Bypassed for the freestyle relay final, she wonders if she could have been a golden difference.
By GARY SHELTON
Published August 15, 2004
ATHENS - Eventually, the disappointment will dim. Even as she stood in the fading light of the Greek evening, Maritza Correia knew that.
Eventually, the moment will disappear and only the medal will remain, and all the questions will be lost in the silver of her achievement. Until then, however, part of Correia will wonder.
What if it had been her in the pool? What if it had been up to her to protect the lead? Might the results have been different? Might the silver have turned to gold?
A little bit of delight, a little bit of disappointment. That's how the first night of the swimming competition - and perhaps her last - wound up for Correia, of Valrico, who is the first black woman to make the U.S. Olympic swimming team. She won the first Olympic medal of her career; on the other hand, it came as she watched wistfully from the stands.
What she watched was the U.S. 4x100 freestyle relay team falter as anchor Jenny Thompson lost the lead to Australia's Jodie Henry.
Might it have been different if Correia, who finished ahead of Thompson in the 100 free at the Trials, had raced? Could the Americans have made up the .45 seconds that separated first and second?
"I think deep down, everyone thinks that," Correia said. "It's the competitiveness inside of me. But I'm not angry they made the wrong decision. They made the right decision. They had four great girls out there. If I had been out there, they still would have had four great girls.
"I was a little upset (when told Thompson would replace her after swimming in the preliminaries). . . . At the same time, I'm a team player. I support the decision. I'm very proud of the medal. I just wish I could have been on the podium to have it hung around my neck."
(Only the final swimmers get on the podium.) Members of Correia's family were not as diplomatic. Her father, Vince, was angry that coaches selected Thompson. So was her brother Justin.
"I honestly believe she would have made the difference," Justin said. "In my opinion, Maritza wouldn't have lost that race. That's what she does. She wins relay races..
"(To be replaced by) someone who didn't swim in the morning, who wasn't even in the top four of the Trials, that's preposterous."
U.S. coach Mark Schubert was won over by Thompson's stellar Olympic career. Thompson had won 10 medals, including eight relay golds, in three Olympics. On the other hand, Thompson is 31, and she admits she hasn't trained this year as hard as in the past.
"She swum some great races on a big stage, which I haven't," Correia conceded.
The United States replaced three of its preliminary swimmers with Kara Lynn Joyce, Natalie Coughlin and Thompson. Only Amanda Weir swam in the prelims and final. For Correia, it was a harsh blow, one that left her eyes welled up.
For three legs in the final, the lineup worked. When Thompson entered the water, she had a .37 lead on the Australian team. Thompson swam the fastest U.S. leg, but it wasn't enough to hold off Henry, who outswam her by almost a second and passed her down the stretch, touching the wall to give Australia a world record. The U.S. team set a national record.
"I definitely didn't have that spot handed to me," Thompson said. "It was a coach's decision. He said he was going to watch how I swam in the morning (in butterfly heats) and make his decision."
For Correia, the Olympics may be over. She said she will remain in the pool over the next few days as a candidate for the medley relay. Regardless, her recent success will keep her in the pool for the next few years, she said.
"I think that as time goes by, I'll have good thoughts about the medal," she said. "You can't be too disappointed with a silver medal."
