Comments on Swimwatch | Swimming News and Commentary: Ethics - Having To Do With Moral Duty

Exactly G. What works for me, might not work for s...

2007-05-21T06:25:00.000-07:00

Exactly G. What works for me, might not work for someone else. And who I get along with someone else might loathe. This is the right fit for me at this point in my life, and I find it childish and ignorant for someone who does not agree with David's principles (as a coach or, as it seems, a person) to try and come on here and anonymously try to get everyone to think he is some huge a**hole. One other thing, anonymous, why exactly is David so fake, and how exactly did he ruin other poeple's lives? You come on here accusing David of being this horrible person, but you have no once explained to us why. How are we supposed to take your word for anything when all you are doing is yelling empty insults? A lot of people thought my old coach (Scott) ruined their lives by picking up and moving away, or by just being the "push until you can't push anymore" kind of guy, but he is one of the people that I love most in the world and have the utmost respect for. Just because YOU think David is a fake jerk, does not mean the rest of the world has to. At least EXPLAIN why you are making these claims.

Agreed with Rhi,The swimmer and the coach (especia...

2007-05-21T05:26:00.000-07:00

Agreed with Rhi,
The swimmer and the coach (especially as older, more mature, thinking for themselves type of athletes) have a relationship that extends beyond writing workouts, reading workouts, and implementing workouts.
The swimmer is in there busting his or her's arse, an intelligent athlete knows what works for him or her...allow the swimmer to train where he or she feels they are making progress towards whatever goals they may be trying to achieve.
If things aren't working in pool A with coach A, whether in the training plan or the interpersonal relationship between coach & swimmers, then allow them to try a different environment that will hopefully allow them to prosper.

There are many decent coaches in the South Florida area who have seen athletes utilize their talent to their potential...whether that talent takes them only to the Jr. Olympics or to the Olympic Games. You have been blessed with a talent that has given you the potential to reach the later, and you feel David W. is the man to help guide you there...that is your perogative. Others feel someone else may be the coach to help guide them (Dara T. and Michael Lohberg, Lochte and Greg Troy, etc. etc.)despite their past efforts with other coaches.

As one who has coached his daughter since she began swimming, I can't tell you how excited I am for her to train in a new enviroment, with a new coach, new athletes, new training methodologies, etc. She is ready to go and take her swimming to the next level and she is very excited about the change. Time and results will speak for themselves as to whether the change was good and productive.

G Andrews

Anonymous, somehow I get the feeling you are the a...

2007-05-20T16:44:00.000-07:00

Anonymous, somehow I get the feeling you are the anonymous from the post about the "discipline continues". I am really sorry you hold so much hatred for someone who has done so much for others. If other people are happy with the way David runs things, and how open-minded he is, and how he doesn't hold anything back, why rain on their parade? So you dislike the way David is, and how he handles situations, and you think he is all fake and that business, well please for the sake of the people that like him and have the utmost respect for him, shut up. Or at least have the balls to post who you really are so I can attack you properly.

MaryYou are on another planet where reality does n...

2007-05-18T22:17:00.000-07:00

Mary
You are on another planet where reality does not exists
I keep reading your post
it never ceases to amaze me the power this guy has over people
truly amazing
he is very very good (at certain things) I will give him that
but caring about people aside from himself and his daughter, or those that AT THE MOMENT he can use for his gain, he is not very good.

"Bashing this wonderful coach"what a joke"Potentia...

2007-05-18T22:14:00.000-07:00

"Bashing this wonderful coach"
what a joke
"Potentially libelous" Jane you guys sure love to throw that around when someone says something you disagree with (or dont want heard) like the truth. Yes they truth could hurt David, I will agree with that.
Alison Templin - I feel for you, but you are just another one of the bodies trampled on by the Wright Family, not the first and wont be the last.
And believe me there have been a lot more than one postings removed because they did not like what was said about them.

and nat would have won with her 4x20o lead off leg...

2007-05-17T09:38:00.000-07:00

and nat would have won with her 4x20o lead off leg
robertnole

It will be interesting to see if Potec can come ou...

2007-05-17T06:19:00.000-07:00

It will be interesting to see if Potec can come out on top considering her time that won the Olympic gold was barely in the top 5 at this past World champs...

And i enjoyed kohli's article, especially the netb...

2007-05-17T00:24:00.000-07:00

And i enjoyed kohli's article, especially the netball, though swimming and football were close seconds

robertnole

i dont think alison templin meant to attack david ...

2007-05-17T00:14:00.000-07:00

i dont think alison templin meant to attack david or his post, she felt as if she was being singled out even if the article wasnt about her. she was defending herself, although it may not have been her, which would be many of your natural reactions. on another note, id like to see if potec can come out on top in beijing.

-robertnole

Alison...First of all, I do not appreciate you com...

2007-05-16T17:15:00.000-07:00

Alison...

First of all, I do not appreciate you coming onto this board and "bashing" this wonderful coach. This man has more integrity in his little pinkie than any coach I have ever met. I guess all I can say is that it is definitely your loss!

Not only is David a world class coach, he is also an educator. He is interested and concerned about each and every one of his swimmers.

Maybe you need to take a look at yourself and re-evaluate what it is you really are looking for.

KIA KAHA!

Mary

Thanks for the link! As for the Manaudou story... ...

2007-05-16T15:17:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the link! As for the Manaudou story... news just in from Canet is that Camelia Potec has switched to training with Philippe Lucas now. Undoubtedly, he will be thinking of her as a potential to beat Manaudou. I foresee Canet become a breeding ground for excellence, much like Canberra in the 90s.

I think this person's observation might have been ...

2007-05-16T15:03:00.000-07:00

I think this person's observation might have been aimed at G Andrew's comment?

Who's ready for a new post? *raises hand*

“Why drag the conversation back to the Alison stor...

2007-05-16T14:47:00.000-07:00

“Why drag the conversation back to the Alison story when no-one outside of south florida obviously wants to hear about it anymore?”

How interesting. "Anonymous" doesn't want to hear any more about Alison Templin's story. Quite how "anonymous" can claim what the population outside South Florida wants is a mystery. This also implies that the population of South Florida does want to hear Alison’s story.

No where in the article is the name Alison Templin mentioned. Alison Templin decided to claim the story was all about her - when it isn't.

When she is asked some questions - both difficult and frivolous - suddenly "anonymous" pops up and cries "enough".

Why drag the conversation back to the Alison story...

2007-05-16T10:35:00.000-07:00

Why drag the conversation back to the Alison story when no-one outside of south florida obviously wants to hear about it anymore?

Alison Templin, is there someone on Lake Lytal wit...

2007-05-16T10:12:00.000-07:00

Alison Templin, is there someone on Lake Lytal with whom you have a relationship with and you are pulling a "Manaudou"?

:)

G. Andrews

In other news, who actually thinks Laure Manaudou'...

2007-05-16T09:52:00.000-07:00

In other news, who actually thinks Laure Manaudou's decision to move to Turin was a good one? What about Liesel Jones' recent move from Brisbane to Melbourne, the home of her boyfriend? These are two World Record holders who have shifted across state and country lines, respectively, for (among other reasons) boyfriends.

My view is that this isn't always a good idea, although I only had to put up with an eighty mile drive between where I lived and where my boyfriend was going to university. Swimmers, would you be tempted to move away from a successful coach and program in order to take the "long distance" out of "relationship"?

The blogs from Alison Templin are very interesting...

2007-05-16T09:18:00.000-07:00

The blogs from Alison Templin are very interesting. It’s worth pointing out the following:

1. I don’t know what time zone the blog is set for, whether is Eastern, Central, Mountain or Pacific time but the posts marked 3.42, 3.43 and especially 7.35 are noticeable because if they are from the swimmer, I would have expected her to either be at morning practice or at school. West Palm Beach time would make those posts 6.42, 6.43 and 10.35. Are you sure you’re the writer Alison?

2. “I find this whole article very hurtful considering the fact that its about me.”

This is not true – more than half the article is about Laure Manaudou. The article is concerned with the ethics of moving coaches/clubs not you in particular. You happen to be a recent example.

3. “But soon I wasn't getting ANYWHERE near my 5:04 time in the 500 Freestyle, and I could only swim a fast 200. I realized that maybe Davids program wasn't working for me”.

Given what you should know about David’s training program (you have read his books and listened to him talk about training) you know that at the beginning of the racing season you don’t swim personal bests. David’s training is carefully tailored to get swimmers doing personal bests at the peak of the racing season – as he did with you in the HS season. In addition, if you consider 5 seconds slower than your best at the beginning of the racing season to be not “getting ANYWHERE”, you are clearly very greedy for results. For the athlete to be that close to their personal best at the beginning or even middle of the racing season is a very good sign that the training is working and that the previous build-up has worked.

There is no way you can ever know whether or not David’s program worked for you – you never did it. The first 6-9 months were rehabilitation and the next 9 months were rebuilding. You never gave the program a chance because you bailed out before it had a chance.

4. “I was the one that wanted to move, nobody made me.”

This paragraph is probably the most interesting in the whole post. The time it took you to drive to the various locations is irrelevant. Hundreds of athletes all over the world drive long distances for training. It’s not an issue. Your litany of reasons for leaving clubs is the issue. You make is sound as if when the various coaches became ill or left, there was no coach and no club so you had no choice. Re NPB, a terrific coach, Dick Cavanah has been there for many years and is still there. Re FAST, Allan Williams has been there for many years and is still there. In other words there was always a coach and a club, but you still chose to leave. However, most significantly you omit mention of Lake Lytal. Why did you choose not to mention either your previous membership of Lake Lytal or your reason for leaving?

5. “I wish that David would just let the whole ordeal go…”

There is no ordeal about this issue – it is just another part swimming’s rich tapestry.

6. “…but important enough for David to write a whole article about my trials and tribulations.”

No, Alison, the whole article is not about you or your “trials and tribulations”. “Trials and tribulations” imply real difficulty. You are talking about you changing from one swim team to another.

In conclusion Alison, it’s a pity you didn’t have the good manners to talk to David about your training and your perceived problems with it. The only notice he received was a phone call from your mother saying you had left. She baulked at telling David where you were going – said she didn’t know. I found that difficult to believe. There were personnel changes at Aqua Crest which you and your mother didn’t like and made no secret of not liking. It was noticeable that from that time on your attitude towards Aqua Crest changed. Are you quite sure you are being honest when you cite David’s training as the reason you left? As you say: “you don't always know the circumstances.” and “only time will tell.”

You, your coach and your mother have now put you under immense pressure to perform.

only time will tell.....Alison

2007-05-16T07:35:00.000-07:00

only time will tell.....

Alison

your comment makes it look like 5:04 was your best...

2007-05-16T06:37:00.000-07:00

your comment makes it look like 5:04 was your best time before you went to aqua crest and then you couldnt get anywhere near it when you were there. that's misleading! Read your comment again. Thats exactly how you make it sound.

Also, so what, you're swimming 5:10 the next season? No-one gets to swim their best times right away the next season. You sound like you made a big mistake.

To clarify, "club sluts" were the people who went ...

2007-05-16T06:26:00.000-07:00

To clarify, "club sluts" were the people who went through four or five teams in the matter of a year or so. They existed in large numbers in New Zealand in the 90s; I knew of one family who'd lived in both Auckland and Wellington and who'd joined and left the majority of those two towns' teams. Stop being so damn sensitive, people: Unless you fit this description, I wasn't referring to any one of you in particular.

As far as deleting comments goes, the one Alison refers to contained some potentially libelous and unsubstantiated claims. This wasn't the place to make such claims and therefore, on the advice of others, they were removed.

what percent of the team in delray beach are peopl...

2007-05-16T04:01:00.000-07:00

what percent of the team in delray beach are people from other teams?
Club sluts, if you will?
1%,5%,50%?

Look, Im not trying to pick a fight or anything. ...

2007-05-16T03:43:00.000-07:00

Look, Im not trying to pick a fight or anything. I just want to tell my story to people who may have been mislead. Thats it. And its unfair to judge why a swimmer changes teams, you don't always know the circumstances.

Alison

WOW! its quite amazing when you have to defend you...

2007-05-16T03:24:00.000-07:00

WOW! its quite amazing when you have to defend your own story. The state finals meet was my 5:04 DUH! In rolls the next season and Im going 5:10's.

AGAIN, get over it.

And to the first anonymous, who do you think the whole chart in the article is about? Who's mother do you think David was describing as crazy?

Nowhere Near? Tell the truthState HS 2006 Final13 ...

2007-05-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

Nowhere Near? Tell the truth

State HS 2006 Final

13 Templin, Alison JR Suncoast 5:05.38 5:04.20

You're right, the Laure Manaudou story is far more...

2007-05-15T19:56:00.001-07:00

You're right, the Laure Manaudou story is far more interesting than is yours. Um, that's what this post is actually about.

and you're lying about not getting anywhere near your 500 freestyle time with David.