Many years ago, I coached the High School Swimming team. I had several athletes that went to College on scholarships; but the athlete I was thinking about while I was preparing this sermon, went on to compete in Triathlons. A Triathlon is a 1 mile swim, 25 mile bike ride, and a 6 mile run. (For those listening that know the exact distances, it is a 1.5 kilometer swim, 40 kilometer bike ride, and a 10 kilometer run.) This athlete practiced his running and bicycling around town; but he practiced his swimming in a pool. We did not understand that his training in a pool instead of open water would be an issue until he competed in his 1st Triathlon.
When I saw him after his Triathlon, he said that he almost drowned. He was used to competing in his own lane and in open water swimming, it gets rough. When people would pass him, they would do things like hold his head under the water or punch him in the side. We had to change his entire swimming technique. I taught him how to raise up real high for a breath so he would not take in water and so that he could look around and push people off him. He began to place very high in his next races because he knew how to stay in the lead during the swimming portion of the race.