How to Beat Your Friends at Fantasy Swimming

By Chris DeSantis

ATLANTA, Georgia, December 14. WE've all been there. Your friends have dragged you into their fantasy swim league to fill an empty slot, you've fallen tragically behind on following this year's results here on Swimming World, and you need some quick tips so you're not the aquatic equivalent of the guy who plays Tom Brady during the Patriots' bye week in fantasy football.

Your friends don't play fantasy swimming? In this case, your first course of action should be to get better friends. The next thing you need to do is get your new, cooler, swimming-savvy friends to lock in their picks for the 2010 FINA Short Course Championships. Now, all you have to do is read recaps of every event from every meet on this year's World Cup circuit.

No time? That is why I am here to do all the swim nerding for you. All you need to worry about is the post-meet trash talking.

I first played fantasy sports 11 years ago. My high school brain was hooked: I already spent an inordinate amount of time memorizing stats. I think that's what I loved the most about swimming, more numbers! Fun, right?

Maybe not for everyone. Luckily, Podium Pursuit has brought me here to make the complex understandable by laying down some general ground rules for picking winners and some can't miss names for nearly every race they are in. So, without further ado I present The DeSantis Guide For Humiliating Your Friends At Fantasy Swimming and Looking Awesome While Doing It.

1. This is not a long course meet. Say it with me louder: THIS IS NOT A LONG COURSE MEET. While it seems obvious, I never fail to meet swim fans that are surprised by some of the winners at short course meets. It's a completely differently ballgame that rewards different skills and abilities than the long course format. How different is it? If they held the Olympic meet in a 25m pool, Peter Mankoc would be considered one of the greatest swimmers of all time.

2. Familiar Faces, Unfamiliar Events: Along the lines of the last rule, expect to see some swimmers in events they would NEVER contest long course. For instance, everyone knows Roland Schoeman for his sprint freestyle prowess, but he's also currently ranked 2nd in the world in the 50 breaststroke SCM. It's amazing what a start plus two pullouts will do, isn't it?

3. When in doubt, go Euro: European swimmers focus more on SCM swimming than probably any other area in the entire world, and when it comes to this meet it shows. At the 2008 Short Course World Championships, European swimmers and relay teams won nearly half of all the events. This meet should be no different.

Locks
1. Ryan Lochte: Lochte will be even better with twice as many walls. His performances in the short course yards format has been nothing short of spectacular with some equally amazing SCM results. Regardless of his preparation level for this meet, expect him to come away with a considerable medal haul.

2. Gao Chang: If Gao Chang were American we'd be celebrating her like the second coming of Natalie Coughlin. If she wins 50 percent her events, no doubt many will believe she came from nowhere and accuse her of cheating. Luckily, your fantasy swimming competitors don't get to drug test your picks for performance enhancing drugs. Pick up the woman who is seeded a full second ahead of the competition in the 100 backstroke.

Sleepers:
1. Laszlo Cseh: Its hard to consider someone who was in the conversation as either the world's best or second best swimmer in recent years as a sleeper. However, if you are using the psych sheet as your lone reference, you might miss Cseh seeded all the way down at 21st behind Czech swimmer Tomas Fucik. While Cseh faces stiff competition in the form of American Ryan Lochte, he should be able to do what he does best. Finish second.

2. Rikke Moller Pedersen/Jeanette Ottesen: There seems to be a lag with the Danish swimmers getting their due the past few years. So if you're just can't bring yourself to pick Rebecca Soni like everyone else, you might want to take a chance with Pedersen.

That's it. Simple rules to follow. Go make your picks today, earn some bragging rights, and maybe even swim away with some prizes.

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