Diving in Popularity? Swim and Dive Team Overshadowed

Story by Omari Pinkney '09, Sports Editor
Photo by Grant Hill '10, Staff Photographer

(above) Photo by Grant Hill '10. Jack Dowd '10 swims freestyle in a meet on December 11, 2008.

In the wake of Micheal Phelps' dominance in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, America took a sudden infatuation to the sport of swimming. His record setting eight gold medals caught the attention of people worldwide even those who payed little attention to the sport or knew nothing about it.

A mainstream athlete does correspond to more people in the crowd. So the question is, does the Bishop McNamara Swim team need a Micheal Phelps for the student body to catch their attention?

The answer to that question is "yes."

The Swim and Dive team are getting into their season and fan support is not exactly at an all-time high. It is overlooked by bigger sports like basketball," says fifty free and dive competitor Jeffrey Meekins '10. Freestyle competitor Alex Dewey '09 says,"Swimming is not at all one of the mainstream sports, and the meets are harder for people to attend."

This translates to a very small fan base, for a talented group of swimmers such as Maxwell Allegro '10, Miguel Boluda '10, Grace Kelly '10, and sophomore transfer Amanda Barber '11. Amanda has already attained McNamara's record time for the 50 free event.

Men's Diver Jack Dowd '10 feels people would not care for a swimming championship the same way they would feel for a Basketball Championship

or another Track Championship. Unlike the basketball team, which has a home court, and wrestling matches that takes place in the fine arts gymnasium, swim meets and championships are held in distant locations, which makes it hard for students to attend.

"Maybe we would have more support if we had our own pool," says Maxwell Allegro '10.

Athletic Director Anthony Johnson says, "Scoring is a bit different to communicate."

Even though the swim team does not have the school support they would like, they are still successful.

With Impressive showings against the Maret School and at the National Catholic Championships at Villanova University, the Swim and Dive team is prime to finish off the 2009 season strong.

By Bishop McNamara HS |  January 12, 2009; 1:59 AM ET Swimming
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