PHOENIX, Arizona, November 26. WE'RE heading down the home stretch as we begin to announce the various Regional Swimmers of the Year, as awarded in the December issue of Swimming World Magazine this year.
Today, we honor the African Swimmers of the Year. It shouldn't be much of a surprise as this pair of swimmers collectively dominated their regions like no one else in our voting.
Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry and Tunisia's Ous Mellouli are the 2008 African Female and Male Swimmers of the Year.
FEMALE
1. KIRSTY COVENTRY, Zimbabwe
2. Wendy Trott, South Africa
3. Suzaan van Biljon, South Africa
4. Lize-Marie Retief, South Africa
5. Natalie du Toit, South Africa
Coventry put together one of the strongest years of any female swimmer. The African Swimmer of the Year in 2004, 2005 and 2007, Coventry earned the 2008 award with five overall world records. She finished the year with two long course meter records in the 100 and 200 back (58.77 and 2:05.24), while also finishing with three short course meter records in the 200 back (2:00.91) and 200 and 400 IMs (2:06.13 and 4:26.52). She also earned four Olympic medals in Beijing with a gold and three silver medals making their way to her mantel.
MALE
1. OUS MELLOULI, Tunisia
2. Roland Schoeman, South Africa
3. Jean Basson, South Africa
4. Jason Dunford, Kenya
5. Lyndon Ferns, South Africa
Mellouli came back from swimming purgatory as he went from serving an 18-month doping ban to winning the Olympic gold medal in the men's 1500 free. In late 2006, Mellouli used the banned stimulant Adderall to aid his studies at the University of Southern California. The drug was caught in his system, and a retroactive 18-month ban to the date of the test wiped out Mellouli's world title at the 2007 World Championships in the 800 free. The news of the doping ban came out in the middle of the Swimming World Magazine panel voting process, and Mellouli looked to be on his way to the 2007 African Swimmer of the Year honor. After serving his time, Mellouli left no doubt who should be the honoree this year with a gold-winning time of 14:40.84 in the men's 1500 free to upset Grant Hackett's attempt at a third straight win in the event.
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