A Look at the State of American Swimming and Areas for Improvement

A Look at the State of American Swimming and Areas for Improvement with Jonty Skinner

Today on the Inside with Brett Hawke, the cerebral Jonty Skinner stops by.

Jonty had a successful coaching career, having coached the US national team in the mid-1990s and later serving as USA Swimming's Director of Performance Science & Technology through 2008. He spent a few years in a similar role with British Swimming and then he re-joined Dennis Pursley at the University of Alabama before retiring in 2020.

Jonty and Brett discuss the ever evolving coaching methods in America, how Australia's system is different, and USA Swimming's down year in 2023.

American swimming has faced challenges in recent years, most notably being beaten by Australia in the gold medal tally at the 2023 World Championships.

Have the tables turned for the long term?

How can a country with a population 14x smaller, beat America??

Here’s what I got from this interview:

There are signs that USA Swimming may not be optimally structured and supported to achieve consistent success at the highest levels. Not only did Australia win more gold medals last summer but we finished 2023 without a single American man ranked #1 in any event.

Jonty & Brett discuss several areas that could be improved. They note that most swim programs in America focus primarily on yardage and fitness, without enough emphasis on mental engagement and technical development. While some elite college programs are certainly on the cutting edge, the vast majority still train in more traditional styles. America has “pockets of performance” and USAS lives and dies by them.

Jonty points out that USA Swimming lacks a coordinated effort to support coaches and develop a "brain trust." There are no regular gatherings or camps to share ideas between top coaches? Other countries like Australia bring all their coaches together frequently. Additionally, national team athletes do not receive dedicated support staff like other nations provide.

Leadership at the national level was also called into question. Jonty noted that USA Swimming no longer has a strong "bulldog" like Dennis Pursley to hold everyone accountable and drive progress.

Overall, their discussion suggests USA Swimming could learn from other countries by providing more resources to elite athletes and coaches. With better coordination and leadership, surely American swimming can regain our dominance.

Listen on Apple Podcasts here.

Watch on YouTube here.

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Time Stamps:

00:00 Brain Training for Athletes 05:45 Empowering Athletes through Mental Engagement 13:00 Coaching Methods in USA 17:09 Integrating Brain Training into Practice 22:41 Australia vs. America 27:02 USA Swimming's Performance 33:33 College Swim Coach Workload 41:30 USA Swimming's Decline & Potential Solutions 47:38 USA Coaches Promoting Foreign Athletes 52:51 Coaching Standards 57:15 Leadership & Team Dynamics in USA Swimming 01:04:39 Performance & Artificial Intelligence 01:09:07 Athlete Burnout & Mental Health in Swimming

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