Comments on: News

by: swimmama

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:25:23 +0000

Tara: For months, I’ve read your blogs with sympathy. I’ve never posted to any blog before, but want you to have my support (consider this for all the others that are unspoken at this point). Don’t back down. Don’t be intimidated. While I don’t profess to know the deatils of your case, I’m sure that your attorney has told you that if they ask for attorney fees and have any justification for asking for fees, you have a reciprocal right to ask for your own fees from USA Swimming. They probably have much more exposure than you do. As someone who has been paying into USA Swimming for years, you have my blessing to ask for your fees back! (In addition to being a swimmer and a mom, I’m an attorney.) Best of Luck to fix this for the future!

by: swimful1

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 03:48:54 +0000

You own it, you deserve it and best of all, YOU know it. That is all that matters. Swim on Sister!

by: dontgiveup

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 14:53:33 +0000

Definitely support you 100 percent. Definitely give it all with regards to petition and definitely use some potential legal options (perhaps Stanford can provide some legal resources from their law school). Good luck and hopes and prayers are with you.

No matter what happens your accomplishments are still incredible. I feel that this has a significant chance in working out in your favor.

by: vaswimfan

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 05:43:22 +0000

Tara, it was your great swimming and terrific smile that first drew my attention to you. Since then I have followed your career. You seem like such a friendly, caring person. I was so disappointed for you with the .01 third place at trials. I cannot imagine how it felt for you. However, you have written eloquently about the pain and your determination to overcome it with grace.
Now you face a trial of grace under pressure with the latest events. I thought of you immediately when I heard the news about the positive drug test results and assumed you would be named to the team. The turn of events with the deadline is unacceptable and unbelieveable! USA Swimming expects its elite swimmers to pay for their own training at great sacrifice for four long years, and then USA Swimming has a selection timeline that does not allow for proper selection of the best swimmers, which means both in swim times and in clean drug test results. The timeline must allow for both!
Making timeline changes for next time does not help you, so I applaud your determination to challenge USA Swimming to make an appeal on your behalf. (It is actually on the team’s behalf in my opinion.) You do deserve to be on the team. I believe NBC wanted the selected dates for Trials. However, that does not matter at this point. The Olympic Committee should be able to review an appeal like yours and make a decision that is in the best interest of the clean swimmer and the sport. Such a decision would go a long way to encourage swimmers to swim clean and not dope.
I wish you the best of luck with this appeal. By the way, I watched your “What Not to Wear” episode tonight, and you were wonderful, bright smile and great friends and family. That Greg is a good guy to take you to Ireland. The Irish do know a little bit about being treated unfairly, and they also know how to fight for what is right. May your dreams come true. Be well.

by: alcippe

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 04:32:39 +0000

Hi Tara,

We just “met” you for the first time tonight, watching your What Not to Wear episode on TLC. Of course, we have now found out what happened at the trials (and the subsequent revelations) and wanted to tell you that we are 100% behind you, and will write to USA Swimming to urge them to amend the team roster.

You are so down-to-Earth and likeable; I’m sure you made a lot of new friends tonight.

by: dziadek

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 03:30:29 +0000

Tara,

This is Gabe. You MUST continue to fight for the spot which you have EARNED!!!
Use your famous resiliance and do not let it go. This is your entire sport life on the line. Money, fame, endorsements, pride, satisfaction, you name it.
The situation is horrendous, however, you are not the guilty one. You have done everything you could to do it right.

Remember me quoting Winston Churchill?

Never give up! Never, ever give up! Never, ever, EVER give up!

Love,
Gabe

by: Emma1208

Sat, 26 Jul 2008 01:30:54 +0000

Tara,
As many people have already told you, you are not being unreasonable at all. I agree with you completely in everything you said. Regardless of whether Jessica meant to have a banned substance or not, she still failed the test. You and Lara deserve to be on the team. I was very upset when I found out about it. If they knew the tests were going to take that long, they should have had the trials earlier. I am keeping both you and Lara in my thoughts and I wish you both the best of luck.

by: trout

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 23:39:48 +0000

Good luck in your efforts! You and Lara deserve to represent the US on the Olympic team. Surely USA swimming received preliminary test results well in advance of the deadline. I can’t understand why they made no plans for what they would do if the confirming tests were positive. Regardless of how this turns out, my thoughts are with you. Hope to watch you in Bejing!

by: zebrafeet

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 21:45:32 +0000

Tara -

I’ve always wondered why US Swimming held the trails so late. (And don’t get me started on having the finals in the evening for this years games). When I heard about the positive test, my first thoughts were for you and Lara. US Swimming is 100% responsible for this one (well, that and Jessica if it proves to be a true doping issue). To have the results come back AFTER the names have to be submitted is nothing short of a stupid error. I understand wanting to see where individuals are performance wise, but we are talking about 3 days.

My heart is with you. I have followed your career (and your Master’s thesis is a particular research interest of mine so I think is that is how I became a ‘fan’ of yours!) and when I saw the .01, it reminds me of how much I hate swimming at time. It’s like the ACL in basketball.

I hope you take your time to heal and grieve in Ireland if the USOC can’t get you on deck in China. If you decide to compete again, I hope it is for you, for your love of the sport and for the joy it brings you.

And I’m sorry that whatever the outcome of this back and forth is, that you had to go through it. It never should have had to come down to this. And I’m still happy you swam the 200.

by: cliang7

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 21:06:44 +0000

hey tara! this is your old freshman AA from Stanford just wanted to say hi and tell you that when i read about this kind of stuff happening, especially to people that i know personally, it makes me really upset. you’ve worked so hard… and you wanted to go so badly… there’s not much anyone can say to alleviate the disappointment but just know that you have a lot of supporters and we feel for you. i hope that you can see it with a new perspective tomorrow. in the meantime, hope you’re enjoying ireland. congrats on your engagement!
-catherine