Nick D'Arcy
Encyclopedia
Nicholas James D'Arcy (born 23 July 1987, in Brisbane, Australia
) is a national-record holding butterfly swimmer
from Australia. He was removed from Australia's 2008 Olympic team
due to a violent altercation that happened shortly after the Australian Olympic Trials. He was also removed from Australia's team to the 2009 World Championships
after being convicted for the same incident.
in Melbourne
, D'Arcy competed in the 200 m butterfly, where he came 14th in the heats in a time of 1 min 57.88 s, scraping into the semifinals by 0.09 s. He improved his time to 1 min 57.15 s to finish 12th, missing the final by 0.68 s.
The 2008 Australian Swimming Championships
held in March in Sydney were used to select the Australian swimming team for the Beijing Olympics
. D'Arcy broke the Australian record for the 200 m butterfly in the semifinals, before setting a new Commonwealth record of 1 m 55.10 s in the final. The victory earned D'Arcy selection for the Olympics and was the tenth fastest time ever recorded in the event.
The 2009 Australian Swimming Championships
held in March in Sydney, which are used to select the Australian swimming team for the 2009 World Championships
, D'Arcy broke his own Australian Record in the 200 m butterfly in the final, winning in 1:54.46.
In March 2010, he qualified for Australia's teams to the 2010 Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championships
. He came second at the Pan Pacific Championships behind Michael Phelps
. D'Arcy was expected to take home the gold medal in the 200 m butterfly at the Commonwealth Games because his fastest time for the year was more than two seconds faster than any of the other entrants, but he failed to qualify for the final after a slow heat.
On 20 June 2011, D'Arcy won the 200m Butterfly at the Santa Clara International Grand Prix, beating 14-time Olympic gold medallist Michael Phelps
in a time of 1 m 55.39 s. It was a stunning swim by D’Arcy, who trailed Phelps for practically the entire race before pipping him at the final touch.
after an alleged brawl with former Commonwealth Games triple gold medalist Simon Cowley on the night of D'Arcy's naming in the Australian Olympic team. He was later charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm. On 3 April 2008, a second athlete, Tim Peach, came forward claiming he was also assaulted by D'Arcy. D'Arcy was granted conditional bail to appear in court on 21 April 2008.
He pled guilty to one charge of recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm.
On 18 April, the Australian Olympic Committee
(AOC) dropped D'Arcy from its 2008 Olympic team
, claiming that the swimmer had brought the team into disrepute. D'Arcy subsequently appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport
(CAS), which found that D'Arcy had brought himself into disrepute and therefore broken his contract with the AOC regarding behaviour by Olympic team members. However, CAS also found that the decision to expel D'Arcy should not have been made solely by the President of the AOC John Coates
, but instead by the entire AOC Board. The AOC Board subsequently unanimously decided to withdraw D'Arcy's membership from the team on 11 June 2008.
D'Arcy appealed the AOC Board's decision to CAS, which rejected this appeal on 16 June 2008.
In March 2009, D'Arcy received a jail sentence of 14 months and 12 days. This was suspended on condition of good behavior. On 6 April 2009, he was dropped from Australia's team to the 2009 World Championships by Swimming Australia
.
Former Australian swimming captain Grant Hackett
supported D'Arcy's return to swimming once his ban was served.
On 27 June 2011 Cowley commenced proceedings in the NSW District Court to sue D'Arcy for damages arising from the altercation with D'Arcy.
. He is currently fighting to stave off a doping ban after paperwork allowing him to take an asthma medication "went missing".
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
) is a national-record holding butterfly swimmer
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
from Australia. He was removed from Australia's 2008 Olympic team
Australia at the 2008 Summer Olympics
A total of 433 competitors competed for Australia at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The team was Australia's second largest away team after the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, which included a team of 482 competitors...
due to a violent altercation that happened shortly after the Australian Olympic Trials. He was also removed from Australia's team to the 2009 World Championships
Swimming at the 2009 World Aquatics Championships
The swimming competition of the 2009 World Aquatics Championships was held at the Foro Italico sports complex in Rome, Italy, from Sunday 26 July – Sunday 2 August 2009.-Events:...
after being convicted for the same incident.
Career
At the 2007 World Aquatics Championships2007 World Aquatics Championships
The 2007 World Aquatics Championships or the XII FINA World Championships were held in Melbourne, Australia from 17 March to 1 April 2007...
in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, D'Arcy competed in the 200 m butterfly, where he came 14th in the heats in a time of 1 min 57.88 s, scraping into the semifinals by 0.09 s. He improved his time to 1 min 57.15 s to finish 12th, missing the final by 0.68 s.
The 2008 Australian Swimming Championships
2008 Australian Swimming Championships
The 2008 Telstra Australian Swimming Championships were held at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia from 22–29 March 2008...
held in March in Sydney were used to select the Australian swimming team for the Beijing Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
. D'Arcy broke the Australian record for the 200 m butterfly in the semifinals, before setting a new Commonwealth record of 1 m 55.10 s in the final. The victory earned D'Arcy selection for the Olympics and was the tenth fastest time ever recorded in the event.
The 2009 Australian Swimming Championships
2009 Australian Swimming Championships
The 2009 Telstra Australian Swimming Championships were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia from 17–22 March 2009. They doubled as the national trials for the 2009 World Aquatics Championships.-Results:...
held in March in Sydney, which are used to select the Australian swimming team for the 2009 World Championships
2009 World Aquatics Championships
The 2009 World Aquatics Championships or the XIII FINA World Championships were celebrated in Rome, Italy in 2009 from July 17 to August 2. The 2009 Championships featured competition in all 5 aquatics disciplines: diving, swimming, open water swimming, synchronized swimming and water polo.Rome won...
, D'Arcy broke his own Australian Record in the 200 m butterfly in the final, winning in 1:54.46.
In March 2010, he qualified for Australia's teams to the 2010 Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championships
2010 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships
The eleventh edition of the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, also known as the 2010 Mutual of Omaha Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, a long course event, was held in Irvine, California, United States, from August 18–22....
. He came second at the Pan Pacific Championships behind Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps
Michael Fred Phelps is an American swimmer who has, overall, won 16 Olympic medals—six gold and two bronze at Athens in 2004, and eight gold at Beijing in 2008, becoming the most successful athlete at both of these Olympic Games editions...
. D'Arcy was expected to take home the gold medal in the 200 m butterfly at the Commonwealth Games because his fastest time for the year was more than two seconds faster than any of the other entrants, but he failed to qualify for the final after a slow heat.
On 20 June 2011, D'Arcy won the 200m Butterfly at the Santa Clara International Grand Prix, beating 14-time Olympic gold medallist Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps
Michael Fred Phelps is an American swimmer who has, overall, won 16 Olympic medals—six gold and two bronze at Athens in 2004, and eight gold at Beijing in 2008, becoming the most successful athlete at both of these Olympic Games editions...
in a time of 1 m 55.39 s. It was a stunning swim by D’Arcy, who trailed Phelps for practically the entire race before pipping him at the final touch.
Fracas
On 31 March 2008, D'Arcy was charged with assaultAssault
In law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact. The specific meaning of assault varies between countries, but can refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, or in the more...
after an alleged brawl with former Commonwealth Games triple gold medalist Simon Cowley on the night of D'Arcy's naming in the Australian Olympic team. He was later charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm. On 3 April 2008, a second athlete, Tim Peach, came forward claiming he was also assaulted by D'Arcy. D'Arcy was granted conditional bail to appear in court on 21 April 2008.
He pled guilty to one charge of recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm.
On 18 April, the Australian Olympic Committee
Australian Olympic Committee
The Australian Olympic Committee is the National Olympic Committee in Australia for the Olympic Games movement. It is a non-profit organisation that selects teams, and raises funds to send Australian competitors to Olympic events organised by the International Olympic Committee .-Background:The...
(AOC) dropped D'Arcy from its 2008 Olympic team
Australia at the 2008 Summer Olympics
A total of 433 competitors competed for Australia at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The team was Australia's second largest away team after the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, which included a team of 482 competitors...
, claiming that the swimmer had brought the team into disrepute. D'Arcy subsequently appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport
Court of Arbitration for Sport
The Court of Arbitration for Sport is an international arbitration body set up to settle disputes related to sport. Its headquarters are in Lausanne and its courts are located in New York, Sydney and Lausanne, Switzerland...
(CAS), which found that D'Arcy had brought himself into disrepute and therefore broken his contract with the AOC regarding behaviour by Olympic team members. However, CAS also found that the decision to expel D'Arcy should not have been made solely by the President of the AOC John Coates
John Coates
John Henry Coates, FRS is a mathematician who holds the position of Sadleirian Professor of Pure Mathematics at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.-Early life and education:...
, but instead by the entire AOC Board. The AOC Board subsequently unanimously decided to withdraw D'Arcy's membership from the team on 11 June 2008.
D'Arcy appealed the AOC Board's decision to CAS, which rejected this appeal on 16 June 2008.
In March 2009, D'Arcy received a jail sentence of 14 months and 12 days. This was suspended on condition of good behavior. On 6 April 2009, he was dropped from Australia's team to the 2009 World Championships by Swimming Australia
Swimming Australia
Swimming Australia is the peak governing body for competitive swimming in Australia. The body currently has approximately 90,000 registered members nationally in 1100 clubs across the country, which includes swimmers, coaches, officials, administrators and volunteers...
.
Former Australian swimming captain Grant Hackett
Grant Hackett
Grant Hackett OAM is an Australian former swimmer most famous for winning the men's 1500 metres freestyle race at both the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney and the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. This achievement has led him to be regarded as one of the greatest distance swimmers in history...
supported D'Arcy's return to swimming once his ban was served.
On 27 June 2011 Cowley commenced proceedings in the NSW District Court to sue D'Arcy for damages arising from the altercation with D'Arcy.
Failed drug test and doping charges
D'Arcy underwent an out-of-competition test in March 2010 and was informed of his positive result in April 2010, he tested positive for the banned substance formoterolFormoterol
Formoterol or eformoterol is a long-acting β2-agonist used in the management of asthma and/or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease...
. He is currently fighting to stave off a doping ban after paperwork allowing him to take an asthma medication "went missing".