US Wins Silver in 400m Free Relay - Lochte Chased Down by Agnel of France

Ryan didn't swim the smartest race (according to Gregg Troy in the article below) but he sure gave it his all.  How many other 400 IM swimmers are also sprinters?  Lots of interesting quotes in this article by Pat Forde of yahoo.com:  http://sports.yahoo.com/news/olympics--usa-s-risky-men-s-freestyle-relay-plan-backfires-in-an-ironic-twist-.html

Lochte was too amped for his anchor leg, taking it out too quickly. An explosive underwater start sapped his energy. His turnover was too fast. Not a natural sprinter, he immediately engaged in a dead sprint.
"I overswam the first 50," he said, "which hurt me in the last 50."
Said Troy: "I knew on the first 25 he was in trouble."

It was a good decision to put Lochte on the relay.  It was a mistake to leave him off it in the finals in Shanghai.  Of all the options available, he gave the US the best chance at gold.  He didn't lose the race, Agnel won it.  


Agnel's performance makes me very nervous for the 200m free final tomorrow, but that's a subject for a separate post.

Here's another good article about the race by Casey Barrett.  Everyone should read www.capandgoggles.com.  It's a fantastic swimming blog.
http://capandgoggles.com/2012/07/29/a-dish-served-cold/


Here are some photos from the 400 free relay and medal ceremony: