Photo by Griffin Scott
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GOLD COAST, Australia, August 24. TEAM USA men’s head coach Bob Bowman talked about the final day of swimming at the Pan Pacific championships in this video interview, from Kevin Cordes’ relay swim to the effect the female swims have on the men’s team.
Bowman always strikes me as the necessary check on Phelps ego and Phelps seems to take it in stride. So I appreciate that Bowman has the ability to respond to the off performances of some of his swimmers with humility rather than defensiveness. I can’t say I would be able to absorb bad news with the same grace.
And given that his club houses some of the most promising talent out there for more than one country, lets hope he figures it out quickly. Certainly in the States we need Schmitt, Dwyer and McLean to perform at a higher level and I’m sure France and Denmark would like to see better from Agnel and Friis.
But I also think it’s worth celebrating Runge, Mann and Phelps – they are all progressing well. Though now that I’ve typed that it amuses me to consider the age gap between the first two and the latter, yet progressing is the right term across the board.
A lot of people are forgetting what year it is. It’s 2014, Bowman like most coaches for elite level athletes has a quadrennial plan. They aren’t supposed to be going best times right now.