Splashbacks: Swimming Community Mourns Death of Wen “Ariel” Xu in Jan-Feb 2017

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It’s been another amazing year of aquatics competition, including an exciting trip to Budapest for the World Championships, and Swimming World had our readers covered every step of the way.  During the next few days, we’ll take a look back in “Splashbacks”, the most read stories of 2017.

First up is January and February of 2017, periods of both highs and lows were recorded in the first two months of the year as the swimming community celebrated records and mourned the loss of collegiate athlete Wen “Ariel” Xu of Drury.

1. Drury Swimmer Wen “Ariel” Xu Dies in Practice

The swimming community mourned the loss of Drury swimmer Wen “Ariel” Xu in early February. Xu, an NCAA Division II champion, suffered a medical emergency during swim practice and was promptly taken to Mercy Hospital. She was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital. The senior was a native of Shanghai, China and a 2016 NCAA DII champion in the 50 free.

2. 10 Foods for Faster Swimming

A commentary by one of Swimming World’s talented interns, “10 Foods for Faster Swimming” broke down the different nutrients that an athlete’s body needs, while also providing 10 snacks/food items to incorporate those nutrients into your diet.

3. Ippei Watanabe Breaks 200 Breast World Record; First Man Under 2:07

Japan’s Ippei Watanabe posted the first world record of 2017 when he became the first man to break 2:07 in the 200 LCM breaststroke. Watanabe posted a 2:06.67 while swimming at the Kosuke Kitajima Cup in Tokyo, downing countryman Akihiro Yamaguchi’s 2012 record of 2:07.01.

4. The 9 Stages of Taper Told in Photos

Taper – the time of year that every swimmer looks forward to. Swimming World college intern Erin Himes recounted the nine stages all swimmer’s experience in this witty and all-too-relatable commentary about taper.

5. Katie Ledecky Breaks Another Record, But Ally Howe Steals the Show

Katie Ledecky continued to shock and impress the world in early 2017 when she downed an American Record at the Pac-12 Conference. While hearing Ledecky down an American Record may not be surprising, it was an exciting and surprising turn of events for the two-time Olympian to down a non-freestyle American Record: the 400 IM (3:57.68).

Despite Ledecky’s impressive record, the night belonged to teammate Ally Howe, who took down Natalie Coughlin’s 15-year old American Record in the 100 back with a 49.69. Howe’s swim placed her as one of two women to break the 50-second barrier in the 100 back.

6. 3 No-No’s After Christmas Training

The stretch of training following the holidays can be brutal to swimmers, but all know that the rough training is beneficial going into the last stretch of the season. Swimming World college intern, Robbie Dickson, delivered three no-no’s that all swimmers should avoid following winter training.

7. Watch Caeleb Dressel Unleash 17.90 50 Free Split

Caeleb Dressel kicked off what would become an unforgettable 2017 for himself when he split a 17.90 split as the anchor leg of Florida’s 200 SCY medley relay. Dressel’s anchor swim propelled Florida to first place in the relay at the 2017 SEC Championships and set a new SEC record.

8. Don’t Call It a Taper

Taper was a favorite topic in the early months of 2017 as collegiate swimmers and high schoolers with a winter season began their march towards the end of yet another season. Swimming World college intern, Alec Scott, dissected the true meaning of the word “taper” with the help of Coach Ryan Mallam.

9. New Team, New Life, Same Fast Swimming for Katie Ledecky

The 2016-17 season was monumental for Katie Ledecky as she moved from the East coast to the West coast to join the Stanford Cardinal. While she quickly got to work setting new records throughout the season, she took time to reflect in January of 2017 on how far she had come and what her new chapter of swimming looked like so far.

10. What Distance Swimmers and Sprinters Really Think of Each Other

Ailish Dougherty, a Swimming World college intern, tackled the heated debate of distance versus sprint swimming and what the two groups really think of each other in a comical commentary.

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Swimming Pool Lovers
6 years ago

gj :p

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