Commentary

Meet Warmup: A Step-by-Step Process to Get Ready to Race Once swimmers are no longer considered age-group or club swimmers, that means they are usually on their own when it comes time to warming up at meets. Without the guidance of their coach telling them exactly what to do, swimmers sometimes feel...

6 Meet Day Nutrition Strategies Swimmers Should Know Among the most important things an athlete can do is set goals, and with these goals come standards. Proper training, sleep, and nutrition are vital necessities for success in any sport. But balancing these priorities can be challenging when jobs,...

Bypassing Short Course Worlds a Difficult But Sensible Decision for Leon Marchand, Kaylee McKeown and Others Four months after the conclusion of the Paris Olympics, another swimming competition will bear the title of global championship as World Aquatics hosts the biennial Short Course World Champio...

Why Being an IMer is the Perfect Situation (From the Archive) By Cathleen Pruden Full disclosure: I am a 400 IMer and I absolutely love it. It took me a while to come to terms with my fate as an IMer. I struggled with the fact that I didn't have a "prime" stroke. It wasn't until being well rounded s...

A Letter to Swim Coaches Everywhere: Thank You From the Archive (Thanksgiving Tradition) Dear Coach, I would like to begin this letter by asking you a question. A simple, one-word question: Why? Why did you pursue this career? Why do you wake up at the most ungodly hours every day, just to inevitabl...

Coaching Masters Swimming: A Different Sport With Many Needs to Meet (From the Archive) Commentary by Jason Tillotson When we think of swimmers and the American swimming community, we think of early morning practices, a full day of school or work then a return to the Olympic-sized ice box for an aft...

8 Types of Coaches: Where Does Your Coach Fit? Over my many years of swimming, I have experienced a lot of different coaches, all who have had a different coaching style. From club to high school swimming, and from high school to college swimming, I have learned how to adapt to different coaches and...

6 Important Things Learned During a Swimming Career I’ve been what you would call a swammer for about a month now. While I probably will pull a comeback at some point and make my return to the pool as a Masters swimmer, at the moment I’m branching out and trying other things. Currently, it's weightl...

10 Types of Teammates Found on Every Team; Which One Are You? The fun part about being on a team is being surrounded by teammamtes, individuals who offer different personalities. I am sure someone’s face comes to mind when you think of the coach’s pet, or the warmup sprinter and even the Save up Sal...

How to Support A Swimmer After A Poor Race (Coaches' Examples Included) By Abby Boone, Swimming World College Intern Every swimmer has come to the wall at the end of a race and been unhappy with their swim. Whether they are sad or mad, whether there are tears or frustration, each swimmer turns to th...

4 Swimming 'Icks' and How To Be the Best Practice Swimmer The pool glows a vibrant blue as you step on the pool deck for practice, excited for a great day. You have the opportunity to spend time with friends, maybe have an easy set, and get better at the sport you love. Life couldn’t be better, unti...

Oh No! 5 Things Swimmers Dread at Practice Every swimmer has their irks, the things that bother them most at practice. We all dread certain things whether it is a challenging set in the pool, or a basic everyday task as simple as putting lane lines in the water. Read on to see the five things that s...

Even After Massive Changes, Arizona State Men Still Have Talented Core For Title Defense Two days after Arizona State University won its first-ever national title in men’s swimming, the head coach who guided a nine-year renaissance departed for the same position with the University of Texas men’s te...

Advice to My Younger Swimmer Self: Summer Finke Reflects on Her Career in the Pool And suddenly it was over. Twenty-two years of competitive swimming came to an end within a split second on a random Saturday in March. My hand touched the wall for the last time and my competitive swimming journey end...

By Cassidy Lavigne, Swimming World College Intern There are many different types of coaches who have distinct styles in how they train their athletes. Some push more than others and some hate losing, but all of them have a passion for swimming and seeing their swimmers improve.  While at times I dre...

Friday FunDay: 5 Unique Swimming Relays to Make Practice Fun Are you tired of the endless back and forth of swimming during practice? Craving the thrill of competition that's more about teamwork than swimming the fastest time? Luckily, you can dive into the exciting world of fun swimming relays! For...

Non-traditional Swim Events That Could Add a Little Fun to the Meet Lineup As swimmers, we all wish the 100 IM and 50s of strokes would last forever. How cool would it be if our sport offered non-traditional events in fun-filled meets, like the 50 underwater, 100 doggy paddle, or the 200 kick with f...

What is the Hardest Event in Swimming? By Elise Devlin There’s nothing worse than getting a wide eyed, worrisome expression from your friend after you answered their question, “So, what event do you have next?” We’ve all been there. Lurking somewhere in your meet lineup is only the worst event to ex...

Swimming's World Cup Proving Valuable Hub For Autumn Racing An event entitled “World Cup” naturally carries some weight. After all, that’s the moniker used by global football’s signature event, held every four years and capturing the attention of fans across the globe. The Olympics is the only globa...

12 Signs You’re a True Swim Team Kid: Being Part of a Special Sporting Community Swimming is an all-consuming sport, and once you start participating, you are most likely never to stop. If you begin as an age-grouper on a swim team, you will find that your life revolves around the sport, making it m...