What Is A Technical Swimsuit?

We have been frequently asked that question.

John Leonard, Executive Director of the World Swimming Coaches Association and the American Swimming Coaches Association, answered in a concise and accurate manner. John was one of three coaching representatives, along with Alan Thompson, National Team Director for Australia, and Osvaldo Arsenio of Argentina, Coaches Commission Chair, who attended key FINA meetings on this issue.


"Technical swimsuits are the enlarged coverage suits that have come on the market since November of 2007. They all have either enhanced materials, buoyancy issues or compression issues, beyond what was available on the market prior to that time."

Hungarian Teamwork in Beijing

This is a non-open water swimming story...but Jon Urbanchek has always greatly supported open water swimming throughout his famed four-decade coaching career. Jon has never discouraged his pool swimmers - from Olympians Klete and Kalyn Keller to young age-groupers - from participating in open water swims.

At the American Swimming Coaches Association World Clinic in Las Vegas, International Swimming Hall of Fame coaches Urbanchek and Peter Daland were talking about the special performances and remarkable athletes at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

"Rebecca pulled away from the overwhelming gold medal favorite from Australia in the last lap of the 200 breaststroke, setting a world record in the process," recalled Urbanchek. "That was really special."

In an especially touching moment, Urbanchek discussed how he and Hungarian-speaking Rebecca Soni, the surprise gold medalist in the 200-meter breaststroke, established a unique coach-athlete bond.

"Before we went to Beijing, I didn't know Rebecca spoke Hungarian. We really connected. Her parents also came to this country without anything. They couldn't afford to go to the Olympics to see her. I told her that when she is up on the [Olympic] podium to smile because her parents would be watching her and they would be very proud."

Rebecca's teammates and friends were similarly proud and happy for her. Millions of viewers worldwide watched Rebecca smile during the awards ceremony - as did her parents.

Sid Cassidy Talks to the World on the Olympic 10K

Sid Cassidy will deliver an entertaining overview of the Olympic 10K Marathon Swim to coaches from around the world tomorrow in Las Vegas at 4:00 pm PT at the ASCA World Clinic. Sid's always entertaining and educational presentations on open world are something not to be missed.

Sid was mostly recently the starter for the men's and women's Olympic 10K Marathon Swims and is currently the Chairman of the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Community.

At the ASCA World Clinic (American Swimming Coaches Association), Sid will be joined by renowned coaches like Mark Schubert (USA Swimming's Head Coach and General Manager), Bob Bowman (Michael Phelps) and Gregg Troy (Ryan Lochte).

We will attempt to "Twitter" about Sid's speech if there is an Internet connection. To register on Twitter, go to Twitter and search for Olympic 10K Marathon Swim.