Great article, as usual! Congratulations to Justin Finkel! His closing speed at this meet is reminiscent of Bobby Finke’s extra gear in the Olympics.
Another example of great closing speed at this meet was Connor Vincent, throwing down a blistering 24 second final 50, for a very exciting finish to the mile race. Keep an eye on Mr Vincent as a contender for next year’s Swimmer of the Year.
This article mentions the controversy regarding Derek Maas, and Swim Swam also wrote an article on this.
Yet another outstanding swimmer who had an amazing meet, that hasn’t received much attention, was Kenyon’s Djordje Dragojlovic. Mr Dragojlovic earned 2 individual NCAA titles, an individual NCAA runner up, and was a key contributor to 3 relay NCAA titles, plus another podium finish in a fourth relay.
This site has referenced, in the past, the benefits of making votes for team rankings public. It might be interesting to make votes for Swimmer of the Year public as well.
Thanks. I agree that Djordje does not get enough coverage, but I am doing all that I can on that front.
Thanks for flagging the SwimSwam article. I had not noticed it. I think it is a highly irresponsible article. It is also a good example of why Division III swim/dive needs to cultivate it's own media resources.
Make ballots public might be more feasible on the Top 25 poll because that is a group of people who have agreed to participate in that process. There are about 20 of them. The number of coaches at nationals is 2-3 times that. And if SwimCoachDad is right, many of them may not be willing to submit a ballot at all. That said, I don't oppose the idea on principle.
Thanks for reading and posting. Your son and your family seemed to really enjoy the experience at nationals and I hope that is how you all remember it.
In all honesty, I’m not sure how much of the meet most of the coaches actually see. I notice coaches I know leaving finals after the first event or not come to finals at all if they don’t have a swimmer. I’ve seen plenty of Most Valuable awards at championship meets go to an unexpected recipient. I talk to 20-30 college coaches most years about my swimmers when they are being recruited and I wonder how much some of them really know about the sport. I believe in some ways, these awards are like Prom King and Queen where it becomes more of a popularity contest with a hint of merit. Can we make a case that Justin was Swimmer of the Meet? Yes. But was he the obvious choice? No since there was a swimmer with 3 individual wins. Was Finkel possibly a politically motivated choice or coaches being petty? Definitely. It isn’t like Maas cheated. He played by the rules as they stand. He’s going to a top level med school and had a year of eligibility. Now, does this show the disparity among D3 schools? I think so. There certainly are a lot broader range of school sizes, resources, grad programs etc than in D1. I even heard from one of the coaches that his school offers swimmers a “pipeline” into their med school. How much of a draw would THAT be? I like the way Justin swims but I also appreciate the high level of swimming Derek was at (and I watched all 8 sessions).
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting numerous NYU medical students, and wow, I’ve been incredibly impressed by the kindness, passion, and accolades of each of them. Backgrounds including several former college swimmers, a gold medal Olympic hockey champion, and a Harvard Rugby player. Also, all the students that I’ve met have impeccable academic credentials. Perhaps one’s extra curricular activities factor into medical school admissions, but I’m not aware of a swimming “pipeline” per se. NYU is supportive of pursuing one’s passions, but the work and learning still must be done. Here are links to nice articles on two other current NYU medical students:
I think it is charming that you think they need defending, Mr. Maas. I assume that my views of the students at Grossman are generally shared: they are among the most accomplished, organized and responsible medical students anywhere in the world.
My response - what blew my mind - was not horror at the existence of a metaphoric med school pipeline, but rather that a coach would make that claim so explicitly.
BTW my father benefitted from a medical school pipeline: the US Army. I don't think 'pipeline' is always a pejorative. Sometimes it is just another name for pre-vetting. Regardless I think the reputation of the students at Grossman is secure.
Great article, bad timing? Was dissappointed not to see any coverage from Newmacs this weekend. After daily covergae last weekend, zero coverage on the championship meets this past weekend. Quite a few fantastic swims from Coast Guard that deserve a little shout out. After mutliple articles gave air time about another teams uprising...and they will not even have a single swimmer attend nationals.
Great article, as usual! Congratulations to Justin Finkel! His closing speed at this meet is reminiscent of Bobby Finke’s extra gear in the Olympics.
Another example of great closing speed at this meet was Connor Vincent, throwing down a blistering 24 second final 50, for a very exciting finish to the mile race. Keep an eye on Mr Vincent as a contender for next year’s Swimmer of the Year.
This article mentions the controversy regarding Derek Maas, and Swim Swam also wrote an article on this.
Yet another outstanding swimmer who had an amazing meet, that hasn’t received much attention, was Kenyon’s Djordje Dragojlovic. Mr Dragojlovic earned 2 individual NCAA titles, an individual NCAA runner up, and was a key contributor to 3 relay NCAA titles, plus another podium finish in a fourth relay.
This site has referenced, in the past, the benefits of making votes for team rankings public. It might be interesting to make votes for Swimmer of the Year public as well.
Thanks. I agree that Djordje does not get enough coverage, but I am doing all that I can on that front.
Thanks for flagging the SwimSwam article. I had not noticed it. I think it is a highly irresponsible article. It is also a good example of why Division III swim/dive needs to cultivate it's own media resources.
Make ballots public might be more feasible on the Top 25 poll because that is a group of people who have agreed to participate in that process. There are about 20 of them. The number of coaches at nationals is 2-3 times that. And if SwimCoachDad is right, many of them may not be willing to submit a ballot at all. That said, I don't oppose the idea on principle.
Thanks for reading and posting. Your son and your family seemed to really enjoy the experience at nationals and I hope that is how you all remember it.
In all honesty, I’m not sure how much of the meet most of the coaches actually see. I notice coaches I know leaving finals after the first event or not come to finals at all if they don’t have a swimmer. I’ve seen plenty of Most Valuable awards at championship meets go to an unexpected recipient. I talk to 20-30 college coaches most years about my swimmers when they are being recruited and I wonder how much some of them really know about the sport. I believe in some ways, these awards are like Prom King and Queen where it becomes more of a popularity contest with a hint of merit. Can we make a case that Justin was Swimmer of the Meet? Yes. But was he the obvious choice? No since there was a swimmer with 3 individual wins. Was Finkel possibly a politically motivated choice or coaches being petty? Definitely. It isn’t like Maas cheated. He played by the rules as they stand. He’s going to a top level med school and had a year of eligibility. Now, does this show the disparity among D3 schools? I think so. There certainly are a lot broader range of school sizes, resources, grad programs etc than in D1. I even heard from one of the coaches that his school offers swimmers a “pipeline” into their med school. How much of a draw would THAT be? I like the way Justin swims but I also appreciate the high level of swimming Derek was at (and I watched all 8 sessions).
Thanks. That's a helpful perspective.
The med school pipeline claim blows my mind.
And yes I think distraction, apathy, resentment, and group-think all play a role in the voting.
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting numerous NYU medical students, and wow, I’ve been incredibly impressed by the kindness, passion, and accolades of each of them. Backgrounds including several former college swimmers, a gold medal Olympic hockey champion, and a Harvard Rugby player. Also, all the students that I’ve met have impeccable academic credentials. Perhaps one’s extra curricular activities factor into medical school admissions, but I’m not aware of a swimming “pipeline” per se. NYU is supportive of pursuing one’s passions, but the work and learning still must be done. Here are links to nice articles on two other current NYU medical students:
https://swimswam.com/felicia-pasadyn-swimmings-academic-will-start-a-new-journey-at-nyu-med-school/
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/amp/sports/hockey/article-canadian-defender-claire-thompson-combines-life-as-a-medical-student/
I think it is charming that you think they need defending, Mr. Maas. I assume that my views of the students at Grossman are generally shared: they are among the most accomplished, organized and responsible medical students anywhere in the world.
My response - what blew my mind - was not horror at the existence of a metaphoric med school pipeline, but rather that a coach would make that claim so explicitly.
BTW my father benefitted from a medical school pipeline: the US Army. I don't think 'pipeline' is always a pejorative. Sometimes it is just another name for pre-vetting. Regardless I think the reputation of the students at Grossman is secure.
Great article, bad timing? Was dissappointed not to see any coverage from Newmacs this weekend. After daily covergae last weekend, zero coverage on the championship meets this past weekend. Quite a few fantastic swims from Coast Guard that deserve a little shout out. After mutliple articles gave air time about another teams uprising...and they will not even have a single swimmer attend nationals.