the17thman

Sunrise : Ian Thorpe in gay nightclub scandal

A Melbourne nightclub is in hot water after it used swim legend Ian Thorpe's image to advertise a gay party.

Monday's Swim Report: Swimmer Auctions Swim Lane Off For $2.7 Million

Lane 1 - Inside The Games posts "British Swimming unveil Thompson as new women’s water polo performance director .  Graeme Thompson has been appointed by British Swimming as the new performance director for women's water polo, where his primary objective will be securing qualification for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games."

Lane 2 - Brisbane Times posts (w/video) "Hackett cops financial whack over luxury pad.  A buyer is believed to have paid about $2.7 million for former Olympian Grant Hackett's luxury Melbourne penthouse, the scene of an alcohol-fuelled incident that preceded his separation from pop singer Candice Alley.  The price is lower than what the one-time golden couple paid for the sprawling 57th floor Southbank nest four years ago."

Lane 3 - 3AW posts "Ian Thorpe's image being used to promote gay dance party.  Ian Thorpe's image being used to promote gay dance party.  Neil Mitchell says the use of Thorpe's image in this context 'an absurd public insult to Ian Thorpe around his sexuality'.  Thorpe has denied being gay on a number of occasions, and has admitted to a long battle with depression in his latest book This Is Me."

Lane 4 - Daily Mail posts "Oh jeah! Ryan Lochte drinks shots and charms the ladies in first look at new reality TV show.  The 28-year-old is seen shirtless, downing shots and showing off his expensive jewelry during a new preview for his upcoming reality show What Would Ryan Do?, which premieres on the E! Channel on April 21.  Just to add even more intrigue to the thrilling concept, it will also follow the Florida native's desperate search to find a girlfriend."

Lane 5 - The Rice Thresher posts "The Fifth Lap.  The influence of swimming and track and field on the youth.   In many ways, track and swimming are sibling sports. They share similar strengths and struggles. They consistently produce a few global stars who compete alongside a plethora of little-known athletes. And for two weeks every fourth summer, they become the center of the sports universe before receding back to their small but dedicated core group of fans.  They are two sports that simultaneously search for the path to greater success yet these sports must at the same time vigilantly ensure they do not veer off the path of sustainability and risk losing everything.In fact, despite the current star power the sports enjoy, it has become clear during the economic recession that they are indeed vulnerable, both at a collegiate and professional level."

Lane 6 - ESPN finishes up it's series "Summer on the Run.  Relishing my race, and all the prep.  Summer on the Run is a 12-week blog and video series that follows former Olympic swimmer and avid runner Summer Sanders on her journey to train for Disney's Princess Half Marathon on Feb. 24."

Lane 7 - Today Show posts (w/video) "Watch out funnymen: Michael Phelps wants you in the pool. Olympian Michael Phelps dropped by TODAY on Monday and said if he could mentor anyone, it'd be a funnyman.  "I like comedians a lot, so I think comedians would be fun to be able to put them in a pool," he told TODAY.com. "To have the jokes, to keep it kind of light...That would be fun."

Lane 8 - The Heights posts "Plex Swim Program Expands.  The Boston College Masters Swim Program is one of the Flynn Recreational Complex’s best-kept secrets. The team, which is non-competitive, meets several times a week and offers a great cardiovascular workout, focusing on improving swim skills. The program has been active for several years and has had great success, and is now trying to expand and include more of the BC community."

Sunday's Swim Report: In 2016 Who Will Be Shouting "Remember The Alamodome"?

Lane 1 - First News Children's Newspaper posts "Ellie Simmonds interview.  PARALYMPIC swimmer Ellie Simmonds impressed the world last summer, picking up four medals at London 2012. The teenage sporting hero is now working with Sainsbury’s on the Active Kids project to boost sport in schools. She spoke to Callum Jones about her amazing career so far, why she thinks young people should get into sport, and her love of baking!"

Lane 2 - Bay TV Liverpool posts (w/video) "Mark Foster and Natalie Lowe Come Dancing to Wirral College.  Former water bound world record holder Mark Foster has shed his speedo's and taken to dry land, teaming up with professional dancing partner Australian Natalie Lowe.  The Olympic swimmer and champion dancer have embarked on a tour that extolls the various benefits and virtues of dancing."

Lane 3 - The Boston Globe posts "In nonprofit game, athletes post losing records.  Some true benefactors, but Globe finds others give little of what’s raised. Swimmer Michael Phelps famously pledged to start a foundation with the $1 million bonus he received from Speedo after winning eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, but the first two years were like a false start for his nonprofit: $700,671 of revenue (Speedo pays the bonus over time) and just $22,000 to charity.  In the next two years, however, the Michael Phelps Foundation collected even more and gave away three quarters of the money raised, most of it to a swimming program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. In 2011, the foundation doubled the previous year’s revenue from a charity golf tournament while cutting expenses by a fifth."

Lane 4 - The Sydney Morning Herald posts "In too deep.  TO SOME, signs of the turmoil within Australian swimming could be seen in the lead-up to last year's national titles. Swimming Australia had undertaken a policy to reinvigorate a sport that had alarmingly fallen down the ranks of relevancy - they turned to Ian Thorpe.  The powers that be thought that Thorpe, and a group of former champions, could spark interest and publicity in an Australian public that no longer cared enough for Channel Nine to continue its coverage of the national championships.  Also, there was an increasing focus on Thorpe's heir-apparent, James Magnussen."

Lane 5 - The Sydney Morning Herald posts "'Mean Machine' medallist really changes his tune.  THE ''Mean Machine'' gold medallist Neil Brooks is busking on the streets of London trying to earn a living.  Brooks, part of the 1980 Moscow Olympics gold medal-winning swimming relay team, went on to become a high-profile Channel Seven presenter before fleeing Australia with his wife, Linda, and son, Levi, and daughter, Brooke, in September 2010, after multimillion-dollar business deals collapsed amid claims and counter-claims of fraud."

Lane 6 - Adelaide Now posts "Swimmer Jade Neilsen reveals how teammates drank themselves sick.  Further lifting the lid on the binge-drinking culture in Australian swimming, 200m relay silver medallist Jade Neilsen said she spent a night in a London hospital during the Games before being collected by a team doctor and the swimming manager the next morning.  She defended the drinking after the events were over.  "Every single athlete, after they finish competition, drinks," she said.  "I don't see the relevance because it was after our events. I did the wrong thing but I'm 21 and it's not illegal."

Lane 7 - KENS 5 posts (w/video) "The venue is awesome': Alamodome prime for Olympic Swim Trials.  There has been a lot of talk about the 2024 Olympics, but in the time being, San Antonio has a chance to get a taste of the Olympic games much sooner. San Antonio is one of the cities being considered as the site of the 2016 Olympic Swim Trials.  One thing the Alamo City has going for itself is the Alamodome."

Lane 8 - The Province posts "Two-time Olympic swimmer Erica Morningstar hints at retirement after 200m win. Erica Morningstar, a two-time Olympian, won the 200m IM at the 2013 CIS swimming championships at the University of Calgary’s Aquatic Centre and then promptly announced to the crowd that it was the final meet of a terrific career in the pool, though she stopped short of uttering the word ‘retirement’."

Saturday's Swim Report - How Will We Live Without Splash!?

Lane 1 - The Grio posts "theGrio’s 100: Wanda Butts, turning tragedy into life-saving hope.  Wanda Butts faced every mother’s nightmare, when in 2006, she learned that her 16-year-old son had died. Josh drowned while rafting in Michigan with friends. In response to the unspeakable tragedy she faced, Butts founded The Josh Project, partnering with USA Swimming to create a nonprofit that to date, has has taught more than 1,000 children in Ohio how to swim. Butts was named a CNN Heroes finalist in 2012 for her efforts."

Lane 2 - Belfast Telegraph posts "Eddie 'The Eagle' wins Splash!  eteran Olympian Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards has won ITV's celebrity diving competition Splash!.  His triumph comes 25 years after he shot to fame with the world's worst Olympic ski jump at the winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada.  He knocked actor Jake Canuso into second place and Linda Barker, of the BBC's Changing Rooms, into third place."

Lane 3 - arirang posts (w/video) "Korea Swimming Federation Fails to Pay Park Tae-hwan His Bonus.  That's right, and at the center of the controversy is legendary swimmer Park Tae-hwan. And all of a sudden controversy strikes regarding his bonus pay.  According to the Korea Swimming Federation, the 24-year-old Olympic swimmer was supposed to receive 50 million won, or a little less than 46-thousand U.S. Dollars for his two silver medal finishes.  However, instead of issuing that bonus pay to Park, the Korea Swimming Federation decided to donate his money to a couple of young divers, who need the money to train in China.  All this happened, without Park knowing anything about it."

Lane 4 - Gold Coast posts "Webb blasts Thorpe over Olympic insult.  Superstar Karrie Webb had a dig at Ian Thorpe's comments about golf being on the Olympic Games roster, beginning in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro.  In his biography This Is Me, Thorpe questioned golf's place in the Games, pointing out the sport had four major events every year for both men and women and wondered if players would take the occasion seriously.  But speaking in the lead-up to the Volvik Ladies Masters starting today at Royal Pines Resort, Webb made it patently clear what she thought about being caught up in the Olympics buzz.  "That's the carrot that's dangling in front of me to keep me working hard," said Webb, declaring she was disappointed to read the Thorpe's comments."

Lane 5 -  NY Times posts "A Fan Who Knows How It Feels to Win.  At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the swimmer Michael Phelps took time out from his pursuit of Mark Spitz’s gold medal record to talk about his N.F.L. fantasy draft. Born and bred in Baltimore, Phelps counts as one of his most cherished mementos from Beijing a Ravens jersey, signed by all the players, which he received early in his race to eight gold medals."   The Washington Post has "Horses co-owned by Michael Phelps, Bode Miller among early nominees for Triple Crown series.  Among the nominees was Ireland-bred Cerro, owned by Team Valor International, which includes Olympic champion swimmer Michael Phelps and his former coach, Bob Bowman. Carving, co-owned by Olympic skier Bode Miller and Baffert’s wife, Jill, also was nominated."

Lane 6 - Irish Times posts "Where's the best place you've taken a dip?  20-PERSON POLL: Swimming is our favourite form of exercise, according to a new report by the ESRI, Swim Ireland and the Irish Sports Council. Seven per cent of adults – 230,000 people – swim regularly. UNA MULLALLY asks 20 of them to name the best place they’ve taken a dip."

Monday's Swim Report - The March of 120 Swimmers

Lane 1 - Daily Mail posts "Jamieson puts pool before the perks and makes no excuses.    But Jamieson does not seem interested in making excuses for others and expresses genuine sympathy for Scott’s demise.  ‘If I were to finish in fourth place in my heat I would not be blaming a head coach or performance director,’ he says. ‘The swimmers who were expected to perform and didn’t should hold up their hands.  ‘It’s not down to luck, but 100th of a second is half a metre and you could have had a medal and Michael Scott could still have had a job.  ‘I was disappointed to see him go. But the team are moving forwards. I’m excited to see who is named in his place but it’s really down to us swimmers.’"

Lane 2- My Fox Detroit posts (w/video) "Olympic champion Lenny Krayzelburg opens swim academy in Michigan.  The Jewish Community Center opened two Lenny Krayzelburg Swim Academy's in West Bloomfield and Oak Park on Sunday Jan. 27."

Lane 3 - TedX Talks posts via youtube "My Golden Heart: Dana Vollmer at TEDxSanJoseCA Women.  Dana is a proud ambassador for the American Heart Association. Due to Dana's experience with a heart condition as a child, she is proud to support AHA in their mission to educate women about heart disease."

Lane 4 - Daily Mail posts "And he wonders why he can't get a girlfriend! Ryan Lochte posts picture of himself in his underpants on Twitter.  He claims he finds it impossible to find a girlfriend.  So perhaps Ryan Lochte was hoping to attract some offers after he posted a picture of himself in his underpants on Twitter."

Lane 5 - Radar Online posts "Michael Phelps Whisks Stunning Waitress To Bahamas For Romantic Tryst.  The gold medalist‘s latest gal pal is 22-year-old beauty Sarah Herndon, and according to a pal she was “swept off her feet” by the star.  Sarah’s pal, who declined to be named, told Radar: “Sarah was on holiday with her family in Cabo and that’s where she met Michael. She stayed an extra day with him because he asked her too. She asked her family if she could stay another day and they were cool, especially after they found out who he was!"

Lane 6 - The Australian posts "Ian Thorpe likely to bypass tilt at worlds.  IAN Thorpe looks increasingly likely to forgo a tilt at this year's world swimming championships in favour of targeting next year's Commonwealth Games.  Thorpe has clearly signalled his intention to continue swimming since missing out on a spot on Australia's London Olympic team.  But with world championship trials less than three months away, Thorpe is yet to confirm whether or not he will attempt to win a place on Australia's team for the July/August world titles in Barcelona."

Lane 7 - Scotsman posts "1970s Commonwealth swimming star saves teenager from drowning.  A GRANDMOTHER who swam for Scotland in the 1970 Commonwealth Games has told how she saved a teenager’s life after he got into trouble in the ocean in Puerto Rico.  Jean Pendrich, 60, swam 400 metres through huge waves to rescue American teenager Derek Becker, 13."

Lane 8 - The Australian posts "An army of 120 swimmers hits the road to Rio.   THE nation's best swimmers have taken over eight Olympic pools and a major hotel at the Gold Coast for the next week as national head coach Leigh Nugent attempts to ensure that the leading swimmers and coaches are all on the same page as they begin the four-year campaign to the Rio Olympics.  After reports that disunity undercut the efforts of the Olympic team last year, Nugent decided to revive the practice of gathering all of the best swimmers together for a national training camp at the beginning of the Olympic cycle.  About 120 swimmers and 74 coaches and staff arrived at the Gold Coast yesterday for a week of training, briefings and team-building activities.  The gathering includes stars such as Alicia Coutts and James Magnussen through to a handful of the most promising 14- and 15-year-old prospects."