Swimming World January 2022 Presents – Q&A with Sarasota Sharks Coach Brent Arckey

Swimming World January 2022 - Q and A with Sarasota Sharks Coach Brent Arckey

Sarasota Sharks Head Coach/CEO Brent Arckey

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Q&A with Sarasota Sharks Coach Brent Arckey

By Michael J. Stott

Sarasota Sharks Head Coach/CEO Brent Arckey took 11 swimmers to the 2021 Olympic Trials. One, Emma Weyant, won a silver medal in the 400 IM in Tokyo to be just the latest representative of this USA Swimming Gold Medal club that continues to impress on the national and international stage.

Among other accomplishments, Coach Arckey has developed more than 20 Olympic Trials qualifiers and multiple USA Swimming national/national junior team members, NCAA All-Americans, high school champions and NAG record holders.

CREDENTIALS
• University of Florida, B.A., sports management, 2008
• Head coach/CEO, Sarasota Sharks, Inc., 2017-present
• Director of competitive aquatics, Sarasota Family YMCA, 2014-17; senior assistant, 2010-14
• Head swim coach, Riverview High School, 2012-20
• Senior assistant, Gator Swim Club, 2005-10
• Member of USA Swimming coaching staff for 2015 Junior Worlds, 2016 Junior Pan Pacs, 2021 Olympics and 2021 national junior team that competed at World Cup in Berlin and Budapest
• 3x Florida LSC coach of the year
• 6x Florida high school coach of the year
• Staff member of nine Sarasota YMCA national combined team championships, 18 Florida age group championships and multiple top 10 national junior team finishes

Q. SWIMMING WORLD: What were some lessons you learned from your many hall of fame coaches?
A. COACH BRENT ARCKEY: I was exposed to many different training styles and programs. Mike Heath, my first true swim coach, helped cultivate my love of the sport. While I never actually swam for Bill Peak, head coach of the Trinity Aquatic Team in Orlando, he had a toughness that radiated through the whole program. From his successor, Mitch Ivey, I learned about creativity and a different style of training.

I finished my high school career with Clay Parnell and the Patriot Aquatic Club. Clay was instrumental in keeping me in the sport and holding me accountable. Arthur Alberio and Don Wagner at the University of Alabama taught me a lot—and in hindsight, I did not take advantage of the opportunities they gave me.

My most formative years in coaching were in Gainesville with Gregg Troy, Anthony Nesty, Martyn Wilby, Chris Oliver, Nancy Hennessey and Ryan Woodruff. These coaches enlightened me about progressions, hard work, running a business, high performance and, ultimately, what it takes to be the best.

After leaving UF, I took a job with the Sarasota YMCA Sharks, where I worked with Steve Brown and Sherwood Watts, learning much about team culture, tradition and running a club.

SW: Early on, you simultaneously coached age groupers and Olympic champions. What did you learn?
BA: Nancy and Chris preached progression, so every day I was working through how I would setup up 8-year-olds to be like Olympians. It was an invaluable experience and a model for athlete development, regardless of ability.

SW: How do you inject fun into practices?
BA: I try extremely hard to let the kids be kids. These days, athletes are so structured—overly so in some cases—and inundated with pressure that they need a safe place where they can be themselves. I tell everyone that we have to be respectful and work hard. This gives them the space they need to test boundaries, be goofy, find themselves and, in turn, have fun.

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 store.Bookbaby.com, Amazon, B&N and book distributors worldwide.

[Photo Courtesy: Robert Hanashiro / USA Today Sports]

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FEATURES

012 THE TOP 5 STORIES OF 2021
by David Rieder
While the pandemic and its massive effects on the sport were the lone top story of 2020, the action in the pool returned to center-stage in 2021. Unsurprisingly, the focus of the year’s top stories centers on Tokyo, where the Olympics produced some amazing performances and historic results.

016 2021 ATHLETES OF THE YEAR
by Dan D’Addona and Matthew De George

Diving: Shi Tingmao, China & Xie Siyi, China
Artistic Swimming: Svetlana Kolesnichenko & Svetlana Romashina, Russia
Water Polo: Maddie Musselman, USA & Filip Filipovic, Serbia
Paralympic: Jessica Long, USA & Maksym Krypac, Serbia

018 THE GREATEST WORLD RECORDS IN HISTORY
by John Lohn
As the 2022 campaign gets underway, Swimming World decided to look at the greatest world records in history. No, this is not a perfect science, but the eight records featured are—plain and simple—spectacular in nature and deserve all-time recognition.

020 ISHOF FEATURE: REMEMBERING SAN FRANCISCO’S SUTRO BATHS
by Bruce Wigo
Located on the ocean side of the southerly entrance to San Francisco Bay’s Golden Gate, the Sutro Baths—built in the 1890s by Adolph Sutro and eventually destroyed in the 1960s—was the world’s largest indoor swimming facility and one of the most amazing recreational and entertainment complexes ever built.

024 2021 WORLD & AMERICAN RECORD PROGRESSION
by David Rieder

026 SWIMMING TOWARD GREATNESS
by David Rieder
Australia’s Ariarne Titmus first beat Katie Ledecky, history’s greatest female distance swimmer, at the 2019 World Championships. She repeated the feat this past summer at the Tokyo Olympics, and now has her sights set on achieving even more challenging goals.

029 NUTRITION: CHILLED TO THE BONE
by Dawn Weatherwax
Bone broth is a home remedy worth adding whether you live in a cold or warm climate.

034 MENTAL PREP: BEFORE THE BEEP WITH MAX McHUGH
by Shoshanna Rutemiller

COACHING

032 SWIMMING TECHNIQUE CONCEPTS: MAXIMIZING SWIMMING VELOCITY (Part 7)—OPTIMAL STROKE CYCLE FOR BUTTERFLY AND FREESTYLE
by Rod Havriluk
A swimmer who takes full advantage of the propulsive phase and eliminates the wasted time on the non-propulsive phase can optimize stroke cycle time. This article presents optimal times for both the propulsive and non-propulsive phases of butterfly and freestyle with corresponding predicted performance improvements.

036 COLLEGE SWIMMING POST-COVID
by Michael J. Stott
College swim coaches from around the country offer their thoughts on how COVID has affected their sport.

042 SPECIAL SETS: LETITIA SIM—DYNAMITE TALENT FROM TNT SWIMMING
by Michael J. Stott
Coach Jan Mittemeyer shares some sets he has given to Letitia Sim and her fellow senior swimmers at TNT Swimming in Daphne, Ala. Now swimming for Michigan, Sim was 2021’s No. 1-ranked recruit from Alabama and 15th nationally.

043 Q&A WITH COACH BRENT ARCKEY, SARASOTA SHARKS (Fla.)
by Michael J. Stott

044 HOW THEY TRAIN OLYMPIC SILVER MEDALIST EMMA WEYANT
by Michael J. Stott

TRAINING

031 DRYSIDE TRAINING: READY, SET, GO!
by J.R. Rosania
With the new year, it’s time to think about what lies ahead and how to begin preparation for winter and early spring racing. This month’s dryland article focuses on exercises for each stroke and some explosive and core training exercises.

JUNIOR SWIMMER

039 GOLDMINDS: THE ART OF SWIMMING
by Wayne Goldsmith
The key to fast swimming is to follow the coach’s leadership and guidance, but it’s also important to choose and make the workout special and unique just for you.

047 UP & COMERS: MAXIMUS WILLIAMSON
by Shoshanna Rutemiller

COLUMNS

008 A VOICE FOR THE SPORT

009 DID YOU KNOW: ABOUT OSCAR NORIN, CHAMPION HIGH DIVER OF THE WORLD?

041 THE OFFICIAL WORD

046 MOMS AT MEETS: BETH CURTISS

048 GUTTERTALK

049 PARTING SHOT

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