Science of swimming makes faster, stronger athletes

As U.S Olympic swimmers celebrate record-breaking wins in China, Utah competitive swimmers are cheering alongside them.

The science that's giving athletes like Michael Phelps incredible speed and endurance has found a place in collegiate pools, as well.

For University of Utah athletes, swimming is a far cry from where it once was. The science, that recipe for people like Michael Phelps, is in sort of a fourth dimension.

Greg Winslow, head coach of the U of U swim team, said, "You've got to be able to float and drive forward and do a lot of different things that humans aren't used to doing."

Winslow would like to see some of his athletes in the Olympics in 2012. Endurance, explosiveness and strength are what drive Phelps and drive U of U competitors as well.

"You know, Mark Spitz used to swim with the old ‘s' pattern, which means he moves his arm all the way around the water. We're not doing that any more. We're getting right into the water, getting our elbow into a powerful position as soon as we can and just being as explosive as we can all the time," Winslow said.

Coaches have learned a lot about balance, how to make the legs the real locomotive that drives a synchronized torso, where even fingers assume a role.

"Just watching everything, where your pinky is at, how relaxed your hand is, is your face relaxed, and is your spine in line, all those things. If your head moves in minute details, then your hips are going to drop in the water," Winslow explained.

Weightlifting, workouts outside the pool, yoga, diet and how to control lactose are all important. Climbing an in-pool rope to build strength and holding power. And a new technique in training: As the athlete swims, he pulls barrels full of about 200 pounds of water. The sloshing water provides a smooth but heavy resistance. Swimmers build endurance, triggering the kind of power that later, without weights, cuts through water like a rocket-propelled spear.

Michel de Carolis, of the University of Utah swim team, said, "As soon as you're in the water, everything is automatic. It's just like the switch goes on and you swim and you don't think anything anymore."

Have the Ute swimmers been watching Phelps? You bet!

Winslow said, "They stay up and watch, and I get text messages at midnight, ‘Did you see that relay?'"

De Carolis said, "We all watch it together and we can't believe it."

But believe and do! That's the incentive here.

Six swimmers on the Ute team have qualified for the next Olympic trials and for World Championship trials next July.

E-mail: eyeates@ksl.com

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