Why should we watch swimming on TV?

COACHES' CORNER

I have been actively involved in the swimming community for 22 years, both as a competitor and as a coach. As a kid, I loved to watch the Olympics on TV, always looking for my favorite swimmers, such as Matt Biondi and Mike Barrowman. I just wanted to catch a glimpse of them.

Now that I am the head swimming coach at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, I continue to watch swimming for several different reasons:

* To learn technique from the best swimmers in the world;

* To watch world and American records fall; and

* To fulfill a sense of responsibility.

I believe that I owe it to the swimming community to support my sport every chance I get. One way to show my support is to watch swimming when it is on television.

Besides the Olympics, swimming has been televised only infrequently. Unfortunately, when it is televised, often it is broadcast during inconvenient time slots.

The 2002 U.S. Nationals were held in Fort Lauderdale last Aug. 12-17. The meet was scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN on Wednesday, Aug. 28, and Thursday, Aug. 29, from 3-4 p.m.

On Wednesday, I sat down in our athletic conference room to watch and record the meet. I watched it because I enjoy seeing the elite athletes in our sport exhibit their prowess, and I also feel it is my responsibility as a student of the sport to continue to educate myself about swimming's finer points.

On Thursday, I went back to watch the second half of the meet and found out a golf tournament was on. I thought I'd made a mistake about the time, but no, the broadcast was preempted-postponed to Friday, and then postponed again, to Wednesday, Sept. 4.

Frustrated, I came to the realization that we, as a community, have virtually no power when it comes to our sport being on TV. Then I wondered just how many of our swimming community was even watching ESPN's coverage.

Survey Says...

I did a survey of 80 swimmers, coaches and administrators of the sport from all levels. I asked the following questions:

* Did you attend the recent U.S. Nationals?

* Did you watch it on television?

* Did you know it was on?

The results were disturbing:

* 57.6 percent of those surveyed did not watch any part of the meet.

* 21.2 percent of those surveyed watched all of it (or taped it) on both days.

* 21.2 percent of those surveyed watched some part of the meet (or taped it).

I was extremely upset to learn that well over half of the people surveyed did not take the time to watch our nationals. These are people who are directly involved with the sport of swimming!

If our own community is not watching our sport on TV, why should anyone else watch it? When I asked, I learned that 36.4 percent of those surveyed did not know it was being televised, while 41.9 percent said they did know but still did not watch it. I find that last statistic very unsettling.

When I asked about swimming on TV in general, the top three comments were as follows:

* 25.0 percent would like to have swimming televised more often.

* 20.4 percent believe it needs to be more publicized.

* 15.9 percent think the meets need to be more exciting for viewers.

Next April 6, a great opportunity awaits us. The United States and Australia will do battle in Indianapolis at the Mutual of Omaha "Duel in the Pool" to determine the world's No. 1 swimming power. The meet is being televised by NBC on Saturday, April 12 (3-4:30 p.m.) and Sunday, April 13 (2-3:30 p.m.).

This will be an incredibly exciting meet. It may also be a terrific opportunity to show the networks that, besides the Olympics, swimming has a tremendous following.

Please take the responsibility to spread the word to swimmers, parents, coaches, Masters swimmers and your friends outside the swimming community. Create some excitement for what is sure to be an exciting event. It is my hope that the entire swimming community will sit down for three hours on an April weekend to enjoy the best our sport has to offer.

Sean Tedesco is the head men's and women's swimming and diving coach at the United States Merchant Marine Academy.

Copyright Sports Publications, Inc. Dec 2002
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