USA Swimming Olympic Trials Should Use 10 Lanes For Prelims

The number of heats per event is staggering. As of Sept. 18, the number of athletes-per-event is just less than 120. In an 8-lane pool, that averages 15 heats of swimmers per event.

The men's 100 free and the women's 200 back currently stand at 20 heats apiece.

The number of heats per event will only get larger as more athletes qualify during the next seven to eight months.

Athletes who compete in the USA Swimming Olympic Trials bring pride to team and town. Coaches who coach an Olympic Trials qualifier bring credibility to their staff and program. Local media tells the story and USA Swimming benefits from a thousand points of publicity.

Next June 25-July 2 in Omaha, Neb., when the seats fill up each day with family and friends, USA Swimming and the United States Olympic Committee will enjoy their biggest Olympic Trials payday ever.

DROPPING THE BAR
But has the entry bar to this prestigious meet been dropped too low in order to pack the venue?

Only three men's events for the 2012 Trials have a faster qualifying time than they did for the 1992 Trials.

The men's 100 back has dropped slightly from 58.09 to 57.59. The men's 100 butterfly has dropped from 55.59 to 55.29, and the men's 200 IM was lowered from 2:06.99 to 2:06.59.

The 10 other men's events have the same or slower qualifying times than in 1992. It took a 15:47.49 to make it to the blocks for the 1500 freestyle in 1992; now it takes a 15:53.59. Same story with the 400 free: 3:58.69 then and 3:59.99 now.

On the women's side, only six out of 13 events have faster qualifying times than 1992. Most of those events have dropped in time by only fractions of a second. The 1992 qualifying standard for the 800 freestyle remains at 8:50.49 today.

A SENSIBLE SOLUTION
Time standards and meet timelines go hand-in-hand. Current estimates have the prelim timeline running later than any previous Olympic Trials meet. It is too late to tighten the qualifying standards or to cap the number of entries, but one solution is to use all 10 lanes in the morning sessions instead of the current plan to use only eight lanes.

The competition pool is built for 10 lanes. The outside lanes are left open to allow for maximum water flow into the gutters.

A simple reconfiguration of those lanes, using multiple, anti-turbulent lane lines next to the gutters, will make the outside lanes as fast as those in the middle of the pool.

By running a 10-lane prelim, 81 fewer heats will be swum throughout the course of the week, based on current numbers. More importantly, USA Swimming will have bought another four years to address the relationship between qualifying standards and the number of participants.