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Testing the waters Australia's Thorpe to try swimming 1,500 meters
Posted: Tuesday January 11, 2000 10:42 AM
SYDNEY (Reuters) -- Australia's kings of distance swimming reacted nervously on Tuesday to news that swim sensation Ian Thorpe was going to try himself out over 1,500 meters. Thorpe, who set three world records over 200 and 400-meter freestyle last year, has nominated for the 1,500 freestyle at the New South Wales state championships next week. The move has created speculation the 17-year-old may add the event to his program at the Olympic trials in May to grab one of the two places open to Australian distance swimmers at the Sydney Games. The 1,500 comes after the 100, 200 and 400-meter freestyle at the Olympics, so Thorpe would have nothing to lose if he decided to dip his toe into the race that Australia has made its own. But his rivals, including dual 1,500 Olympic gold medallist Kieren Perkins, did not agree. "As an athlete, if he's got any sense he'll stick to the shorter events," said Perkins, who is highly popular in Australia for his courageous win at the Atlanta Olympics. "He's got a huge kick, he's got an incredible change of speed. These are all things which are exactly what you need to be competitive in sprint events. "The 1,500 is a lot further than any of the races he's done before. It'll be interesting to see whether he holds up." Nevertheless, Perkins admitted to not wanting any more competition than he's already got at the Olympic trials with only two swimmers per event eligible for selection. "It's a difficult situation for me. As a competitor, the last thing I want is more competition," he said. "But I don't begrudge the guy the opportunity. If he wants to give it a try, good luck to him." World 1,500 meters champion Grant Hackett, who has had to settle for silver behind Thorpe in most major 400 meters freestyle races in the past couple of years, said he would be shocked to see Thorpe add the tough 30-lap race to his schedule. "If he wants to do it, he can do it but I know he doesn't like hurting for that long," Hackett quipped. "He could definitely do it well. How well I'm not really sure. It'd probably be a bit of an upset if he knocked Kieren out or something like that." Olympic silver medallist Daniel Kowalski also said it would be against Thorpe's best interests to attempt the 1,500 at international level in an Olympic year. "Obviously, I don't want to see him do it because I think he'd be good," Kowalski said. But ... you don't want to jeopardize that front end speed that he's starting to get now. "He has the opportunity to do some incredible things this year. The 1,500 can wait."
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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