In Michael Phelps' Shadow

At the Foro Itlalico pool, Tyler McGill trudged down the long blue carpet runway toward the horde of media. 

“I didn’t see Phelps,” McGill started before the first question was fired. 

There was an awkward pause. No one watched McGill’s one hundred butterfly final. All eyes were transfixed on the epic battle between Cavic and Phelps.

McGill shifted his weight from one foot to the other,  “It was an honor to be in the butterfly final that broke the 50 second barrier.” McGill shook his head as if there was nothing left to say. “Phelps is great.”

McGill, the other American in the race, went a 51.42, and has hovered in 51.0 range since U.S. World Trails.

I used to swim. I won an Olympic gold medal in the butterfly.  I know: McGill is great.

“He’s understands the situation,” a reporter from a major publication shrugged. “We’re here for Phelps. NBC is only here because of Phelps.”   

I nodded, “It’s the Michael Phelps show,” agreeing, but I felt slightly awkward saying it.  I felt uneasy.

Inside the tight clique of the swimming community, we’re all incredibly thankful for Phelps.  Whether you’re a world class  swimmer on the cusp of medal contention, a governing body striving to increase registration, or swimwear manufacturer fighting for market share, you can’t deny the “Phelps Effect”. Mr. Swimming has been a boon for business.  Inside the swimming clique we’re giddy.  But tension is tempering our hopes for the future.  We’re in a race against time to elevate the sport’s visibility beyond our one truly global star.  

Phelps plans to compete until the 2012 Olympics.  

We can all hear the clock ticking.

While the white-hot spotlight has been on Phelps, a few stars have peeked outside his shadow: Aaron Peirsol, Natalie Coughlin, and Ryan Lochte, to name a few.  With 24 Olympic medals between them and London on their schedule, we have the firepower to grow the sport, and, perhaps, make it more mainstream.

We have one other star in the mix, one that has arguably gotten as much media attention as Phelps, though it has become taboo to talk favorable about this “star” during the World Championships: the hi-tech polyurethane swimsuits.

On the eve of World Championships, FINA banned them from competition in 2010.

Of course the hi-tech suits are responsible for the endless world records, and endless media about the records, and endless marketing by the swimwear manufacturers.

Phelps is fine with the ban.  “I’m ready to get back to swimming,” he said in ast race press conference.  “The sport’s not about swimming anymore.”

Most swimwear manufactures aren’t necessarily on the same page.  Quietly, out of the spotlight, they’ve been grumbling.  Most want the hi-tech suits and their high price-point that drives revenue.

I’ve heard their grumblings and they worry me.  It’s clear swimwear contracts will be cut or significantly reduced for athletes just out of the medal-hunt.  Athletes depend on these sponsorship dollars to live and pay for training expenses.

Phelps won’t feel that pain, nor will most major stars within the community, but Tyler McGill will be graduating from college next year, as will David Walters and Ricky Berens, and others like them.  They are our new stars, and I worry for these athletes. Will the fallout of the 2010 FINA ban on hi-tech suits result in little or no swimwear endorsement dollars for them? 

Comments

[Dori Bland]

I agree the sport of swimming has become more about what the suits can do instead of the actual swimmers.

[Jessica Cole-Crawford]

Hey Mel- thanks for the blog. Love how it is written. Love what u have to say. I was initially on the fence about the tech suit. I saw both sides. Could not make up my own mind. As time passed, and the controversy went on, I grew tired of hearing about the suits more than, if not as much as, the swimming. I was a swimmer. I like (no, I love) swimming. I want to talk swimming. The suits are a part of that. Note I said, a PART of... but all the chatter about them made the issue bigger than the sport itself in a way, at least for a time it seemed. Yes, it is great publicity for swimming (I think). They say that even "bad" publicity is "good" publicity as long as the sport is getting media attention. But, nevertheless, I grew tired of the whole situation. Like Phelps said, let's get back to the SWIMMING. But I must say, that even though this is how I feel now, I have indeed had the exact same concerns as you regarding the swimmers currently on the edge of breaking out. Our future stars who are currently on the cusp. What will become of them if sponsors begin to cut back (as I presume they could if swimming no longer receives media attention b/c the suit controversy is no more a la FINA's change of rules and resulting ban on non-textile suits). No money, no swimming for those who are excellent, but not excellent enough to be #1. So, on that note, I am sad. Disheartened that deserving athletes in our beloved sport may not be able to continue swimming competitively b/c of the tech suit ban. So... on the one hand I am glad that the suit wars are over. On the other hand, not so much. I guess I am back on the fence again.

[Lindsey]

I agree. As much as Phelps' dominance has helped the sport, it might hinder it in the long run. He's planning on retiring by the time he's thirty, and if all we do is focus on him, what's going to happen when he's suddenly gone?

There will always be fans for other swimmers within the swimming community, but we need to allow some other swimmers to become big names as well. We have to if we want the sport to permenately grow in its media presence and not just be a blip on the radar. But how do you do that when it seems like it's all Phelps all the time?

[C. Jordan]

I'm not so much concerned about Berens and Walters, but Tyler McGill. He's easily the second-best 100 fly swimmer in the US, could easily be top 4-5 in the world, should be invaluable in the free and medley relays for years to come, and I couldn't even pick him out of a line up. Was he even mentioned at all during the coverage that was so hyped up? Adam Klein was DQd in the 200 breast in Rome and I can't find out why, and no one seemed to care. Berens put up the second fastest split in the pool in the 800 relay to get the US a lead, and no one mentioned it. It's like, yeah we want these guys to be stars, but not if it costs Phelps TV coverage. BS.

[David2]

You're right about Berenrs, Walters, McGill. I have thought for a while that this could be a MAJOR problem. We need those guys until 2016...