I found this article on another blog and found it to be super interesting...but then again, I am kind of a nerd about some science-y stuff. But here ya go, I think you will be intrigued (or else I wouldn't have posted it, now would I?)...
WHY ARE OLYMPIC SWIMMERS BREAKING SO MANY RECORDS THIS YEAR?
Here are 6 possible answers, courtesy of Mental Floss magazine.
1. Technology "Doping
"The new Speedo LZR RACER suit, which was developed by scientists from NASA, “feels like a rocket coming off the wall,” said Phelps in a team interview. “The water just runs off the suit.” The suit has “ultrasonically welded” seams that mimics a shark skin, holds in the swimmer’s abdomen in the best position, allowing him to take in 5% more oxygen, and takes an athlete 30 minutes to get into!
2. The Pool Depth Matters
The pool in Beijing, known as the “Water Cube,” is 3 meters deep, instead of the previous depth of 2 meters. This allows swimmers to dive deeper and continue their push off “dolphin kicks” for a longer period of time. Olympic medalist and commentator Rowdy Gaines says, “It’s just deep enough to where the waves dissipate (and) the turbulence dissipates down to the bottom.”
3. Empty Pool Lanes
There are ten lanes in the Water Cube, instead of the usual eight, leaving the outside lanes open. This reduces turbulence and enables swimmers to go faster. “It’s by far the fastest pool in the world,” Gaines says.
4. More Time to Practice
Sponsorship for swimming has increased massively, which allows athletes to practice more. Mark Spitz, the Olympic swimmer with the most gold medals before Phelps, retired at 22 due to his inability to make a living as an amateur athlete. Back then, the Olympics only allowed amateur athletes to compete. Phelps, on the other hand, is now 23 and has estimated annual earnings of $5 million, and will be awarded an extra $1 million dollar bonus from Speedo if he reaches or beats Spitz’s record.
5. Old-fashioned Doping
Gary Hall Jr., previous Olympian 50-m freestyle champion, seems to think so. “Can suit technology distract from another issue?… I’m telling you this, I train with an international group of swimmers and all of them have stories and a few of them have had offers.” Hall likens today’s “blame it on the suit” situation to that of the ‘76 East German women’s Olympic swimming team. Though, he seems to be the only one speaking out about this so perhaps he’s just bitter he didn’t qualify for Beijing.
6. The Secret Benefits of Math
Professor Timothy Wei, of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., helped develop top-secret, state-of-the-art equipment and mathematical techniques that USA Swimming coaches have been using to help to make swimmers go faster. He uses water flow diagnostic technologies to see how each swimmers’ motion affects the flow of water. The whole thing is explained here in this video.
SIDENOTE: Can I please mention that The University of Texas has a total of 27 coaches/athletes participating in this year's Olympics!! I thought that was pretty impressive! Here is the article : http://www.utexas.edu/features/2008/08/11/olympics-2/
ALSO-I (ahem, some friends of mine) found the answer to a question I asked in an earlier post...Divers shower in between each dive to keep their muscles warm after getting out of the pool. The temperature of the pool water and the air are usually different (the pool is usually around 80 degrees, with the air temperature between 68 and 72 degrees). This difference can cause muscle tightness. To combat this, divers warm up in either the showers or a hot tub.
PS-If you hate or are not following the Olympics, SORRY! My blog will return to normal when they are over. Until then, I am an Olympic-Loving-Fool!
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