Fran Crippen was in the United Arab Emirates competing in the 10k marathon open-water event Saturday, October 23. However, he did not finish the race.
The 26-year-old Pennsylvania native had fallen unconscious during his race. His body was recovered after two hours of searching, and initial autopsy reports say Crippen suffered a heart attack. Other reports blame the heat (it was almost 100 degrees there, and the water temperature was close to 87) or exhaustion. He had not been feeling well before the race. Both FINA, the world governing body of swimming, and USA Swimming, the national governing body, are investigating Crippen’s death.
Crippen was a 2006 University of Virginia (UVA) graduate with a promising future in the sport of swimming. In the pool, he was a successful distance swimmer, 2-time national champion in the 800 freestyle. In 2006, after making the switch from the pool to open-water, Crippen won two national titles in the 5k and the 10k each. He had goals of making the 2012 Olympics, and becoming the first U.S. swimmer to ever medal in an Olympic open-water event.
As an avid swimmer myself, Crippen’s death has hit close to home. I’m not much of a distance swimmer, but when my dad told me he had died during a race, I immediately turned on the news. What I had expected to be a huge piece about this UVA graduate with a promising future was instead a short 30 second piece.
For whatever reason, this upset me greatly. We live in the second largest Local Swimming Community (LSC) in the country. Crippen had gone to college in Virginia. And the local news couldn’t even give him more than 30 seconds?
The national news didn’t do much better. NBC aired a 2 minute clip about his life and accomplishments, but nothing more. ABC aired a two minutes video and an in studio interview with his sister, Maddy Crippen. CNN aired another 2 minute clip and interview with one of Crippen’s coaches. The Philadelphia-based branch of Fox News aired a 3 minute clip.
Swimnetwork.com has been posting multiple stories in dedication to Crippen and his life; even a video has been created in tribute. but that’s a website created specifically for swimmers, and most people have never heard about it before.
When UVA lacrosse player Yeardley Love was murdered, her death not only received major coverage from our local news stations, but extensive national coverage as well. For weeks, it was all news stations talked about.
But now, in the wake of another crippling and controversial death, the news doesn’t see it fit to give a great swimmer the respect he deserves?
True, Crippen was living and training in Pennsylvania. He was not at UVA, like Love. So media closer to his hometown would be more likely to have long obituary pieces. But he was still a distinguished member of UVA’s team, as Love was. He won the MVP award two years in a row (2003 and 2004). He also received the Rookie of the Year award (2003), and the Hardest Worker, Coaches, Brooke Maury and Ramirez Family Leadership awards (2006). None of these honors were mentioned in his news clips.
When the media covered Love’s murder, followers learned everything about her as the media tried desperately to keep the story alive. But this time, the national media allowed the to story die.
Is it really fair for the media to give so much coverage to the death of one athlete and not the other? Both had promising careers ahead of them. Both attended the same college. However because one was murdered and the other died in the middle of a World Cup race means the media can choose which one they inform us of?
The sad fact is, they can. It doesn’t matter if we live in the second largest LSC in the country. The media has complete control over what we as a people are informed of. Swimming is not a huge sport, and those of us who participate in it are few, but we’re a tight-knit community, and deaths hit us hard. So while the media has decided Fran Crippen’s death isn’t too important, we swimmers will remember him for who he was and celebrate his life.
