medals in his own right.  Yes,  Phelps absolutely deserved his accolades. But not at the expense of other people being pushed aside like also-rans. 

[jjj]

12 minutes ago, katisha said:

Just heard that the medal presentation for the men's 4x100 medley relay was hugely delayed because US television wanted it to go to air at a certain time because michaelphelps. Surely not?

NBC claims it waits to show medal awards to end the program with the national anthem -- so it ended one night with Phelps' ceremony, and ended another night with the Manuel/Oleksiak double anthem ceremony. 

[Sew Sumi]

18 minutes ago, Domenicholas said:

I thought it was because they were checking on Cody Miller because he was feeling lightheaded.  I think?

Yes, it was reported on the Live Feed that one of the athletes wasn't feeling well. I was only half listening and not watching when I heard, so they may have mentioned Miller by name, but I just missed it. But yeah, it was about a 45 minute delay. 

eta: They can show the medal ceremonies anytime they please. Of course, swimming is over now, so they won't have to interrupt track to show them. 

Edited August 14, 2016 by Sew Sumi

[Daisy]

1 hour ago, Dots And Stripes said:

Emphasis mine. I totally get what you're saying about spreading the love, but part of the Olympics is about excellence. While it's true that just competing is an achievement for some, medals are awarded to the top 3 (give or take) for a reason. It is impossible to treat all thousands of athletes equally anyway. 

The Olympics is also a tv show at this point. Stars make it easier for the audience to follow. IMO, NBC is actually pretty good at researching the athletes ahead of time so that when Ryan Murphy or Simone Manuel has a big moment they're ready to fill us in on who these people are. Even discounting past performances, Phelps' performance this year would have earned him star status. Winning is part of the game, and while it's important to realize winning isnt' the only thing, it is still very much part of the Olympics.

Well - what i mean by equal - is that. 

if Sally May Smith wins - talk to Sally May Smith. (i know sometimes they can't because they have to do their own country's media hit first). I mean, Schooling won his country's first swimming medal period. and who did Hicks/Gaines focus on? That Phelps had to settle for silver. (let's not mention Le Chloe + Lesch who also tied really, and poor Lesch. I wonder if he's going to try for one more gains to win a gold medal. talk EVERY MEDAL he's won Phelps won the race). or if you can't talk to the Schoolings, or Sally May Smiths - talk about how they won. THEN focus on the other storylines.

I mean - Australia had a horrible horrible time in the pool (by their standards) that's a massive story for that country. talk about that. 
Canada had an amazing resurgence in the pool talk about that
Several people won their first medals for their country. shine a little star on that. 

a lot of other news casts managed to give Phelps the respect, focus and love he deserved - but talk about other things too. that's what i really meant by equal.  
 

[MVFrostsMyPie]

1 hour ago, KenyaJ said:

I just saw on Lia Neal's Instagram that Aaron Piersol was in the stands, watching as Ryan Murphy broke his record. How cool. At trials, they said he'd asked for the phone numbers of the top backstrokers, because he expected his record to fall and wanted to call and congratulate the swimmer who did it. He's so gracious and awesome.

In advance of Michael's last race, NBC posted all of his Olympic races through the years. I loved seeing Aaron in the IM relays. He will always be a huge favorite of mine.

Ahhhh! I wish they would have shown him (Peirsol). Well, glad they devoted a few seconds to Murphy beating Peirsol's WR. I couldn't find pics of him on Lia Neal's instagram, but I looked at his hashtag and creeped on random people's photos. His hair just needs someone (*cough*me*cough*) to run their hands through it. Okay guys, I think now I'm going to go watch old footage of his Olympics on youtube for nostalgic reasons....

This is the next most recent tagged pic, but it's from 3 months ago...

 

[TVFan17]

2 hours ago, jjj said:

Michael Phelps hype is kind of like Christmas hype (not the religious part, but the decorations and the gift-giving and the carols and the parties).  Some people can't wait for Christmas to be over (are we DONE yet?) and some people want to leave the lights blinking for an extra month.  No one really likes the hype, even when they love everything about Christmas.  Too much hype takes away from whatever "true meaning" Christmas has, but it is not the fault of Christmas.  I'm very sorry we will not have the Phelps phenomenon to anticipate again.  But glad I got to see it from start to now.  He is not finished, although finished racing.  This CNN piece talks about his efforts to bring more and more children into competitive swimming to highlight the sport, and there surely will be another spurt in membership after this week.  http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/13/sport/michael-phelps-legacy-rio-2016-olympics/ 

I'm actually one of those nutty people who loves Christmas hype AND hype over phenomenal Olympic athletes!  Lol. 

 

57 minutes ago, backgroundnoise said:

Not at the expense of all the other athletes who got nary mention, much less entire sports teams completely ignored, IMO.   Even half the screen time devoted to following his every move would have been excessive (and a tenth of that given his family).   He definitely earned his medals, ceremonies, and some interviews, but viewers deserved better than NBC delivered this week.  YMMV.

It was definitely not right for the announcers/commentators to say that the other relay team members helped Phelps get his final gold medal in his final Olympics -- they were obviously not there for the purpose of helping him, but to achieve their own accomplishments, break their own records, etc.  I don't like that aspect of the hype at all.

However, that said, I'm not going to lie... Michael Phelps has been the primary athlete to hold my interest in the Olympics this first week.  I am happy for the other athletes and I am thrilled that the U.S. is doing well, but he is the one who has kept me tuned in most consistently.  His story, career trajectory and this being the final Olympics for him, is what made it more interesting for me.  And, through the course of watching the Olympics to see his races, I have become familiar with other athletes too, of whom I am now a fan.  My attention span starts to drift when the track and field takes over for the second week, though, so that's going to be tough to stick with.

So, when 2020 rolls around, I will find a new favorite Olympian to latch on to, follow and cheer on.  And I am crossing my fingers and hoping against hope that the Olympics come back to L.A. in 2024.  I feel I didn't appreciate them enough when they were here in 1984, but they were a huge success for our city and I think I would be totally on board with Olympic spirit if we can get them back again.

[catray]

I love Phelps and normally I like Rowdy and Dan... but yes, the way they were crowing about the relay team winning Phelps his last gold medal was eye-roll inducing. Yeah, I'm pretty sure they weren't just doing it for Phelps, guys. Great race though and way to go Ryan Murphy breaking Aaron Peirsol's WR! Just wish we could have gotten some more Peirsol love (especially because he was there!!). Missed opportunity, for real.

Congrats to the US ladies on their relay win and Simone on her silver! And those Italians were pretty cute with their gold and bronze in the 1500m.

I did find it slightly amusing that no one quite seems to believe Phelps is actually done. I know the NBC focus (to the exclusion of all else) is annoying, but it really is a bit sad to think about no more Phelps races.

[frogzapper]

Great 4x100 medley relays today!

And may I chime in on how adorable I think Nathan Adrian is! His crinkly-eyed smile and enthusiasm are infectious!

[legaleagle53]

1 hour ago, catray said:

I did find it slightly amusing that no one quite seems to believe Phelps is actually done. I know the NBC focus (to the exclusion of all else) is annoying, but it really is a bit sad to think about no more Phelps races.

The reason that some of us are cynical is that he said the exact same thing after London.

Edited August 14, 2016 by legaleagle53

[roamyn]

Sherry67, my attention wanes with T&F, too.

Except the long jump and the high jump.