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A Dream Fulfilled
Dec. 24, 2008
By Larry Watts It was supposed to be the biggest thrill of his swimming career. He was living his dream. But at 4 a.m., two days before the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics, Alon Mandel's dream turned into a nightmare. "The national coach and team physician woke me up," says the University of Michigan junior, who was representing his home country of Israel in the Summer Games. "My room was on the fourth floor and they took me up to the sixth floor, where I received a phone call from my mother. "We don't know how it happened, we're assuming it was a heart attack, but my father (Kostia) had fallen off a 10-foot ladder and broke his neck," Mandel says. "He had always been such a healthy and athletic person, and he never smoked. You just don't see the writing on the wall about something like this." Naturally, Mandel's first thought was to leave the Olympics and return to his hometown of Netanya to be with his family. His first event, the 200-meter butterfly, was still five days away and the 100 butterfly would take place three days after that. "My mother and I talked it over," Mandel says. "Swimming in the Olympics was not just my dream; it was my family's dream as well. "Once my mother told me my father would never forgive me if I came home, it was an easy decision to stay in Beijing. The hard part would be to swim fast. After all, it was my father who had led the fight for me." Mandel's long battle to reach the Olympics began last March in the Netherlands. Unlike the United States, which has its own separate Olympic qualifying trials, to qualify for the Israeli Olympic team a swimmer had to place in the top 12 at the European Swimming Championships. Although he became the first Israeli swimmer to break two minutes in the 200 butterfly, Mandel was .02 seconds shy of that coveted 12th position. But there had been rumors of possible doping by the champion, Greek swimmer Joannis Drymonakos. While Mandel had to return to Michigan, his father, who was between jobs, was determined to find proof Drymonakos had been doping.
"He spent hours on the Internet; he refused to give up," Mandel says. "Finally, a couple of months later, he found an article in the Greek press that stated Drymonakos had used drugs." But now the real battle was on. Fighting the Greek bureaucracy would be a slow process. "Not only did he finally convince a court to consider the case, but the court made the rare decision to ban the swimmer based on that article he had found," Mandel says. "I was finally approved as an Olympic swimmer on July 14 and, fortunately, I had been in Spain training with the Israeli Olympic team at the time. Our coach sensed a ruling would eventually go in my favor, so he had me over there training as an alternate." One of the first people to visit Mandel after hearing of his father's death was former Michigan head coach Jon Urbanchek, who is now a volunteer assistant with the program. "He came over to comfort me during our (Israeli) flag-raising ceremony later that morning," Mandel says. "He was great and did a lot to help comfort me." By the time Mandel approached the starting block for his heat of the 200-meter butterfly, his story had already spread like wildfire. "It was on the front page of all the newspapers back in Israel and the race was being carried live on TV," he says. "I tried my best to put everything out of my mind, but it was a pretty emotional experience. There were some people who thought I should have gone home when I received the news, but I really thought the best way I could honor my father was to compete for him in the Olympics after all he had done to get me there." Mandel placed 28th in the 200, setting an Israeli record of 1:59.27, but did not advance to the semifinals. He was 36th in the 100 fly three days later with another national record (52.99). "I swam the 100 fly at 8 p.m. on Aug. 14 and had a flight back to Israel at 10 p.m.," he says. "But as soon as the race was over, I had to get drug-tested. I still made my flight and I was back home on the 15th for my father's funeral. And one week later I celebrated my 20th birthday." Mandel's quick exit from the Olympics meant he missed witnessing first-hand the eight gold medal quest of Michael Phelps, a Wolverine Club teammate for the past two years. "To train with Phelps is an unbelievable experience," he says. "You learn so much from swimming with the best and he gave me a lot of helpful tips. He has such a long stroke and is so streamlined. He's like a machine when he gets in the water; even his strokes in practice are so perfect. He has really played a big role in making me a better swimmer here at Michigan." Back at Michigan, the chemical engineering major flips over and concentrates on the backstroke. "I really enjoy mixing it up like that, swimming butterfly during the long course season and doing backstroke when I go short course," he says. "I'm hoping to break the school (100-yard) backstroke record (47.10). I just swam a 47.43, so I'm confident I'll get that record before the end of the season." As far as goals for this season, Mandel believes the Wolverines can win the Big Ten title and place in the top four nationally. He hopes to be in the Big Ten title chase for the 100 backstroke and help both the 200 and 400 medley relays place among the top eight nationally. "When you have to compete at such a high level both in the classroom and the pool, you really learn how to multitask,"' Mandel says. "I have my bad days and I have my good days. I'm not as smart as some of my classmates, but I feel people have a lot of respect for me when they find out I'm taking five classes when they're only taking three. Then you add in the fact that I've been to the Olympics." Mandel intends to remain at Michigan to work on a master's degree as he trains for the 2012 Olympics. And before he becomes a full-fledged member of the work force, he will still have to fulfill his obligation of serving with the Israeli army. "Going into the army will be my first job opportunity," he says. "Hopefully, I can use my Michigan degree to get a good job there." As he walks around the Michigan campus, Mandel has a purple keychain attached to his backpack. Engraved on that key chain is "08.08.08." "I made it seven years ago and had forgotten about it," he says. "My sister came across it a few years ago and I've been carrying in ever since. It's a constant reminder to me that the impossible is nothing." And now it's also a reminder of the dedication of a family to a dream. |
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