Switching It Up!

NEWS FLASH - DAVE IS SWITCHING EVENTS!!!After a long deliberation with my coach, my parents, and Glenn, I have decided it would be in my best interest not to swim breaststroke at Olympic Trials. Now, before you bombard me with e-mails, let me make something clear. I still intend to swim at Trials, but not in the breaststroke events. The way I see it, the 100 and 200 backstroke are wide open. Aaron Piersol will be tough to beat, no doubt. But besides him, who is there, really? Michael Phelps you say? It is my belief that he’ll be so tired from swimming seven events three times, that I should have no trouble beating him in the 200 back. What about Lenny Krazelberg? Please. I’ve seen the way he trains every day. He comes in early, is the last one to leave, does stretches and ab work, ices down. The guy is wearing himself out already. Oh, but there’s World Record holder Peter Marshall to contend with. I’ve got him beat on the underwaters, and it’s all down hill from there.Seriously, the backstroke events are wide open. And the breaststroke field is just too packed this year. I’m not in any real danger switching strokes this late in the game. As I see it, swimming is swimming. If I want to swim breaststroke, I swim breaststroke. If I want to swim butterfly, I swim butterfly. Well, what I want now is to swim backstroke, and so, I will swim backstroke. I will get my cuts at the Janet Evans meet, or hopefully the Santa Clara Invite. And confidently go into Trials to earn my spot in the 100-meter backstroke and the 400 medley relay. You may also quite possibly see me in the 200 backstroke final, fighting for a spot on the Olympic Team in that event as well.Thank you all for your support in this very difficult decision. I really think that it is better for everyone involved.Dave Denniston