Alex Shackell Emerging as Elite Butterfly Talent, Sights on Home Olympic Trials in 2024<\/strong><\/p>\n

In two years since moving to Carmel, Ind., a trip downtown to the IUPUI Natatorium has become a very routine experience for Alex<\/strong> Shackell<\/strong>. Most club and high school swimmers in the Indianapolis area are accustomed to a large slate of meets taking place at the famed facility. At her first high school state championship meet in February, Shackell became the first freshman in the state to ever win a 100 butterfly title, and she had in fact raced at the \u201cNat\u201d at a routine club meet the last weekend in October.<\/p>\n

But when she walked into the facility on the morning of Thursday, November 3, it looked completely different. \u201cThis is not the same pool that we were at last week,\u201d Shackell thought to herself. The FINA World Cup was in town, and for the first time, Shackell would race at senior-level international swimmers.<\/p>\n

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Katie Grimes, Summer McIntosh and Alex Shackell after the 200 butterfly at the FINA World Cup in Indianapolis — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick<\/p><\/div>\n
Once again, Shackell held her own. She placed third in the final behind McIntosh and fellow American teenager Katie<\/strong> Grimes<\/strong><\/a>, and she blasted her back half to finish ahead of Flickinger. Time conversions<\/a> are not always accurate, but Shackell\u2019s short course meters time of 2:05.18 is equivalent to much quicker than her existing short course yards and long course bests.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was kind of a strategy going into it, not overswim the first 100 because that\u2019s just not how I do it,\u201d Shackell said. \u201cI have learned over many 200 fly races that my easy speed is not that much slower than a sprint. When I\u2019m more controlled, I end up having more of a flow, and then I\u2019m also not as tired, so it pays off at the end.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two days later, Shackell notched another top-three effort in the 100 fly<\/a>, her mark of 56.63 behind only a pair of veterans, Sweden\u2019s Louise<\/strong> Hansson<\/strong> and France\u2019s Beryl Gastadello<\/strong>. Reflecting on the meet days later, Shackell could only produce positive takeaways.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had a good amount of people on my team coming with me, and we weren\u2019t rested at all, so there wasn\u2019t that much pressure to put up anything, which I kind of liked,\u201d Shackell said. \u201cI\u2019m a person who can perform at any time of the season. I\u2019m better when I\u2019m not that much rested, actually.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Joining the Carmel Legacy<\/strong><\/h3>\nWhen Shackell\u2019s family moved to Indiana, she joined a swimming program already renowned across the country for holding one of the longest streaks ever in high school sports. Shackell contributed to extending that streak as a high school freshman when she played a key role in Carmel High School\u2019s 36th consecutive girls\u2019 state championship<\/a>.<\/p>\n
But at first, swimming at Carmel was an adjustment. \u201cI hadn\u2019t done a double in my life,\u201d Shackell said. \u201cThey did two doubles per week that were at 5 a.m., and I don\u2019t even know if I had woken up that early ever.\u201d Shackell credited a pair of sophomore teammates, Lexie Ward<\/strong> and Lynsey<\/strong> Bowen<\/strong>, for helping her learn \u201call the really weird things Carmel does,\u201d such as extensive body activation work on pool deck before entering the water for practice, and for providing strong competition in practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s kind of nice because they don\u2019t do my events, so we can push each other in different ways and not get too competitive because we\u2019re all really competitive people. I think we\u2019re the most competitive people in the group, the three of us,\u201d Shackell said. \u201cAnd (Carmel head coach) Chris Plumb<\/strong> is helping me a lot. We\u2019re constantly finding new things to figure out what works best for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shackell is now very much accustomed to the grueling routine of training at Carmel, which includes double practice on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, including dryland prior to swimming Monday and Thursday, as well as afternoon-only practice on Wednesday and Saturday morning.<\/p>\n
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Alex Shackell at the FINA World Cup in Indianapolis — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick<\/p><\/div>\n
\u201cThe hardest part for me is just getting out of bed,\u201d Shackell said of the weekly routine. \u201cIn the morning, when I see the clock say 4:40, that\u2019s the hardest part, but once I brush my teeth and in the car, I\u2019m fine. I would say I\u2019m a pretty positive person. Most of the time, I\u2019m the one who\u2019s energetic and pumping people up for practice, but there\u2019s definitely times when you get in after dryland on a Thursday morning and you can\u2019t feel your body, and you\u2019re like, \u2018Oh my gosh, it\u2019s threshold.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
This season, a new addition to the top training group at Carmel is a returning swimmer who last year became the first ever Carmel alum to qualify for the Olympic team. Shortly after finishing fourth in the 200 freestyle at the World Championships, Drew Kibler<\/strong> returned to his high school program, and Shackell has found Kibler to be a valuable resource. He has provided technical feedback, such as specific focuses in dryland that carry over to swimming, and been an example for taking on tough challenges in practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe doesn\u2019t settle for anything,\u201d Shackell said. \u201cHe always wants to be better, and I think that\u2019s sort of like I am, which is why we get along so well. Every day, we talk to each other about how our practice was and things we can work on, so I really like that. It\u2019s not always me going up to him. It\u2019s him coming up to me sometimes, which is nice because it shows that he actually cares about how I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Chasing the Olympics at Home<\/strong><\/h3>\nAs Shackell steadily climbs through the rankings among American swimmers, a familiar face is alongside her in the journey. Her older brother, Aaron<\/strong>, was also part of the Junior Pan Pacs team this year, and he secured gold in the 200 fly<\/a>. Aaron\u2019s time of 1:55.81 was enough to qualify him for the senior-level U.S. National Team this year, and he is committed to swim for Cal beginning next year.<\/p>\n
Alex said that the two didn\u2019t hang out much at Junior Pan Pacs, but they support each other and push each other as they each find their footing on the national level.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really nice just because not everybody has a sibling around the level they are,\u201d Alex said. \u201cIt\u2019s nice having him at practice because I can keep up on base with him, and we can hold each other accountable with our goals. Outside the pool, he drives us to and back to the house from practice in the morning and at night, so we get to have good conversations, but it was cool that he made the National Team because he used to be way behind me.\u201d<\/p>\n
The goals she is chasing are similar to most steadily-improving teenagers beginning to make an impression on the national level: \u201cMaking the Olympics and being an influence for other people,\u201d Shackell said.<\/p>\n
That said, she is fully committed to the day-to-day, step-by-step process of trying to reach that pinnacle. She has a mature approach for a high school sophomore who turned 16 Sunday. \u201cI love the sport. I love practicing. I think that\u2019s a big part of improving. To stay in the sport for a long time, you actually have to love it to come every day, and to swim at a high level, you need consistent practices,\u201d Shackell said.<\/p>\n
But as for becoming an influence on others, Shackell wants to lean into her own personality and let it show. At Junior Pan Pacs<\/a>, she dabbed on the podium after winning the 100 fly, and within days, USA Swimming had posted a video compilation of Shackell dabbing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s part of what makes me special. No one else is doing that. People have told me that they found it funny or that they\u2019re starting to dab. I thought that was really cool, and it\u2019s why I want to keep doing it,\u201d Shackell said. \u201cIt just kind of puts the fun into it.\u201d<\/p>\n
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A post shared by USA Swimming Next Gen (@usaswimmingnextgen)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n