Swimming Blogs - Chris DeSantis

I'm jumping on the bandwagon, and I'm not ashamed. In fact, I feel like I'm a little late.

Its a bandwagon that's growing by the year among college swim teams, and rightfully so. If this blog helps a few more teams to jump on that bandwagon, I'll be very happy.

The bandwagon I'm referring to is the Ted Mullin Hour of Power Relay for Sarcoma Research. I'm going to give you a little background as to why I think this is something you should get your college team involved in, as well as show how easy it is to do. First let me tell you what i know about Ted Mullin.

I met Ted just one time in my life. It was the fall before what should have been both our senior years in college . Ted was at Colby College visiting his younger brother Evan, a teammate of mine. Before that, my knowledge of Ted had come when I was pouring through D3 conference results with Evan and found his brother's times. My first thought was to comment to Evan "hey, you're a lot better than your brother!". Evan shot me a glare and said "Yeah, but I didn't have to swim while recovering from cancer". That was in 2004, and I went on my merry way assuming that Evan's brother had fought the battle of his life and come out victorious. When I saw him in 2005 for the first time, Ted was back for another battle. On the eve of his senior year, captain of Carelton College's swimming team, Ted wasn't going to be able to compete. He was fighting synovial cell sarcoma, an extremely rare form of cancer that frequently strikes younger people and one that often has a dire prognosis. Ted passed away in the fall of 2006.

I didn't know Ted very well, but I find myself thinking about him often. Dire events become more real to you when you feel like they could happen to you. In this case, I think about Ted because the two of us were the same age. Two years after his death I'm living my dream, coaching and otherwise heavily involved in the sport I love. His life makes me very thankful that I have that opportunity.

The Carelton College Swimming and Diving teams partnered with the Mullin Family to start the Hour of Power Relay in 2006 to raise funds to support research for Ted's disease at the University of Chicago. If you want more information or to sign your team up, go to the following link:

http://apps.carleton.edu/athletics/varsity_sports/mens_swimming_and_diving/hour_of_power_relay/

Participation in the relay does not require fundraising at all. In fact, participation offers an added bonus beyond contributing to a worthy cause. The relay is a fun event and practice for your team to participate in. Ted Mullin was also a fine role model for what a swimmer should be. He was an excellent student, a leader among his peers, and a tireless worker. If your athletes end up a little bit more like Ted Mullin, then the event was a success.

So sign your team up today! Teams are encouraged to register for the event as soon as possible. If the national date of November 6th does not work for your team, please participate at an alternate date. Good luck, and remember: cancer sucks!