(Last Saturday, June 17, Tom Malchow broke the world record in the 200 meter butterfly at the Charlotte UltraSwim meet in Charlotte, NC, clocking 1:55.18. His time broke the record of 1:55.22 set five years ago by Russia\u2019s Denis Pankratov. Swiminfo chatted with Tom recently about his record-breaking performance.) -Phil Whitten<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Tom, Congratulations on your spectacular swim.
\nTOM MALCHOW: Thanks, Phil. It was a very emotional experience for me.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Were you expecting to challenge the world record in Charlotte?
\nMALCHOW: I don\u2019t really know what I was expecting. A few weeks ago I went a 1:55.68 in Ann Arbor and there were several things I knew I could improve on. So, yeah, I knew I\u2019d be in the ballpark, but breaking a world record takes a lot of focus and I didn\u2019t know if I would be that focused in Charlotte.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: So what happened?
\nMALCHOW: I don\u2019t really know. I just had a great swim where everything fell into place at the right time. Was I fixin\u2019 to break the record? No, not specifically. But in the back of my mind I knew it was a possibility.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: As you were swimming, were you aware you were on record pace?
\nMALCHOW: Yes, from the crowd\u2019s reaction\u2014they were great! That was definitely a big factor. I could hear them at the 100 and when I turned at the 150 they were going crazy. So I figured I must be on pace and I told myself I just had to hold on for one more 50 (meters).
\n\tLater I found out I was on pace for a 1:54-high at the 150, so I died a little the last 30 meters. I started to shorten up.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Were you rested or tapered for Charlotte?
\nMALCHOW: No, not at all. The only thing we did differently is that we only worked out for 75 minutes on Thursday morning before we left for Charlotte, rather than the two hours we usually do.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Were you wearing a body suit?
\nMALCHOW: Yes, the Speedo Fastskin.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: How much difference do you feel it made?
\nMALCHOW: It\u2019s hard to give you an exact percentage, but I think it probably helped me.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: More than shaving?
\nMALCHOW: That\u2019s hard to say. I like the way it feels; it helps me ride higher in the water. Every swim I\u2019ve done in the suit has been a good one, so I feel confident and comfortable. That might be a big part of it: I think it\u2019ll work, so it works.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Do you wear the full body suit or the sleeveless version?
\nMALCHOW: Sleeveless. I think you need some flesh in contact with the water. I like to feel my hands and arms touching the water. Also, I don\u2019t like the constriction around my shoulders in the full-body version.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: After swimming your 1:55.18, have you reset your goals?
\nMALCHOW: Yes. Jon (coach Jon Urbanchek) thinks I can go a 1:53. I hope he means a 1:53-high\u20261:53.8 or 9\u2026or a 1:54-low. I think those are realistic times. After I taper and shave I think it\u2019s reasonable to pick up a second or a bit more. Normally when I shave and taper that\u2019s good for three or four seconds. But if I can go a 1:54-low to 1:53-high I\u2019ll be very satisfied.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Switching gears for a moment here, have you thought about swimming the 200 free at Trials?
\nMALCHOW: That\u2019s a little tempting, with six spots available as opposed to two in the 200 fly. But with the overlap in the two events, it\u2019s a lot to concentrate on. If I made the relay, I\u2019d have to swim three 200 flys plus two swims in the 200 free\u2014that\u2019s five high-intensity 200s in two days. I think a better strategy for me is to focus just on the 200 fly.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: What about the 100 fly? You\u2019ve never been known as a sprinter, but you swam a 54.0 unrested at Charlotte.
\nMALCHOW: Yeah, I\u2019m going to swim it. I\u2019m definitely not the favorite, but I think I\u2019m in the ballpark. I\u2019d have to say Dod (Wales), (Bryan) Jones, (Bill) Hargis, (Brock) Newman and (Nate) Dusing would all have to be picked ahead of me. They\u2019re all drop-dead sprinters, so they have to be favored.
\n\tI haven\u2019t swum a 100 fly rested, so we\u2019ll have to see what happens when I taper and shave. I think I\u2019m capable of a 53-low and maybe a 52-high if all goes well.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Why do you think you\u2019re getting faster in your "old age"?
\nMALCHOW: I don\u2019t really know. It could be experience and the fact that I\u2019ve had the opportunity to focus on swimming and not be distracted by school. That\u2019s meant more sleep and I\u2019m eating better. I\u2019ve also toned down some of the aspects of college life.
\n\tThis is my opportunity\u2014my moment. I\u2019ve made every sacrifice possible for the Olympics, and I hope it will all pay off. I probably won\u2019t be competing in 2004, so this is it for me. If I don\u2019t succeed, it\u2019ll be my own fault.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: So you plan to retire before 2004?
\nMALCHOW: Probably. If I swim well in Sydney, I\u2019d like to continue at least through the World Championships in 2001. After that, we\u2019ll see.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: How do you size up your competition for Sydney?
\nMALCHOW: It\u2019s a little scary right now. If you compare where we are today with 1996, we\u2019re miles ahead. There probably are six or seven people now who can swim faster than Pankratov when he won in Atlanta.
\n\tA few days after I did my 1:55.68 in Ann Arbor, (France\u2019s Franck) Esposito did a 1:55.61 in Rome, and he commented through SWIMINFO that I had my work cut out for me and not to expect a cakewalk, not to picture myself with a medal around my neck.
\n\tIf I\u2019m fortunate enough to swim the 200 fly in Sydney, aside from Esposito, there is (Denis) Silantiev from Ukraine, Yamamoto from Japan, the two British guys (Steve Parry and James Hickman) and the two Russians. Even though Pankratov isn\u2019t swimming all that well, you can\u2019t dismiss a guy who went 1:55.22. Then there are some Americans who are no slouches either.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Finally, Tom, how do you feel about the decision by USA Swimming yesterday to ban the body suits from U.S. Olympic Trials?
\nMALCHOW: I was a little ticked at first\u2014I like the suit and find it comfortable. But they talked about fairness, and I guess they have a point. Right now, some people can\u2019t get the suit and lots of people have a problem of getting one that firs perfectly. So I guess the decision is a good one.
\n\tFrom a personal standpoint, I\u2019m thinking that if I can put in a good swim at Trials without the suit, having it at the Olympics will be a bonus. I\u2019ll go to Sydney knowing I can swim faster.<\/p>\n
SWIMINFO: Tom, thanks a lot for spending this time with us. And good luck at Trials.
\nMALCHOW: Thanks, Phil. It was my pleasure.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
(Last Saturday, June 17, Tom Malchow broke the world record in the 200 meter butterfly at the Charlotte UltraSwim meet in Charlotte, NC, clocking 1:55.18. His time broke the record<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[718,44,239,185,58,1820,123,2465,696,1316,240,1439,516,147,154,6511,45,238,493,489,62,3076],"class_list":["post-1540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-zzzzzzzzz","tag-ann-arbor","tag-atlanta","tag-charlotte","tag-coach","tag-denis-pankratov","tag-department-of-defense","tag-france","tag-james-hickman","tag-japan","tag-jon-urbanchek","tag-north-carolina","tag-phil-whitten","tag-rome","tag-russia","tag-sprinter","tag-steve-parry","tag-sydney","tag-the-olympics","tag-tom-malchow","tag-ukraine","tag-united-states","tag-wales"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\n