Davidson gives credit to U.S. mentor

Press, 28 July 1986, Page 18

Davidson gives credit to U.S. mentor

From

KEVIN TUTTI

f, in Edinburgh

Quiet words of encouragement from a former world record holder helped Michael Davidson to win his bronze medal in the final of the 400 m freestyle at the Royal Commonwealth swimming pool on Friday evening.

During the northern summer Davidson has been training at San Jose with Jonty Skinner, who in 1976 was the first man to break 50s for the 100 m freestyle. Skinner, dare we say it, was a South African, who pursued his swimming career in America and eventually settled there. He is now the coach of the San Jose Aquatics Club and took Davidson under his wing this summer when the New Zealander had nowhere to train when the university season closed. Davidson attends university in Alabama, where he has one and a half years study left to complete a degree in marketing and public relations.

Davidson said after collecting his medal, reward for 12 years of dedicated slog, that it was due to Skinner, who had made him believe he was capable of improving his 400 m freestyle time. “Jonty told me I was capable of 3min 545. He helped me to believe in myself.” Davidson was beginning to doubt that he would ever improve on his personal best time for the 400 m freestyle of 3min 57.825, set at the Los Angeles Olympics two years ago. He reduced that time by a mere six hundredths of a second to 3min 57.025.

But after the heats yesterday morning he was thinking about more than

the bronze medal. He and the New Zealand coaches surveyed the finalists and came to the conclusion that there was a medal available, and perhaps even the gold. Davidson was by far the most experienced swimmer in the final, but he did not start well and it was only over the last 100 m that he realised he was in with a chance for a medal and “gave it everything.”

Davidson, who celebrated his twenty-third birthday last week, believes the 1500 m freestyle on the last day is his better event. Again he sees the opposition as raw and inexperienced, and the gold medal an even greater prospect. Davidson qualified sixth ifi the morning heats. He swam in the first heat and won it comfortably in 3min 58.965. The eventual gold and silver medallists — Duncan Armstrong (Australia) and Kevin Boyd (England) — won their heats in faster times, and dragged three other swimmers through to faster qualifying times than Davidson. Next month Davidson will get the opportunity to take another chunk off his 400 m time. He could have swum for New Zealand at the world championships in Madrid from August 13 to 23, but has opted instead to return to the United States to Skinner, and his fiancee, and to swim for Skinner at the American championships in late August.

Davidson will marry in November, but that big step in his life will not force his retirement from swimming.

"When I turned into that last 100 m tonight I decided that I would keep going for two more years to see what I can do at the Olympics.”

Even if he fails to win a medal in the 1500 m freestyle, the bronze will mean something special to Davidson. His brother, Neville, who did a tremendous amount of work three years ago to get Michael to America for vital competition, died earlier this year. The medal will be a reminder of his brother’s unselfish efforts. While Davidson was moving from last after 50m to third place, an enthralling battle unfolded.

Kevin Boyd, a 205 cm Englishman, powered to the front from the start of the race and with 100 m to swim had a lead of three seconds. But the brutal pace he had set in the first 300 m told and an Australian with a Scots name, Duncan Armstrong, slowly, but inexorably, hauled in the rapidly tiring Englishman, and pulled away in the last 50m to win by three metres. Meanwhile Davidson had moved from fifth place at 300 m to third at 350 m and clung to his lead, in spite of his own lack of faith in his sprinting ability, expressed after the race.