13 minute read
HOW THEY TRAIN DIGGORY
BY MICHAEL J. STOTT
www.NZcordz.com
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PROGRESSION OF TIMES
SCY 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 50 Free 25.44 21.71 20.67 20.28
100 Free 58.17 49.14 45.85 45.42 100 Fly 1:07.54 1:00.08 52.13 51.31
Oh, to be young—and talented. Diggory Dillingham, son of SwimMAC coach Megan Oesting, is on a roll. He was the fastest 14-year-old 50 yard freestyler in the country (20.67) for the 2019-20 season, and as of January, he was the swiftest 15-year-old (20.28) for 2020-21. A year ago February, he helped his Iowa City West High School team to the Iowa high school state championship, garnering three NISCA All-America finishes: 50 free, 20.67 (63rd), 200 free relay, 1:24.00/20.98 leadoff (28th) and 400 free relay, 3:05.45/45.85 leadoff (37th).
Now in North Carolina, he is the state’s No. 1 college recruit (30th nationally) for the Class of 2023. Two months ago, he won the NCHSAA 4A 100 yard free championship in 45.42 and finished second in the 50 free (20.53, NISCA A-A).
“He was a water bug in childhood,” says his mother. Dillingham’s early aquatic exploits included being a water aerobics mascot as a preschooler, a summer leaguer who learned butterfly in just one week at age 5—but only an on-and-off competitive swimmer after that. Instead, flag football, basketball, track, Taekwondo, wrestling, art classes and fencing commanded his attention.
When Mom took over Eastern Iowa Swimming Federation and Diggory was 11, he began swimming more frequently. “He was always a borderline state qualifier,” says Oesting, “which in Iowa is the equivalent to a little faster than BB times. His birthday was right before the state meet, so as an age grouper, he mostly went to a non-qualifiers meet. As he got faster, Dilllingham got more serious.
“He’s not the most well-rounded swimmer,” says Oesting, “and I think people sometimes judge my values as a coach based on his performances. I don’t think that’s fair at all. As a coach, I love the 400 IM, the mile, the 200s of stroke and anything a kid is willing to go after. Diggory is his own guy, and we never talked about swimming at home because that was the only time I had to just cuddle him.
“He is very powerful mentally, extremely stubborn, and he can focus like a hot laser when it’s time to race. Milt Nelms once said that I was the most intuitive racer he’d ever met. Diggory is far more impressive than I ever was. The boy can dial it in like no one I’ve ever seen.
“We had a very special moment when he made his winter junior cut a year ago. His entry time was a 21.7. I had him sprint the first 50 of the 200 free to get him ready for his 50 free later. He went 20.87. An hour later, he won his heat by a full second, going 20.77. That night, he went 20.67 against the ‘big boys.’ That’s when I knew this kid could do whatever he decided to do,” she says.
SAMPLE DILLINGHAM SETS
“For about 15 minutes, we do various activities for :08 seconds on and :32 off. It doesn’t matter how far you get— we’re just looking at quick traction and full ignition,” says Coach Oesting: • Head-high free from a “water polo start” (head up also) • Stretch cord belt wrapped tight (very little give) for streamlined bouncing push-offs • From a float with paddles and fins (:08s FAST) • From vertical streamline pencil float (stabilize before you hit it), then :08 FAST, get UP on top of the water as fast as you can.
“For 20 minutes, we spend the first 10 minutes doing feel work, then 10 minutes of assisted or resisted cords depending on the time of the season.” Sample feel work includes: • Hold paddles so they become extensions out front. Look to control water as far out as possible, hollow the armpit out, keep the elbow high to start the impulse and then control it through the pull • Fingertip directionality and pathway through the stroke where there is more sensitivity and pressure; work to maximize that sensation throughout • Immediate elbow lift as soon as you touch the water, as far away from your head as possible; have your “claw/ meat hook” ready to go • Long, high neck, being pulled toward the opposite side of the pool, flatten back belly into spine and hydroplane across the water; keep tight hips as in a boxing drill • Kayak freestyle with broomstick and snorkel.
“Diggory’s favorite is called the ‘Death Set.’ We had a 20yard section of pool, and he had to hit a certain time on the watch. If he missed it, we added :05 to the sendoff and kept going. We repeated that until he couldn’t make the speed under any circumstances. We started on :25 per 20-yard sprint, and I didn’t give him his hit time until about 7 or 8 in, so I knew what his fast was going to be around for that session.
Michael J. Stott is an ASCA Level 5 coach whose Collegiate School (Richmond, Va.) teams won nine state high school championships. A member of that school’s Athletic Hall of Fame, he is also a recipient of NISCA’s Outstanding Service Award.
whether it’s your eyes, skin, balance or through behavior patterns of others.
Obviously, we get a massive amount of information auditorily. Language comes in verbal, visual, physical and emotional forms. Not having aural access avenues clearly limits processing information.
We spent her preschool years at the Maryland School for the Deaf, which had a bilingual program for deaf children with auditory access on various levels, but whose language acquisition was primarily through American Sign Language.
There was a great deal of parent education regarding the importance of language as well. We learned how language was framed and how it strengthened the brain pathways allowing one to move from concrete to abstract thinking. The challenge for deaf children is their access to the language that allows for that bridge to move complex levels of thought.
SW: How has your use of the product you invented—MySwimEars—helped you become a better coach and your athletes better swimmers? MO: In swimming, we tend to put the kids in a pool and then talk to them every so often, be it every 30 seconds or 10 minutes. Our instruction often has more to do with what to do and how rather than what to listen for and why.
MySwimEars allows me to stay connected to them and help them interpret what they are feeling and what they might be picking up as valuable information. I’m their interpreter to allow the bridge for the language to come alongside their learning.
Without MySwimEars, when they are in the water, they are all mostly “deaf” to this support. So, as coaches, we are removed from their real-time conversation with the water. That means often the best swimmers are those who have come in with near-perfect pitch or spent so much time in the water that they can tune their bodies to it themselves.
Swimming is such a beautiful experience. I want more than just the “naturals” to feel what it’s like to be in that flow.
SW: How did you become a techniquebased coach? MO: Swimming is a traction-based sport. If I am wearing spikes and running on a track against Usain Bolt who is wearing plastic wrap on the wet muddy grass, I am going to win the race. It’s not because I’m stronger or have longer legs; it’s because I have traction, and he doesn’t.
The first point of learning in swimming is how to find traction. That has to do with balance, control and corralling the water at the point of “impact” to climb forward off an anchor point. If we are both finding similar levels of traction, I need to have a stronger push-off from that anchor, and I need to be able to do it repeatedly.
Strength and endurance can certainly help, but we’ve all seen strong, in-shape athletes handily beaten by swimmers who are better at simply finding water. So, find the water, then act on it with more force and for longer.
SW: What did you learn giving lessons in an Endless Pool? MO: It just helped me hone my listening skills. I could see more with the underwater cameras, feel more of the swimmer experience and connect better since it was just the two of us. It helped me ask better SW: You speak of the need for swimmers to play the long game. What’s your secret to doing so? MO: To stay pure in the moment and not weigh down actions with the outcomes. Once committed to moving forward, I’ll make that move with all I’ve got. It’s important to keep the final destination in mind. If you’re in Seattle and want to get to L.A., you’ve got to head south, but you’ll also need to recalibrate along the way as you encounter challenges. So, it’s imperative to stay in touch with both goals at the same time.
SW: What does Megan Oesting do to find life balance? MO: Today I’m taking my banjo to get restrung and making a karaoke playlist for my mom and me. Recently my husband and I watched Fletch for the umpteenth time. Truth be told, my work and my play aren’t very far apart. I see it as a gift that my work and my play are blended.
That’s often the case for my swimmers, too. In general, we are fine with spending so much time at the pool because that’s really where we want to be anyway.
DADS ON DECK
WITH BRENT BILQUIST
SWIMMING WORLD PRESENTS A QUARTERLY SERIES THAT SHOWCASES MOMS AND DADS OF SWIMMERS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY.
BY SHOSHANNA RUTEMILLER
Amy Bilquist was a talented swimmer from a young age. Growing up in Scottsdale, Ariz., her father, Brent, enjoyed watching his daughter’s success in the pool and several other sports, including volleyball.
It wasn’t until the family moved to Carmel, Ind. before her junior year of high school that Bilquist finally committed to being a singlesport athlete. She went on to hold Indiana state high school records in the 50 and 100 yard free as well as the 200 medley, 200 free and 400 free relays. She followed that with a successful collegiate career at Cal and a third-place finish in the 100 meter backstroke at the 2016 Olympic Trials. Now, Bilquist is one of the pioneers of the International Swimming League (ISL).
But this year, the 2019 U.S. national champion in the 100 meter backstroke will have her sights set on making the Olympic team that will compete in Tokyo this summer.
Throughout all of her success, Bilquist’s father has enjoyed watching his daughter’s incredible perseverance. Through all of the highs and lows (and several injuries), Brent has considered the swim parent experience both fun and rewarding. He took the time to talk
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>>Brent Bilquist with his daughter, Amy
to Swimming World Magazine about 16-plus years of being on deck, cheering on his daughter!
How has the sport of swimming shaped Amy’s character?
The combination of team fun and successes, along with individual goals in swimming plus the need to put in the work to be successful, really have added a balance to Amy’s character. As a dad, I am very proud that the achievements that she gets most excited about and has always been so strong at, are the relay accomplishments where the success of the whole team depended on each person doing her best to make each other better.
What advice would you give to new swim parents?
Well, 16-plus years of being a swim parent has taught me the easy answer to this question. Focus on making it fun for the swimmer and for you, and just be there to support your child/children. The competition aspect is up to the swimmer, and it takes care of itself.
What stands out as the highlight of Amy’s swimming career?
Wow—the highlight reel for me is pretty long. It is just fun being able to share her accomplishments while Amy does all the work :). The real highlight to me has been Amy’s perseverance to work through an impressive list of injuries and setbacks, yet still be successful and enjoy swimming. Working her way back from injury to go lifetime best times in the 100 back and 200 back in the finals of the 2016 Olympic Trials...and then doubling down and working her way through more injuries to swim lifetime bests and have a blast at the NCAA Championships with her University of California teammates her senior year in 2019 are tops on my list.
What has swimming taught you about parenting? ...That swimming is a great opportunity to be there with your kid(s) to share and enjoy in their experiences. Swimming has helped teach me just how fun being a parent is and continues to be.
TOTAL ACCESS MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD MORE QUESTIONS
& ANSWERS WITH AMY BILQUIST’S DAD, BRENT—AND A PHOTO OF THE TWO OF THEM WHEN AMY WAS AN 8-YEAR-OLD AGE-GROUP SWIMMER. NOT A TOTAL ACCESS MEMBER?CLICK HERE!
UP & COMERS
AGE GROUP SWIMMER OF THE MONTH
BY SHOSHANNA RUTEMILLER
Daniel Diehl
Daniel Diehl, who swims for the Cumberland YMCA Sea Otters (Md.), was about to turn 15 on Oct. 26. But before aging-up, he took one last shot at setting a national age group record in the boys 13-14 age group. And he reached his goal not once, but twice!
Swimming unattached at the Eagle Swim Team Virtual Swim Meet #2, Oct. 10, at McDonogh School in Owings Mills, Md., Diehl first broke Destin Lasco’s 2016 NAG record of 1:38.24 in the 200 yard freestyle by a second-and-a-half with his 1:36.75.
A week later, Oct. 17, at the Middle Atlantic Keystone Aquatics Fall Closed Invite in Carlisle, Pa., he clocked a 47.44 in the 100 yard back, eclipsing Michael Andrew’s 47.83, set in 2014.
Besides setting two NAG records, he also came within a tenth of a second of Andrew’s 13-14 NAG record in the 100 free with a 44.00. And in his first meet as a 15-year-old, Diehl swam an Olympic Trials qualifying time at the U.S. Open in Richmond, Va., Nov. 13, in the 100 meter backstroke (55.46).
“Daniel is a very dedicated and self-motivated person with an unstoppable drive to meet his goals in and out of the pool,” says Sea Otter Coach Brian Dowling.
Before committing solely to swimming at age 12, Diehl also participated in soccer and baseball, and was a successful long jumper on his middle school track team.
In his free time, he volunteers with the Special Olympics swim program and spends time at the nursing home with his grandmother. According to his mom, Karen, many have called Diehl a kind, humble and gracious young man who has the ability to easily make new friends at meets!
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WHAT IS THE BEST THING YOU DO IN SWIMMING?
I’m good at moving on after meets. Whether I reach my goals or not, I don’t look back; I move forward.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE TOUGHEST WORKOUTS/ SETS YOU’VE DONE?
One of the toughest sets I swam was a 20x50 free at 200 pace.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT SWIMMING?
My favorite thing is the friendships I’ve made through swimming. It’s fun hanging out on deck with the other swimmers and cheering them on.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS YEAR?
I’m looking forward to the Olympic Trials, and I would like to at least make semifinals.
WHO IS SOMEONE YOU LOOK UP TO IN SWIMMING... AND WHY?
I look up to Cody Miller because of his positive attitude. He is the embodiment of making it through hard work.
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE HOBBIES?
I like lifting weights and skating.
