It's rare, but once every four years is a chance for swimmers to push the football and basketball player off the front of the sports section, or at least to grab a little bit of space alongside them. That's been especially true during these Olympic Games, when the United States team combined some established celebrity power like Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte with some electrifying new stars like Lilly King and Katie Ladecky in one of our best-ever national performances in the pool.
For Alabama swimming coach Dennis Pursley, it's important for the present as several of his international UA standouts have been competing for their various national teams.