But Nugent said Lenton and world No.2 ranked Jodie Henry and their coaches would have to get used to the mind games after their spectacular performances at the Australian Olympic trials in March. 'They are trying to put pressure on us, to panic us,' Nugent said. 'We need to be sound in the way we go about things and not deviate. It's about maintaining self-belief and keeping to the plan.'

Thorpe was a clear winner, scoring a total of 87 points ahead of distance ace Grant Hackett who tied with the former Aussie cricket captain, Steve Waugh for second with 74 points. Australia has recently seen several major off-field scandals and on-field violence in the main professional team sports, contrasting with the dedication and professionalism of elite swimmers hence they are providing ideal role models to the community.

The survey also revealed that swimming generated the highest amount of interest of the fifty-two sports polled attracting 62% compared with its highly televised opposition in tennis (60%), cricket (56%) and Australian rules football (54%).

However, Foster said: 'I don't know what I can do yet, but I will take one step back, have a word with my solicitors and check out every possible option. I do not want to upset anyone at British Swimming, but I am not going to take it on the chin because that is just not me.' He added: 'I have had my best year so far and an Olympic medal would be a dream come true. I can't see why I should have that taken away.'

Foster claimed his attempts to make the Olympic mark had been hindered by a shoulder problem. But the governing body dismissed his plea saying Foster, who is also coaching consultant at the City of Cambridge club, should have provided a medical certificate if he was not fully fit.

Foster commented: 'The time is stupidity and I have only swam it once before. There is a squad of 36 and I believe that I have as good a chance of anybody to win an Olympic medal.'

British Swimming said: 'We recognise this will be a massive disappointment to Mark, but we hope he will continue to swim for his country in future events.'

Australian Swimming sticks with early Trials date
Courtesy of The Australian Newspaper and Fox Sports website
Australian Swimming has dismissed a plea from the nation's Olympic coaches to switch the national championships from March to June next year to allow them more preparation time. At the national camp at the Gold Coast last week, the coaches voted 9-6 to endorse a proposal to delay the trials until five weeks before next year's world championships. However, the sport's board of directors has vetoed the plan and confirmed the March dates. National executive director Glenn Tasker said the board was concerned that a switch might disadvantage Australian competitors. 'They also didn't want to go right in the middle of the football season,' Tasker said. 'They were concerned about the attractions of swimming for spectators in winter.'

Tasker said the timing of the Commonwealth Games in March, 2006, would give the sport a better opportunity to test the American-style system of running the national trials close to a major competition. Traditionally, Australia has held its trials four months before big meets. But many of the leading coaches are eager to see if late trials would result in better performances at the championships. Even former head coach Don Talbot is a recent convert to the idea. 'There are so many events now that there are too many things interfering with the preparation of the athletes, and in the end performances are going to suffer,' Talbot said. 'Probably next year is the time to do it, because the longer you put it off, the harder it is to do it. 'Changing is a very big decision and the coaches need as much time as possible to practise the skills they will need.'

Brisbane sprint coach Shannon Rollason, who will speak at the BSCTA Conference this year and trains Jodie Henry and Alice Mills, backs the experiment, which he suspects will benefit sprinters by giving them more high-class racing close to their major competition. 'I can understand their reasons (for preferring March trials), and I don't know if late trials will work, but until we do it, we are not going to know,' Rollason said. 'If you are afraid to do new things the sport is not going to go forward. I would like to have a go at it and I'd like to have a go at it sooner rather than later. This puts us back a year, but I can live with that.' Rollason predicted the decision would weaken Australia's team for the world short-course championships in Indianapolis in October, five weeks after the Olympics. He said swimmers who wanted to take a substantial break after the Olympics, and to qualify for next year's world titles, would not be able to fit Indianapolis into their schedules. 'My two girls won't be going to world short-course,' he said. 'I want to have a long run into the trials and the chance to try a few different things in training, so I need a 20-week preparation.'

Melbourne coach Rohan Taylor, who has Sarah Kasoulis and Shayne Reese on the Olympic team, said he favoured late trials because of the chance for a longer preparation and he expected the March dates would 'force people to bail out of short-course'. Australian Swimming Coaches Association president Alan Thompson said most coaches thought the late trials concept was 'worth a go', but the competition calendar would make it easier to introduce in 2006.

Lenton breaks World record, Aussies in top form at Trials!
Lisbeth Lenton has been making ground in the world of female sprint freestyle for the past couple of years but her stature went through the roof today after she broke the women's 100 freestyle world record at the Australian Olympic Trials in Sydney. Clocking an incredible 53.66 in the semi-final, Lenton knocked 0.11 off the previous record held by Inge de Bruijn. For good measure, Jodie Henry equalled de Bruijn's time to rank seconnd going into tomorrow's final with Alice Mills not far adrift in third with 54.26. That is going to be some relay team come Athens!

Prior to Lenton's swim the Australian Trials had been overshadowed by the shock disqualification of Olympic champion and world record holder Ian Thorpe in the heats of his best event, the 400 freestyle after he over balanced and fell in at the start. The 400 free final in Athens will thus have to make do without Thorpe although Australia can still expect to be well represented after Grant Hackett won the Trials in 3:43 with Craig Stevens in second also posting a quality 3:48 time. However, Thorpe did recover to win the 200 freestyle a couple of days later in 1:45.0 with Hackett closing him down on the last 50 to touch in 1:45.7 and then added the 100 freestyle title in 48.83.

Breaststroke ace Jim Piper looks to be back to the top of his game after taking out both the 100 and 200 metre events in impressive times of 1:01.3 and 2:10.7. Long time butterfly expert Petria Thomas has been in similar impressive form winning the 100 in a new Commonwealth record of 57.3 and the 200 in 2:06.7 (2:06.0 heats). She also claimed silver in the 200 free with an impressive 1:58.56, as three girls went 1:58, with Linda MacKenzie the winner just 0.04 ahead of Thomas and Elka Graham back in thrid on 1:58.70. MacKenzie also won the 400 freestle (4:09) from Graham (4:11). Justin Norris is another double winner having taken the 400 I.M. in an impressive 4:15 followed by the 200 butterfly in 1:56.1.

Phelps is hot again at US Nationals
American swimming sensation Michael Phelps gave notice to backstroke and sprint freestyle swimmers around the world tonight that these events are most certainly on his agenda for 2004 and it is a very fast agenda at that. Last night, at the finals of day one of the US Spring Nationals in Florida, Phelps posted a 1:55.30 for the 200 backstroke, the second fastest swim of all time and just 0.15 outside Aaron Piersol's world record for the distance. All the more incredible was that this came just minutes after he wrapped up his first gold of the meet ahead of a very classy field in the 100 freestyle, recording a personal best of 49.05. The meet continues through Sunday with Phelps looking a shoe-in to add more titles to the list in the coming days.

A number of British swimmers are also participating in the meet. For those who made finals today, their results were as follows: Georgie Lee came 3rd in the 200 fly (2:11) with Bethan Coole 6th in the 'B' final (2:16), Alison Shepherd was 8th in the 'C' final of the 100 free (57.7) and Matt Kidd was 7th in the 100 free 'A' final (50.4) with Todd Cooper 7th in the 'B' race (51.7).

A Legend Falls - Doc Counsilman passes away
James Edward 'Doc' Counsilman, perhaps the greatest coach/scientist/innovator in the sport of swimming, passed away peacefully in his sleep at 5:30 this morning. The former Indiana University coach was 83. James Edward 'Doc' Counsilman Born: 28th December 1920, Birmingham, Alabama Died: 4th January, 2004, Bloomington, Indiana

A GIANT HAS FALLEN
By Cecil Colwin
Coach James Edward 'Doc' Counsilman of Indiana University, who passed away in Bloomington, Indiana, at 5:30 this morning, the 4th January, 2004, after many years of suffering the torments of Parkinson's disease, was recognized world-wide as one of the great coaches in swimming history and also as the pre-eminent visionary in the history of swimming. True, others have made major discoveries, but taking the science of competitive swimming, from the birth of the sport, to the time of Counsilman, at 'Doc' contributed was much the better half. His life's work will leave an indelible mark on the sport. For the full story by Cecil Colwin on Doc's life click here.