Still, I believe there is quite a gap between the two. Tennis players have a solid season competing on a weekly basis from Continent to Continent ignoring such trivialities that concern swimmers like jet lag and tapering. Track athletes also have a similar season. They too compete on a weekly basis at top meets where they are meeting the best of the World and therefore need to stay in top condition . No breaks for them either.
Cyclists have an identical yearly program.
Road cyclists in particular follow the huge endurance events in Europe where it attracts enormous crowds and subsequently, huge pay-outs to successful competitors. In past years many of our swimmers were children and could not be expected to do the work and racing commitments demanded of them today but these days more and more swimmers are opting to continue well into their twenties no doubt because of the financial attraction and the possibility of getting 'set up' for the rest of their lives. These people certainly know all about work and how to maintain it. That great sprinter of modern times, Alex Popov is showing us the way in that regard and competes at regular intervals all over the World without seeming to lose condition or speed. A change in that thinking just a few years ago saw our poorly rated sprinters racing the best in the world and now, as a result of that enlightened strategy we can truly say there is depth if not yet right at the top of World domination.