By Elias Abou Samra ---

Uncertainty governed the AUB swimming team all through its five-day stay in Rhodes. Although the men trained regularly, the swimmers were not sure if they would participate in any competition. On the last evening of the trip, the swimmers headed for Faliraki, where they were to compete against Ygros Stivos Rhodes, the leading swimming team on the island. Although quite young, the Greek women swimmers managed to compete with their Lebanese rivals. As for the men, they waited 45 minutes for the first Rhodes swimmer to appear. The shameful situation annoyed the Lebanese swimmers; Mark Daou, the oldest swimmer on the team, refused to participate in the race. When asked why he withdrew, Daou answered, ÒThe swimming pool didnÕt have any lanes to separate swimmers. Second, only two swimmers from the other team showed up. The first came 45 minutes late, and the second arrived at the end of the race. Third, the weather was chilling and the pool was outdoors.Ó Outlook further investigated the issue and asked the Greek coach, Con Kamberis, about the poor organization of the competition. Kamberis said that he learned about the event only four days beforehand. At first, he said, he was unwilling to participate because of the short notice given to organize the race. However, under heavy pressures from the organizers, Kamberis agreed to host the AUB team with minimal preparation. Finally, the swimmers finished the race in spite of the chilly weather and the primitive pool. The AUBites proved to be far more advanced than the Rhodes swimmers, and took all the honors, probably because the top swimmers of the island were participating in the national championship in Athens.