“Greatness recognizes greatness”
Even if most of athletes usually decide to announce their retirement at the end of the season, this year several careers of big names in swimming ended with this month. For sure the pandemic played a role in some of these decisions because nobody loved to swim his or her last race in an empty pool like Tokyo2020 was.
Femke Heemskerk, Julia Hassler, and of course Federica Pellegrini, the 200 free world record holder, who ended her career in Italy, during the Italian Championships. After winning her 130th Italian title, Pellegrini was joined in the pool by six of her historic rivals: Femke Heemskerk, Sarah Sjostrom, Camelia Potec, Sara Isakovic, Evelyn Verraszto and Alice Mizzau.
All these great athletes showed their love and admiration for Federica and after the ceremony, each one of them published on IG some photo of that night and of the many races against Federica through the years.
Not only swimmers were clapping at Federica’s last dance, indeed different Italian sports legends were there to celebrate her career, like Alberto Tomba, 3-time Olympic gold medallist in ski, or Daniele Lupo, who was silver in Rio Olympics in beach volley. Federica and her results inspired a lot of people from all over the world in and outside the pool.
Not even the time to dry the tears for Federica that only 3 days after another great personality of European swimming jumped in the water for the last time. The ISL finale in Eindhoven was the last race for the 34 yo Femke Heemskerk, who ended in style with the Energy Standard win of season 3.
A shower of love filled the internet also this time. A lot of teammates and rivals showed their appreciation for Femke’s career and for her kindness.
Because results, medals, time and performance are important, but sport is all about legacy.
Reads more like basic human friendship and camaraderie, of women who have shared call rooms, start gun responses, warmups and warmdowns, changing rooms, as well as a pro athlete’s highs and lows, for more than a decade.
This is simple friendship… forged in water, and it lasts longer than any ad-hoc greatness.