July 5, 2008
Cullen Jones Sets U.S. Record in 50 Freestyle
By KAREN CROUSE
OMAHA — In less than 22 seconds Friday, Cullen Jones dispelled two misconceptions.
The first is that the 50-meter freestyle is devoid of any strategy
except getting to the wall first. Jones used to buy into that notion,
and so he would stroke so fast he would spin out of control. In his
preliminary heat at the United States Olympic trials, Jones kept his
stroke long and smooth, throttling back a little but swimming fast
enough to set an American record.
Jones, a Bronx native, was timed in 21.59, eclipsing Gary Hall Jr.’s
eight-year-old record by .17 seconds. Ben Wildman-Tobriner, the
reigning 50 freestyle world champion, clocked a 21.68. Hall was third
in 21.89.
After the race, Jones said, “I’ll take an American record.” Between
gulps of Gatorade, he said, “I think there’s a lot left in the tank.”
Jones failed to lower the record in the semifinals but won his
heat, edging Hall, 21.71 to 21.94. Wildman-Tobriner posted the fastest
time of 21.65.
The second misconception is more insidious. It has dogged Jones,
24, since he started swimming at the age of 8. Between being part of a
world-record relay in 2006 and finishing third in the 100-meter
freestyle at these trials, Jones hopes he has put to rest the notion
that African-Americans cannot excel at swimming.
Jones is the third black swimmer to make a United States Olympic
squad, after Anthony Ervin in 2000 and Maritza Correia in 2004. Since
he burst onto the international scene with a 10th-place world ranking
in the 50 freestyle in 2005, Jones has promoted water safety.
He would rather teach minorities to swim than preach about what it
takes to make an Olympic team. “I’m not trying to get the next Michael Phelps,” Jones said. “I’m not trying to get someone to fill my shoes.”
Noting that minorities are three times more susceptible to
drowning, he added: “At the age of 5 I was almost a statistic by
drowning myself. So I think it’s very important just to get the word
out.”
The incident Jones was referring to occurred at a Pennsylvania
water park during a family vacation. Jones became separated from his
inner tube at the end of a ride down a slide and passed out. He said he
had to be given mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the scene.
Within days of that incident, his mother, Debra, enrolled him in
swimming lessons in Newark, near their home in Irvington, N.J.
As an African-American in a sport not known for its diversity,
Jones feels added pressure. He knows he stands out. Jones says he
studies Tiger Woods
for clues on how to be a positive influence. “I’d like to try to model
how he speaks, how he carries himself,” Jones said. “He’s such an
ambassador to the African-American community.”
FOLLOWING SPITZ’S PLAN? At the 1972
United States trials, Mark Spitz was not as fresh as his competitors
because he had geared his training for a peak performance at the Munich
Olympics. Nobody was arguing with that strategy after he won seven gold
medals and set seven world records.
Watching Phelps race this week, Spitz is sure that Phelps, who won
eight medals, including six golds, at the 2004 Olympics, has adopted
the same game plan. When he heard Phelps say he was in pain after the
400 individual medley final on the first day, it was a dead giveaway to
Spitz that he was saving his best performance for Beijing.
“I think he’s probably just swimming through these Olympic trials as I did,” Spitz said Friday at the Qwest Center.
That is why Spitz feels strongly that Phelps will surpass his record for gold medals in a single Olympics in Beijing.
“You’re going to see him win by margins and set times that have
never been done before,” Spitz said, adding that he is “fine with that.
”
CROCKER PLAYS IT SAFE After being
disqualified for a false start in the preliminaries of the 100-meter
freestyle, Ian Crocker was taking no chances. He was among the last off
the blocks in his morning heat of the 100 butterfly Friday. The
world-record holder in the event, Crocker posted the fastest time in
the preliminaries, a 51.52. Michael Phelps was second in 52.21.
Crocker appeared visibly relieved to have that first swim in the
butterfly out of the way. “I’ve been sitting around my hotel room,” he
said, “watching people do amazing things and kind of waiting around.”
HANSEN’S LOSS Until last month, Brendan
Hansen held the world record in the 200 breaststroke. Until Thursday
night, Hansen’s place on the Olympic team in the event was considered a
foregone conclusion. A day after Hansen’s stunning fourth-place finish,
the Olympian Melvin Stewart said he was surprised, but not in the same
way as everybody else.
“The 200 breast is a completely different event than the 100,”
Stewart said. “The fact that he’s put them both together for so long is
astounding.”
Hansen, 26, has held the world record in the 100 breaststroke —
which he won here to earn a berth to Beijing — since 2003. He held the
world record in the 200 for two years, until Kosuke Kitajima of Japan
took it from him last month.
In the 200 final, Hansen was leading for 150 meters before he was
passed by his Texas teammates Scott Spann and Eric Shanteau and the
Nebraskan Scott Usher.