Swimming World August 2021 Issue

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AUGUST 2021 • VOL 62 • NO 8 FEATURES

025 | ONE OF THE GREATEST SPRINTERS OF ALL TIME

012 | READY FOR A NEW CHALLENGE

by John Lohn

by David Rieder Torri Huske finished her high school career by setting national high school records in the 100 yard fly and 200 IM and by being named Swimming World’s Female High School Swimmer of the Year for the second time (2019, 2021). The 18-year-old senior from Yorktown High School (Arlington, Va.) will be moving on to Stanford in the fall, but first, she set an American record in the 100 meter fly at U.S. Trials that earned her a trip to Tokyo to compete in her first Olympics.

014 | TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

by Dan D’Addona Everything appears to be OK for Norman North (Okla.) High School senior Aiden Hayes. He set two national high school records (100 fly and 50 free) this past season. He competed and gained experience at the U.S. Olympic Trials as the fastest 18-year-old in the country in butterfly.

And he was named Swimming World’s Male High School Swimmer of the Year.

016 | CREAM OF THE CROP

by David Rieder and Andy Ross There were some mighty fast swimmers who finished the 2020-21 high school season right behind Swimming World’s Female and Male High School Swimmers of the Year, Torri Huske and Aiden Hayes. Of the four runners-up, two of them are underclassmen and will be returning for more fast swimming in 2021-22.

018 | TOP HIGH SCHOOL RECRUITS

by Chandler Brandes Swimming World takes a look at the swimmers it considers to be the 10 best high school recruits— both male and female—from the Class of 2021 and where they’ll be attending college in the fall.

021 | NUTRITION: WHAT TO EAT BEFORE THE “BIG RACE”

by Dawn Weatherwax To reach your swimming goals, it is important to know what to eat—at what times and in what amounts. It is different for everyone, but very important to master.

022 | ISHOF: THE U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS—DONNA DeVARONA AND THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF WOMEN’S SWIMMING

by Bruce Wigo At the recent U.S. Olympic Trials, there was one moment that linked the past with the present and future of swimming like no other.

It came when Donna de Varona presented Olympic qualification medals to Katie Grimes, the youngest member of the 2021 Olympic swimming team, and three-time Olympian Katie Ledecky.

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The 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney are widely remembered for the home-nation success of Australia, which was spearheaded by teenage sensation Ian Thorpe. But the Games Down Under also served as a redemptive locale for the Netherlands’ Inge de Bruijn, who used the stage to define herself as one of the sport’s legends.

028 | MENTAL PREP: BEFORE THE BEEP WITH KATE DOUGLASS

by Shoshanna Rutemiller

COACHING 030 | SPECIAL SETS: TRAINING KAYLA WILSON

by Michael J. Stott Coach Richard Hunter of TIDE Swimming in Virginia Beach, Va. discusses goals and workouts for one of his top swimmers, Kayla Wilson, a rising senior at Norfolk Academy who recently committed to Stanford for fall 2022.

034 | SWIMMING TECHNIQUE CONCEPTS: MAXIMIZING SWIMMING VELOCITY (Part 4)— MINIMIZING THE ARM ENTRY PHASE TIME IN BACKSTROKE AND BREASTSTROKE

by Rod Havriluk To minimize the arm entry phase time in backstroke, a swimmer must quickly move the hand downward directly behind and below the shoulder. Minimizing the arm entry phase (glide phase) in breaststroke requires precise control of the timing between the finish of the kick and the beginning of the pull. A decrease in the nonpropulsive entry phase decreases the time for a stroke cycle, increases stroke rate and increases swimming velocity.

038 | SPECIAL SETS: ENERGY SYSTEM TRAINING

by Michael J. Stott George Heidinger, former USA Swimming National Team High Performance Consultant and owner of Pikes Peak Athletics (Colo.), specializes in long-term athlete development. As such, he is well-schooled in the science of energy systems and shares some sample sets he has given to rising high school senior Quintin McCarty and his PPA senior teammates.

040 | A COACHES’ GUIDE TO ENERGY SYSTEMS (Part 3): WHILE THEY’RE YOUNG

by Michael J. Stott In Part 3 of our series on energy systems, two age group coaches—one from Clovis, Calif. and one from Richmond, Va.—share how they inform and guide their younger athletes through energy system training.

ON THE COVER

At the Virginia 6A championships in late February, Yorktown High School (Arlington, Va.) senior Torri Huske swam a 1:53.73 in the 200 yard IM, breaking a 12-year-old national high school record. Shortly after, she became the first female swimmer to break 50 seconds in a high school swimming competition in the 100 yard butterfly with a 49.95. Those two record-breaking performances were good enough for Huske to be named Swimming World’s Female High School Swimmer of the Year, an honor she also received in 2019. (See feature, pages 12-13.)

[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

043 | Q&A WITH COACH NICHOLAS ASKEW

by Michael J. Stott

044 | HOW THEY TRAIN MILES SIMON

by Michael J. Stott

TRAINING 033 | DRYSIDE TRAINING: GOLD MEDAL WORKOUT

by J.R. Rosania

JUNIOR SWIMMER 036 | GOLDMINDS: 10 GREAT REASONS TO GET BACK IN THE POOL

by Wayne Goldsmith

47 | UP & COMERS: BRIAN HAMILTON

by Shoshanna Rutemiller

COLUMNS 008 | A VOICE FOR THE SPORT 011 | DID YOU KNOW: ABOUT ETHELDA BLEIBTREY? 046 | HASTY HIGH POINTERS 048 | GUTTERTALK 049 | PARTING SHOT

SWIMMING WORLD MAGAZINE (ISSN 0039-7431). Note: permission to reprint articles or excerpts from contents is prohibited without permission from the publisher. The publisher is not responsible for errors in advertisements. Microfilm copies: available from University Microfilms, 313 N. First St., Ann Arbor, MI 48103. Swimming World Magazine is listed in the Physical Education Index. Printed in the U.S.A. © Sports Publications International August 2021.

INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING SWIMMING HALL OF OF FAME THE THE INTERNATIONAL HALL FAME IS LOOKING IS FOR 1,OOO SPECIAL LOOKING FOR MEMBERS IN THE AQUATICS COMMUNITY

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VOICE FOR THE SPORT

ALREADY LOOKING AHEAD

BY JOHN LOHN

M

issing it already? Have you started the countdown to Paris? Only a little more than 1,000 days this time around. Should be manageable. And remember, you were able to cope with a five-year gap between the Olympic closing ceremony in Rio de Janeiro and the launch of action in Tokyo. No, it was not fun. But you made it—COVID-19 be damned.

The Olympic Games just wrapped up, the Japanese capital enduring a one-year delay to serve as the centerpiece of the sporting world. It was an Olympiad unlike any other, with numerous restrictions in place. Familial support was absent for the athletes. No spectators.

Limited movement for all parties involved—athletes, coaches and media.

The 2020ne Olympics will forever be known as the Pandemic Games. The fact that label will be attached to Tokyo’s second hosting gig (1964 was the first) does not mean the city failed. On the contrary, plenty of memorable moments were captured for eternity, and Tokyo deserves applause. Yet, when a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic arises, and affects the world, there is no escaping an arm-in-arm walk into history. So, accept the reality that Tokyo and COVID-19 will always be linked.

Although Tokyo is in the rearview mirror, the next few months will provide the chance to replay some of the epic moments. A favorite triumph. A heartwarming tale. An upset no one saw coming. At the same time, we will start to peer ahead, envisioning what will unfold when the Olympics—a century later—return to Paris.

As much as we craved competition from the Tokyo Games, especially due to the extrayear wait, we are a what’s-next society. Call it a measure of impatience or view it as an eagerness to witness the next great hope or the continued excellence of a current star.

Simply, the excitement level hovering over what might come is rarely extinguished.

The last time the Olympic Games visited Paris, it was 1924, and a 20-year-old named Johnny Weissmuller emerged as a star. He claimed three gold medals during his Olympic debut, the highlight a victory over fellow American Duke Kahanamoku in the 100 meter freestyle. Their duel was a changing-of-the-guard moment, as Kahanamoku was the twotime defending champion. For Weissmuller, a repeat in the event was completed in 1928 in Amsterdam, with a famed career as Tarzan on the Silver Screen following.

Now, we glance at Paris 2024 and begin to wonder: What will we see? There will be no shortage of possibilities, the number of storylines growing with each passing month.

Consider a few of these early questions: • Which of the sport’s current veterans will continue to shine? Caeleb Dressel is poised to maintain his powerful presence. Will Sarah Sjostrom remain a factor on the international scene? How will Katie Ledecky approach her pursuit of a fourth Olympic Games?

• Which present-day early teenager will emerge as a major force? We know there is one.

Somewhere, whether it be in the United States, Europe, Australia or Asia, there is a 13-year-old with considerable talent, a can’t-miss type bound for stardom. And when Paris rolls around, she will be a 16-year-old ready to soar onto her sport’s biggest stage.

• What can be expected of someone like Carson Foster? The University of Texas standout just missed qualifying for Tokyo, and his vast talent figures to take him to Paris. How will he progress over the next few years, and will he be a face of Team USA the next time the Olympic Torch is lit?

• In the coming months, as is tradition, several big names will say goodbye and move on to a new phase of their lives. But with one less year until the next Olympic Games, will some athletes hang on for another go?

It’s strange. Tokyo just concluded, and here we are already wondering about Paris. Are we that impatient? No. The Olympics are just that great a spectacle, a defining aspect of our sport. And we can never get enough.v John Lohn Editor-in-Chief Swimming World Magazine

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PUBLISHING, CIRCULATION AND ACCOUNTING

www.SwimmingWorldMagazine.com Publisher, CEO - Brent T. Rutemiller BrentR@SwimmingWorld.com Editor-in-Chief - John Lohn Lohn@SwimmingWorld.com Operations Manager - Laurie Marchwinski LaurieM@ishof.org Production Editor - Taylor Brien TaylorB@SwimmingWorld.com Circulation/Membership - Lauren Serowik Lauren@ishof.org Accounting - Marcia Meiners Marcia@ishof.org EDITORIAL, PRODUCTION, ADVERTISING, MARKETING AND MERCHANDISING OFFICE

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INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING HALL OF FAME

DID YOU

KNOW ABOUT ETHELDA BLEIBTREY?

BY BRUCE WIGO PHOTOS BY INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING HALL OF FAME

E

thelda Bleibtrey was the USA’s first female Olympic swimming champion and the only woman to win gold in every event at an Olympic Games. Of course, there were only three events offered for women 101 years ago at the 1920 Antwerp Games: the 100 and 300 meter freestyle plus the 4x100 freestyle relay. But if backstroke and breaststroke were swum, she might have won them, too—she was an “unofficial” world record holder in both strokes!

Born in Waterford, N.Y., in 1902, Ethelda grew up at a time when athletics for women was just drawing interest. When she was in grammar school, her family moved to New York City, where she first learned to swim at the age of 15. Ethelda credited her interest in competitive swimming to a visit at her school’s swimming class from Elaine Golding, the women’s professional long-distance champion at the time.

Recognizing her natural gifts, Elaine inspired Ethelda to join the Women’s Swimming Association of New York. Within two years of instruction under Louis deBreda Handley, she was declared the best woman swimmer in the world after defeating Australian great, Fanny Durack, in a match in San Francisco.

Ethelda’s training, she said, consisted of eating decent food and practicing good form, saying: “Our coach, Mr. Handley, believes that if a swimmer’s form and style are as near-perfect as can be made, and having plenty of power and stamina, she will finish ahead of a swimmer with poorer form. That’s why when we practice, we never race against time. There is no practical use in sacrificing form for speed.”

In addition to her Olympic titles, Ethelda had other firsts for which she gained a great deal of celebrity and notoriety. In 1919, in an era when women wore their hair long, she was the first female athlete of note, following the lead of actress Irene Castle, to cut her blonde hair short and wear a “bob.”

Later that same year, she was arrested at Manhattan Beach on Long Island, N.Y., for removing her stockings before entering the surf. That was considered “public nudity” at the time. The resulting publicity and public opinion swung in her favor, not only emancipating Ethelda from jail, but for all women who wore bathing suits in public spaces.

In 1922, after turning professional, Ethelda was arrested again after she agreed to a publicity stunt—backed by The New York Daily News—intended to force the city to build a swimming pool in Central Park. After diving into the Central Park Reservoir, she was arrested and paddy-wagoned down to the “Tombs” for a night in prison. But Mayor Jimmy Walker intervened after a public outcry and agreed to build Ethelda and the people of New York a pool in the park.

Ethelda was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1967, and earlier this year, her hometown of Waterford, N.Y., honored her memory by renaming its aquatic center in her honor. v

Bruce Wigo, historian and consultant at the International Swimming Hall of Fame, served as president/CEO of ISHOF from 2005-17.

>> Ethelda Bleibtrey: first notable female athlete to wear a bob hairstyle

>> Bleibtrey, 18, at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp

>> Ethelda at her International Swimming Hall of Fame induction in 1967 with Australian great, Dawn Fraser AUGUST 2021

SWIMMINGWORLD.COM

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[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

FEMALE HIGH SCHOOL SWIMMER OF THE YEAR

READY FOR A NEW CHALLENGE

I

n the 15 minutes or so Torri Huske finished her high school career for her high school swimming before any race, Torri career. by setting national high school records in Huske prefers not to speak with At the Virginia 6A anyone. The 18-year-old from championships in late February, the 100 yard fly and 200 IM, and by being Yorktown High School and Huske swam a 1:53.73 in named Swimming World’s Female High the 200 yard IM, breaking a the Arlington Aquatic Club in Virginia might be a newer face national record School Swimmer of the Year for the second 12-year-old on the elite swimming scene, of 1:53.82 held by Dagny but as she has steadily built to time (2019, 2021). The 18-year-old senior Knutson. Shortly after, she won this level, she has refined the 100 fly in 49.95, breaking from Yorktown High School (Arlington, Va.) the approach to racing that works not only her own public school for her. Some swimmers are will be moving on to Stanford in the fall, but record, but the overall national social beings in the immediate high school record held by first, she set an American record in the 100 Claire Curzan. Just six years leadup to the race to distract themselves from nerves and meter fly at U.S. Trials that earned her a trip after the first overall woman pressure, but Huske embraces broke 50 seconds in the 100 fly, to Tokyo to compete in her first Olympics. those feelings, knowing she can Huske became the first to do channel them into adrenaline. so in a high school swimming

BY DAVID RIEDER “I just like sitting on the floor competition. Those two recordand stretching and getting in breaking performances were my own head and getting in my own mindset,” she said. “Sometimes good enough for Huske to be named Swimming World’s Female I’ll think about the race. I’ll think about how I’m feeling, like High School Swimmer of the Year. emotionally. It’s just feeling everything that’s around you and the “I have been chasing after that for so long,” Huske said. “It was energy. Sometimes, there’s this tension. Everyone’s really anxious kind of just a relief. I had been 50-point so many times, and it was before their swim, and I feel like it’s just kind of experiencing the really frustrating, just because I knew I was capable of going under moment, shaking out my body, making sure everything feels good 50, and I had been so close so many times. It was just really nice to and that I’m loose and stretched out and making sure that I’m warm finally look at the clock and see that.” and that I’m physically and mentally ready.”

Huske almost broke a third national public school record that day, with her 200 free relay leadoff split of 21.65 coming up just 1-hundredth short of Abbey Weitzeil’s record. But much more A STELLAR HIGH SCHOOL SEASON significant for Huske was leading Yorktown to a state championship, In the past few months, the United States and the world have the first in her high school career. Yorktown finished with 236 points gotten the chance to see Huske display her physical talents and to defeat runner-up Battlefield by 27. mental fortitude on the sport’s grandest stages, the Olympic Trials “We’ve been so close to getting first as a team these past three and the Olympics, but before that, she was producing some of the years,” Huske said. “My freshman year, I think we were second. My best-ever performances in high school swimming. She broke the sophomore year, I think we got third as a team, but we were closer national public school record in the 100 yard fly as a sophomore, in points than we were the previous year. And then last year, we got then as a junior and then a third time her senior year at the high school regional meet. That set her up for an amazing swan song second again. We’ve been really trying hard. I feel like we were 12

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[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

>> At her first U.S. Olympic Trials, held last June, Torri Huske ended up breaking the 100 meter fly American record, a nine-year-old mark belonging to 2012 Olympic gold medalist Dana Vollmer—and she did it twice: first with a 55.78 in the semifinals and then a 55.66 in the final, more than a second faster than her previous lifetime best.

working for this so long as a team, so it was really nice that it finally happened, especially for my senior year. It kind of came together. It all felt complete.”

But even as Huske excelled in her high school competitions this year, the format did not allow her to show just how good she is across a bunch of events. Adding in her club competitions for the Arlington Aquatic Club, Huske finished the short course season with times that would have placed her in the top three at the NCAA Championships in four events—the 200 IM (1:53.73), 50 free (21.39), 100 fly (49.70) and 200 free (1:43.23)—and her times in the 100 free (47.60) and 200 fly (1:53.71) are also elite.

Those times will make her immediately one of the best collegiate swimmers in the country when she heads west to Stanford University this fall, and she is sure to be a hugely valuable performer for the Cardinal, looking to return to the top of the national heap after capturing national titles in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

NEXT STEP: BECOMING AN OLYMPIAN

Huske had clinched the title of top high school swimmer in the country by the end of the spring, but it turns out that was just a small preview of what she would accomplish in 2021. In eight days at the U.S. Olympic Trials, perhaps the most extraordinary performance came from the teenager from Arlington, Va., competing in her first Trials.

The meet took place in a pool placed in the middle of an enormous basketball arena, and while she watched the Wave I meet on television, Huske figured she might be intimidated by the setup.

But upon arrival, she saw the CHI Health Center in Omaha, Neb. as “another pool, a little fancier than most,” and the meet did not faze her. Before each race, Huske walked out from the ready room to the blocks quicker than almost any athlete, completely zeroed-in on the moment and the race ahead. She stuck to her pre-race approach, soaked in the energy of Trials and thrived.

As Huske had exploded through her short course performances, her improvement in long course turned her into a contender to

qualify for an Olympics. In December 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Huske won the 100 meter fly at the U.S. Open in December 2019, coming out of Lane 1 to swim a 57.48 to beat 2016 Olympian Kelsi Dahlia by a half-second. That effort showed Huske that, yes, she could be an Olympian one day.

One weekend racing fellow teenager Claire Curzan in Cary, N.C., in April really accentuated the hype around Huske, as she became just the fourth American to break 57 in the long course 100 butterfly and posted some really swift times in the sprint freestyle events, but no one foresaw the effort Huske had in store for the 100 fly in Omaha.

She ended up breaking the 100 fly American record, a nine-yearold mark belonging to 2012 Olympic gold medalist Dana Vollmer, first with a 55.78 in the semifinals and then a 55.66 in the final, more than a second faster than her previous lifetime best. Huske took both races out under world-record pace at the halfway point and showed off her immense power and skill as she crushed the field of her compatriots to qualify for her first Olympics.

Huske was careful not to expect to make the team, but she knew that a 55-second effort could be in store if all went well on the day.

“I know anyone can have a good race or a bad race, and I can only control myself, and I don’t know how fast you’re going to swim. Obviously, I felt like I had an outside shot,” Huske said.

“The field I raced was so amazing, and there were so many amazing swimmers who are so renowned. You never can really control other people, so I feel like I didn’t really expect to make the team, but I was hopeful that I would.”

Huske credited her huge pre-Trials improvement to detailed focus on her open turns, intense strength training and simply having an extra year of growth and preparation when the Olympics were delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But plenty of swimmers show up to Trials physically primed to swim fast. Huske succeeded and excelled because she conquered one of the world’s most high-pressured swim meets, one that derails so many top-notch athletes with seeming ease. v AUGUST 2021

SWIMMINGWORLD.COM

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[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

MALE HIGH SCHOOL SWIMMER OF THE YEAR

TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL A

iden Hayes was an Everything appears to be OK for Norman younger kids are responding to under-the-radar swimmer that. We have some fast kids North (Okla.) High School senior Aiden coming up in Oklahoma right coming from an under-theradar state. But after a stellar Hayes. He set two national high school now. high school season and spot at “Aiden was the Oklahoma the U.S. Olympic Trials, he is records (100 fly and 50 free) this past season. Athlete of the Year, so swimputting himself and the state of being recognized as the He competed and gained experience at the mers Oklahoma on the map. top athlete in the state is a big It has been quite a year for U.S. Olympic Trials as the fastest 18-year- deal.” the senior from Norman North old in the country in butterfly. And he was High School.

NATIONAL HIGH Hayes set two national high named Swimming World’s Male High School SCHOOL RECORDS school records at the Oklahoma Last February, Hayes took Swimmer of the Year. state championships and was down a pair of national high selected as Swimming World’s school records, first lowering

BY DAN D’ADDONA Male High School Swimmer the standard in the 50 yard of the Year. freestyle, and then breaking the record in the 100 butterfly. In the “It is a really big deal,” Hayes said. “Oklahoma doesn’t get the 50 free, Hayes produced a winning time of 19.20, which was quick recognition in swimming. It is definitely not the biggest sport, or enough to better the 19.24 that Matt Brownstead (State College even top five. But it has started to pick up around the state.

Area, Pa.) posted at last year’s Pennsylvania 3A Championships.

“It started a few years ago, and now Patrick Callan (a University (However, Pennington School’s David Curtiss—who will be of Michigan senior who’s from Owasso, Okla.) follows that up as teammates with Hayes at NC State this fall—lowered the record one of two Olympians from Oklahoma. to 19.11 a little more than a week later at the New Jersey state “It is two Olympics in a row that we put someone on the championships!)

Olympic team (the first was Oklahoma City’s David Plummer Following the 50, Hayes took down Joseph Schooling’s 2013 in 2016). To bring that experience back to Oklahoma is huge. I record in the 100 fly. Touching the wall in 45.47, Hayes clipped looked up to Patrick when I was younger, and to bring that fast the 45.52 that Schooling managed during his days at the Bolles swimming to Oklahoma has elevated our sport as a whole.

School in Florida. A little more than three years after Schooling “It was a really big deal. I was obviously excited about it. To be set the high school record, he claimed gold in the 100 fly at the up there with Joseph Schooling, Ryan Hoffer and Caeleb Dressel 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. In addition to breaking is pretty awesome. I am really excited about that!”

Schooling’s overall high school record, Hayes cracked the public So was Sooner Swim Club coach Kent Nicholson. school standard of 45.88, set in 2019 by C.K. McClatchy’s (Calif.)

“Oklahoma swimming has always had some top-level Luca Urlando, now a sophomore at the University of Georgia. swimmers. We have some (NCAA) D-I swimmers, but what “His 50 free and 100 fly were swum back-to-back, normally a Oklahoma struggles with is the depth. You will have two to three 15-minute break plus awards, but because of COVID, there was no fast swimmers in an event, then it will really drop off,” Nicholson said. “But you have these kids who swim super fast, and the time to think, and he was swimming the 100 fly 12 minutes later. It 14

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SWIMMINGWORLD.COM

[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

>> Aiden Hayes took down a pair of national high school records in back-to-back events at the Oklahoma state championships last February, lowering the 50 yard free to 19.20, then the 100 fly to 45.47. “The meet itself was a lot of fun—not just the records, but getting to race strong my senior year to close it out meant a lot,” said Hayes.

was an interesting and fun experience. Those national records—I never envisioned seeing something like that,” Nicholson said.

And he did this all during a pandemic.

“It was challenging. Our city of Norman did a really good job of supporting us and allowing us an opportunity to swim outdoors.

We were able to get in there early with one kid in a lane. We weren’t going to have a pool to go to in September, but the city allowed us to swim outdoors until mid-October,” Nicholson said.

“One hurdle that we had was we needed one more Trials cut.

We had a really hard time getting to a long-course meet to get that cut. We got caught up in a COVID protocol, so we couldn’t. But he got it right after New Year’s. We were then able to not worry about Trials for a couple months, and we focused on short course—and he came into the meet hot!”

OUTSTANDING CAREER

Hayes has enjoyed an outstanding high school career.

In 2019, he set a state record in the 50 free, touching the wall in 20.09 to break Jake Pearce’s old 6A mark of 20.65. The sophomore had another record-breaking performance in the 100 back with a 47.28, taking down Plummer’s 6A record of 48.42 set back in 2004. His record swims ranked 13th and sixth in the nation that year.

Two years later, Hayes and his coach prepared for a memorable senior season. “This year started off well,” Hayes recalled. “We were able to train pretty frequently. We were ready to go and didn’t need much of a break. We were able to spend a majority of the year working hard. It wasn’t two months of this, then two months of that.

“I felt like we were ready earlier in the year than usual. We did a lot of racing leading up to (the 6A state meet in February).

We had lots of opportunities to clean up the stroke and get the race strategy down. Then you had done the preparation. It wasn’t a guessing game, it was just a performance.

“The meet itself was a lot of fun—not just the records, but getting to race strong my senior year to close it out meant a lot. We were able to taper and go really fast at the high school state meet

for the first time in my career.”

MOVING ON TO TRIALS

Hayes, swimming for Sooner Swim Club, finished 17th in the 100 meter butterfly at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials in Omaha, Neb. in June. He also took 21st in the 200 freestyle and 57th in the 50 free at the Wave II meet. His times are likely fast enough to join the junior national team.

“Shifting from the high school state meet to Trials, we didn’t take any time off,” Hayes said. “We had our cuts under our belts, so we were able to go right into long-course training. Our focus was 200 fly and 100 fly. It did get a little mentally exhausting that last month. I was in the best shape of my life, but it got a little mentally tiring,” he admitted.

“I think the meet went really well. It wasn’t super killer performances like the high school records, but it was the highest national meet at which I have ever competed. I placed just outside of the B-final in both butterfly events, and I was the top 18-yearold in the country by a second or so.

“Being able to get that Trials experience and racing like that will prepare me for Junior Worlds and any big meets coming after that. There is no better meet to race at in the U.S.” Nicholson agreed with Hayes, saying that his Trials experience will be pivotal for Hayes’ future.

“The meet was successful. We were excited to be there. You have some grown men with all sorts of experience. Racing those big boys is a serious challenge, and I thought Aiden did a great job stepping up and racing them,” Nicholson said.

Hayes will join North Carolina State next year and will likely be an immediate point scorer for the Wolfpack.

“I have appreciated the process more this year,” Hayes said.

“As a younger swimmer, it is harder to appreciate meets and training. We figured out what we really needed to do to be ready for Trials, and, hopefully, we can put that into effect and take my swimming to the next level.” v AUGUST 2021

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HIGH SCHOOL SWIMMERS OF THE YEAR: RUNNERS-UP

CREAM OF THE

CROP

There were some mighty fast swimmers who finished the 2020-21 high school season right behind Swimming World’s Female and Male High School Swimmers of the Year, Torri Huske and Aiden Hayes. Of the four runners-up, two of them are underclassmen and will be returning for more fast swimming in 2021-22.

BY DAVID RIEDER AND ANDY ROSS | PHOTOS BY PETER H. BICK

CLAIRE CURZAN, Junior Cardinal Gibbons High School, N.C. Cardinal Gibbons (Raleigh, N.C.) junior Claire Curzan was one of the stars of this year’s high school season. Her name had long been in swimming fans’ lexicons, having broken a national age group record as a 12-year-old in 2017 to become the youngest girl to break 54 seconds in the 100 yard fly. So it is no surprise she improved to be one of the top high schoolers in the country.

Curzan twice tied her own national private school record in the 100 butterfly at 50.35 this season (originally set 2-7-20), just two weeks before Torri Huske lowered the overall high school record to 49.95 while Curzan got to keep the independent record that she has swum on three separate occasions—four if you count a prelims swim at Speedo Sectionals in March!

In the 100 back, her 51.57 put her atop the national leaderboard while her 48.73 leadoff in the 400 free relay put her fourth in the nation. Even with a disqualification in the 200 medley relay to start the meet, Curzan turned in one of the most successful high school seasons of anyone this year. It seemed every time she dove into the pool, the American record books were on alert.

With a target goal of the Olympic Trials in the back of her mind all year long, Curzan followed up her impressive year with a berth on the Olympic team for Tokyo in the 100 butterfly, as she finished second to Huske in the tense final in Omaha. —Andy Ross GRETCHEN WALSH, Senior Harpeth Hall, Tenn.

During her junior year at Harpeth Hall in 2020, Gretchen Walsh blitzed the high school sprint freestyle record book. She swam times of 21.59 in the 50 yard free and 46.98 in the 100 free, breaking a pair of national high school records held by two-time U.S. Olympian Abbey Weitzeil. Walsh did not quite get back to those marks in high school competition as a senior, but she still recorded the best performances in both sprint events in the country.

The Tennessee high school state meet was delayed from February to April this year, but that didn’t affect Walsh. She won the

>> Claire Curzan, Cardinal Gibbons, N.C. 16

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50 free in 21.61, just 2-hundredths off her national record from the previous year, and she took another shot leading off Harpeth Hall’s 200 free relay, where she was timed at 21.65. She swam the 100 free in 47.55, a little more than a half-second off her junior-year record.

And even without being at her best, Walsh’s times would have been quick enough to place fifth in the 50 free and fourth in the 100 free at this season’s NCAA Championships.

Next year, Walsh will compete for the Virginia Cavaliers and Coach Todd DeSorbo, who was known as one of the best sprint coaches in the world before he took the reigns at Virginia. Walsh will look to help Virginia win a second straight NCAA team title along with her older sister, Alex, who was the national champion in the 200 IM as a freshman.

In long course, Walsh excelled for the United States at the 2019 World Junior Championships, winning gold medals in the 50 and 100 free and as part of four relay squads. She was the youngest competitor at the 2016 Olympic Trials (13), qualifying to swim the 50 free just weeks before the entry deadline. At her second Trials in 2021, Walsh ended up 12th in the 100 fly semifinals and then 28th in the 100 free. However, she would rebound to put together a strong 50 free at the end of the meet, taking fifth in 24.74 after swimming a lifetime best of 24.64 in the semifinals. —David Rieder WILL MODGLIN, Sophomore Zionsville, Ind. Zionsville sophomore Will Modglin had a breakout season for his high school team that finished third at the Indiana state championships behind powerhouse Carmel.

As a freshman in 2020, Modglin finished second in the 100 yard back to current Michigan Wolverine Wyatt Davis at 47.91. At the time, Modglin was just outside the top eight nationally, and with five of the eight boys ahead of him set to graduate, he had plenty of room to improve nationally.

Swimming in front of a barren crowd at the legendary IU Natatorium in Indianapolis—a venue that is normally packed to capacity for the Indiana High School State Championships—

>> Gretchen Walsh, Harpeth Hall, Tenn.

Modglin blasted a 21.44 in the opening THE TOP 3: HIGH SCHOOL SWIMMERS OF THE YEAR BY BOB KLAPTHOR 200 medley relay on backstroke. The time put him fourth nationally by the end GIRLS Event Rankings Power Pts. Total of the year, and although Zionsville was 1) TORRI HUSKE #1 100 Fly (49.95*) #1 (372.2) 19 outtouched by Carmel in the very end, their (Sr.) Yorktown, Va. #1 200 IM (1:53.73*) medley relay finished second overall in the

#2 50 Free (21.65) country—1:29.64 just behind Carmel at

#2 100 Free (48.04) 1:29.60.

2T) CLAIRE CURZAN #1 100 Back (51.57) #2 (363.8) 7 Modglin’s day was just getting started— (Jr.) Cardinal Gibbons, N.C. #2 100 Fly (50.35) in the 200 IM, he put up a 1:45.14. Before 2T) GRETCHEN WALSH #1 50 Free (21.61) #3 (359.8) 7 December, he had never been under 1:50, (Sr.) Harpeth Hall, Tenn. #1 100 Free (47.55) but this season, he improved to a 1:45 by the state championships. When the season was said and done, he sat second nationally.

BOYS Event Rankings Power Pts. Total Modglin’s bread-and-butter event, 1) AIDEN HAYES #1 100 Free (43.00) #1 (360.5) 14 though, is the 100 backstroke, where he (Sr.) Norman North, Okla. #1 100 Fly (45.47*) torched a 46.60 in finals to not only win

#2 50 Free (19.20) his second state title in the event, but his 2) WILL MODGLIN #1 100 Back (46.60) #2 (342.6) 7 first mythical national title, and he was (So.) Zionsville, Ind. #2 200 IM (1:45.14) the only high school boy this year to 3) DAVID CURTISS #1 50 Free (19.11*) #5 (339.0) 6 break 47 seconds in the 100 back! The (Sr.) Pennington, N.J. time, however, was not a state record for Modglin, but he’ll have two more years SCORING: 3 points for a #1 ranking, 2 for #2, 1 for #3; and 3 for overall national record (*) to catch Wyatt Davis’ mark of 45.80 from 2020.

To close out the day, Zionsville and season, Curtiss broke that record two more times and ended up with Carmel went head-to-head once more in the 400 free relay. Modglin the fastest overall time as well. strategically went third, splitting a 43.59 to cap an emotionally Curtiss swam a 19.26 in early March to crush his own record, exhausting day, and although it wasn’t enough to help his team win and then a few days later, he recorded a 19.11, which also surpassed the state title, Zionsville finished third nationally at 2:59.41.

Aiden Hayes’ overall national record of 19.20. In an event that Modglin still has two more years of high school remaining, and favors experience and physical maturity, Curtiss would have been he has not yet made a decision on where he will attend college. In quick enough to qualify for the NCAA Championships A-final this June, Modglin swam in his first national meet, where he was 42nd in season. the 100 meter back and 200 IM at the Wave II U.S. Olympic Trials, Perhaps Curtiss and Hayes might have developed a rivalry and was 46th in the 100 fly. —Andy Ross as they move onto the college ranks, but both will be joining the North Carolina State Wolfpack this fall to help create what should DAVID CURTISS, Senior be an insane sprint group, certainly one capable of challenging for Pennington School, N.J. an NCAA title in the 200 free relay in the near future. Curtiss will The title of fastest man ever in a high school swimming likely be tasked with more than just the 50 free in college, and while competition belongs to David Curtiss, a native of Yardley, Pa., but a his lifetime best in the 100 free is just 42.80 (set in April), college swimmer for the Pennington School and Hamilton Y Aquatic Club training will likely help bring that more in line with his 50 free in New Jersey. Curtiss has broken 20 seconds in the 50 yard free abilities. all four years of high school, but his last two years have brought In long course, Curtiss has been as quick as 21.87 in the 50 free about record-setting performances. His junior year in 2020, Curtiss (last January), and he qualified for the final in the event at Olympic swam a 19.42 to break the national independent school record held Trials as the youngest swimmer in the field (18) before finishing

by Olympian Ryan Murphy. This year, in a shortened high school sixth in the final. —David Rieder v

>> David Curtiss, Pennington, N.J.

>> Will Modglin, Zionsville, Ind. AUGUST 2021

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TOP HIGH SCHOOL RECRUITS Swimming World takes a look at the swimmers it considers to be the 10 best high school recruits—both male and female—from the Class of 2021 and where they’ll be attending college in the fall. (The number following each school’s name indicates this year’s NCAA finish.)

BY CHANDLER BRANDES

GIRLS VIRGINIA (#1) For what the Class of 2021 lacks in breaststroke capabilities, it sure makes up for it in sprint freestyle, with none other than Gretchen Walsh leading the charge! Based on her best times, she could have scored 46 individual points at this season’s NCAA Championships last March—and we could write a novel on the relay value she brings.

While Virginia may only have one recruit on this list, there is no shortage of talent as the program is on pace to have another standout season after clinching its first-ever NCAA title in 2021. The rise of the Cavaliers’ program proved there is something special going on in Charlottesville, and Walsh will aid in their continued prominence on the national stage.

NC STATE (#2) If you have not heard of Grace Sheble, make sure to listen up.

Last year’s national runner-up North Carolina State landed a big one in Sheble as the Wolfpack will aim to fight for that No. 1 spot in the future. Despite modest improvements as of late, the best 400 IMer and 200 butterflyer in this year’s class is already a threat at both the conference and national stage. Better yet, she is as versatile as any elite-level 400 IMer is, with a solid 200 freestyle that just might find a spot on a Wolfpack relay one day.

MICHIGAN (#6) Lindsay Flynn is a straight-forward sprinter who can also piece together a decent 100 butterfly, but perhaps that is just what Michigan needs as Maggie MacNeil enters her senior season. Although Flynn lacks versatility compared to the other sprint freestylers in her class, what she does, she does well—really, really well. Her speed already puts her in position to score at the NCAA Championships, and she has the very real potential to be an immediate weapon on four of the Wolverines’ relays right from the get-go.

GEORGIA (#8) As previously stated, this Class of 2021 does not lack freestyle depth, and Rachel Stege brings that—and more—to the Bulldogs.

She has everything from fast-twitch 100-200 speed to her true speciality: the distance events. Stege has seen minimal improvements in the past few seasons, but her top times still would have made her a point contributor at NCAAs. She also has some stellar long course times, and there is nothing a little Georgia magic cannot do to carry that trajectory over to short course.

STANFORD (#9) It is a tossup of who holds the No. 1 spot in this class between Walsh and Torri Huske. Huske would have scored a whopping 48 points at last year’s NCAA Championships, two more than Walsh, and that is not including the relay value she has. Butterfly, freestyle, backstroke, IM—you name it, Huske can swim it and excel at it.

She first turned heads in 2019 as a sophomore with a national high school record, and she shows no indication of slowing down. Now 18

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>> Gretchen Walsh, Virginia a member of the U.S. Olympic team, Huske will soon become a household name—if she hasn’t already.

Truthfully, there is not much Samantha Tadder does not have in her repertoire. She has freestyle range, a strong breaststroke, and she can put it all together for a fierce NCAA-level scoring time in the 400 IM. Stanford has a history of producing top IM talent at the national meet—did someone say five-straight titles in the 400 IM since 2016 (Ella Eastin 4, Brooke Forde 1)?—so we think she will fit in quite nicely.

Perhaps the dark horse in this group is Amy Tang. Her sprint freestyle abilities do not tell the whole story, as she will also bring some serious butterfly and backstroke speed to The Farm. She has seen massive time drops recently and already finds herself as an NCAA scorer. And armed with a strong 200 free, she has the very real possibility of swimming on all five of Stanford’s relays.

NORTHWESTERN (#16) Arguably the most versatile freestyler in a group that is chock-full of them is Ashley Strouse, who will take her talents to Northwestern. She will provide the Wildcats with speed in the 100 all the way up to endurance in the mile, an event in which she would have placed seventh at the 2021 NCAAs. Northwestern has put together an impressive recruiting class for 2021 and 2022, and Strouse is just one of the many student-athletes who seem bound to take this program to new heights.

FLORIDA (#17) The Gators are getting a good one in Micayla Cronk, who finds

[PHOTO BY BOB PLATT]

longer, but that is exactly the case with Paige McKenna.

Her best mile time would have earned bronze at NCAAs this past season, and her times in both the 1000 and 1650 are well under the program records. But lucky for Wisconsin, she will also bring some mid-distance speed to Madison with a stellar 200-500 combo.

BOYS

>> Ashley Strouse, Northwestern herself among the top-10 recruits with her big time drops over the past year. Another talented sprint freestyler in this cohort, her sweet spot is the 100-200 with times that bode well for Florida’s relays and are already in NCAA scoring range. It is still unclear what her third event will be, but Cronk could find herself with either the 50 or 500 added to her résumé, given her speed and rate of improvement.

WISCONSIN (#19) The distance freestyle queen in the class will soon be a Badger, joining a program that aims to slide up in the team rankings in the future. It is pretty rare when someone gets faster as the distance gets

TEXAS (#1) The future of the Longhorns’ program still looks bright— especially since Eddie Reese, who indicated in March he would retire following the Tokyo Olympics, announced in July that he will remain as head coach. Austin, home of this year’s national champions, will soon welcome two of the top recruits and most versatile talents from the Class of 2021: Tim Connery and Anthony Grimm.

Although both swimmers are just on the outskirt of scoring range at the NCAA level right now, they each boast some of the top times in various events in their class. Both also come with strong relay potential, with Grimm likely focusing more on the sprint and medley relays and Connery a strong candidate to carry on Texas’ long-standing 200 free dominance.

It is unclear what events these jack-of-all-trades will focus on once they get to college, but it’s certainly a “problem” the Longhorns know how to figure out. No matter what is on the lineup for Connery and Grimm over the next four years, all disciplines and distances at Texas just got that much deeper.

CONTINUED ON 20 >>

CLASS OF 2021 TOP HIGH SCHOOL RECRUITS Name High School Club College* Stroke

NCAA Pts.**

GIRLS Gretchen Walsh Harpeth Hall, TN Nashville Virginia (1) FR/FL Grace Sheble James River School, VA Nova of Virginia NC State (2) IM/FL Lindsay Flynn Charlotte Latin, NC Mecklenburg Michigan (6) FR/FL Rachel Stege Neuqua Valley, IL Fox Valley Georgia (8) FR Torri Huske Yorktown, VA Arlington Stanford (9) FL/FR/IM Samantha Tadder First Colonial, VA Tide Swimming Stanford (9) IM/FR Amy Tang Lakeside, WA Pacific Dragons Stanford (9) FR/BK Ashley Strouse Chaparral, AZ Scottsdale Northwestern (16) FR Micayla Cronk Flagler Palm Coast, FL Blue Dolfins Florida (17) FR/IM Paige McKenna Freedom, MD Nation’s Capital Wisconsin (19) FR

46 23 17 12 48 17 11 22 13 27

BOYS Tim Connery Anthony Grimm Jack Alexy Trent Frandson Josh Matheny Aiden Hayes David Curtiss Sam Hoover Jack Aikins Matt Fallon

0 0 0 0 20 16 4 0 12 15

Christ the King Catholic, NC SwimMAC Oakton, VA Mason Mako The Delbarton School, NJ Somerset Hills Y Ankeny Senior, IA Central Iowa Upper Saint Clair, PA Team Pittsburgh Norman North, OK Sooner Pennington School, NJ Hamilton Y Chapel Hill Senior, NC North Carolina West Forsyth, GA SwimAtlanta The Pingry School, NJ Somerset Valley Y

Texas (1) Texas (1) Cal (2) Cal (2) Indiana (6 ) NC State (8) NC State (8) NC State (8) Virginia (9) Penn***

IM/BK/BR BK/BR/FL FR/FK FR BR FL/FR/BK FR FR/IM/FL/BR BK/FR BR/IM

* Number in parentheses indicates team’s finish at 2021 NCAAs ** NCAA points are based on the Top 10 recruits’ best high school times and where these swimmers might have scored individually at the 2021 Division I NCAAs. The points were calculated by assuming the swimmers would swim one event per day and based on the combination that would score the most individual points. However, in reality, a swimmer could double-up, or a coach could decide different events for their swimmers, based on team, individual or relay needs. *** Penn did not compete in 2020-21 due to the Ivy League’s decision not to hold athletic competition because of COVID-19. In 2019, Penn finished 28th.

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TOP HIGH SCHOOL RECRUITS / Continued from 19 [PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

event, his elite-level prowess will be a threat at the conference and national level.

[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

>> Jack Aikins, Virginia

>> Matt Fallon, Penn CAL (#2) The Cal-Texas showdown is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon, as the Golden Bears also have two swimmers in Jack Alexy and Trent Frandson cracking the top-10. Similar to the Longhorns, both incoming freshmen would not have scored at last year’s NCAA Championships, but each has incredible range across all freestyle events.

Alexy, who recently made waves for breaking Caeleb Dressel’s national age group record in the 100 meter freestyle at Olympic Trials, has truly exploded onto the scene throughout his high school career. Frandson’s sweet spot seems to be in the 200-500 combo, while he can also extend his speed to the mile.

While the two are not necessarily versatile outside of freestyle, both will be major contributors on all relays and be immediate point scorers at the conference level. Cal could not have landed a better duo in Alexy and Frandson as the 2021 national runners-up look to rebuild their freestyle squad.

INDIANA (#6) The Hoosiers landed a huge commitment in Josh Matheny, the best breaststroker in his class who would have scored 20 points at this year’s NCAAs. He will arrive in Bloomington with an impressive international résumé as well, winning the 200 meter breaststroke and earning silver in the 100 breast at the FINA World Junior Championships in 2019. Indiana certainly knows how to develop breaststroke talent—think Ian Finnerty and Cody Miller— and although Matheny has some work to do to nail down his third 20

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NC STATE (#8) Aiden Hayes, David Curtiss and Sam Hoover give the Wolfpack three of the top10 recruits, a good sign for the program that looks to reclaim their ACC title this upcoming season. What is even better is the range these athletes provide, as they each have talents that extend across all four strokes.

With the exception of breaststroke, there is really not an event that Hayes—arguably the most soughtafter recruit due to his incredible versatility—cannot do.

Regardless, he can still put together a respectable 200 IM and will surely be a viable relay option for NC State.

He would have scored 16 points at the NCAA meet in 2021, but that total is sure to increase at the rate he has been dropping his times.

For what these three recruits lack in distance freestyle talent, they certainly make up for in the shorter events. Curtiss, a true sprinter who will arrive in Raleigh with the fastest 50 free time in high school history (after Hayes had set the national high school record a little more than a week earlier!), is also in scoring range at the national meet and will be a major asset on all relays.

Another stellar sprint freestyler, Hoover also brings a surprisingly strong breaststroke to the table with the potential for a decent IM, too. Like many in this class, he has continuously seen substantial time drops in recent years and will also be in the hunt for a coveted NC State relay spot as soon as he steps on campus.

VIRGINIA (#9) Virginia finds itself on this list given the addition of Jack Aikins, a backstroke and sprint freestyle specialist who will bring with him to Charlottesville times that would have scored at NCAAs as well as undeniable relay potential. With no shortage of sprint freestylers in this class, Aikins has separated himself from the pack and increased his prospect value with massive improvements in both backstroke events. The Cavaliers are on a new wave of sprinters and backstrokers in Matt Brownstead and Will Cole, among others, and Aikins will fit in quite nicely.

PENN (#28 in 2019) The Ivy League opted out of the 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Penn will undoubtedly return this year with guns blazing. That is largely in part due to the stellar recruiting class they put together, which is led by Matt Fallon. The best 400 IMer of his class who would have topped Penn’s roster in three events in 2019 will join the Quakers as an NCAA point contributor right from the start. He also excels in breaststroke and is already faster than the school record in the longer of the two distances.

Although the relay potential is not as high as others in his class, there is no denying the value Fallon presents. v Chandler Brandes earned her bachelor’s degree in communication with a double minor in coaching and sport management in 2019 from the University of Vermont, where she also swam for the Catamounts.

She received her master’s degree in sport administration from the University of Louisville in 2021 and has served as Swimming World’s high school content manager since 2018. A native of Burlington, Vt., she is currently the athletic communications assistant at the University of Kentucky.

NUTRITION

WHAT TO EAT BEFORE THE “BIG RACE” To reach your swimming goals, it is important to know what to eat—at what times and in what amounts. It is different for everyone, but very important to master.

BY DAWN WEATHERWAX, RD, CSSD, LD, ATC, CSCS

A

thletes have trained very hard to get to this point. It could have been marked on their calendar for over a year. Each athlete has different goals. Some just want to finish or get a personal record. Others want to make school history or fulfill their dream of medaling in the Olympics. Now is the time to optimally fuel to maximize the race.

Follow these five nutritional steps to help you achieve your best performance.

STEP 1 Fuel Optimally Prior Optimally fueling prior to the race will have the biggest impact.

Make sure you eat enough, fuel with high-quality dense foods and hydrate properly. It is imperative the muscles and body are wellfueled and ready to go.

One of the biggest mistakes that many athletes make is cutting back on calories as they are tapering. Most athletes don’t need to cut back at all...and if they do, the adjustments are slight. It takes calories and energy for the body to recover and repair.

At my office, we use a device called Musclesound® to help measure the fuel in the muscle and customize a nutrition strategy to get the athletes ready.

STEP 2 Stick to the Basics Avoid anything new. All meals, snacks and even supplements should have been tried many times before practices or other minor races to alleviate any problems or doubts.

STEP 3 Pre-Race Starts the Night Before Most competitions start early, and some athletes struggle to eat enough...so pre-race starts approximately one to three hours before bedtime. It should consist of carbohydrates, sodium and fluid...but protein and fat are usually included to balance it all out.

STEP 4 Waking up Upon rising (within five to 20 minutes), athletes want to start off with hydration, sodium and possible fuel. Begin with 8-20 ounces of water with added electrolytes or a sports drink such as INFINIT (customized), Skratch Labs, Greater Than™ or UCAN®.

The sodium helps bring the water in the muscle cell to optimize hydration, and the added carbohydrates are for those who struggle eating enough prior to the big race.

STEP 5 Pre-Race Breakfast This part is complex because everyone is different. One thing is [PHOTO BY ALEX MOTOC / UNSPLASH.COM]

certain: One must fuel and hydrate to optimize the race. Skipping is NOT an option. Next, breakfast can be eaten all at once or grazed upon.

For example: I had one swimmer who could eat two peanutbutter-and-honey sandwiches, a banana, Clif® bar and milk 30-45 minutes before a race and be great! Another one of my swimmers only could do toast with a small amount of sunflower butter and an 8-ounce smoothie with chia seeds over a three-hour time period.

Usually one wants this meal to have a good amount of carbs, some protein and healthy fats. Fiber can be a limiting factor since some struggle with stomach issues, especially when they are excited or nervous. Taking out wheat, dairy, fiber, etc. is very individualized.

If the person is a serious athlete, then seeking out a sports dietitian to customize this process is highly recommended. That way, one can find a personalized nutrition plan that best fits the race.

THE FINALE The main takeaway from knowing what to eat before your “big race” is very simple: Do not wait for your important race to experiment. All athletes are different, and energy needs can change from race to race. Please review my pre-race sample menus to get started...and use them as a guideline for your own BIG race!

OPTION 1 Evening Snack (8-10:30p.m.)

1-2 cups Pasta 1 cup Marinara sauce 1 T Olive oil

(Adding a very lean protein is optional) 4-16 oz Water Wake-Up (5:30-6:45 a.m.)

8-20 oz Water (with one electrolyte tablet) Breakfast (7-8 a.m.)

3 Eggs 2 slices Whole grain toast 1/2 Avocado 8 oz Milk 1 cup Grapes 10-20 oz Water Multivitamin Fish oil Vit D3 Vit C OPTION 2 Evening Snack (8-10:30 p.m.)

Vegan rice pudding with golden raisins and salted chopped nuts/ seeds 4-16 oz Water Wake-Up (4:30-6:45 a.m.)

8-20 oz Greater Than™ sports drink Breakfast (6-9 a.m.)

1 RTD Garden of Life™ protein shake 1-2 Applesauce pkts 1 Banana 1 T Nut butter 10-20 oz Water or sports drink Multivitamin Fish oil Vit D3 TOTAL ACCESS MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE REFERENCES FOR Vit C v THIS ARTICLE. AUGUST 2021

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THE U.S. OLYMPIC TRIALS:

DONNA DE VARONA AND THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF WOMEN’S SWIMMING

BY BRUCE WIGO

A

s usual, the USA Swimming Olympic Trials in Omaha provided stories of triumph and tragedy that will forever be preserved for future generations in the International Swimming Hall of Fame Museum. But there was one moment that linked the past with the present and future of swimming like no other. It came when Donna de Varona presented Olympic qualification medals to Katie Grimes, the youngest member of the 2021 Olympic swimming team, and three-time Olympian Katie Ledecky.

When Donna de Varona was 13 years old, she had been the youngest member of the 1960 Olympic team. After the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, she was regarded by many as the Greatest of All Time of women’s swimming because of her versatility. But it is what Donna has done after her competitive career ended that has helped make it possible for the two Katies to achieve their Olympic dreams in 2021.

Within the current ISHOF building, there is a small exhibit that includes a magazine cover photo that omnisciently predicted that Don Schollander and Donna de Varona would be the stars of the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games months before the Games were held.

In the new ISHOF, this little-remembered Saturday Evening Post cover will have a much more prominent position—for if every picture tells a story, this one has had more impact on the history of women’s and Olympic swimming than any other—with the possible exception of a photo of Annette Kellerman wearing a one-piece bathing suit in 1907!

In this photo, the two California teenagers could be mistaken for fraternal twins. They both swam for the Santa Clara Swim Club and trained under the legendary George Haines. They both attended Santa Clara High School, where Haines was also the coach of the boys’ team, but where there was no team for the girls. While Schollander

continued his legendary swimming career after the Games at Yale, there were no scholarships or NCAA swimming programs at the time for Donna to pursue. So like most young female swimmers of her era, she retired with an unbelievable résumé for a girl of 17.

She had won 37 individual national championship medals and three AAU national high-point awards. She had set American or world records or recorded the world’s fastest times in three of the four individual strokes (backstroke, butterfly and freestyle) and had broken the world record in her specialty, the 400 meter IM, six times—the first coming in 1960 when the IM was not an event on the Olympic program.

She was the world’s best all-round swimmer of her day. “Her day” was a five-year period that extended from the Rome Olympics, when she qualified as a member of the 4x100 free relay as a 13-yearold, until her retirement after the Tokyo Games, where she won two gold medals—when there were only six individual events for women.

Her biggest award year was 1964 when she was voted America’s Outstanding Woman Athlete, Outstanding American Female Swimmer and San Francisco’s Outstanding Woman of the Year... and she also received the Mademoiselle Award, National Academy of Sports Award and many others in many languages. During her reign, she was arguably the most photographed woman athlete in the world, appearing on the covers of Life, The Saturday Evening Post, twice on Sports Illustrated and on dozens of swimming publications.

GREATEST OF ALL TIME The internet is loaded with forums and sites debating the question of who is the GOAT—or Greatest of All Time—in every realm of human endeavor from athletes to zoologists. And every field has historians, journalists and social influencers who have established criteria, statistics and, more recently, artificial intelligence algorithms to back up their selection.

>> PICTURED ABOVE: Donna de Varona (right) with Katie Ledecky (center) and Katie Grimes (left) at the recent U.S. Olympic Trials

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[PHOTO COURTESY MIKE LEWIS/OLAVISTA PHOTOGRAPHY/USA SWIMMING]

INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING HALL OF FAME

[PHOTO COURTESY INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING HALL OF FAME]

In the realm of competitive swimming, where times and length of dominance are the established determiners, Michael Phelps is unquestionably the GOAT of men’s competitive swimming, while the GOAT of the women, depending upon her performances in Tokyo, is arguably Katie Ledecky.

But what if other factors were considered? For example, what if amateur rules had not cut short the careers of Johnny Weissmuller, Eleanor Holm, Adolph Kiefer, Donna de Varona and Mark Spitz?

Or, what if we used a criteria established by the ancient Greeks, who saw the role of athletic participation as a means and not an end in itself?

It is with this Greek understanding of athletic purpose that leaders of aquatics have long promoted participation in swimming as being a wonderful chance to build a foundation for success and happiness in life—for swimming provides...

• A means to acquire a lifesaving skill and physical development at a time when these are most needed; • The opportunity to acquire instruction and training from knowledgeable and quality men and women; • A means to learn the importance of perseverance, persistence and willpower; • A means to acquire self-confidence and courage gained from training and competition;

>> Don Schollander and Donna de Varona on cover of The Saturday Evening Post (July 25-Aug. 1, 1964)

• A means to learn the importance of time management;

Generally, swimmers have used the skills learned during their competitive experience to be high achievers—with many becoming teachers, doctors, lawyers, scientists, entrepreneurs, astronauts, entertainers, members of congress, prime ministers, presidents of nations and more.

But it’s extremely rare for an athlete who has achieved the status of an international sports celebrity—i.e., GOAT—to create an even more impressive résumé in their postathletic career...and that brings us back to Donna de Varona.

Since her retirement as an elite athlete, the influential Sports Business Journal says that her life “could serve as a mirror of America’s social history. At every turn, it seems, de Varona has been there. She’s Forrest Gump with gumption, Zelig with a

[PHOTO COURTESY INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING HALL OF FAME]

• A means to learn how collaborating and cooperating with coaches and teammates can achieve greater goals than one can achieve alone...and many other skills.

>> De Varona as the youngest member of the 1960 Olympic team (age 13) with the oldest, four-time Olympic diver Juno Stover Irwin (age 31) CONTINUED ON 24 >> AUGUST 2021

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[PHOTO COURTESY STREET & SMITH]

DONNA de VARONA / Continued from 23

of that photo. And once the amendment was passed, she fought to ensure Title IX was funded and implemented.

In 1976, she temporarily left ABC to work for the Senate committee creating a structure for Olympic sports. The point person, Alaska’s Ted Stevens, had told her, “I can’t get this done without somebody here pushing for it full time.” That someone was Donna, and the Ted Stevens’ Amateur Sports Act of 1978 became a reality.

In the 1980s, then-U.S. Senator Joe Biden needed help in dealing with the doping problem in sports. One of his first calls went to Donna de Varona, and that led to her working with Gen. Barry McCaffrey and the establishment of the United States and World Anti-Doping agencies.

“She was a heroic figure,” McCaffrey said, “a crucial source of sensible advice and public endorsement. She had no ego.

Her only purpose was trying to get elite competition to where doping wasn’t required to stay competitive…. If I had to list the 20 most impressive people I’ve met in my life, she’s one of them.”

In addition to her history with nowPresident Joe Biden, she served on Presidential Commissions and has enjoyed personal relationships with five presidents, including Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. >> De Varona was profiled and honored by the Sports Business Journal in 2015.

It was Donna who reached out to Billie Jean King and other female sports celebrities mission, unafraid to buttonhole someone in a position of authority to create the Women’s Sports Foundation, serving as its first president. She successfully petitioned the IOC and explain what must be done.” to have athlete representation on its governing board. She helped bring women’s soccer into the mainstream as chairman of the highly GROUNDBREAKING CAREER successful FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1999.

After the 1964 Tokyo Games, Donna enrolled at UCLA, where she majored in political science. She signed an endorsement deal STILL ACTIVELY INVOLVED with Speedo and used her “gold card” to break the gender barrier As she demonstrated at the Trials in Omaha, Donna is not ready in sports broadcasting, becoming network TV’s youngest and first to take her foot off the pedal just yet. She is still actively involved female sports commentator. She also became one of the few on-air with nearly every organization she’s been connected with during her personalities working off-camera as an executive, producing shows, career—including the International Swimming Hall of Fame. pushing for more African-American commentators and participating “Donna continues to amaze me,” says 1972 Olympic diving in Olympic negotiations. gold medalist, Micki King. “She’s my superhero—my inspiration, Her groundbreaking career has earned her an Emmy, two my GOAT—not just for what she has done and continues to do for Gracies and the opportunity to cover a wide variety of sports events, women’s sports and the Olympic movement, but for doing it all including 17 winter and summer Olympic Games. In 2006, she was while being a wife and raising two accomplished children.” inducted into the Museum of Television & Radio’s first class of fifty Another person who has worked alongside Donna on Olympic “She Made It” pioneers in media. issues since 1972 is Olympian and attorney Edward Williams, who She used her celebrity and status as a respected journalist to said this: “For over 50 years, Donna has been the voice of reason, fight racial injustice, gender inequality and athletes’ rights in the and her voice continues to be heard, now as a member of the USOPC political arena. She spent summers giving clinics for inner-city, Board of Directors.” underprivileged youth, and after multiple examples of administrative ineptitude at the Munich Games, she testified before Congress for the need to reform amateur sports and the USOC. At the same time, she worked behind the scenes to have the word “athletics” included in the 1974 amendment to the 1972 landmark legislation of Title IX, which made it unclear if athletics was included.

And that brings us back to The Saturday Evening Post cover—for nothing argued the case for gender equity better than the back-story 24

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***

I can only hope everyone who follows swimming understands and appreciates that moment in time—when the past, present and future of swimming came together in Omaha! v Bruce Wigo, historian and consultant at the International Swimming Hall of Fame, served as president/CEO of ISHOF from 2005-17.

ONE OF THE GREATEST SPRINTERS OF ALL TIME

debut, she did enough to suggest that big days were ahead in the sprint and fly. And with another European medal in the 50 free in 1993, the Dutchwoman seemed on pace. But on the road to the Centennial Olympics, de Bruijn lost the fire that is necessary to compete at the highest level.

It might have been the best thing for her career.

[PHOTO BY NORIKO CONCEPT IMAGES]

A BENEFICIAL BREAK

The 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney are widely remembered for the home-nation success of Australia, which was spearheaded by teenage sensation Ian Thorpe. But the Games Down Under also served as a redemptive locale for the Netherlands’ Inge de Bruijn, who used the stage to define herself as one of the sport’s legends.

BY JOHN LOHN

U

sually, an invitation to the Olympic Games would generate greater passion for the sport and a more-intense focus on the work that awaits. But not all athletes are wired the same, and as the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta approached, something was missing for Inge de Bruijn. Her training sessions lacked dedication.

Sometimes, she would arrive late to practice. On occasion, she didn’t show up at all!

In the early 1990s, de Bruijn was a promising talent for the Netherlands. At the 1991 European Championships, de Bruijn earned a silver medal (100 butterfly) and bronze medal (50 freestyle) in Athens, efforts that complemented a relay bronze medal from the World Championships. The next year, she was eighth in the 50 freestyle and ninth in the 100 butterfly at the Olympics in Barcelona.

Although de Bruijn did not reach the podium in her Olympic

De Bruijn managed to qualify for the Atlanta Games, but her waning desire led Coach Jacco Verhaeren to dismiss her from the national team roster. It wasn’t an easy decision for Verhaeren to make, as de Bruijn was also his girlfriend. But it was the right call, and one that—eventually—provided a major boost to de Bruijn’s career.

“My break in 1996 was good for me,” de Bruijn said. “I didn’t swim for a year. There was no point going to the Olympics because I wouldn’t have enjoyed myself. I wasn’t having fun. After that, I put in the hard work, and I used my talent totally. I just got faster and faster.”

In 1997, de Bruijn shifted her training base to the United States, where she started to work with Paul Bergen. In Bergen, de Bruijn found a mentor who had elite credentials, specifically as the former coach to Tracy Caulkins, and was able to bring out the best in the Dutch lady. In short time, the fire that once burned returned.

By the 1998 World Championships, de Bruijn was a finalist in the 100 freestyle and 100 butterfly, and she earned three medals at the 1999 European Championships—gold in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly, and silver in the 100 freestyle. A year shy of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, de Bruijn had established herself as a major force.

“What has really made a big difference to my fitness is the dryland training (Bergen) has introduced into my program,” de Bruijn said. “I do a lot of running, biking, rope climbing, jump ropes, medicine balls and stretching. Those kinds of things have really made me feel in good shape.”

TOP OF THE WORLD

The 2000 campaign can only be described as sensational for de Bruijn, whose march to Sydney included world records in all three of her prime events. Overall, de Bruijn broke six global standards en route to her second Olympiad, efforts that enabled her to compete with booming confidence. More were produced in Sydney.

During her week in Australia, de Bruijn put together one of the most impressive performances by a female in Olympic history.

She swept all three of her individual events and set a world record in each discipline. Her world records in the freestyle events arrived in the semifinals, with her global mark in the 100 butterfly punctuating her gold-medal effort. She added a silver medal as a member of the Netherlands’ 400 freestyle relay.

De Bruijn’s triple-gold performance was staggering on the whole, but a closer look at each of her triumphs revealed an even more exceptional effort. None of the Dutchwoman’s races were close, as she prevailed by 19-hundredths in the 50 free and a halfsecond in the 100 free. In the 100 butterfly, de Bruijn blasted the competition, her world-record time of 56.61 more than a second clear of silver medalist Martina Moravcova of Slovenia.

In becoming one of the stars of Sydney, de Bruijn had to defeat some of the top names in the sport. In the sprint-freestyle events, Sweden’s Therese Alshammar was the silver medalist in both distances, with American Dara Torres winning bronze in the 50 freestyle and sharing bronze with countrywoman Jenny Thompson in the 100 freestyle.

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INGE DE BRUIJN / Continued from 25

[PHOTO BY BOB FREEMAN]

ACCUSATIONS ABOUND

[PHOTO/STORY FROM SWIMMING WORLD MAGAZINE, DECEMBER 1999]

>> In 1997, de Bruijn shifted her training base to the United States, where she started to work with Paul Bergen (former coach of Tracy Caulkins), who was able to bring out the best in the Dutch lady.

>> Swimming World named The Netherlands’ Inge de Bruijn its female World Swimmer of the Year twice (2000-01) and earned top European honors in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

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As much as the week was a fairytale, it also included a dark chapter, as de Bruijn’s rise from good to great was suggested to be the result of performance-enhancing drug use. Although he did not identify de Bruijn by name, American coach Richard Quick clearly questioned whether the Dutch star was clean.

The finger-pointing and secondguessing have become the norm in the sport, especially when an athlete emerges from the shadows, or puts together a career surge. In making his assertions, Quick spoke with assurance.

“I absolutely do not think that this is a drug-free Olympic Games,” Quick said.

“The (International Olympic Committee) should make it the No. 1 priority to make sure the competition is fair. I think it’s very sad. It’s a sad state of affairs when great, great performances in this sport have clouds over them.”

Quick’s accusations did not sit well with the Dutch contingent, especially Verhaeren, who again was coaching de Bruijn in a split-time setup with Bergen.

Verhaeren declared the suspicions to be fueled by jealousy, and vehemently denied any of his athletes took part in illicit practices.

In addition to mentoring de Bruijn, Verhaeren guided Pieter van den Hoogenband to a trio of medals in freestyle events. Van den Hoogenband captured double gold in the 100 freestyle and 200 freestyle, and added a bronze medal in the 50 freestyle. His victory in the 200 free was one of the great performances of the competition, as the Dutchman upended Thorpe.

In the media, several comparisons were made between de Bruijn and Ireland’s Michelle Smith, who won three gold medals at the 1996 Olympics. In addition to their gold-medal count, both women enjoyed significant improvement at later points in their careers.

To her credit, de Bruijn took the accusations in stride. Throughout the year, as she began toppling world records, she heard whispers concerning her times.

But instead of becoming enraged by the allegations, she simply defended her training.

“I can understand the questions,” she said. “My progress is significant, but I’m not the only one. People have to accept it. People should know that I train like an animal. I had a really rough time with the accusations. I’m a very emotional person and it got to me, but I’ve decided not to read any more newspapers because I know all I was doing was working very hard.

If you set world records, they want to chop your head off. They want to take it away from you. Right now, I’m above all those accusations.”

Sydney hardly marked the end of de Bruijn’s excellence. At the 2001 World Championships, she tripled again, this time winning the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle, along with the 50 butterfly. Two years later, she was dominant again at the World Champs, where she repeated in the 50 freestyle and 50 butterfly. Just as the 1999 European Championships set the stage for the 2000 Olympics, the 2003 World Champs positioned de Bruijn for her Olympic hurrah at the 2004 Games in Athens.

In Athens, de Bruijn collected a silver medal in the 100 freestyle and added bronze medals in the 100 butterfly and as a member of the Dutch 400 freestyle relay. But her best performance was saved for last, as she capped the last day of the meet with defense of her title in the 50 freestyle. Once again, de Bruijn was untouchable in the one-lap sprint, as her winning time of 24.58 was comfortably quicker than the 24.89 of silver medalist Malia Metella of France.

Almost immediately, de Bruijn let out a sigh of relief. Upon finding a rekindled desire for the water and the necessary training to reach the pinnacle of her sport, de Bruijn was rewarded with results to her liking. Not surprising, her farewell was deeply satisfying.

“This is an amazing feeling,” she said of her repeat. “It is my eighth (Olympic) medal and on the last day of the program... what a climax! I can’t find words to express it. The smile on my face will stay there for a couple more weeks. There has been so much pressure on me given the other results. Finally, I got the gold. I’m just going to enjoy the medal ceremony.”

[PHOTO BY NEDERLANDS PERSBURE]

ADDITIONAL ACCOLADES

>> A year shy of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, de Bruijn had established herself as a major force. At the 1999 European Championships, she earned three medals—gold in the 50 free and 100 fly, and silver in the 100 free.

Initially, de Bruijn thought there was a chance she would compete at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, but as a 31-yearold, she was already the oldest individual Olympic swimming champion, a record that has since been surpassed. Ultimately, she didn’t see herself racing in the Olympics at 35 and decided to hang up her cap and goggles.

In 2009, de Bruijn was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame, her election a slam-dunk choice.

Undoubtedly, she ranks as one of the greatest sprinters of all-time.

“My career is finished, and I reached the top,” de Bruijn said in assessing her exploits. “I am 33 years old now and a granny in swimming, while my body isn’t recovering so well like it did in the past.

I will miss the excitement of hearing the Dutch national anthem on the podium, but achieving that is not something that comes easy. I’ve worked hard for my achievements.” v

[PHOTO BY INTERNATIONAL SWIMMING HALL OF FAME]

AT PEACE

>> In 2009, de Bruijn was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame, her election a slamdunk choice. Undoubtedly, she ranks as one of the greatest sprinters of all-time.

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MENTAL PREP

BEFORE THE BEEP WITH KATE DOUGLASS

BY SHOSHANNA RUTEMILLER PHOTOS BY PETER H. BICK

I

n 2016 as a sophomore at Pelham Memorial High School (N.Y.), Kate Douglass broke one of the longest-standing national age group records when she took down Dara Torres’ legendary 13-14 50 yard freestyle record set in 1982. Several years later in her first year at the University of Virginia, she became the fastest freshman ever in the 200 IM at the ACC Championships with a 1:51.36. This past year, she won the 50 freestyle at NCAAs. Now, the incredibly versatile athlete is heading to her first Olympic Games. Douglass will represent Team USA in Tokyo in the 200 meter IM after placing second in the event at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Omaha, Neb. “In that moment when I saw that I made the team, it was just complete shock and excitement that came over me,” says Douglass. “I honestly couldn’t believe it was real at first. Making the Olympics is just always talked about as this ultimate goal in swimming, and it took me a long time to process that I had actually accomplished that.”

From national age group record holder to Olympian, Douglass has had her fair share of accomplishments and accolades along the way. Even though this is Douglass’ first OIympic Games, she knows that keeping her mental preparation in line is vital.

“I’m planning on preparing for this meet as I would any other meet,” she said. “It honestly helps me out to just think of the Olympics as any other meet I’ve been to. Doing so helps relax me and keeps me from getting too nervous.”

At the time of her interview with Swimming World, Douglass was on her way to Tokyo from the Team USA training camp in Hawaii. She knew that as soon as she got to Japan, the reality of being an Olympian would finally sink in. Read on to get a taste of Douglass’ mental preparation in and out of the pool.

HOTEL/ATHLETE VILLAGE

As a first-time member on the U.S. Olympic team, a large part of Douglass’ time before her actual event consisted of getting to know 28

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her teammates.

“Our training camp in Hawaii was an amazing experience, and I’ve already made so many new friends from it. But I think getting to Japan will finally make everything feel a bit more real and will help all of us get excited to race.”

The prelims of the 200 IM are scheduled for Monday evening (Japan Standard Time), July 26, on the third day of the Olympics.

Before her race, Douglass is planning on taking her mind out of the pool and into another direction.

“I try not to think too much before my race,” says Douglass. “I find when I overthink a race, I start to get more nervous about it. So just relaxing and having fun with my friends—while also getting a good night’s sleep—is important to me.”

WARM-UP

On the day of her race, Douglass keeps her warm-up routine simple. No wake-up swim, no multiple warm-ups...just one nice warm-up about an hour before her race to get herself ready to go.

“Recently, I’ve been moving my warm-ups closer to when I swim. I don’t usually get back in to warm up after I get my suit on.

I like to just be ready to go after warm-up instead of sitting around for a while waiting to swim.”

After her warm-up swim, Douglass will go through her stretching routine while listening to music. The routine helps relax her before the race, and stay warm!

“I also usually get cold when I have to get back in a second time,” says Douglass. “My coach and I decided that it would be better to just stay warm and relax after warming up.”

READY ROOM

In the ready room, Douglass continues to keep it simple and pressure-free. Even before a high-stakes race like her 200 IM at Olympic Trials, she spent her time there joking around to take the pressure off.

“I’m planning on preparing for this meet (the Tokyo Olympics) as I would any other meet. It honestly helps me out to just think of the Olympics as any other meet I’ve been to. Doing so helps relax me and keeps me from getting too nervous.”

—Kate Douglass

“I don’t really have a ready room ritual.

I remember at Trials, I just enjoyed being in there with my friends. We would joke around and have fun in the ready room. I prefer to do that instead of getting super focused on my race so that I don’t overthink it.”

Even though the majority of people have a specific song they listen to for getting themselves “pumped up” in the ready room, Douglass isn’t part of the majority.

“I don’t listen to music, which is probably uncommon. Bringing too much stuff into the ready room with me can stress me out. So usually I just talk to other people and try not to get too nervous for my race.”

BEHIND THE BLOCKS

>>With all of the different strokes in a 200 IM, the lead can change drastically between 50s. That’s why it’s important for Douglass to stick to her own race...except on the last 25: “When you’re coming up on that last 25 and have the opportunity to race the person next to you, that probably makes both of you speed up and will determine the outcome of the race.”

Walking out to the blocks from the ready room can be one of the most nerve-wracking aspects leading up to a big race. The cheering is deafening, and as you see the competition pool for the first time, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with a sense of wonder. Some people hone in on the chaos and harness the energy of the crowd, while others block it all out to focus on the task ahead.

“I try not to listen to the introductions,” says Douglass. “I prefer to relax in the ready room and then when we walk out to the blocks, I start to focus on the race I have to swim. Once I’m by the blocks, the race I’m about to swim is the only thing going through my mind.”

If Douglass ever gets into her own head too much before diving in, a few deep breaths do the trick. Positive self-talk before a race is key to keeping focus and minimizing stress.

TIME TO RACE

Once she’s in the water, Douglass knows that a lot can happen in a 200 IM. With all of the different strokes, the lead can change drastically between 50s. That’s why it’s important for her to stick to her own race...except on the last 25.

“Everyone swims this race differently, and you can’t get too caught up in what other people are doing on one stroke because a lot

can change with each 50,” says Douglass.

“However, I think feeding off other competitors is the best way to finish a race. When you’re coming up on that last 25 and have the opportunity to race the person next to you, that probably makes both of you speed up and will determine the outcome of the race.” *** At the end of the day, Douglass remembers to limit the amount of pressure she places on herself and to make sure she finds joy while swimming.

“I used to not like setting goals for myself because I wouldn’t want that pressure or to be disappointed. However, I realized that everyone has goals and you kind of need a goal to be able to push yourself and have something motivating you,” she says.

“I think I’ve found a good middle ground now where I can know what my goals are for motivation, but not let them put pressure on me. My ultimate goal at a meet is to make sure I am enjoying myself and having fun with my friends, because when I’m happy, I usually swim well. v AUGUST 2021

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SPECIAL SETS

TRAINING

Coach Richard Hunter of TIDE Swimming in Virginia Beach, Va. discusses goals and workouts for one of his top swimmers, Kayla Wilson, a rising senior at Norfolk Academy who recently committed to Stanford for fall 2022.

BY MICHAEL J. STOTT

S

eventeen-year-old Kayla Wilson shares some swimming genes.

Her brother, Will, was a multi-time Virginia Independent School champion. Mom, Katy Arris, was a USA Swimming national team member, NCAA 1650 yard freestyle champion and 17-time All-American at the University of Texas.

Kayla herself has compiled an impressive résumé since beginning a competitive aquatic career at age 5. Currently she is a six-time VISAA and six-time Virginia LSC state champion. Her home club is TIDE Swimming, where she has trained with Richard Hunter and the team’s national group since joining as a freshman in 2018. Following is a snapshot of her improvement in best times: Best Times through 2017-18 Season

Current Best Times

EVENT

SCY

LC

SCY

LC

50 Free

24.06

26.94

23.03

25.91

100 Free

51.29

58.57

49.30

55.68

200 Free

1:49.74

2:04.55

1:44.90

1:59.54

500/400 Free

4:58.46

4:39.28

4:47.37

4:23.15

100 Back

1:03.26

1:09

55.28

1:02.76

200 Back

2:05.22

2:30.72

1:58.05

Unrested

“As an age group swimmer, we saw a lot of upside with Kayla,” says Hunter. “She was very coachable, had a tendency to swim big and loved to race, especially when it mattered most. She is also one of the most competitive athletes I have ever coached. She has a quiet demeanor and is generally fairly stoic, but she hates losing. She is an athlete who wants the responsibility to anchor every relay.

“When she joined the national group, my job was to improve her in-season racing and give her confidence to perform in practice.

Kayla was not bad at practice, but she raced better than she practiced, and had labeled herself as a ‘meet swimmer,’” he says.

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THE PLAN

“I set four main goals for her: “First, I gave her measurable data points so she could monitor improvement outside of competition. She had to learn to train different energy systems and get faster within a given energy system. Kayla had a black-and-white mentality of “I am either going fast or slow” when it came to training.

“We use beats below max (BBM) when asking the athletes to measure heart rate. This gives them training zones that are relevant to them and their individual max heart rates as opposed to just asking everyone to be at a specific heart rate, i.e. 150.

“As an example, Kayla’s max heart rate on a 10-second count is 34 (204/1:00). For our purposes, we use 30BBM as a threshold training zone. Her heart rate in that range is 29 beats in 10 seconds (174/1:00). We use a 10-second count so swimmers can get a quick snapshot of their heart rates during a set rather than waiting a full minute on the wall. So the priority was to get her to go faster in practice, swim more efficiently and increase her training capacity in order to hold a faster time without requiring her to go anaerobic.

“When Kayla started at age 14, she would average roughly 1:091:10 per 100 on a threshold set. She currently is anywhere from :591:01, depending on the day and phase of our training. *** “Second, I tried to get her to believe in herself in any setting (in-season/champs season, practice/race, etc.). During her freshman year, she struggled adjusting to what was being asked of her each day—not from a volume standpoint, but from an intensity and recovery perspective.

“She felt run down, and was comparing herself with her teammates, many of whom had been training with me for two years.

She also had a very narrow scope in terms of what a successful practice looked like.

“For any athlete who is struggling, there is tremendous value

[PHOTO BY JIM HART]

Kayla Wilson

where she could legitimately fail. This may seem counter to the No. 2 goal, but it actually supports it. I wanted to take her to higher-level competitions than previously. In December of 2018, we attended Winter Juniors rather than an alternative competition where we knew she would make it back in all her events. The second meet would likely have been faster for her, but with fewer growth opportunities.

At juniors, her highest individual finish was 48th, where she did not record any time drops.

“While she struggled there, exposing her to the next level was a net positive. She came out of the meet extremely focused and ready to implement daily adjustments. In December, her SCY 200 free was a 1:50.5, and in February at her high school championships, she went a 1:47.2, achieving her first Summer Junior Nationals cut.

Later she attended Summer Juniors, finished fifth in the 200 free and achieved her first Olympic Trials cut. ***

>> Kayla Wilson and Richard Hunter in the snow at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs

*** Hunter and Wilson have also discussed the following goals over the last three years: • • • • •

Summer Juniors cut...check!

Final at Juniors...check (fifth in 200 meter free, 2:01.34)!

Olympic Trials cut in the 200 free...check!

Wave 2 Trials cut in the 200 free...check!

National Junior Team member

[PHOTO BY JIM HART]

in giving them opportunities to figure things out for themselves,” Hunter says. “I look for opportunities to meet an athlete ‘where they are that day.’ For Kayla, at times that meant adjusting the set to ask her to be really good on a few repeats instead of doing the set exactly as written.

“She has come a long way in her approach to training. She is extremely consistent, and while we still adjust aspects of practices, they are based much more on mutual observation and feedback versus her thinking she needs specific things in order to be successful,” he says. *** “Third, I put her in unfamiliar and uncomfortable scenarios

“Fourth, I opened up her repertoire to be competitive in the 500 free, 100 and 200 back in addition to already strong 50-100-200 freestyles to ensure she was not just swimming freestyle in practice.

“I believe in developing an athlete to move through the water in multiple ways. For Kayla, we factored that her stroke naturally inclined toward middle distance. Interestingly, her biggest improvement has come in the 100 backstroke, which has enhanced her sprint freestyle by fostering a more connected catch at a higher stroke rate.

“In her first year, we focused much more on her middle distance free and backstroke and some IM. In the second year, we started focusing a little bit more on her sprints and dedicated more time to backstroke. This year we are practicing faster and competing more frequently in a wider range of freestyle events,” he says.

>> Kayla Wilson, 17, turned in personal best times in the 50 and 100 meter freestyles (25.91p, 55.68p) at the recent U.S. Olympic Trials along with a 15th-place performance in the 200 free (2:00.51sf).

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31

KAYLA WILSON / Continued from 31

“We also talked about her competing at Canadian Olympic Trials since she has dual citizenship with the U.S. and Canada, but that has been challenging based on all of the changes due to COVID restrictions,” says Hunter.

TRAINING CYCLES

“At TIDE, we break our year into three macrocycles, with each further broken down into three to four mesocycles. We run each week on a three-day microcycle. Very generally, each macrocycle culminates with a championship-type meet, where we can evaluate and measure performance in order to make adjustments for the next cycle. Normally, we repeat the following cycle two times per week: Day 1-threshold, Day 2-active rest, Day 3-quality/anaerobic work.

The amount of time spent in any system fluctuates based on the mesocycle.

“Our practice schedule is: • Monday-Friday: 3:30-4:05 p.m. dryland, 4:15-6:15 p.m. swim • Wednesday: 5-6:30 a.m. swim • Saturday: 7-9 a.m. swim • One weight session per week for each athlete.”

SAMPLE SETS

The bulk of TIDE swimming this year has been done short course based on capacity and distancing guidelines. Wilson did the following set twice in April to work on Kayla’s 500-400. Both times the set was done at the end of practice upon completion of a main set: • 5 x 100 @ 1:15 @ 500 Pace (57.0 for Kayla) “If she missed one, then the next repeat was a 75 instead of a 100, but still at her 500 pace,” says Hunter. “For a 75, she would need to hit 42.7. If she made it, she would go back up to a 100; if she missed, she would go down to a 50. The goal of the set is to hit as close to 500 yards @ 500 pace.

“The first time we completed the set, we did it on 1:20 per repeat, and Kayla did a 100-75-50-75-50 for a total of 350 yards.

The second time, we dropped the interval down to 1:15, and she completed a 450, going a 100-100-75-75-100. I like the set because it is a different approach to pace and allows the athletes to find a way back to pace if they are struggling initially. It is something we can fit in, given that it takes less than seven minutes. So far, I have always used it as an add-on after the main work has already been completed—kind of an ‘after-burner’ set.” *** “The next set was done in mid-March as we were coming off of our Senior Champs meet and starting to get ready for our April LC Spring Showcase meet. Both meets were prelims-finals and suited, so the goal was to go fast twice within about a month: 6 Rounds: • 3 x 50 @ :50/1:00/:50 #1 @ 26.0 from push #2 @ 26.5 from push #3 @ 25.5 from dive “We had roughly 300 yards of set-up swimming after each round, which included some kicking. The first 50 was at each athlete’s 200 pace, the second gave a half-second buffer, and the third had to be a half-second faster from a dive. Kayla’s averages were: #1 25.8, #2 26.2, #3 24.7. Her fastest repeat was a 24.4 from a dive, and her slowest was a 26.5 from a push.”

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>> TIDE Swimming coach Richard Hunter set four main goals for Kayla: “I gave her measurable data points so she could monitor improvement outside of competition...I tried to get her to believe in herself in any setting...I put her in unfamiliar and uncomfortable scenarios where she could legitimately fail...and I opened up her repertoire to be competitive in the 500 free, 100 and 200 back in addition to already strong 50-100-200 freestyles.”

*** “The following mid-January set was done as we were shifting toward more speed work after a few weeks of heavy training. It has a lot of active recovery with one focus repeat per round: 6 Rounds: • 5 x 100 @ 1:40 * 1 x 100 per round = ALL-OUT from dive (within :03 of best 100 = 5 pts, :04 = 4 pts, :05 = 3 pts, etc.)

“Each athlete’s point total at the end of the set determined what their next set would be. More points equaled an easier set, fewer points equaled a harder set. Kayla’s best time is 49.30. Her times were: 51.8-52.1-52.6-52.2-52.4-52.2.

“Most recently, there were two practice swims that convinced me she was well positioned going into the May Indy Pro Series meet, where she broke 2:00 (1:59.54) for the first time in the 200 meter free.

“The first was a get-out swim in which Kayla raced Stanford commit Samantha Tadder. Kayla did a 100 back while Sam did a 100 fly. If Kayla won, half the group got out; if Sam won, the other half of the group got out.

“Their times from a push were 56.6 for Kayla and 56.7 for Sam. The second was after a 7,000-yard practice with a threshold focus.

I like having them go fast after threshold work to see if they can still generate some pop when they are tired. Kayla went a 100 free from the blocks and hit 51.9 to end practice. Pretty impressive,” says Hunter.v Michael J. Stott is an ASCA Level 5 coach, golf and swimming writer. His critically acclaimed coming-of-age golf novel, “Too Much Loft,” was published in June 2021, and is available from Bookbaby.com, Amazon, B&N and book distributors worldwide.

TRAINING

DRYSIDE TRAINING

THE GOLD MEDAL WORKOUT

2

BY J.R. ROSANIA • DEMONSTRATED BY NORIKO INADA • PHOTOS BY EMMI BRYTOWSKI

If you’re like me, you watched as much Olympic swimming as possible last month. What incredible athletes these world-class swimmers have become! A large part of their conditioning involves dryland training— exercises done out of the pool with various kinds of equipment.

One of the new ways of thinking in exercise science is: the better conditioned and athletic ability, the better the athlete. In this case, sometimes strengthening and conditioning the swimmer in the gym can carry over into a better swim performance.

For the next two months, I will provide several exercises that will help improve a swimmer’s strength, power and quickness. Movements can be both swim-specific and just general strength or explosive movements.

Perform this routine two or three times a week. Complete each exercise with eight to 12 repetitions and two to three sets per exercise. Resistance should be tolerated effort, and be sure to complete all the repetitions.

Remember to discontinue the dryland program seven to 10 days away from your primary competition.

Be sure to check out next month’s Gold Medal Workout (Part 2).

Meanwhile, have fun...and train like an Olympian!

3

1) PUSH-UPS WITH FEET ON STABILITY BALL Lie face down on a stability ball and walk your body forward so the ball is at your ankles. Perform push-ups. The farther out you go toward your ankles, the more difficult.

2) DUMBBELL ALTERNATING BENT-OVER ROW While standing and holding a dumbbell in each hand, bend forward until your chest is parallel with the floor, and extend your arms downward.

Raise one arm at a time to just above your hip. Alternate arms.

3) PLANK WITH AN ALTERNATING ARM EXTENSION Establish a plank position with both forearms on the floor. Slowly raise one arm off the floor and extend it forward (similar to the catch phase in freestyle). Hold it for one second and return to your starting position.

Alternate arms.

4

4) VERTICAL STRAIGHT-LEG MEDICINE BALL CRUNCH Lying on your back with your legs vertically straight and holding a medicine ball, keep your arms straight and crunch the ball toward your toes.

5) DUMBBELL SQUAT WITH OVERHEAD PRESS While standing and holding a dumbbell in each hand by your shoulders, drop into a deep squat, then press the dumbbells overhead as you stand up straight. 

1 5

MEET THE TRAINER J.R. Rosania, B.S., exercise science, is one of the nation’s top performance enhancement coaches. He is the owner and CEO of Healthplex, LLC, in Phoenix.

Check out Rosania’s website at www.jrhealthplex.net.

MEET THE ATHLETE Noriko Inada, 43, swam for Japan at the 1992, 2000 and 2004 Olympics. She now swims Masters for Phoenix Swim Club, and owns Masters world records in the women’s 25-29, 30-34, 3539 and 40-44 age groups.

NOTICE All swimming and dryland training and instruction should be performed under the supervision of a qualified coach or instructor, and in circumstances that ensure the safety of participants.

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COACHING

SWIMMING TECHNIQUE CONCEPTS

BY ROD HAVRILUK , Ph.D.

MAXIMIZING SWIMMING VELOCITY (Part 4):

MINIMIZING THE ARM ENTRY PHASE TIME IN BACKSTROKE AND BREASTSTROKE

A

s shown in a previous “Swimming Technique Concepts” article (SW June 2021), when swimming velocity increases, the time of all four stroke cycle phases decreases. Conversely, swimmers decrease the time of all four phases of the stroke cycle to increase swimming velocity.

Of all four phases, the greatest decrease was in the entry phase. A swimmer who can further decrease the entry phase time will be able to further increase swimming velocity.

The graph in Fig. 1 shows the time for the four phases of the stroke cycle in backstroke (Chollet, Seifert & Carter, 2008) and breaststroke (Leblanc, Seifert, Baudry & Chollet, 2005) for elite male swimmers. (The breaststroke glide phase is the equivalent of the arm entry phase in the other three strokes, as it occurs between the end of the arm recovery and the beginning of the pull. The inward and outward sculling motions of breaststroke are the equivalents of the pull and push phase of the other three strokes.)

FIG. 1 >The graph shows the time for the four phases of the stroke cycle in backstroke and breaststroke from two studies.

1.

Entering the hand behind the head instead of behind the shoulder (Fig. 2), and

2.

Moving the hand primarily sideways instead of primarily downward after it submerges (Fig. 3).

The underwater front-view video image of the backstroker in Fig. 3 shows that he moves his hand primarily sideways instead of downwards on the entry phase. He required 3-tenths of a second from when the hand submerged until the hand was below the shoulder and in position to generate propulsion.

[PHOTO BY CONNOR TRIMBLE ]

BACKSTROKE ENTRY PHASE Backstrokers often increase the arm entry phase with two ineffective motions:

FIG. 2 > Backstrokers often add time to their arm entry by flexing at the elbow so that the hand enters behind the head instead of behind the shoulder (yellow line).

STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE BACKSTROKE ENTRY PHASE TIME An effective arm entry in backstroke is very similar to freestyle in that the hand moves downward until it is below the shoulder (Fig. 4).

From the position in the bottom images, the hand can immediately begin to generate propulsion.

Strategies to minimize entry phase time in backstroke are similar to freestyle. For backstroke, it is important to: 1.

34

See the arm move back and down and in-line with the side of the body (top right image).

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2.

Feel the hand submerge directly behind the shoulder (middle right image).

3.

Feel the hand continue to move downward until it is below the shoulder (bottom right image).

BREASTSTROKE ENTRY (GLIDE) PHASE Breaststrokers can often decrease the entry (glide) phase time to swim faster. Typically, a swimmer finishes the propulsive action of the kick just prior to the glide phase. It is only natural to glide and wait to begin the propulsive action of the arms. However, swimmers often glide too long so that the body velocity slows below the

FIG. 3 >This elite male backstroker has a right arm entry phase time of 3-tenths of a second. The yellow vertical lines on the force curves are synchronized with the video image.

velocity for the swim (or race). The result is a longer glide phase, a slower stroke rate and a slower swimming velocity.

STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE BREASTSTROKE ENTRY (GLIDE) PHASE TIME The main strategy to minimize the entry (glide) phase time is to begin the pull phase at the instant the body slows to the velocity for the swim (or race). As there are individual differences in the magnitude of kick propulsion, the optimal time for the glide phase will vary. For swimmers with a less effective kick, the most appropriate guideline is often to begin the pull phase the instant that the feet touch to complete the kick. v FIG. 4 >The biomechanical model demonstrates an effective arm entry for freestyle (left panel) and

Dr. Rod Havriluk is a sport scientist and backstroke (right panel). consultant who specializes in swimming technique instruction and analysis. His newest ebooks in the “Approaching Perfect Swimming” series are “Optimal Stroke Technique” and “Swimming Without Pain,” and are available at swimmingtechnology.com. Contact Rod through info@ swimmingtechnology.com. All scientific documentation relating to this article, including scientific principles, studies and research papers, can be provided upon demand.

TOTAL ACCESS MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE REFERENCES FOR THIS ARTICLE. NOT A TOTAL ACCESS MEMBER? YOU’RE JUST A CLICK AWAY: SWIMMINGWORLD.COM/VAULT

SUMMARY

Minimizing the arm entry phase time in backstroke requires precise control of the arm as it submerges. A swimmer must quickly move the hand downward directly behind and below the shoulder. Minimizing the arm entry phase (glide phase) in breaststroke requires precise control of the timing between the finish of the kick and the beginning of the pull. A decrease in the non-propulsive entry phase decreases the time for a stroke cycle, increases stroke rate and increases swimming velocity.

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JUNIOR SWIMMER

GOLDMINDS

10 GREAT REASONS TO

GET BACK IN THE POOL S

o...let’s say you’ve been out of the water for a while. In the meantime, you’ve suddenly discovered the joys of sleeping in.

You’ve experienced what life is like without the stress of constantly chasing qualifying times for your next big meet.

You’ve found out what it’s like to be “normal”...and you love it!

Maybe you’re even starting to think, “Mmm...I might just keep on feeling ‘normal’ again!”

Well, before you decide to take a very long—or even “permanent”—break from swimming, here are 10 great reasons to get back in the pool.

(Even if you’re not thinking of taking a break from swimming, these 10 reasons also serve as positive reinforcement to stay right where you are—in the pool!)

1. FITNESS There’s nothing like feeling fit! You feel unbeatable. You stay healthier. Little challenges in life seem insignificant because you’re stronger, you have more endurance, and you can bounce through the day with unlimited energy and enthusiasm.

2. FRIENDS Swimming friends are friends for life.

Ask a former swimmer about what they miss the most about the sport, and without hesitation, they will say, “My swimming friends.” The most enduring friendships often come when people have trained together, faced challenges together and have overcome those trials...together.

special. There’s nothing like it. You feel like your flying through the water! That feeling is waiting there at your local pool for you to rediscover.

5. SETTING GOALS AND ACHIEVING THEM Goal setting is an essential element of success in all areas of life. School success, work success, financial success—all depend on setting goals and working hard to achieve them. Swimming is one place where you learn all about setting goals, reaching goals and how to overcome setbacks and challenges in the pursuit of your goals.

6. LEARNING ABOUT YOURSELF One wonderful thing about swimming is that it provides opportunities for you to learn about YOU! Sometimes it takes a few setbacks to learn how good you are at overcoming adversity. To learn how well you perform when you’re tired, you need to go through some times when you’re fatigued and when that proverbial “gas tank” is on empty.

Swimming provides you with moments when you feel like you can’t keep going, when you’re tired, when you’re under pressure... and yet, you and your coach and your teammates somehow find ways to get through it and still perform to your potential.

3. YOUR COACH Remember that crazy person who really cares about you who stands at the end of the pool yelling stuff about streamlining, not breathing on your last stroke and other stuff like that?

Well, they’re still there yelling the same crazy stuff—and they can’t wait to see you and help you be all you can be. If there’s one person who can inspire you to love swimming again, it’s your coach.

7. BUILDING PERSONAL QUALITIES AND VALUES Swimming at the Olympic Games won’t necessarily give you wonderful personal qualities and values such as commitment, integrity, honesty, respect and courage. However, having those personal qualities and living a life based on those values—combined with a little talent and some hard work—will get you to the Olympics and will support and sustain you in every area of your life.

Who you are determines what you achieve—not the other way around! Training consistently in a good swimming program and learning to compete to the best of your ability helps you to learn what it takes to bring out your best when and where it matters.

4. “THAT” FEELING Retired swimmers often talk about how sad it is to lose “that” feeling: the feeling of flowing easily and effortlessly in water. It is

8. LEARNING NEW THINGS Life is learning.

Former Australian Olympic head coach, the late Don Talbot,

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[PHOTO BY MATT RUBEL PHOTOGRAPHY ]

BY WAYNE GOLDSMITH

once said, “The greatest talent any swimmer can have is the ability to learn new things fast. The faster they can learn, the more they can learn in a shorter time, and the quicker they can improve.”

To swim faster, you have to swim laps. But to swim faster “faster”...turn every lap into an opportunity to learn something new.

9. STRESS MANAGEMENT AND MENTAL HEALTH Many psychologists recommend that a great way to minimize and manage your stress and keep you mentally healthy is to do regular, enjoyable, strenuous exercise. Swimming is one of the best, safest and least physically demanding of all forms of exercise...and it’s a wonderful way to keep your body and your mind feeling great!

10. LEARNING TO DEAL WITH DIFFICULTY—AND HOW TO OVERCOME IT Life is not easy. You will face challenges and difficulties throughout your life, and at times, you will be tested to your limits.

Most people love to sleep in every morning and snuggle up under a nice, warm blanket. Nearly everyone enjoys sitting around on the couch watching their favorite movies and TV shows. The majority of the world looks for opportunities to be comfortable.

But what do YOU do?

You get up early—often in the dark—and you work hard with your coach and your teammates...facing fatigue, dealing with tired, sore muscles and swimming lap after lap of training to challenge yourself and to find out just how far you can go. You willingly face obstacles and difficulties and challenges that the majority of the nearly 8 billion people on this planet try to avoid!

You are remarkable! And there’s nothing that you will face in your life that you cannot overcome—all because of the lessons you learned from swimming. v

Wayne Goldsmith is one of the world’s leading experts in elitelevel swimming and high-performance sport. Be sure to check out Goldsmith’s websites at www.wgaquatics.com and www. wgcoaching.com.

SUMMARY 1. Sure—there are easier ways to live your life than swimming up and down a pool early in the morning.

But wow—think of the benefits: physically and mentally healthy...exercising with your friends...learning new stuff every workout. Why wouldn’t you want to get back to it?

2. Don’t expect miracles. Just get back to the pool. Have fun. Reconnect with your friends, your coaches, your teammates. Take it easy, and relax as you gradually get back into your swimming groove.

3. The No. 1 reason most swimmers give up the sport isn’t because training is too hard. It’s not that they stopped wanting to swim fast either. And it’s not that they really hated the early mornings. The No. 1 reason swimmers walk away from the pool is that they no longer enjoy swimming. People who love what they do...do what they love. Reconnect with the water, rebuild your relationships with your friends...and “fall in love” again with the sport of swimming. The rest is easy.

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SPECIAL SETS

>> George Heidinger (left) with Pikes Peak swimmer Quintin McCarty

ENERGY SYSTEM TRAINING

George Heidinger, former USA Swimming National Team High Performance Consultant and owner of Pikes Peak Athletics (Colo.) specializes in long-term athlete development. As such, he is well-schooled in the science of energy systems as espoused by the likes of Jon Urbanchek, Bob Bowman, Bill Sweetenham and Dave Salo.

BY MICHAEL J. STOTT

C

oach George Heidinger and his Pikes Peak Athletics (Colorado Springs, Colo.) coaches train rising high school senior Quintin McCarty, whose ascendency coincides with PPA’s rise in USA Swimming’s Virtual Club rankings. In June, McCarty competed in Wave II Olympic Trials, placing 24th out of 64 (22.14) in the 50 meter free and 59th out of 61 (56.60) in the 100 back.

The North Carolina State commit is ranked seventh nationally in collegeswimming.com’s (swimcloud) Class of 2022 list of high school recruits and first in Colorado. In 2012-13, Pikes Peak athletes scored 21,239 points (1,797th nationally). In 2020-21, the club amassed 158,141 points (good for 165th in the country).

COMING OF AGE Says Heidinger, “Quintin is a bright, genuine, happy kid. He is a pleaser, yet a born sprinter, so he is an interesting mix between Bill Boomer’s ‘dog’ and ‘cat’ swimmer persona analogy. He is also resilient. He can shy away from challenges at first, but then adapts and hardens. This sometimes takes time and development.

Like most athletes, he experiences fear and pain and that affects performance at times. However, he is brave, strong and gets back up when he falls, even if he doesn’t rise to the challenge fully the first time.

“In training, he is not perfect. It took him several years to develop swimming etiquette such as memorizing intervals, leaving on time and finishing into the wall. No longer. Quintin is good at swimming white and pink (per the energy systems chart), and is able to control and modify technique in those energy systems. He is very good at blue (anaerobic or “critical speed”), black (alactate) and green (race simulation). The energy system he struggles with is red—i.e., going hard without rest for prolonged periods. We suspect that part of this is his natural sprinting tendency, and part of it is emotional maturity.

He has gotten better at threshold, but he has untapped potential

PROGRESSION OF TIMES: QUINTIN McCARTY SCY

Age 13

50 Free

23.09

100 Free 100 Back

15

16

17

--

20.90

20.28

19.95

51.34

48.95

48.06

45.60

43.67

56.26

53.51

50.70

49.29

47.40

200 Back

2:02.62

2:00.06

1:52.16

1:49.92

1:46.77

LC

Age 13

14

15

16

17

50 Free

26.29

25.11

24.42

22.86

22.51

--

56.51

54.17

51.92

50.71

100 Free

14

100 Back

1:04.35

1:00.71

57.96

57.29

55.88

200 Back

2:19.72

2:14.29

2:08.91

2:05.57

2:07.41

there,” says Heidinger.

“Quintin has the characteristics of all strong team leaders— always the first on deck and the last to leave. He speaks thoughtfully during team meetings, but is not preachy. He never skips a length.

He never gets out or goes to the bathroom during practice without asking permission. He doesn’t normally choose the ‘hard way,’ but when asked to take the hard way, he instantly accepts. He has had perfect practice attendance for about four years.

“And...his teammates love him. Honestly, it is almost impossible not to like him. He is pleasant, kind, thoughtful, enthusiastic, encouraging and caring. He has a great laugh that puts others at ease. He is contemporary in the music he likes and how he dresses, but he is not showy and not defined by popularity. He’s a genuine kid that people truly like.”

CONTINUED ON 39 >>

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ENERGY SYSTEMS SPECIAL SETS / Continued from 38

HOW PPA IMPLEMENTS ENERGY SYSTEM TRAINING INTO TEAM PRACTICES

BY MICHAEL J. STOTT

The concepts capsuled in the following story have fundamentally influenced Quintin McCarty and his training, says his Pikes Peak Athletics coach, George Heidinger.

URBANCHEK’S ENERGY SYSTEMS “We primarily use the colors to periodize and track intensities and volumes within cycles. One of the beauties of the color system is that its implementation is simple: distinct, one-syllable words, easily communicated verbally in a noisy environment, that stand for something clearly understandable by the swimmer.

“This allows for very specific planning and the after-thefact evaluation of that plan. We do not use the pace charts specifically because of the variation in athlete development within each group. One over-arching design set concept we use is Urbanchek’s notion that, in order to train an energy system, the athlete has to be engaged in that energy system for at least 20 minutes—that is, a red or blue set needs to last between 20 to 60-plus minutes in totality to be sure one is in that system.

This provides a framework for all set design, including energy systems, drilling and kick work,” says Heidinger.

BOWMAN’S CAPACITY CONCEPT “Bob Bowman has given multiple presentations in which he describes how sustained work improves cardiovascular capacity. To paraphrase his thesis, the more work in which one engages, the better the capacity for work becomes, ergo the higher the potential in racing. If a workout averages a higher heart rate throughout the duration of the practice, then in theory, the activity creates more capacity. This concept needs to be periodized, with build-ups, periods of high stimulus and recoveries.

“At PPA, we work backward with this concept. If we know that we want swimmers to be able to improve with 20 working hours in college, we set our highest group, Group 5, to 13 to 15 hours of training per week, so that they have room to grow in college over a period of four more years.

“Group 4 then trains 10 to 12 hours per week, Group 3 trains eight to nine hours per week, Group 2 trains six hour per week, and Group 1 (typically 10-and-unders) practices about four to four-and-a-half hours per week. The capacities progress systematically, so that no jump is so big that one can’t work technique and kicking and other modalities that take extra time. It also allows room for growth.”

BILL SWEETENHAM’S SWIMMER PATHWAY CONCEPT “Coach Sweetenham outlined a training progression for swimmers starting from entry level ages through post-grad swimmers. The progression describes in detail recommendations for multi-sport engagement at the younger ages, gradually introducing competitiveness and strenuous training.

“His postulation also introduces formal, structured strength and conditioning, goal setting and other advanced training techniques that aren’t necessarily appropriate for all ages and stages of development. ‘The Swimmer Pathway’ is an awesome resource for any coach looking for a concise outline on how to set up a club program.”

SAMPLE WORKOUTS Following is a sample workout given to PPA senior swimmers on March 1, 2021 that emphasized the “red” energy system from Jon Urbanchek’s color-coded energy system and effort level chart (EN3/Threshold).

Yards 1,500

Time

Set Description

6:05pm

1 on 5:00 Team Meeting

EGY

WRK

STK

PACE

6:10pm

5x {2x25 on :30 surface kick

PIN

K

STK

2:00

{2x50 on :55 flutter KWB: easy/hard x 25

PIN

K

STK

1:50

{2x25 on :30 backstroke 6KPS

WHI

D

BK

2:00

{1x100 on 1:30 backstroke 50 smooth/50 hard

PIN

D

BK

1:30

1,000

6:40pm

20x50 on 1:00 25 drill/25 swim choice

WHI

D

STK

2:00

3600

7:03pm

6x {3x100 on 1:25 1:20 1:15 IM red

RED

S

IM

1:25

{3x50 on :45 :45 :40 stroke red, IM x RND

RED

S

IM

1:30

{6x25 on :30 recover - no slop

WHI

S

STK

2:00

{1 on :30 rest 8:03pm

6,100 Yards - Stress Value = 120

Energy Levels Aerobic Threshold Warm-up/Recovery Aerobic Easy

Yards 2,700 44.26% 2,150 35.24% 1,250 20.49%

Minutes 39.0 37.62% 43.0 41.47% 21.6 20.90%

Stroke Categories Yards Minutes IM 2,700 44.26% 39.0 37.62% Your Stroke 2,600 43.44% 52.1 50.32% Backstroke 750 12.29% 12.5 12.05% Type of Work Swim Drill Kick

3,600 1,750 750

59.01% 28.68% 12.29%

57.0 54.98% 32.5 31.35% 14.1 13.66% v

TOTAL ACCESS MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD MORE WORKOUTS THAT EMPHASIZE DIFFERENT ENERGY SYSTEMS. NOT A TOTAL ACCESS MEMBER? YOU’RE JUST A CLICK AWAY: SWIMMINGWORLD.COM/VAULT

SPRINT SALO BY DAVE SALO “This 1980s book is a fascinating one-stop-resource that serves as a Physiology 101 refresher course, as well as a manual on how to implement science into a training plan. It is simple, yet deep. Concise, yet detailed. Basic, yet ahead of its time. Sprint Salo teaches USRPT concepts 25 years before Dr. Brent Rushall’s game-changing manuscript. Our staff normally reads this about once every 18 months.”

STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING “PPA employs a full-time strength coach to design a progression for strength and conditioning starting in Group 2 all the way to Group 5. Our strength coach, Chris Wojchik, is a key member of our staff, attends every coaches meeting and composes a periodized strength and conditioning plan unique to each group. Our strength workouts occur at least twice per week per group in our state-of-the-art gym and typically last 60 to 90 minutes.

“Chris’ progression includes functional movement, prehabilitation, conditioning, plyometrics, very specific loading and recovery. Our swimmers walk onto the pool deck as athletes, not just swimmers. We believe this is a key to success in the present, but also sets the kids apart when they reach college.” v

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COACHING

A COACHES’ GUIDE TO

ENERGY SYSTEMS ( PART III )

In Part 3 of our series on energy systems, two age group coaches—one from Clovis, Calif. and one from Richmond, Va.— share how they inform and guide their younger athletes through energy system training.

BY MICHAEL J. STOTT

I

t is instructive to recall that the whole color-code energy system was created for college-age men. That has forced coaches intrigued by the benefits of the charts to adapt them to fit training for younger swimmers. One coach who has done that successfully is Mark Bennett, head age group coach with the Clovis Swim Club, Calif., and author of a book, “A Coaches’ Playbook for Age Group Swimming,” to be published in mid-to-late 2022.

Another is Jonathan Kaplan, head coach of the SwimRVA Rapids in Richmond, Va. CLOVIS SWIM CLUB: BREAKING DOWN ENERGY SYSTEMS For his age group swimmers, Bennett breaks down energy systems as follows: Aerobic • Heart rate ~130-160 • About 70-80% of max heart rate • No lactate accumulation at all • Can hold speed comfortably for as long as stroke technique will allow Aerobic threshold • Heart rate ~160-190 • About 85% of max heart rate • Little to no lactate accumulation • Difficult to hold technique, but should still be a key focus Anaerobic • Heart rate ~180+ • Likely lactate accumulation as a byproduct of glycolysis • Categorized as “swimming without control”; however, technical focus a must if and when swimming at highquality efforts *** The previous energy system categories are a simplification of traditionally used labels: 40

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>> Mark Bennett, head age group coach with the Clovis Swim Club, Calif., says he uses the ideas of aerobic, threshold and anaerobic/sprint to keep things simple for his swimmers: “Doing so allows swimmers to maintain a focus on technical objectives while also being able to fall within the recommended training zones.”

EN1 (Endurance 1): (Categorized as base aerobic work) • Also called Pink training in the Urbanchek color charts.

Would also be classified as White, the lowest level of aerobic training: recreational and recovery.

• Also called T- or T minus by some others, meaning threshold minus, or sub-threshold.

EN2 (Endurance 2): (Equates to aerobic threshold) • Classified as Red in the Urbanchek model. Distinguished by gaining very little rest (:05-:15) between reps.

• Also known as T by some other models, simply meaning threshold.

EN3 (Endurance 3): (Still aerobic threshold, but gauged as MVO2 training—Maximum Volume of Oxygen consumption—or high-level endurance training) • Categorized as Blue, which would be differentiated as more rest (:20-:30) between reps, but more speed; still low to no lactate accumulation.

• In the T scale, it would be called T+.

SP1 (Sprint 1): (Anaerobic effort or best average) • By the color scale, considered Purple. The rest is not gratuitous, so the speed levels may be prohibited by the lack of recovery.

SP2 (Sprint 2): (Also an anaerobic effort, but considered lactate production training) • Urbanchek’s Green. More rest involved here. Equates to swimming at race-quality efforts.

SP3 (Sprint 3): (Also an anaerobic effort; however, is alactate training, in which CP (creatine phosphate) is the only fuel being used—very little lactic build-up because the repeats are much shorter in length) • This training considered Gold on Urbanchek’s scale. Almost no lactate build-up because there is high effort over very short distance and nearly full recovery between repeats. *** “I only use the ideas of aerobic, threshold and anaerobic/sprint to keep things simple for my swimmers,” says Bennett. “Doing so allows swimmers to maintain a focus on technical objectives while also being able to fall within the recommended training zones.”

The reason Bennett uses training zones is because they help swimmers: • Gauge their effort and intensity relative to the training demand • Control their effort so that they can repeat it with increased prowess • Understand as to how the body is using energy to advance the work being done Bennett adds, “Training zones also help the coach and the swimmer track and measure the specific work being done to allow identification of progress goals. And they can be used as a motivational tool: If swimmers are feeling good and exceeding time goals without major lactic acid accumulation, they know they are doing very well!”

SwimRVA: RAPID PROGRESS In just three years, the SwimRVA Rapids, housed in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials pool, have morphed from a learn-toswim operation to a full-blown competitive force of more than 500 members. In doing so, Coach Jonathan Kaplan shares with swimmers his understanding of the body’s response to training demands.

“As a team, we build everything around the creation of mitochondria, its utilization and the body’s ability to create energy to ATP in different energy systems. Usually once a year, I’ll sit my athletes down and discuss energy systems in a ‘sciency’ kind of way. I am always careful to simplify things in an understandable way so swimmers can connect the ‘why’ with the ‘what’ with regard to workouts, training cycles, etc.,” says Kaplan.

“Each of my workouts generally falls into one of four categories based on the three energy systems for converting energy into accessible fuel, i.e.: • Creatine phosphate (ATP/adenosine triphosphate phase focusing on the first 10-15 seconds of a race) • Anaerobic glycolysis (the painful lactate-building phase felt most between 30 and 120 seconds)

• Aerobic glycolysis (oxidative phase that is generally beyond two minutes and up to two hours) *** SwimRVA workouts fall into one of four types: • High-end speed workouts that often include a lot of racing with in-workout recovery and easy intervals • Lactate tolerance workouts that include high to VERY HIGH intensity with minimal in-workout recovery until the workout has completed • Aerobic workouts that vary from long distance/low-tomoderate intensity to short distance/moderate to high intensity on short intervals • Recovery workouts that fall into either an “active” recovery or “full” recovery depending on where athletes are in the training cycle/season and how much a coach feels swimmers need in the way of a mental and physical refresher (game day, etc.)

“Most of the workouts are designed to teach the body how to operate as efficiently as possible within each energy system and how to transition smoothly from one system to the next. We use each of these systems in every single training cycle right from the start of the season,” says Kaplan.

“The portion that changes throughout the season is A) how much we train in each energy system, and B) how much we focus on operating within the energy system alone vs. teaching the body to transition from one to the next.

“Generally, you’ll see a heavier dose of aerobic workouts in an early cycle, followed by more lactate-tolerance workouts in the next couple of cycles. Later in the season, we will specialize more for each athlete depending on the event/distance for which they are preparing. Sprinters will see more speed/racing workouts on days when distance swimmers may go the other direction and see heavier aerobic sets during the final training cycle,” he says. *** Following is an example of what it might look like for a 1416-week macro cycle, assuming training six workouts a week. The example does not include meets, which need to be factored in and affect week-to-week mini-cycles.

“We will never do the same type of energy system two days in a row, with the exception of late season when more workouts deal with blended systems. Even then, how much time we spend in a certain energy system will always be drastically different from the preceding or following day,” says Kaplan.

• Cycle #1 (3-4 weeks): Mon (aerobic), Tue (lactate), Wed (recovery), Thu (aerobic), Fri (race/speed), Sat (aerobic) • Cycle #2 (3-4 weeks): Mon (aerobic), Tue (lactate), Wed (recovery), Thu (lactate), Fri (aerobic), Sat (race/speed) • Cycle #3 (3-4 weeks): Mon (aerobic), Tue (lactate), Wed (recovery), Thu (blend lactate, aerobic), Fri (race/speed), Sat (lactate) • Cycle #4 (3-4 weeks): Mon (aerobic), Tue (blend lactate/ speed), Wed (recovery), Thu (lactate), Fri (blend lactate/ aerobic), Sat (sprinters shift down to more racing/speed, distance swimmers shift up to purer aerobic) • Cycle #5 (1-1.5 weeks): Resting cycle. “We typically do not drop down a lot in yardage until three days before the meet itself. What you’ll see is a shift in the percentage of high intensity vs. recovery while maintaining a similar yardage CONTINUED ON 42 >> AUGUST 2021

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ENERGY SYSTEMS / Continued from 41

>> Workouts for the SwimRVA Rapids fall into one of four types: high-end speed, lactate tolerance, aerobic and recovery workouts. Head coach Jonathan Kaplan says, “Most of the workouts are designed to teach the body how to operate as efficiently as possible within each energy system and how to transition smoothly from one system to the next.”

total as other cycles. We go hard a little less often and have more low-intensity recovery built into the workouts for about seven or so days before you see the yardage drop down low.

“An expansion of the ‘why’ is that I explain how mitochondrial biogenesis directly impacts workout type. With each workout, we are trying to accomplish one of two things: either create mitochondria or help improve the capacity and utilization of each mitochondria.

“Our swimmers know the mitochondria as ‘the powerhouse of the cell,’ but most have no idea what it does beyond that. So to simplify it, I explain that each mitochondria is like a factory for energy. If we were selling shoes out of our one factory, and we were used to having to make 500 shoes a day to meet our demand, what would happen if we got an order of 100,000 shoes? To meet demand we would maximize the number of shoes we make at one factory and then build more factories,” explains Kaplan.

“In a swimming sense, that cannot be done overnight. Once you build a factory, it is there for a long time. However, if you shut a factory down for as little as 72 hours, it takes a while for it to get back up to full proficiency. This is why we encourage the athletes, if possible, to never be out of the water longer than 72 hours during the season. For the same reason, we do not drop the yardage down heavily until three days out of the championship meet during the rest cycle.

“At the end of the season, we will ask swimmers’ bodies to meet 42

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a HUGE energy demand in order to achieve goals. That means we need to have workouts that either help us create factories (aerobic) or help each factory get better at producing energy (race and lactate days). Sometimes we do both (blended days), particularly at the end of the season when we need to be our most efficient.

“And since the body only gets stronger when we rest, it is the reason we have active and full recovery days. Plus...they are fun...and we are coaching children who like to have fun. Happy swimmers are fast swimmers.

“Using this training pattern, I have not had swimmers miss a taper at the end of the season. As long as athletes are healthy and have a positive mindset, they always swim very fast! The ones who attend practice most often and put in the most work clearly get the best bang for their buck. On average, even the swimmers who do not come as often as I’d like still swim better than they should because they do quality work when they are here.

“Sometimes it’s yardage, sometimes it’s super intensity. It varies based on where we are in the season, what type of swimmers they are and what events for which they are preparing,” says Kaplan. v Michael J. Stott is an ASCA Level 5 coach, golf and swimming writer. His critically acclaimed coming-of-age golf novel, “Too Much Loft,” was published in June 2021, and is available from Bookbaby.com, Amazon, B&N and book distributors worldwide.

COACHING

NICHOLAS

ASKEW

Q&A

[PHOTO BY RODNEY PIERCE]

A Bison as a student and now a coach of both tennis and swimming, Nicholas Askew is leading the athletes of historically black Howard University into a brave new world.

BY MICHAEL J. STOTT

Q. SWIMMING WORLD: Growing up, you were a multi-sport athlete. How did you get your start in swimming?

A. COACH NICHOLAS ASKEW: Fortunately, I grew up a block away from a public pool in my hometown of Kinston, N.C. That pool was my daycare. As the youngest of three, I followed my lifeguard brothers to morning practice and stayed at the pool all day. Taking to the water became inevitable.

SW: In tennis?

NA: Tennis was in the park very close to home. Daily when the pool closed, I wasn’t ready to go home because I knew my mother would make me clean up and go straight to bed. So, I lingered around the tennis courts where my father and his friends let me hit a few balls. But they quickly kicked me off the court because I would deliberately hit balls over the fence! However, that was all a part of my plan to play in the creek just behind the courts. When they got wise to that, they made me switch sides. That’s when I learned to control the ball more and enjoy actually playing.

SW: Any mentors along the way?

NA: Many. I am forever grateful for the great people who poured into my total development, not just athletic. My parents and brothers are first and foremost. Then the list keeps going from there. I pray I have made them proud.

SW: Two brothers went to Howard. Any other reasons for choosing the school?

NA: Howard was an easy choice for me.

I knew I wanted to swim for a Division I swimming and diving program at a historically black college or university (HBCU). At that time, only Florida A&M University and Howard had one. I enjoyed my visit to FAMU, but Howard was where I knew I belonged.

SW: Your middle brother’s death from cancer convinced you to divert from a medical school track to coaching. Why? NA: I excelled in the sciences and was inspired by my optometrist growing up. At

each appointment, I appreciated how I was treated and could see myself one day being the doctor that patients came to see. When my brother suddenly passed, my outlook changed. I saw how quickly his life was taken and how he suffered.

I was coaching and working with a grassroots program at the time and remember being so happy to help people live healthy lifestyles that could lengthen their lives. I then realized I wanted to work on the side of prevention and not treatment.

Coaching was my vehicle to do so.

SW: Howard is now the only HBCU school to offer swim and dive. Is that a plus or minus when it comes to attracting talent?

NA: It’s a minus that more HBCUs do not have programs and a plus that Howard has committed to supporting and maintaining one. There is a growing population that would love to attend an HBCU, and Howard should not be the only option. There is more talent than available roster spots. That means that athletes will go to teams that are not their first choice or quit the sport all together. Both are sad outcomes.

SW: Who does Howard recruit against in swimming?

NA: Being the only HBCU, we provide a rare opportunity for our athletes. This has been a major plus for us because we have a certain group of swimmers who know that they want to be at an HBCU. It is also a significant challenge because for those who are open to any institution, we are now recruiting against everyone.

SW: How difficult is it for Howard to recruit in general?

NA: Over the years, our staff has done an amazing job of creating and strengthening relationships with age group coaches and programs. In addition, with our focus on development, we have gained the interest and trust of those coaches and programs to assist their athletes in getting better.

Howard’s history and long list of successful alumni—including Vice President Kamala Harris—has taken recruiting conversations to an entirely new level.

Coach Nicholas Askew Director of Swimming and Diving Howard University Washington, D.C.

• • • •

• • • •

Howard University, B.A., psychology, 2000 4x Howard University MVP (3x swimming, 1x tennis) Former school record holder in 100-200 breaststroke, 2x swim team captain Director and head coach of swimming, diving and tennis, Howard University, 2020-present; head coach, swimming and diving, 2014-20; associate head coach, tennis, 2014-20; assistant coach, tennis, 2001-14 Director of programs, Prince George’s Tennis and Education Foundation, Upper Marlboro, Md., 2002-09 Directed Howard to more than 80 school records and CSCAA Scholar All-America recognition Coached Latroya Pina to Cape Verde Olympic team and Miles Simon to U.S. Olympic Trials berth, 2021 Coastal Collegiate Sports Association Conference Men’s Coach of the Year, 2020

Coach Nicholas Askew, a nationally recognized speaker on diversity and empowerment, received the Maritza Correia McClendon Award in 2020 from the Diversity in Aquatics organization.

SW: Maalik Nixon and Justin-BrownDuso are just two of the recent transfers into HU. With the transfer portal all the rage now, do you expect to see an uptick of that in swim and dive?

NA: Maalik and Justin were two of the best. They may have arrived at HU by transfer, but I am convinced they were born Bison. As for the transfer portal, it will be interesting to see. Howard athletics doesn’t have a significant history of transfer CONTINUED ON 45 >> AUGUST 2021

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[PHOTO BY FRANK MITCHELL]

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enjoys exceeding expectations. Our coaches will often challenge him at various workout stages to achieve an even higher gear. I like that Miles looks for areas in which to compete when training, whether it be the first 15 meters or to the finish.”

A consummate teammate, Simon often sets the tone of Howard practices. “He never complains when the set is difficult, and the team feeds off of his approach to training and the example he sets. He is super-encouraging and fun to train with. He could honestly share a lane with anyone of any ability in any pool,” says Askew.

As an HU swimmer, Askew has trained Miles primarily to compete in the 100 fly, 200 IM, 100-200 free and 100-200 back, and he has shown steady improvement as a result.

HOW THEY TRAIN

MILES SIMON

BY MICHAEL J. STOTT

Free: 400 @ 8:00, 300 @ 8:00, 200 @ 8:00, 100 @ 8:00 (All MAX EFFORT, all off the block)

PROGRESSION OF TIMES SCY

SIMON SETS Following are two workouts Bison swimmers did as a way to chart team progress (with Miles Simon’s times shown for September and November).

2017-18

2018-19

2019-20

2020-21

400: September 3:57.05; November 4:00.92

100 FREE

47.86

47.54

46.58

45.59

300: September 2:54.35; November 2:58.42

100 BACK

53.23

52.32

49.97

50.12

200 BACK

1:59.15

1:55.98

1:51.91

—

200: September 1:51.53; November 1:50.44

—

53.95

51.68

—

100 IM

W

ith a return to normalcy, rising junior Miles Simon is looking forward to a breakout year. Fresh off a baptism in the 50 meter free at U.S. Olympic Trials with a 23.42 (tied for 61st out of 95 swimmers)—well off his 23.11 qualifying time—Simon is ready to improve upon his already impressive Bison résumé. Currently, the Atlanta product and Coastal Collegiate Sports Association Academic honoree owns top-10 times in seven Howard individual events, two of them firsts: 100 yard back (49.97) and 100 IM (51.68). He also shares firsts in four relays: 200-400 medley and 400-800 freestyle.

Says his coach, Nicholas Askew, “Miles has a very laid-back personality—never too high or too low. He is not easily rattled, nor will you see him just sitting idle. He is always working to improve himself or giving his time to help improve others. Miles is very driven and enjoys the challenge of progress. He understands the loads of work and sacrifice necessary to see improvement and is fueled by seeing progress from his efforts. He also pulls fulfillment from seeing others succeed.

“When training, Miles quickly grasps the intent behind sets and 44

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100: September 50.71; November 48.20 200 fly, back, breast, IM; 100 fly, back, 100 breast, IM—each off 8:00 (All MAX EFFORT, all off the block)

200 fly: September 2:06.22; November 2:08.53 200 back: September 2:06.19; November 2:03.30 200 breast: September 2:30.88; November 2:31.83 200 IM: September 2:05.43; November 2:02.51 100 fly: September 56.68; November 55.34 100 back: September 58.62; November 54.00 100 breast: September 1:14.07; November 1:11.54 100 IM: September 55.98; November 55.46 

Michael J. Stott is an ASCA Level 5 coach, golf and swimming writer. His critically acclaimed coming-of-age golf novel, “Too Much Loft,” was published in June 2021, and is available from Bookbaby.com, Amazon, B&N and book distributors worldwide.

Q&A / Continued from 43

athletes in the department. I would imagine we will have some sort of uptick, but I’m skeptical if it will be at the same rate as other universities.

SW: How has your team study hall contributed to Bison team unity and CSCAA A-A accolades?

NA: Our team is very clear that academic success is our No. 1 priority. Team study hall started as just a quiet space to get work done. It has evolved to an open exchange of ideas and knowledge. I am impressed by our team’s commitment to one another in the pool and in the classroom.

SW: All college coaches, especially in Olympic sports, need to be fundraisers.

How is that going at Howard?

NA: That will always have to be the focus of an Olympic sports program. We’ve continued to increase our efforts annually.

It has not been easy, but we are grateful for our supporters and their generosity. To operate at the level we would like, we have to financially step up every season. Seeing programs cutting budgets ultimately leads to cutting programs. The more that we can ease some of the financial concerns, the better off we will be, especially given the impact of COVID-19.

SW: What does a typical mid-season inwater training look like for HU? NA: By mid-season, we are getting closer to our max load and training six days a week.

We offer a dynamic program of technical, stroke, sprint/distance and race-specific work as well as meet preparation. The team trains twice per week on stroke and sprintspecificity and once per week on technique, race-specific work and meet preparation.

SW: For dryland?

NA: Lots of variety here. We meet with our strength and conditioning staff in the weight room three times each week with additional conditioning twice per week that includes boxing, running, cycling, core work, stadium steps, battle ropes, bands and much more. We also have the benefit of having a dedicated wellness coach who conducts yoga with the team once per week.

SW: SW: You are HU’s director and head coach of swimming, diving and tennis.

What are the main similarities and differences in your responsibilities?

NA: The only similarities are the logistics and the administrative requirements. After that, everything is drastically different.

Both sports are unique in how they are conducted. What is different is how you coach them.

SW: You have participated in a number of important causes, among them Roxie’s Wish and International Water Safety.

NA: Howard instilled in me an awareness and an opportunity to give back and make a difference. One way is water safety.

Drowning statistics are heartbreaking.

Drowning is also preventable, and a driving force behind my involvement. I also feel that being at an HBCU, we have a responsibility to do our part in helping change the drowning rates, particularly in the African-American community. Our campus has a population whose numbers are disproportionally alarming, and our efforts could save lives.

SW: You remain very athletic. Today, how close could you come to that 57.23 100 yard breaststroke on HU’s career top ten list?

NA: In my mind...right now, I can go even faster. My mind and my body are clearly not in agreement. In my prime, I wish I had the knowledge I now have on how to swim fast. Michael J. Stott is an ASCA Level 5 coach, golf and swimming writer. His critically acclaimed coming-of-age golf novel, “Too Much Loft,” was published in June 2021, and is available from Bookbaby.com, Amazon, B&N and book distributors worldwide.

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[PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK]

[PHOTO BY KRISTIN KARKOSKA]

JUNIOR SWIMMER

UP & COMERS AGE GROUP SWIMMER OF THE MONTH

BY SHOSHANNA RUTEMILLER | PHOTO BY KWAME HAMILTON

C

oral Spring Swim Club’s (Fla.) Brian Hamilton is setting high goals for himself in the pool! In May, just two months after turning 12, he achieved AAA times in the long course 50 and 100 freestyle and 50 butterfly with times of 30.53, 1:04.02 and 32.59. Now he has his sights set on his team’s club records in the 50 and 100 freestyle—a feat he could accomplish by the end of the season!

“Brian consistently brings his ‘A’ game to practice. He leads the lane with pride and never backs down from a challenge,” says Coach Carolyn Kuczynski. “Brian is the most improved swimmer I’ve coached, and he has only scratched the surface of his potential.”

Out of the pool, Hamilton is a straight-A student and member of the National Junior Honor Society. He also loves spending time running around with friends, playing hours of Roblox or binge-watching episodes of Lost in Space.

WHAT IS THE BEST THING YOU DO IN SWIMMING? My favorite strokes are butterfly and freestyle. My best events are the 50 and 100 butterfly and freestyle.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE TOUGHEST WORKOUTS/SETS YOU’VE DONE? This question was a hard question because there are so many sets that we do every day that are very hard. I would have to say the three most difficult sets that I have done in practice were 10 x 100s best average, a 1,000 kick with fins and a 400 IM for time.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT SWIMMING? My favorite thing has to be the interaction with other people when we go to out-of-town meets. Another thing I like is getting to know my competition in the All-Star meets. Although we are racing against each other, it is good to make good friendships wherever you go.

WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS YEAR? One thing that I am looking forward to most this year in the pool is trying to beat the Coral Springs Club record for the 50 and 100 freestyle in long course. In the 50, I am within a second...and in the 100, I am within two seconds of beating these records.

Also, one thing that I am looking forward to this year outside of the pool is traveling internationally without restrictions. In the past, my family and I have always traveled for summer to Europe. When the restrictions are lifted for international travel, I am looking forward to revisiting Portugal, which is my favorite country in Europe.

WHO IS SOMEONE YOU LOOK UP TO IN SWIMMING...

AND WHY? Michael Phelps: One reason why I look up to him is because two of his best strokes are butterfly and freestyle...and those strokes are also my best strokes.

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE HOBBIES? I have a lot of hobbies that I like to do when my swim practice is over, including building Legos, building 3D jigsaw puzzles and playing video games with my friends.

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GUTTERTALK

BY ANDY ROSS | PHOTOS BY PETER H. BICK

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO JOIN ISHOF’S ONE IN A THOUSAND*?

DALE NEUBURGER FINA Vice President [ PHOTO BY ISHOF ]

JESSE VASSALLO 1997 ISHOF Honor Swimmer [ PHOTO BY ISHOF ]

I believe in keeping history. To me, it is a huge honor to be a part of it, and I wouldn’t want that to ever go away. I want it to grow and it’s really nice to see it being rebuilt and recharged.

For my big meet, we would drive up here to the Hall of Fame. It was always to come up here. I used to look through the cracks because it seemed like every time we came up, it was closed! We would look through the long windows and read as much as I could. I remember getting the chance to go inside and looking at the wall with all the cartoons and drawings on it. It was very inspiring, and I wondered what it would be like to be in there.

To me, it was a great surprise when I got inducted. Being part of the boycott and not making the 1980 team…the ultimate goal for everybody is a gold medal, and to not be there, I thought (getting in the Hall of Fame) wasn’t going to happen. I was very happy when I did.

DAVID MARSH 2020 ISHOF Honor Coach [ PHOTO BY PETER H. BICK ]

The Hall of Fame is the one place where, not just records, but memories are kept for our sport. I think anything I can do to help support the memories and recognition that are so well-deserved and are not often recognized is something that I would hope I can do.

It is with great hope with the new building of Fort Lauderdale and with the growth of our sport that has been trending well even during these COVID times. I would say even now with the need for our sport, it is as safe as we can get, and it is crucial to young kids in understanding goal-setting and delayed gratification.

SWIM MART

REACH LONG

KICK STRONG

NZCordz.com 800.886.6621

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My first association with the International Swimming Hall of Fame was in 1967 as a freshman in college who came to Fort Lauderdale to train at the aquatic center. My association goes back almost 50 years to the college swim forum. It was such a wellestablished training situation at that time—it was really the only situation anywhere where college teams from the north came and trained in warm weather. That really established Fort Lauderdale as a center for aquatic sports and with the Hall of Fame as an anchor to that.

So it would be impossible to train there for a few weeks without the pleasure of going through the museum and seeing its development. At that time, the people who were connected to the Hall of Fame were legends: Doc Counsilman, who began as the first president, Johnny Weissmuller, Buster Crabbe. It was the Hollywood of swimming, so it was really exciting to be there.

JIMMY TIERNEY Head Coach, McKendree University (Lebanon, Illinois) I’ve always been enthralled with swimming history since I was a young swimmer. The Hall of Fame is the caretaker of the history of our sport and the center of all of that. Monuments, articles, equipment and apparel were all things that attracted me to go down there (to Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and visit and soak up all that history.

I have always loved that kind of stuff, and it’s the same in any sport for me. I love reading about the history of the great people who have left their mark on the various sports.

I remember my early days of going to the Hall of Fame in the early ’80s—I was an age group coach at Lakeside Swim Club in Louisville, and I started at some juniors and zones meets there, and I loved the environment. I loved the closeness to the ocean and the sunshine that made that a very special place to have big meets.

When I was there, we would go through the Hall of Fame and look at different things and try to find something new that maybe I didn’t know before.

I even had one of my favorite races of all-time from the pool down there, which was the 400 IM between Michael Phelps and Erik Vendt at the 2002 nationals. I bring that up to other coaches, and other people have a similar feeling about that race. That has always been a special place from the swimming side, too. * See full-page ad on page 7.

PARTING SHOT Caeleb Dressel pumps his fist after his victory in 100 freestyle at the 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials.

[Photo by Peter H. Bick]

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