Swimming World Presents – Did You Know? About the Story of Aumakua

Swimming World April 2021 - Did You Know - The Story of Aumakua
Jack Chalmers and Frank Beaurepaire

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Did You Know? About the Story of Aumakua

By Bruce Wigo
Photos by the International Swimming Hall of Fame

In 1914, the Hawaiian swimming great Duke Kahanamoku was invited to Australia to give a series of clinics and to have a friendly swimming match against Frank Beaurepiere, a member of the 1908 and 1912 Australian Olympic teams.

Beaurepaire was one of the greatest open water swimmers in the world, but until Duke’s visit, he had never swum outside the shark nets when in Australia. But Duke insisted on “open water swimming.”

“Duke,” warned Frank, “you can’t swim here in Australia without nets. There are a lot of man-eating sharks down here.”

“Oh, come on, Frank,” said the Duke, “the sharks won’t bother us.”

You see, after so many years of swimming with the sharks in Hawaii, Duke had come to believe that the shark was his “aumakua” (ancestral spirits; his guardian). He wasn’t afraid of anything in the sea, and since Frank was Duke’s friend, Duke’s “aumakua” would also protect Frank.

Bolstered by Duke’s assurance of protection, and perhaps not wanting to appear afraid, Frank swam with Duke along the coast—without the nets—as hundreds of people watched and waited on the beach. When they landed, the first question they were asked was: “Did you see any sharks?”

“Yeah, we saw plenty,” replied Duke, jokingly. “And they didn’t bother you?” asked the crowd. “No,” Duke replied, “and we didn’t bother them.”

A few years later, on Feb. 4, 1922, Beaurepaire was on the beach in Melbourne along with 40,000 other spectators watching a surfboard competition. One of the competitors was Milton Coughlan. Suddenly, Beaurepaire heard the shark bells ringing and people screaming. They tolled the bells in those days as a warning when sharks appeared in the Antipodes, and with the lifeguards and surfers, the shark menace was always in mind…

 

To read the rest of the story about the Duke’s aumakua,
Check out the full issue of Swimming World’s April 2021 issue, click here to download now!

Swimming World April 2021 - Lilly King - Ever The Competitor - COVER

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Swimming World April 2021 Issue

FEATURES

012 A PANDEMIC PERSPECTIVE FROM MASTERS SWIMMING
by Dan D’Addona
Masters swimmers maintain a connection to the sport they love as well as to their team and community. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, that connection has been missing the past year, but they are ready to face the challenges that lie ahead.

017 DEATH, TAXES…AND INDIAN RIVER!
by Andy Ross
Indian River State College will be shooting for its 47th straight men’s and 39th consecutive women’s NJCAA team titles.

018 TAKEOFF TO TOKYO: SPRINT TSAR
by John Lohn
As Swimming World continues its “Takeoff to Tokyo” series, the opportunity to examine the career of Russia’s Alexander Popov—accomplishments and approach—is the chance to pay tribute to a man who might be the greatest sprinter the sport has ever seen.

021 COUNT ON CHINA
by Dan D’Addona
Based on the results of the last eight Olympics—and the most recent World Championships held two years ago—China would be a good bet to once again dominate the diving competition, July 23-Aug. 8, at the 2021 Games in Tokyo.

022 EVER THE COMPETITOR
by David Rieder
Five years after her public introduction to the world at the Rio Olympics, little has changed about Lilly King. She will still speak her mind, tell you how she really feels, and she’s still a winner, a dominant force in sprint breaststroke.

025 THE GREATEST OF THEIR GENERATION
by Bruce Wigo
The General Slocum steamship disaster  in 1904, the tragedy that changed swimming history, had an impact on two of the greatest swimming heroes of all time, Johnny Weissmuller and Charles Robert Drew.

028 NUTRITION: FUELING FOR COMPETITION—THE “CHERRY ON TOP!”
by Dawn Weatherwax
Athletes spend hours upon hours training. It is now time to put the sports nutrition piece all together when it matters most. A big part of the plan is to know what, when and how much to eat and drink before, during and after the event.

COACHING

014 FAST AND FURIOUS
by Michael J. Stott
College coaches Braden Holloway (NC State), Todd DeSorbo (Virginia), Matt Kredich (Tennessee) and Jessen Book (Kenyon) share their ideas on how they help their swimmers maximize turn speed.

038 SWIMMING TECHNIQUE CONCEPTS: APPLYING MECHANICAL PRINCIPLES TO IMPROVE SWIMMING TECHNIQUE
by Rod Havriluk
Many swimmers attempt to swim faster by modeling the technique of the fastest swimmers. Using champions as models is an archaic approach of painstakingly slow, trial-and-error that risks adopting technique limitations. A far superior approach is to apply mechanical principles that eliminate uncertainty and accelerate the skill-learning process.

043 Q&A WITH COACH MEGAN OESTING
by Michael J. Stott

044 HOW THEY TRAIN DIGGORY DILLINGHAM
by Michael J. Stott

TRAINING

037 DRYSIDE TRAINING: PUSHING POWER
by J.R. Rosania

JUNIOR SWIMMER

040 GOLDMINDS:  LEARN HOW TO BE A RACER
by Wayne Goldsmith
It’s important to learn how to swim your event in such a way that you can perform to your potential in every possible racing situation, including different strategies for heats, semifinals and finals.

047 UP & COMERS: DANIEL DIEHL
by Shoshanna Rutemiller

COLUMNS & SPECIAL SECTIONS

008 A VOICE FOR THE SPORT

011 DID YOU KNOW: ABOUT THE STORY OF THE AUMAKUA?

030 2021 SWIM CAMP DIRECTORY

046 DADS ON DECK: BRENT BILQUIST

048 GUTTERTALK

049 PARTING SHOT

Swimming World is now partnered with the International Swimming Hall of Fame. To find out more, visit us at ishof.org

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