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The sport of triathlon has lost eight of its competitors during races in the United States so far in 2008. The good news: so far our roads have been safe. The bad news: so far the water has been less so. What mitigates risk factors during the swim leg of a triathlon?

The albatross around the neck of the 1:20 Ironman swimmer, or 35-minute 1.5k swimmer, is stalling in the water. Does this describe you? Here are two tests to unearth this problem, and the solutions if you're one of the afflicted.

Slowtwitch asked four top national-caliber swim coaches to answer this question: What are the four common problems adult swimmers face, and what are the remedies? First up: Tim Sheeper.

All swimming coaches have their own opinions on how one should kick; the significance of kicking as part of a workout; and what kicking means to the swim stroke overall.

You’ve probably heard the phrases "feel for the water" or "catch," and if you’ve watched the top swimmers you’ve probably noticed that their bodies seem to glide over the water. Well, they are doing just that.

Of the three, swimming is the most dangerous to lose focus in another sense—technique is everything!

I got a letter yesterday from Clifton May, a Slowtwitch reader. He listed three problems, all of which seem to be common to new triathletes.

While most of the articles featured in Swim Center are penned by extremely accomplished swimmers, it's almost counterproductive to have a swimmer like that write about tactics. How would they know? They don't need tactics. They have talent.

If I had to choose, I'd say becoming a member of a masters swim team is even more important than being part of a tri club.

New triathletes—or triathletes new to the ocean—are quite often scared to death of negotiating waves during an open-ocean swim. Wouldn’t you like to be able to go through the waves without giving them a second thought?

The issue of proper wetsuit care -- notwithstanding the fluidic medium in which a wetsuit is used-- is rather concrete, and not subject to the changing tides of theory.

How on earth do you put this wetsuit on and take it off?!

One of the most misunderstood elements in swimming is the "high elbow."

The primary reason triathletes ought to pay a lot more attention to the swim is that it's free speed.

Triathletes both allow and suffer some fairly egregious behavior in their races, especially that part of the race taking place in the water.

Ipso facto, if you want to become a champion swimmer (or sinner, for that matter), practice, practice, practice.

The science of swimming will make you fast in the pool. It’s the art of swimming that makes you fast in the open water.

In running you cannot think about the muscles like you can in swimming—in fact it is just the opposite.

This little-known condition often affects highly-trained athletes, and is often misdiagnosed as congestive heart failure. Read triathletes' first-hand accounts, along with the etiology and preventive measures.