There has been only one meet so far this year where Fran Crippen and John Millen did not finish in first and second place, respectively, in both the 1,000 and 500 meter freestyle. That was at the Georgia Invitational in Athens.
"That was a bad meet," Millen said. "We don't talk about that meet."
At that meet, they finished second and third. The fact is, Millen and Crippen form a crucial and consistent block for the Virginia swim team. And in swimming, a sport in which meets are decided based on points earned with first, second or third place finishes, having that block is invaluable to the team.
Crippen, a senior, is the fastest of the pair and has, so far, finished ahead of Millen, a junior, in every race.
"I occasionally beat him in practice," Millen said. "But that's when I'm having a really good day and he's having an average day -- average or bad."
Millen didn't always provide such close competition though. When Millen first came to Virginia, Crippen was a sophomore and, with a year of training under his belt, was already much faster than Millen.
"My first year I was chasing a good bit behind, but I've been able to get closer," Millen said. "He still usually beats me most of the time, but I've gotten closer than I used to."
Crippen attributes this improvement to Millen's hard work and dedication.
"My second year [Millen] came in, and, through his outstanding work ethic and his dedication to this sport, he really started improving," Crippen said. "Since then, we haven't had too many meets where we don't go one-two."
While much of Millen's improvement can be attributed to his hard work, having a teammate there right beside him to race against and challenge him every day certainly hasn't hurt. In addition to the close competition they provide each other in meets, Millen and Crippen compete heavily in practice -- something that steps up both their times and forces them to do better.
"We're usually right there with each other," Crippen said. "And it's great because we race every day in practice, and we race all the time in meets. It makes for great competition and it just makes us both better."
This is especially good news for the team when it comes to relying on points. With Crippen and Millen both improving together, it's very rare that the team has to worry about upsets in the freestyle race -- something that's great for the team mentally, given that the 1,000 is the second event in the meets.
"It's definitely a great way to start a meet," Millen said. "Having a good win come off a strong relay usually, and then having the first event be the thousand where we're traditionally very strong, it helps get things going emotionally."
It's not just Millen and Crippen's speed that helps them take the races, though. Swimming is a strategic sport, and because Crippen and Millen are usually the first two finishers, they can set the pace for the races. By working together, they gain a measure of control over the races that they wouldn't have if either of them was out there alone.
"We generally both go out fast," Millen said. "And since we both go out fast, we can make everyone else swim the [race the] way we want to swim it. So by going out fast in the beginning, we make them race us, and it's a lot easier to control a race if we do that."
As to any rivalry, Crippen said, that if Millen ever beats him, he'll be proud for his friend.
"I only want my teammates to get better," Crippen said. "So I'm as big a fan for him as I am for anybody else. When I touch the wall, I look at my time and then I look to see how John did. Of course I never want to lose, but if I'm going to lose to anyone and it happens to be John, then I'm going to be really happy for him"
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