Birthday Wishes
Sunday, 16 August 2009
Just wanted to send out some birthday wishes to a few members of TEAM USA.

First and Foremost, Happy Birthday Mr. Jackson Wilcox, of the University of Texas who turns 20 today. HOOK EM HORNS!!!


And a early, DOUBLE HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Elizabeth Biesel (who will turn 17) and Tyler McGill of Auburn (who will turn 22) on August 18th.













(Wilcox pictured at Natls 09, Beisel at Golden Goggles 09, and McGill with Phelps, Natls 09)



We wish them the happiest of Birthdays and good luck in the coming months of training. Can't wait to see them back in the water again.

Labels: , ,

posted by KNR at 19:28 | 5 comments
Featured Swimmers for JANUARY
Monday, 5 January 2009


Male Swimmer of the Month- Larsen Jensen

DOB: 9/1/1985

Height: 6”0
Weight: 172 lbs

Hometown: Bakersfield, CA
Residence: Los Angeles, Calif.
High School: Mission Viejo HS '03
College: USC '08
College Major: Political Science
Coached By: Dave Salo
Club: Trojan Swim Club CA

Parents: Alan and Barbara

Sibling: Younger sister Lindsey is a diver

Nickname: "Larjo"...USC teammates and training partners Erik Vendt and Chad Carvin gave him the nickname

Hobbies Outside the Pool: Driving

Ultimate Way to Relax: Driving, sleeping

Most Influential Person: Father because of his integrity and toughness

Training Stats: Swims 18 to 20,000m per day, 6 hours a day, 6 days a week

What has he achieved?

Olympic History:

2008: Bronze, 400m Free

2004: Silver, 1500m Free (AR)

4th 400m Free

World Champs History:

2007: 4, 1500m Free

2005: Silver, 800m Free (AR)

Silver, 1500m Free

2003: Silver, 800m Free (AR)

Pan Pacs History:

2002: Silver, 800m Free (AR)

Bronze, 1500m Free

SC Worlds History:

2006: Bronze, 800m Free R

4th 1500m Free

7th 400m Free

Duel in the Pool History:

2005: Bronze, 400m Free

2003: Silver, 1500m Free

NCAA History:

2007: Gold, 500m Free

Gold, 1650m Free

9th 800m Free

13th 200m Free

World Rankings

2006 World Rankings:

11th, 400m free;

19th, 1500m free

67th, 200m free

2005 World Rankings:

2nd, 800m free

2nd, 1500m free

7th, 400m free

Records:

American Record in 1500m Free set at 2004 Olympic Games

National Age Group Record (17-18) in 400m Free, 800m Free and the 1500m Free

National Age Group Record (15-16) in 800m Free

Larsen has had a solid swimming career so far, as a freestyle specialist with his greatest achievement being a Silver Medal in the 1500m Free at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. I remember watching that race, he was behind legend Grant Hackett and stuck his ground for the entire race despite our British Swimmer (David Davis) trying everything to gain an extra place on the podium, he ended up with the Bronze medal.

An interesting note, his Mother (Barbara) used to swim competitively and his sister is a Diver, love for the water must run in the family. I think it would be interesting in the future if he tried some different strokes or distances, but I’m looking forward to seeing him at nationals (hopefully) and provided he keeps swimming through to 2012!

(written by Nicole)


Female Swimmer of the Month- Elizabeth Beisel

DOB: August 18, 1992

Hometown: Saunderstown, Rhode Island

Current Residence: Saunderstown, Rhode Island

College: She is still in high school. She is set to graduate in 2010.

Club: Bluefish Swim Club

Coach: Matt Kredich/Chuck Batchelor

Records Held:

Holds NAG (15-16) in 400m IM, set at 2008 Olympic Trials ... Former NAG (15-16) holder in

100m BK (Semi), set at 2008 Olympic Trials ... Holds NAG (15-16) in 200m BK (Prelim), set at

2008 Olympic Trials ... Former NAG (15-16) holder in 200m BK, set at 2008 Olympic Trials ...

Holds NAG (15-16) in 200m MED-R, set at 2008 MR SPEEDO CHAMPIONS SERIES ... Holds

NAG (11-12) in 200m BK, set at 2005 Junior Championships ... Holds NAG (11-12) in 400m IM

(Prelim), set at 2005 Junior Championships ... Former NAG (11-12) holder in 200y BK, set at

2005 MR Speedo Sectionals ... Holds NAG (10 & under) in 200m IM, set at 2004 NE Open

Championship ... Holds NAG (10 & under) in 100m BK, set at 2003 NE 12&U AG Champs ...

Holds NAG (10 & under) in 200m FR, set at 2003 NE 12&U AG Champs ... Holds NAG (10 &

under) in 400m FR, set at 2003 ST Texas Open

Where have we seen her?

Elizabeth Beisel swam in her first international swim meet at the Beijing Olympics. Although she didn't win any medals, this 15 year old held her own in her races. She will be competing at the US Swim trials in July and will be competing for a spot on the team to go to World Championships in Rome.

Straight from Elizabeth's mouth:

Childhood Nickname:

Never had a nickname when I was younger, was always Elizabeth


How old were you when you broke your first record?

7


Do you remember what you first award was? What was it for?

Most improved swimmer when I was 6 on my first swim team


What is your favorite place to travel to?

Australia


Favorite place to swim?

California


Favorite beverage?

Orange Juice


Favorite food?

Hamburger


Favorite NFL/MLB/NBA team?

Patriots, RED SOX, Celtics (I'm a Boston girl)


Celeb you look up to?

Lance Armstrong


Celeb you think or someone has told you you look like?

haha I don't know!


What made you want to become an Olympic athlete? It was always a goal of mine, but I think after watching the 2000 and 2004 Olympics I really knew what I wanted to accomplish.

If you weren't a swimmer what would you be doing right now? Trying out new sports at school and figuring out what I want to pursue in college.

Elizabeth Beisel gets tons of cool points for being a swimmer of course and because she is a Boston sports fan! I'm excited to see how she does in the swimming world over the years because she's young and like many swimmers who came onto the international scene (Michael Phelps and Katie Hoff) at the age of 15, have kicked butt as they have gotten older. She's another one we expect to see big things out of as the years go on.

(Written by Renae)


The ladies of the DCC are bringing you a special feature this month. He’s an up and coming swimmer who made a brief appearance in Beijing and you know his name if you watched the Prelims for the 400m Free Relay this summer: Mr. Nathan Adrian (YOU ASKED FOR HIM, WE LISTENED!)

DOB: December 7th, 1988

Hometown: Bremerton, Washington

College: UC-Berkeley ‘10

Major: Pre-Med

Club: The Race Club

Coached by: Dave Durden and Mike Bottom

Height: 6'5"

Where have we seen him?:

He swam the prelims for the 400m Free Relay earning himself his first Olympic medal in Beijing. Oh yeah, it was gold too!

Olympics attended: 1- 2008

Medal Count

Olympic Games:

400m FR-R:Gold

2008 Short Course Worlds:

400m MED-R: Silver (American Record)

400m FR-R: Gold (World Record)

100m FR: Gold

Top Times:

50m FR: 22.01 (June 2008)

100m FR: 48.46 (June 2008)

Training Statistics: Swims 15,000-20,000 meters per day for 5.5 hours, 6 days a week.

Started Swimming: At age 5, with his other siblings

Sports Played Previously: SOCCER

Hobbies: hanging out with friends, jet skiing, boating, dirt biking

Most influential Person: Parents: “Because of their perfect balance of love and support for me over the years.”

Straight from Nathan’s mouth:

Childhood Nickname: Bok Choi

How old were you when you broke your first record?
My first record? I guess there are all sorts of different records to be broken. I am proud to say that I hold some 10 and under record on my old swim team.

Do you remember what you first award was? What was it for?
My first award also is a little bit hazy. I would have to say my first award of significance was probably high school senior year when I got the High School Athlete of the year award from one of the clubs in the area.

What is your favorite place to travel to?
Well I still have a lot more places I would like to visit but i really enjoy going to Europe to compete at some low key swim meets and to do a little bit of the tourism thing.

Favorite place to swim?
My favorite place to train would have to be Berkeley because of the atmosphere and all my friends there. My favorite place to race has to be omaha during trials. Even though that was just a one time thing.

Favorite beverage?
Water is always my go to drink

Favorite food?
I really enjoy barbecue bacon cheeseburgers. However, when I was in Florida for a year I had an intense craving for burrito's all year so when I came back to Berkeley I had at least 1 burrito a day for two weeks straight.

Favorite NFL/MLB/NBA team?
I think I will have to go with the Mav's for this one. Dirk Nowitzki is unstoppable when he is on.

Celeb you look up to?
I don't really know to be honest. Can I go with Bono here or something? haha

Celeb you think or someone has told you you look like?
Ive been told that when my hair is short I sometimes look like Oliver Wood from Harry Potter

What made you want to become an Olympic athlete?
I never had a moment where I decided that I wanted to be an Olympian. It was more of a culmination of a lot of the influences on my life like my coaches, family, to some extent my schooling. The most important part of swimming is to have fun. To me the most fun I could have in swimming was through swimming fast.

If you weren't a swimmer what would you be doing right now?
That changes almost every day. I watched snowboarding on ESPN just now. Not that I would have been any good but i would have loved to picked that up. Depending on what my mood is tomorrow I might want to be a vet or something different. I am positive that one thing i would be doing is going to school.

We were lucky to talk with Nathan and he was sweet enough to answer a few of our probing questions. We appreciate him taking time out of his busy schedule to get back to us. We are looking forward to seeing what he has to offer the swimming world in the coming years. With his workout regimen he will not doubt be channeling Michael Phelps, or at least we think he will. He has lots of promise and we can’t wait to see him tear it UP at Nationals. We also would like to point out that he used to play soccer. AUTOMATIC BONUS POINTS. (Two of us are former soccer players) Mad love for you Mr. Adrian. Looking forward to hearing your name frequently in the coming months.

(Written by Kimmie)

credit-: swimming.teamusa.org and Wikipedia

Labels: , ,

posted by KNR at 14:57 | 0 comments
Looking back on Beijing
Tuesday, 23 December 2008
2008 is coming to an end and we must reflect on the amazing-ness that was the Beijing Olympics.

The Associated Press has named Michael Phelps the male athlete of the year and selected his winningnest (HAHA) eight gold medals at the Beijing Games the top sports story of the year. How can we disagree with them? Phelps Phever has swept the nation. Yes, Michael’s performance was amazing but we feel the need to discuss some other races that had us on the edge of our seats, screaming at the top of our lungs well into the night scaring the neighbors and waking anyone within a mile radius of our homes.

Jason Lezak’s heroic come back in the 4x100 free won’t be forgotten for a while, he set off trailing French swimmer Alain Bernard (affectionately dubbed horse face) by almost a body length, and by the turn he looked to be pulling away from the US veteran Olympian however, a tactical error on Bernard’s part allowed The King of France to rein him in the last 15M pulling off the greatest relay finish of all time. ALL HAIL KING LEZAK!

Dara Torres the oldest member of the Women’s Swim Team, at the young age of 41 won silver behind German swimmer Britta Steffen with a new American record, losing the gold by only 0.01 of a second. She now has an Olympic career spanning 24 years, and has tied the record for most Olympic medals won by a Female Swimmer with Jenny Thompson. Not to mention her great sportsmanship, when a competitors suit tore right before the race she asked officials to delay the start so that her competitor could get a new one. Talk about honorable, Dara truly embodies the definition of amazing.

Ryan Lochte also created some tidal waves of his own in the Water Cube. He beat out Mr. Backstroke himself, Aaron Peirsol in the 200M back earning himself his first individual gold medal and in a world record time of 1:53.94, not too shabby if we say so ourselves. Lochte, affectionately dubbed Reezy by many left the 2008 games with 4 medals total. (Other include- 2 bronze in the 200M and 400M IM, 1 gold in the 4X200 M Freestyle Relay). His laid back attitude outside of the pool is a sharp contrast to his fierce competitive drive he shows each and every time he’s on the pool deck. Fierce competitor or laid back lover, the lady killer has our hearts.

Natalie Coughlin was awarded Female Athlete of the Year at the 5th annual USA Swimming Foundation's Golden Goggle Awards. The Beijing Olympics was Coughlin's second trip to the Olympics where she brought home 6 medals (1 gold, 2 silver and 3 bronze). In winning 6 medals at the most recent Games, she became the first woman to ever win a 100 M Backstroke gold in two consecutive Olympics and the first American female swimmer in modern Olympic history to win six medals in a single Olympics. Her performance raised her total medal count to 11 total (3 gold, 4 silver, and 4 bronze). Her smile and bubbly personality is one that everyone who has watched any of her races or interviews remembers. She is one of the bright shining stars of the US Swim Team and will continue to be for a long time.

Competing in her first international swim meet at the young age of 15 was Elizabeth Beisel. She qualified for the US Olympic Team in the 400m IM and the 200M backstroke. She posted the best time in the prelims for the 400M IM and finished fourth in the final. In the 200M backstroke, she posted the second fastest time in the semis and finished fifth in the final. Although she didn't win a medal, she swam amazing races and proved that she had every right in competing at the Beijing Olympic Games. Her races will only get better as the years go by and now that she's got the first international event under her belt, the first meet nerves are gone and the gloves are on.

Following the in footsteps as her teammate and hometown friend, Michael Phelps, Katie Hoff appeared in her second Olympics at the age of 19. With more knowledge under belt of international meets, she came to compete. Her schedule had the media dubbing her "the female Michael Phelps" because she would have had 6 medal races in 7 days. Although she didn't have the performance she had hoped, she did come away with 3 medals (1 silver and 2 bronze). She also finished fourth in 2 events and in 200M freestyle, she set an American record. She put out the best she could and didn’t stop fighting until her hand was on the wall. Watch out for her in the upcoming years because we see her becoming an more fierce competitor than we have seen from her first trip to the Olympics in 2004.

The 2008 Olympic medal count for the US Swim Team was three more than that of the 2004 Olympic games. The US Olympic Swim team brought home a respectable 31 medals! They also broke 11 world records which is 3 more than in Athens. Some of those records were broken numerous times during the games including in heats, and prelim swims. The Men's team won 17 medals which is 1 less than in Athens, but 10 of those medals were gold, which is the most since 1976 (Phelps bringing home 8 of his own!). The Women's team brought home 14 which is 4 four more than in Athens, 2 of which were gold. These Olympic Games were definitely the fastest and most amazing Games to watch.

We here at the DCC can’t wait for 2009 (INDY HERE WE COME!!!!!!!!!!!) but are sad to see the 2008 Olympic games officially behind us. We are looking forward to seeing NEW world records being set and times lowered continuing into the new year and even beyond....all the way to Roma and even London 2012. (Yes we are looking that far ahead!) Wishing everyone Happy Holidays and a WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!

(Note: there are tons of swimmers we didn't mention but we still HEART them and want them to know we APPRECIATE AND RESPECT THEM IMMENSELY! MUCH LOVE FOR TEAM USA)

Labels: , , , , , ,

posted by KNR at 21:16 | 2 comments