FINA World Championships, Swimming: Ian Thorpe's Mountain Might be Too High to Climb

July 26, 2011
SHANGHAI, China, July 27. WE won't see Ian Thorpe, Australia's legendary freestyle ace, until November. That's when he becomes eligible to race again under FINA doping rules. In the meantime, his comeback to the sport is in full effect in Switzerland, under the watch of Gennadi Touretski, the man who shaped the career of Alexander Popov.
In all likelihood, Thorpe has been keeping tabs on the results from the World Championships in Shanghai, gauging his future competition. And based on the way a few events have unfolded at the Oriental Sports Center's Indoor Stadium, one has to wonder if Thorpe is capable of making this comeback into a storybook tale.

"It will be really, really tough to make this relay," Thorpe told the Daily Telegraph. "That was a fantastic swim by the guys and the good thing is their capacity to go even faster with a year to go to the Olympics. It's a relief because victory in that relay has been more than a decade in the making."
The relay situation, however, is just part of the problem for Thorpe. It's not out of line to doubt Thorpe's ability to return to his former prowess, especially with seven years having passed since the 2004 Olympics in Athens. In the 200 freestyle, there were five guys under 1:45 in the final at the World Champs, won by Ryan Lochte in 1:44.44. Sure, Thorpe has a career-best of 1:44.06, but – again – returning to that state is not likely.
As for the 100 freestyle, which Thorpe is targeting over a return to the 400 free, the speed of that event is probably too much for the Thorpedo to handle. His best time in the two-lap sprint is 48.56, achieved en route to the bronze medal at the Athens Games. In the prelims of the World Championships, five men went faster in the preliminary round. Yes, Thorpe is training with a genius in the sprint-freestyle events, but there are limits to what Touretski will be able to produce in his newest charge.