Grant Shimmin OLYMPICS
But for one slight problem, Brendon Dedekind would be ideally placed to step into the gulf left by the injured Bobby Skinstad as the poster boy of South African sport. He’s got it all – bar a stud through his tongue – striking good looks, a torso you’d struggle to push a drawing pin into and he’s among the best in the world at what he does.
Trouble is, he’s a swimmer, and virtually nobody recognises him here in South Africa when he’s fully clothed and away from the pool, as he found while spending some time in Johannesburg recently, after the national Olympic trials in Durban.
“It’s not a big thing for me,” says the modest 24-year-old of the lack of recognition. But bug him or not, it may well all change later this year. Instead of his face being partially obscured by a pair of goggles, there’s a better than even chance that the many South Africans tuning in to Olympic television broadcasts will have the chance to see the lanky blond freestyler as he really looks … on the medal podium in Sydney.
Dedekind is one of a growing group likely to feature strongly in one of the most eagerly awaited events of the programme, the 50m freestyle. It’s the swimming equivalent of the 100m dash and is a race in which one wrong move will almost certainly erase a participant’s chance of victory.
Having been to one Olympics already, that’s something Dedekind is well aware of. “To win an Olympic gold medal, everything has to be right on the day. Your whole being has to be focused on the race.” His Atlanta experience will be valuable in another way as well. “I know what it’s like. I know the moment won’t be too big.”
Then again, Dedekind reckons the one man who shouldn’t be discounted as a gold medal contender is Russian superstar Alex Popov. He not only has experience of two Olympiads, but has bowed his head four times in Barcelona and Atlanta to have gold medals placed around his neck, two for the 50m freestyle.
However, Dedekind’s recent record is as good as any in the event. His winning time at last September’s Pan Pacific championships, in the Sydney Olympic pool, was 22,06 seconds, ranking him joint second in the world behind fellow South African Roland Schoeman, who announced his arrival in the big league with a 22,04. Dedekind overcame his challenge fairly comfortably at the nationals without, by his own admission, focusing completely on the trials, but the pair are both set to contest the event in Sydney, a healthy situation in Dedekind’s view.
“We’re pushing each other. One day we’ll know we pushed ourselves and each other to our physical limits. We’ve all been given talents and we need to use them to the utmost of our ability.”
Schoeman was taken a little by surprise at the NCAA championships in Minneapolis, just before nationals, by the arrival on the scene of little-known American Anthony Ervin, who pipped him by 0,01 seconds in the final and set a new short- course world record. That clearly demonstrates the difficulty of making a prediction about the possible outcome.
“People need to remember that there’s always a new puppy on the block, who wants to run with the big dogs, and some of them can do it,” said Dedekind.
One of the elder statesmen of the South African set-up, Dedekind concedes that his career “has always been based around the 2000 Olympics”, but he’s by no means preparing a retirement speech yet.
“After the Olympics, if it’s financially viable, I’d like to carry on swimming, perhaps until 2004. Sprinters are said to only reach their peak at 26.”
But he’s adamant that he won’t continue purely for financial rewards, which would be heaped upon him if he succeeded in grabbing gold. “I’ve always done swimming because I love to do it and I won’t continue for purely financial reasons. I believe that in life, you should do what you’re passionate about.” Clearly his passion will keep him going with a programme that sometimes sees him train six hours a day.
Dedekind jets out on Monday to resume serious training at Florida State University in Tallahassee.
Given the potential level of competition, every minute is likely to count when the finalists climb their starting blocks in September. “I think a sub-22 will be needed to win. The pressure could either make us swim faster or blow the whole thing apart, but if three or four guys go under 22, I wouldn’t be surprised at all,” he said.