Mike Bottom, now with full control of the Michigan Swimming & Diving programs, is already making a strong impact with today’s announcement of the “Michigan Water Carnival”.
The event, which will be held on October 6th at 11 AM, will encompass the Oakland and Minnesota tri-meet, and will try to bring a new level of entertainment and fanfare to a college swim-meet setting.
“The Michigan Water Carnival will be unlike any other swim meet that has been put on before,” Bottom said, adding that he would like to see it become a yearly event. “We want swimming and diving to be a spectator-friendly sport, not just something that’s watched every four years. This event will allow us to show off our speed, power, and athleticism in a totally different and unique way.”
There will be some unique swims on the 13-event schedule, including a 4×75 yard medley relay and a 50-yard underwater dolphin kick. The latter of those races should excite both swim fans and non-swim fans alike; remember this video of former Texas All-American Hill Taylor? It remains one of the most viral videos of swimming ever seen.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vox9KOxC1ZA
The Michigan coaching staff will put on a show between events as well, with training tips and instruction in between races. The Michigan Dance Team, (in-)famed Michigan a capella group The Friars, and even the Michigan band.
Bottom’s attitude toward developing the sport of swimming to reach an expanded audience is reminiscent of what Pat Henry has done for college track. One of the stipulations of him taking over the head coaching job at Texas A&M once upon a time was the ability to build a state-of-the-art indoor track that was designed specifically for spectators; including a set of separated sprint lanes that ran right in front of the fan seating to increase their impact and buzz.
Bottom is taking a similar approach to swimming, and trying to push it beyond the audience of age group swimmers and age group coaches (but still creating a product that will appeal to even the most hardcore of fans). Michigan has been pushing-the-envelope ever-so-slightly with events like this and the Pro Duel Meet last year.
Possible future expansions of this event could include incorporation of Michigan’s synchronized swimming and water polo teams.
Live streaming YES PLEASE
we will watch from down under.
Sounds cool! Why is a 4×75 medley relay more exciting than a 4×50?
4×75 is different… that’s all. I’m crazy excited for that relay. Any way to get an event list posted?
Do you know how we can get tickets??
Loretta – first come, first serve, and admission is free!
Awesome! Definitely gonna be there! 🙂
Will this be televised/streamed online?
If floswimming was still around yes
reddragon, we’re working on making something happen right now. In the very least, we’ll have a cut-and-clipped video replay, with live streaming a possibility.
Awesome. Way to think outside the box–we need more of that in our sport.
Add:
Alumni race.
10&under race
Water polo, for sure
Clown diving, of course
Open water swim, via teleconference or at early in the morning
A sprint triathlon
Zip line into pool, for after the meet for the fans
100 yard reverse medley relay. Gotta swim feet first.
Kick board race
Swimmer shot put. Each team has to toss one of its swimmers over the backstroke flags, high jump style.
Coach bridge. Team makes a bridge and coaches race down the pool from end to end and can not get wet, while coach has his or her pockets full of team members cell phones.