In the past week I've read quite a few articles revolving around the Brock Turner conviction. Some may be factual while others are more critical of how the case was handled. What amazes me is that it continues to blow up over the internet. I've read articles like "To Brock Turner's Father," "Petition to get Judge Persky off the bench," and even "Turner can no longer compete as part of USA Swimming." I'm going to take a less used approach and see what happens.

From one Swimmer to Another:

Dear Brock,

I know what your childhood and your teen years must've been like. I'm sure they were awfully similar to mine. You started swimming at a young age, probably at a summer swim club where you were the star. You loved to swim. As you got into high school, swimming became more of a job rather than a time to hang out with your friends whilst under a scorching sun. You probably did doubles in high school every day, just like me. I'm sure your days grew long and the weeks seemed never-ending, but you got satisfaction out of all that hard work when you stepped up on the block, squeezed your goggles to your eyes, and dove in. You swam effortlessly and people noticed you. That must've been why you ended up on Stanford's high caliber team. You spent your entire life striving to get there, but when you finally arrived you threw away 15 plus years of hard work and ruined you career, in your own words, by being consumed by the "party culture."

The as you call it, "party culture," did not rape that young woman behind the dumpster, you did. The successful swimmer in you didn't do it. The alcohol in you didn't do it, you did. And it is about time you took responsibility for it. Through all of those years of swimming you must not have had a role model like I did. One who repeatedly told me how hard I worked and how successful I would be in every aspect of my life because of it. You didn't get to Stanford by slacking off. The work ethic you were given during your swimming career was a gift. You earned it, but you never, probably until now, realized how easily it can be wasted. Think of all the people you have let down who have spent countless hours building you up to be the most successful swimmer possible. You not only owe them an apology, but the entire swimming community for wasting your pure talent and blaming it on the "party culture" that in reality every college student faces. USA Swimming is a small tight-knit community. Everyone knows everyone. It is a community you are no longer a part of. We don't want you here. Swimmers at most schools, especially ones like yours and mine, stand out not only in the pool but also in the classroom, because we know what happens when we work our asses off. Unfortunately you've tainted the respect most professor's have for swimmers who sacrifice much to be successful both in the classroom and in the pool. The Division I athlete in you doesn't deserve a break or a cut from justice. Hell, you probably swam year-round for at least four years with no breaks and no vacations, why should the justice system give you a break now?

As for your dad, he was the typical swimmer parent, wasn't he? As I read his letter it screamed, my son has God-given talent and he doesn't deserve this treatment. Maybe you do have God-given talent, which makes your actions even worse. You are no better than the next guy who treats a girl disrespectfully. In fact, I'm inclined to say with everything you've been through in the swimming world, intoxicated or not, you should have realized what you would ruin with "20 minutes of action," as your father says. Do you even know how many minutes of your life you have spent swimming? My guess is that it is somewhere in the ballpark of 525,600 minutes. So all that hard work you put in, ultimately put you behind bars and I hope you rot there. Just so you know, I'll probably be the last girl that ever approaches you. No girl wants to be with someone who treats them unfairly. So with that being said, you should've asked for a longer sentence because you are going to hate the World you walk back into. Which quite frankly, you deserve.

Goodbye and Good Riddance,

A fellow Swimmer