The SwimSwam Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Is There Hope For Struggling Swim Clubs and Their Swim Club Boards? Aug 24, 2022

Show notes

For nearly four decades I've heard about or experienced firsthand the fallout of dysfunctional leadership at swim clubs. Club boards splinter or run amok. Bad coaches go rogue. Good coaches suffer at the hands of egotistical board members. Every situation imaginable occurs. The worst is when you learn a club board never really managed the oversight of a team's finances, and suddenly the entire swim team is on red alert fearful the pool doors will be locked. Renata Porter is a swim business expert with a focus on youth sports clubs. Her company provides actionable guidance and support to help clubs to shift from old mindsets to running their clubs like a business. Renata helps to put clubs on the path to positive operational outcomes. She's hands-on, a true end-to-end partner. In sum, she gets to the heart of whatever the issue is and offers actionable solutions.

Mark Spitz 50 Years After Munich in Docuseries “72 - A Gathering of Champions” Aug 21, 2022

Show notes

The International Olympic Committee’s docuseries “72 - A Gathering of Champions” is a treasured gift for Olympic fans. It’s a new and intimate window into Mark Spitz and his stunning performance at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.

SwimSwam Breakdown: Popovici WR, European Highlights, Duel in the Pool Aug 18, 2022

Show notes

This week on the SwimSwam Breakdown, we discuss David Popovici's surprise world record in the 100 free, the other standouts from European Championships, and the upcoming Duel in the Pool.

Mel Marshall on Coaching, Motivating the Greatest Breaststroker of All Time Aug 17, 2022

Show notes

We sat down with Mel Marshall, head coach of the UK High-Performance Centre in Loughborough and most well-known for being the coach of Adam Peaty. Marshall takes us through how she coaches and motivates all of her athletes both in and out of the water. She walks us through what kinds of sets work for each athlete in her group and what it takes to consistently perform at a high level. She also explains why Peaty has always had an affinity for long course, how she got into coaching in the first place after her swimming career, and the first time she thought Adam could go 57 in the long course 100 breast.

Bob Bowman Discusses Popovici WR, Regan Smith to ASU, and Marchand World Titles Aug 16, 2022

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Bowman gives great insight into what Popovici does well in the water and where his development could take him. He then proceeds to discuss Regan Smith moving to ASU and what that will look like for her future in terms of training. Bowman also touches on his rapidly growing Post-grad group after the addition of Chase Kalisz, Jay Litherland, and Sierra Schmidt (in addition to Smith) and the development of Leon Marchand from Olympian to NCAA champion to 2x world champion in both IM events this summer.

Katie Hoff Discusses the Pros and Cons of Foregoing the NCAA to Turn Pro Aug 15, 2022

Show notes

We sat down with 3x Olympic medalist, 7x world champion Katie Hoff to discuss a big topic, especially for teenage women in swimming: Going Pro versus competing in the NCAA. With Olympian and world champion Regan Smith announcing her decision to turn professional after competing at Stanford for one year, we wanted a perspective from someone who had made this decision and seen how it played out in their career.

Ruta Meilutyte on Return to Swimming, Eating Disorder, and Mental Health Aug 12, 2022

Show notes

We sat down with recently crowned 2022 World Champion in the 50 breast, Ruta Meilutyte of Lithuania. Ruta dives deep on a lot of topics, first of which is being back in major international competition for the first time in 3 years and managing to medal in both of her events. We then work backward through her dealing with an eating disorder, learning how to take care of her mental health (starting that process just months before the Rio Olympics), and serving a 2-year suspension from racing for missing 3 doping tests. Ruta is candid in her responses and shares knowledge that has come after over a decade at the highest level of competitive sport.

Greg Meehan Shares Perspective on Regan Smith’s Departure from Stanford Aug 11, 2022

Show notes

We sat down with Stanford head coach Greg Meehan to discuss the departure of Regan Smith from Stanford after 1 year to turn pro and go train with Bob Bowman at Arizona State. Meehan is candid as he shares his disappointment and sadness to see Smith leave the Cardinal, not only as an athlete but as a teammate and friend to the rest of the women under his mentorship. But he also shares that even though he doesn't necessarily agree that leaving is the best thing for Smith to do, he understands that she thinks it is the best thing for her career, and Meehan respects and honors that. We also talk to Meehan about how he's dealt with pros turning a new leaf and leaving the Stanford program in the past, why he decided to train Torri Huske for the 400 IM, and what his life is like now that he isn't preparing to be the head Olympic coach.

SwimSwam Breakdown: ASU Pro Group, NCAA 5th Years, & The ”2-Year Taper” Aug 09, 2022

Show notes

This week on the SwimSwam Breakdown, we discuss Regan Smith and others moving to ASU to train with Bob Bowman, the fairness of NCAA 5th years, and not "fully tapering" for 2 years.

Ariarne Titmus Looking to Paris: ”My motivation is better than Tokyo” Aug 08, 2022

Show notes

We sat down with Ariarne Titmus, the 4x gold medalist at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Titmus explains how her life has changed since the Tokyo Olympics where she won 2 gold medals in the 200 and 400 free, specifically how there is much more outside pressure to perform. However, Titmus says she's pretty good at blocking it out most of the time, which showed with the freestyle aces performances in the UK. Titmus successfully defended her Commonwealth titles in the 400 and 800 free as well as added 200 free gold to her resume this week. Titmus says looking toward the Paris Olympic Games, she's more motivated than ever. "I've experienced those absolute highs at the Olympics. You can't really describe it once you've experienced it and you want to experience it again and again and again. I think that's my motivator now."

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