As the initiator of the programme, FINA continues to closely follow the 18 young swimmers*, who are taking part in the one-year “FINA Targeting Rio 2016 – Scholarships Programme”, started in May 2015 in Thanyapura, Thailand.

Following a post-Kazan report, looking at individual performances at the FINA World Championships, and a second follow-up report including in-depth interviews of the young talents, FINA spoke with the programme’s Head Coach, Miguel Lopez Alvarado from Spain.

Leading the programme, Mr. Lopez Alvarado has more than 20-year experience as a swimming coach at the elite level and is known for bringing swimmers to great heights.

Lopez’s impressive background in coaching famous athletes, including Paralympians, helped him secure this role to conduct this scholarship programme leading up to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

 

The main highlights emerging from the report, drafted in November-December 2015, were that the swimmers are extremely grateful and focused on their respective goals. Despite the pressure of the Olympic Games and tough months ahead, they all show an eager-to-learn attitude towards education in sport and culture too (some of them follow normal school class to pursue a diploma).

As part of the report, are available the scholarship holders’ times at a recent Swimming Open that was organised at the Thanyapura centre, giving them a unique opportunity to swim in an official meet.

The next opportunity for the athletes to establish a B-standard time, necessary to be eligible to take part in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro next August, is the 12th South Asian Games, to be held in Guwahati (IND) in less than a month.

“FINA Targeting Rio 2016 – Scholarships Programme” Head Coach, Lopez, gave FINA an exclusive insight of the day-to-day training programme at Thanyapura:

How do you evaluate the progress and commitment of the young athletes you are coaching in Thanyapura?

There has been a very obvious development in both training and competition, and all evaluations need to have a final goal: to make the best possible times in Rio. In terms of evaluations we have conducted lactate tests, strength and power tests, subjective evaluations based on perceived exertion, and many other tests. But the biggest showcase of improvement has been the fact that 100% of the participants have swam personal best times and broke over 50 national records in just 7 months.
On the other hand the compromise level is extraordinary. The group has developed a great team environment and great momentum, being very rarely if ever late, accepting their responsibility/accountability for their own performances –from perfect skills to individualised warm ups- and taking care of the other members of the FINA programme here in Thanyapura.

What does a day at Thanyapura with the athletes look like? What is the daily programme?

Swimmers will get up at 4:30 in the morning and have a light breakfast, then go to the pool and stretch at 5:15 in the morning. After 15 minutes stretching they will swim for one hour and 45 minutes, and then stretch again. They have breakfast again and go study or do some activities for a few hours and then take a nap. Lunch is at 12:30 and in the afternoon they will meet in the gym for one hour, between 15:15 and 16:15. After that, the water workout will last around two hours and 15 minutes, between 16:30 and 18:45. At 19:15 they have dinner and after that they will have one hour of either study or relax time. Then they go to bed. In total they have 10 water sessions per week, four gym sessions, and one yoga/mind training session. Approximately once every two weeks we give them the option of taking a one hour massage at their own expense.

 

Are you expecting to witness surprises with their times in Rio?

I certainly expect a lot of national records, and I dream of two of them making the semi-finals. When we consider the level these countries have had in the past, I believe this would be the first time ever any of these countries make it past the first round, so it is an ambitious goal but not an impossible one.

Some countries, like Nepal, have already seen their national records drop from 2’28’’ to 2’13’’ in the 200 freestyle, which may not sound competitive, but it is a great drop. We have one swimmer with “B” qualifying times and I expect at least three more swimmers to do “B” qualifying times in the next two months.

What's the most useful advice you give the young athletes at the camp?

I always tell them to have fun and bond, since they will be friends for a long time and will have a great impact in the future of swimming for their countries. The final idea is to educate them to spread this higher level of swimming in their countries and to promote fair play and friendship through sports.

Would you like to share anything else...?

Just my admiration and love for these kids who have endured not only great difficulties but also the gruelling demands of a programme they had never experienced before, the challenge of living outside of their homes for the first time, having to share all different nationalities and cultural diversity.

The whole support team has bonded with the swimmers as well. All assistant coaches, mind, yoga and physical trainers, everyone has felt very integrated in the effort to create a unique environment.

*coming from the following nations: Cambodia, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste, Thailand, Rwanda