Yet both are favorites when the Summer Olympics swim onto the world's radar. The anticipation and hoopla have been worth the wait in the first two days of swimming at the Paris Games. Events have seen races dominated by swimmers and others where the top-8 were separated by less than a second.
Rivalries swelled, led by a water clash between swimmers from Australia and the United States. Carried on between the lanes, this rivalry has been both friendly and born of fire. The excitement, heartbreak, and drama led to appointment viewing around the world.
All this makes me want to jump into the pool, despite never being a competitive swimmer myself (except in my own mind).
For now, here on dry land, chances are given to sit back and simply enjoy the action.
Early races in the pool
Swimming and track & field are fantastic bookends to the Olympic games. Events in the pool have not failed to impress so far.
We have seen some of the most decorated Olympians of all-time hit the water. Katie Ledecky (USA) and Ariarne Titmus (AUS) were set to deliver an epic 400m freestyle. While the showdown never quite materialized, with Titmus taking gold by over three seconds to Ledecky's bronze, the race was still close. This thanks to Summer McIntosh (CAN), who took silver. Even then, Titmus was nearly one second faster than McIntosh.
Titmus is poised for a showdown in the 200m free as well. No less than three swimmers can take the victory over Titmus, including Molly O'Callaghan (AUS), Claire Weinstein (USA), and Siobhán Bernadette Haughey from Hong Kong.
Australia and the U.S. took their rivalry to the 4X100m freestyle relays, too. The United States women could not quite knock the queens off their throne, picking up a silver to Australia's gold. But the men, anchored by Caeleb Dressel, found gold in defeating the team from Australia by over one second.
Adam Peaty (GBR) fell just short in vying for this third-straight gold medal in the 100m breaststroke in what was his first Olympic defeat in an individual race. Peaty tied for silver with Nic Fink (USA), falling by two-hundredths of a second to Italy's Nicolò Martinenghi.
On the women's side of things in the 100m butterfly, two Americans outpaced the others, with Torri Huske nabbing the gold. Huske, who finished a fingernail away from the podium at the Tokyo Games, defeated teammate Gretchen Walsh by .04 seconds.
Walsh is the world record holder in the event and had set the Olympic record on Saturday night in the semifinals.
Water polo fun
Way back in my seventh-grade year (maybe eighth), I was in a class tasked to write out 100 goals for life. One of those on my list was to play a game of water polo.
Still searching to check that one off the list, but I sure do enjoy watching the game.
The stamina required in water polo is something to behold, even as line changes similar to hockey occur. Not only is a player swimming, but they are also constantly churning their legs and getting physical with opponents, all while trying to find the back of the net.
And the U.S.A. is represented well in this sport.
Three-time defending gold medalist, the United States women's team started strong with a 15-6 victory over Greece. Not only is this team the best in the world, they have the top hype man to accompany them: Mr. Flavor Flav himself.
Though I do fail to follow water polo during the "in-between" years, which I swear I want to do, it is nice to see recognizable names like Maggie Steffens and Maddie Musselman still making waves.
On the other side of things, the men's team has been competitive but has not enjoyed quite the same success. The team has a total of six medals, winning three bronze and three silver, the most recent coming in 2008 at the Beijing Games.
This year's edition started off with a loss to Italy, falling 12-8.
The men's team next takes the pool on July 30, where they take on Romania. The women are back in action on July 29, facing Spain.
A love of H2O
The urge to jump in the pool, or any body of water for that matter, stays with me and really digs in during the Summer Olympics. And yet... well, I do not do much about it. When I do, however, find the pool, river, lake, or sea to jump into, I have trouble getting out.
Perhaps that is why I am drawn to swimming and water polo every four years.
Love for swimming likely can be traced back to summers and swimming lessons. Certain summers saw me partaking in these lessons in multiple cities, honing my craft one crawl stroke at a time.
I did find myself regularly swimming again thanks to a gym membership years back, but that stopped almost five years ago. As per usual when the Olympic games take center stage, I find myself yearning to get back into the pool.
Will that jump be taken? Unknown. Until then, I will enjoy the world class athletes doing their thing, and dream of the day I swing my arms to slap my own back, strap on the goggles, and take a dive into my own personal greatness.
By that, I mean able to swim the length of pool without stopping. And hoping to recapture an ounce of the waterlogged days of my youth.
photo credit: rawpixel
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