{"id":461020,"date":"2021-02-01T10:11:33","date_gmt":"2021-02-01T17:11:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=461020"},"modified":"2021-02-01T10:11:33","modified_gmt":"2021-02-01T17:11:33","slug":"the-week-that-was-usa-swimming-introduces-two-wave-olympic-trials-dartmouth-reinstates-swimming-diving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/the-week-that-was-usa-swimming-introduces-two-wave-olympic-trials-dartmouth-reinstates-swimming-diving\/","title":{"rendered":"The Week That Was: USA Swimming Introduces Two Wave Olympic Trials; Dartmouth Reinstates Swimming & Diving"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Week That Was sponsored by Suitmate.<\/em><\/p>\n

We are 173 days from the heats of the men’s 400 IM at the Tokyo Olympics, and the International Olympic Committee and Tokyo Organizers have started devising plans for what an Olympics could look like in a pandemic, including athlete protocols for arrival and weighing the idea of allowing no spectators.<\/p>\n

In US news, Dartmouth will be reinstating swimming and diving, after cutting the program this past off-season.<\/p>\n

Read below the five biggest stories in The Week That Was sponsored by\u00a0Suitmate<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Week That Was #1: USA Swimming Olympic Trials to be Split into Two Waves<\/h3>\n
\"venue-backstroke-\"

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick<\/p><\/div>\n

By Dan D’Addona<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\n

The 2021 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials are going to look a bit different due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n

USA Swimming is set to announce the meet will split into two events, splitting up the qualifiers into two tiers to keep less people at the venue at once because of the COVID-19 pandemic,\u00a0the Wall Street Journal first reported<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0USA Swimming confirmed<\/a>.<\/p>\n

USA Swimming, in partnership with the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee and the Omaha Sports Commission, announced a revised plan and schedule.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The meet will be split into two \u201cWaves\u201d with Wave I from June 4-7 and Wave II from June 13-20, the same original dates of the meet, instead of having 1,700 swimmers in one place. Wave I will take place during the originally planned test event, the meet that is used to get the host\u2019s feet wet in terms of hosting a swim meet.<\/p>\n

Wave II will be the sole qualifier for the Olympic Team with time standards for that meet effective January 28 and will close off qualifying May 30. According to USA Swimming, athletes that have already achieved the Wave II time standards will not need to re-qualify between now and May 30. USA Swimming will adjust the Wave II standard to meet the current 41st seeded time.<\/p>\n

#2: Dartmouth Swimming & Diving Reinstated<\/h3>\n
\"Dartmouth

Dartmouth swimming<\/p><\/div>\n

By Matthew De George<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Dartmouth on Friday agreed to reinstate varsity programs that it cut in July, including men\u2019s and women\u2019s swimming, per an agreement first reported by the law firm suing the college over Title IX grievances.<\/p>\n

The law firm of Bailey & Glasser LLP reported that Dartmouth\u00a0agreed to a settlement (pdf)<\/a>\u00a0in which women\u2019s golf and men\u2019s and women\u2019s swimming would be reinstated. The school will also conduct a gender equity review of its athletic offerings to be completed by March 15, 2022 and develop a \u201cGender Equity Plan\u201d to change ensure future changes in athletic offerings don\u2019t run afoul of Title IX.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom this process, and after hearing about other schools\u2019 recent Title IX cases, I came to understand that gender equality is still an issue, even in 2021,\u201d women\u2019s swimming co-captain\u00a0Maggie Deppe-Walker<\/strong>\u00a0said. \u201cI also learned that students truly do have a voice that can be used to question even the largest decisions, but that it takes dedication, persistence, and creativity to be heard. I know now that it is not a conflict of interest to stand up to your school on the matter of gender equality, but that, instead, it is a way to make the school you love a place you are proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Week That Was #3: Tokyo Games Organizers Considering No Spectators For Olympics<\/h3>\n
\"team-usa-fans-rio-olympics\"

Team USA fans in Rio. Photo Courtesy: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports<\/p><\/div>\n

By Andy Ross<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

The Japanese government and organizers of the upcoming scheduled Olympic Games have started weighing the option of holding an Olympics with no spectators on the assumption that Tokyo and the rest of the world may not successfully bring infections under control by July, officials said earlier this month, according to a story from Japanese agency\u00a0Kyodo News<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been doing all kinds of simulations. Basically, I don\u2019t think (the games without fans) is something that would happen or something that I would like to do, but it won\u2019t be a simulation unless we think about it,\u201d\u00a0Yoshiro Mori<\/strong>\u00a0told reporters in Tokyo after holding a remote meeting with International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach.<\/p>\n

Mori and Japanese Prime Minister\u00a0Yoshihide Suga<\/strong>\u00a0have insisted that Japan will host a \u201csafe and secure\u201d Olympics in six months by implementing numerous anti-virus steps to protect the health of those involved, according to Kyodo.<\/p>\n

The government is considering three options for Tokyo 2021:<\/p>\n