The definition of irony
I’d like to write about two things that happened in the past couple of weeks that strike me as incredibly ironic.
The first has to do with a water bottle. As you may know, any athlete who has been ranked in the top 100 of the world can be randomly drug tested at just about any time. We all have to fill out paperwork months in advance so that the USADA drug testers know where they can find us any minute of any day.
On September 1 we all had to submit our location forms for the October – December quarter. I submitted my forms on August 31. Ten days later, I received an email notification from USADA that I was one of 14 lucky winners of a USADA water bottle for turning my forms in on time. The next day the water bottle appeared on my doorstep.
USADA awarding me for my timeliness – how ironic. It had taken them less time to award and send me the water bottle than it did for them to run that very important drug test in early July. I appreciate the gesture, but I’m sorry, the water bottle doesn’t make me feel any better.
The second topic I wanted to discuss has to do with the continuation of my arbitration with USA Swimming, which they are trying to block. It’s been a little frustrating but I was prepared for mudslinging when I determined that defending my rights and the rights of future athletes was the right thing to do.
Now, I find that not only did USA Swimming prevent me from going to the Games, but they have also asked the arbitrator to make me pay all of their attorney’s fees and other relief. Is this ironic or tragic? Or maybe it’s just disgusting.
It could be a scare tactic, a way of strong-arming me into giving up on what is right. They know that I’m not doing as well financially – mostly because of the actions that they took this summer – so hurting me financially becomes their tactic. If so, it is simply mean-spirited bullying.
I would say this entire situation is a double insult or triple insult, but I think that I will have to call it an infinity insult because as we add things on – it is already so ridiculous that it really doesn’t get any worse.
October 6th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Ummm…I would say it’s ironic and very tragic. And just plain mean and disrespectful Ugh!!
October 6th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
As so many other posters have said, I learned more about Tara after watching a repeat episode of her appearance on WNTW. My 10 year old daughter, an avid competitive swimmer, looked her up immediately and we recalled the unfortunate events that happened this summer. I have spent the evening reading up on what’s happened since then, especially with regard to the clear politics that were in play as opposed to the glib excuse given to the media.
Tara, as you mentioned earlier, one of the attractions of the sport is the objectivity of the clock. My daughter is also interested in diving, but I’ve got a clear bias against a sport where so much depends on the subjectivity of a judge. Subjectivity, of course, is problematic not in the form of something like creative preference, but when it stems from politics. Did she deduct a tenth of a point because she thought that gymnast was too popular? Did he call the tag against the runner because he’s friends with the other team’s coach? It’s tempting to think that a sport like swimming avoids most of the politics rife in other sports, but of course there are politics in every social organization. Even at the summer league level, my daughter has been on the receiving end of puzzling relay assignments where she was not placed but had faster times than girls who did. The excuse? The computer made the assignments. The real answer? Politics.
I mention this because it takes a great deal of the joy of competition away where there is the expectation of fairness. Whether it’s for a ten year old at a local invitational or a 26 year old at the Olympics, politics is anathema to the spirit of sports. USA Swimming ought to pay attention because there are many young athletes and parents who are realizing that their NGB is so petty and arbitrary that it cannot be expected to stand behind them and perform a primary duty for which it exists — to ensure that all their athletes are treated fairly and advocated for equally. For those contemplating the eight or twelve years it may take to reach the Olympics, they may say it’s not worth it if the door might be unfairly slammed shut at the very last minute. Maybe they’ll play water polo instead, or the violin, or go to Oxford on Rhodes scholarships. Olympic-level athletes are so self-disciplined and achievement-oriented that they can do many things well, and they may well choose to devote their efforts to something where they don’t feel so much at the mercy of shameless politics.
Tara, keep up the fight. You are doing this not just to prevent another roster disaster such as happened to you, but to keep USA Swimming accountable. This trickles down through the entire organization. Politics will always be with us, but if the NGB shamelessly allows it to affect its operations, then that just encourages everyone further down to practice it. It’s the same for us little guys. I argued my daughter’s situation even though I didn’t want to be seen as an overaggressive parent, and I didn’t want to cause hard feelings with the girl she would replace. But she had earned the right to compete on that relay team, and I was fortunate that the coaches were not so entrenched in their decision that they refused to revisit it. No Cinderella story here — my daughter’s team came in 7th — but the important part was the message that was sent — to both the team and my daughter. For the rest of us, the important part is the message you’re sending to USA Swimming. Don’t lose hope. Kudos to WNTW for airing the repeats and maintaining awareness of your cause.
October 7th, 2008 at 4:29 am
Tara, check out Psalm 73.
October 8th, 2008 at 8:42 am
well, as you’ve probably figured out by now,its time to get after this issue with blazing offense. Listen to your lawyer. Finish up the abritration and get going from there.
October 13th, 2008 at 3:43 pm
I’ve been keeping tabs on your blog since this event started and I am astounded at the bureaucracy and blame rolling that has occurred. A suggestion for help to continue the fight: Set up a fund for donations. A) Get Jessica Hardy to donate - she instigated the incident. Sure, maybe it was accidental but that substance was banned 2 yrs ago and no one else seemed to have issues staying straight. B) Talk to the Stanford community. Athletes and their friends (student or alumni), will support your cause since we know how hard one has to train to excel and we stand up for our own. I would assume that the Athletic Dept. would be interested in preventing future cases. C) Spread the word to all age group and master swimmers - no parent or swimmer would ever want such a fiasco to occur to their child, themselves, or anyone they know. As someone who falls into the latter two groups, I’d gladly contribute. Best of luck and keep fighting!