Swim News - May/June 2001 (No.265)

36 Pages·2001·3.8 MB·English

by  Thierry, Nick

DISCONTENT ON OECK HOWARO FIRBY ON BREASTSTROKE
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CO\TE\TS MAY-JilE2001
N.J.Thierry, Editor&Publisher CONSECUTIVENUMBER265 VOLUME 28, NUMBER4
MarcoChiesa, BusinessMsnager
KarinHelmstaedt, InternationaiEditor
RussEwald,Sunland, USAEditor FEATURES
PaulQuinlan,AustraiianEditor
CecilColwin,Ottawa, FeaturesEditor 6-7 Discontent On Deck Marc St-Aubin
AnitaSmale, CopyEditor
FeatureWriters
CBC SportsJournal InterviewwithJenoTihany
NikkiDryden,Boston
KattiarineDunn,Halifax
WayneGoldsmitti,Australia FixingWhat Isn't Broken NickJ. Thierry
AnitaLonsbrougti,England
Successfulprogramthreatened
InternationalStatisticalSupportGroup:
RumenAtanasov,Bulgaria 12 2001 International Swimming Hall ofFame Honorees
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SzabolcsFodor,Hungary SWIMNEWSEditor/Publisheramong 13 inductedin ISHOF
GerdHeydn,Germany
FranckJensen,Denmark 13 Technique Wayne Goldsmith
BerthJohansson,Sweden
—
DanielPichon/MichelSalles,France
JuanAntonioSierra,Spain PowerOn PowerOff: ThePowerCircle
NevilleSmith,SouthAfrica
FratisekStochI,CzechRepublic 14 American Personality: Ed Moses Russ Ewald
NelsonVargas,Mexico
JanuszWasko,Poland DoingEverythingToGetItRight
SumireWatanabe,Japan
16-17 Poster: Audrey Lacroix, Canada Marco Chiesa
ComputerprogramstorTAG,WorldRankings
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CANADA
CALENDAR
1
CANADIAN May INTERNATIONAL
June ZajacInternational,Vancouver June
22-24 BCChampionships,Surrey July 24-24 InternationalGala,Stuttgart,GER
22-24 McCormickInvitational,Hamilton 18-21 Youth,Junior,SWADNationals,Winnipeg 29-1 COMENCup,Tunis
28-1 Man/SaskChampionships,Regina August 30-1 HamburgInternational,GER
29-1 CoupeduQuebec,Montreal 6-10 SummerNationals,Victoria July
July UNITED STATES 7-8 EuropeanJuniors,Malta
5-8 QuebecAgeGroups,Montreal 7-8 DarmstadtInternational,GER
June
7 TheGorgeOpenWaterlOKNationals,Victoria 7-8 " InternationaldelCastello,Bellinzona,SUI
DisabilityChampionships,Phoeniz,AZ
12-15 BCAgeGroups 13-20 EuropeanOlympicYouthDays,Murcia,ESP
24 lOKOpenWaterselection,DaytonaBeach,FL
OntarioChampionships,Etobicoke 19-22 EnglishChapionships
19-22 Youth&JuniorandSWADNationals,Winnipeg 30-1 CadillasSeries3,SantaClara,CA 17-29 FINAWorldChampionships,Fukuoka,JPN
July
27-29 EasternCup,Montreal August
15-16 CadillacSeries4,LongIsland,NY
28 TraverseeInternationaledeLacSt-Jean 29-3 BritishAgeGroups,Sheffield
28 ThetisLake5KNationals,Victoria 19-22 CadillacSeries5,LosAngeles,CA 4-7 AustralianSCChampionships,Perth
August
August 9-12 BritishSCChampionships
5-9 SummerNationals,Etobicoke 414-18 FSIuNmAmOeprenNWaattieornaWlosr,ldFrCeuspn,o,AtClaAnticCity,NJ 22-1 FISUUniversiade,Beijing,CHN
14-17 CanadaSummerGames,London September
22 5KOpenWaterNationals,Fresno,CA
2002 November 2-15 MediterraneanGames,Tunis,TUN
February 26-29 NewZealandWinterChamps.,Roturua
28-28 FINAWorldCup,EastMeadow,NY
21-24 Youth,Junior,SWADNationals 29-5 GoodwillGames,Brisbane,AUS
29-1 U.S.Open, (25m) EastMeadow,NY
November
2002
March 3-11 Afro-AsianGames,NewDelhi,IND
March
12-16 SpringNational,Winnipeg
19-23 SpringNationals
24 5KOpenWaterNationals
RECORD SETTER 1 ABOUT THIS ISSUE
1 |
CanadianNationalAge Group QUICKFACTS:BrianJohns Fromthe Editor
Girls 15-17 100 butterfly: BIRTHDATE,PLACE 5AUG1982,Regina,SK ThenewsinthelastissueregardingSNC'sdecisionto
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 183cm/86kg
1:00.86AudreyLacroix,CAMO,Romejun10.Betters HOME Richmond endfinancialsupportforTAGgeneratedagreatdeal
oldrecordof1:01.22byAureyLacroix,CAMO,2000. REPRESENTS Richmond Rapids (RAPID) ofwrittencommentary.IttookthreepagesofBackwash
COACH Craig McCord topublishallthefeedback.
QUICKFACTS:AudreyLacroix • 2001 World Trials2nd 200free 1:51.17, 3rd 400free Thanks also to all who wrote regarding my
BIRTHDATE, PLACE 17 NOV 1983 3:54.59, 2nd 200 IM 2:02.50, 1st400 IM 4:20.47
HEIGHT/WEIGHT 163cm/45kg • 2000Summer Nationals2nd 200free 1:51.04, 3rd 400free induction in the International Swimming Hall of
HOME Pont-Rouge, QC 3:55.41, 3rd 200 IM 2:04.29 Fame. Thatwasaveryemotionalexperienceandit
REPRESENTS Centre National CAMO • 2000 OlympicTrials2nd 200free 1:50.34, 2nd 200 IM waswonderfultobepartofsuchamemorablegroup.
COACH Pierre Lamy 2:02.80 Thankstoallwhomadeitpossible.
• 2001 WorldTrials1st100fly1:01.41, 1st200fly2:12.48 • 2000 Spring Nationals 2nd 200free 1:51.04, 3rd 400free
• 2000 Summer Nationals4th 100fly 1:01.50 3:55.41, 3rd 200 IM 2:04.29 RestassuredTAGwillcontinuetobepublished
• 2000OlympicTrials4tfi 100fly 1:01.50 • 99 Pan Pacs8th 200free 1:51.09,3rd4x200free regardless of SNC. We will expand coverage to
•2000SpringNationals2nd100fly1:01.40,4th200fly2:18.29 •99PanAms3rd4x200free additionaleventsandcategoriesmostlyontheworld
•99SummerNationals4th100fly1:02.82,4th200fly2:18.29 wideweb; spacewill likelynot allowforadditional
AllTime15CanadianPerformers AllTime15CanadianPerformers
Women's100butterify Men's 200IndividualMedley eventsintheprintpublication.
1 1:00,24 PAC95AUG JessicaAmey,18,UCSC LCIVI95 1 2:00.38 GOODWJUL CurtisMyclen,24,UCSC LCM98 Topics in this issue include a transcript ofthe
23 11::0000..5418 CPAANCL9C9AAUUGG JJeensnsiifcearDBeugtltaoun,.1292,,PRDOSWA LLCCMM9O9O 23 22::0011..4828 ECSASNOACUUGP AGalreyxABnaduemrasnonn,,2211,,LNUYSACC LLCCMM8960 CBCSportsJournalinterviewwithJen Tihanyi, of
4 1:0071 CDNLCMAY KarineChevrier,22,CAMO LCMOO 4 2:02.50 CANLCMAR BrianJohns,18,RAPID LCMOl whichonlyaboutfiveminuteswasairedontheshow.
5 1:00.86 ROMEJUN AudreyLacrolx,17,CAMO LCM01 5 2:02,83 CANMAY DarrenWard,23,UCSC LCM92 WayneGoldmsithwritesontheconceptofthePower
6 1:01.18 CANAUG KristinTcpham.lB.PEPSI LCI^91 6 2:02,91 CANLCMAR OwenVonRichter,23,ESWIM LCM99
1:01.18 CANAPR SaratiEvanetz.20,PDSA LCM96 7 2:03,34 AUSTNAUG JonathanMcLeo(i,18,UNAn LCM94 Circle, regardingtheworkand restphases in each
1:01.18 CANLCAUG ShonaKitson.22,OSC-SE LCMOO 8 2:03,56 PAC95AUG MarkVersfelcl,19,EKSC LCM95 stroke cycle. Russ Ewald writes on American
910 11::0011..2278 CWSLETAHSSNE8P0 WSaernadAy[rQouuirbla(i,e2,01,7EK,SMCANTA LLCCiMyi8908 910 22::0033..6950 SCEAANSANU7G8 GSireavheaLmuStmzi,t2h0,,1N9Y,ATCBT LLCCMM7980 breaststrokerEdMoseswhobetteredtwoworldrecords
11 1:01,36 SYDNJAN JenniferFratesi,16.R0W LCMOl 11 2:04.04 SYDNJAN TobiasOriwol,15,ESWIM LCMOl inMarch.ToillustratethegeniusofHowardFirbyhis
1123 11::0011,.3785 SCEAAfS^NM8A3Y JMiacnheeKlelrer.M2a0c.PEhPeSrson.15.ESC LLCCMM8838 1123 22::0044.,0188 PPAACC9937AAUUGG RPhoinliWpaWtesiosns,.2148,.NPYSAWC LLCCMM9937 observationson"naturalbreaststroke"fromhistrip
14 1:01,78 CANAUG NancySweetnam.lB.LLSC LCM90 14 2:04,59 CANLCMAR KeithBeavers,18,STARS LCMOl toMinskinI969shouldbearevelation,especiallyto
15 1:01,79 CANLCAUG ElizabethCollins.17,ROD LCMOO 15 2:04,83 SEASN80 BillSawchuk,20,TBT LCM80 thosewhodidn'tknowhim.
SWIMNEWS/MAY-JUNE2001 .5
—— — — ——
OvertheyearsI'vecoachedmanyinternational-
JENO TIHANYI INTERVIEW calibreswimmersandofcoursethetopoftheheap
wasAlex—Baumann.Tous,winningwasalwaysthe
mandate nothowfastyouswam.
DISCONTENT ON DECK
SJ Comparewhenyoufirststartedcoachingin
the 1960sandwhenyoufinishedyournational
coachingcareer.
—
The interviewwasconductedbyproducerMarc St- talent selection in Australia is alive andwell. Alex JT Coachinghaschangedassocietychanged—, as
Aubin(formerswimcoachfor13years)foraprogram Baumann, nowworking inAustralia, told me that thesocialstructurehaschangedinthecountry' at
airedonCBCNewsworidonMarch4ontheneSports their youth program examines 400-500 young leastthat'sthewayIseeit.Ibelievethatinthepastyou
Journal.JenoTihanyihadaboutfiveminutesonair; athletes.Fromthisgrouptheyselect20youngstersto couldbe averydemandingcoach,withoutbeinga
hereistheeditedtextofthewholeconversation. joinafinanciallysupportedtrainingsquad,whostill meancoach.Nowadays,Ithink,ifyoubecomeavery
maintaintheirclubidentity. demandingcoachandyoupresentaplanthatlooks
The SportsJournal (SJ) How didyoufeel For some reason, the money today has been 4-5yearsdowntheroad,youperhapsbecomemoreof
watchhig the performances of the Canadian channelledelsewhere. Inthe 1980swewereableto ameancoachintheeyesofmanyassociatedwiththe
OlympicTeamon CBC—Television? developourownprovincial,national,international sport.Ithinkcoachingisnowmorevaluedbythesize
Jeno Tihanyi (JT) Not veiy happy with the programs.IwouldsubmitmyprogramtoSwimming ofthecontractandhowmuchmoneyyoucanwring
outcome or the excuses heard from some of our Canada and I would be supported financially to outofthesystem.Ibelievethattherearecoachesout
leaders.IwastroubledbytheHeadCoach'scomments internationaleventswithmyclubswimmers. therewhoarereallyproudtodowell,butperhapsthe
onhowwonderfulitwasforswimmerstoberecording Leadinguptothe1984Olympics,1tookadvantage focushaschangedabit,andthatfocusperhapsisnot
personalbesttimes. Infact,hewaswidelyquotedin of something like a dozen of these international inthebestinterestofCanadianswimming.Thefocus
AustraliasayingthathefeltthattheCanadianteam trainingcamps and meets. The World Cup has its haschangedtobringinginathletesfromclubstothe
did well. But remember: these are not provincial placebutit'swayover-emphasizedhereinCanada. regionaltrainingcentreswhilethepoorhomecoach
championshipsnorthird-gradeinternationalmeets, It'sagooddevelopmentaleventforyoungerswimmers struggles to develop an athlete, only to lose that
buttheOlympicGames. whoneedinternationalcompetition.OurWorldCup athletetothenationalandregionalcentres.
TocommentonhowwelltheCanadianteamdid performances are very good and our Games
wouldrequireanin-depthcriticalanalysis.Wedon't performancesareverypoor. SJ Howdothesenationaltrainingcentresimpact
havesuchananalysisbecauseneithertheCanadian Today,thereisfartoomuchemphasi—sonmoney the—clubsystem?
teamleadershipnortheadministrationarewillingto tobewon.YouspendamonthinEurope amonth JT Thestatedprinciplebehindthecentresisthat
look in depth at a problem that has been ailing hereandamonththere.Iamnottotallyagainstitbut youbringintheswimmertotraininthecentrefora
Canadianswimmingforsometime. it certainly detracts from a program that should whileandtheswimmerwillstillparticipateinan—dbe
developemergingathletes. partoftheclub.Nosuchthingexistsanymore at
SJ Manypeopleinthesportsayitiscausedby I believe the Canadian team went to Sydney leastnot 100%. Iseeswimmersbeingnamedtoour
lac—kofmone)'. Doyouthinkthatistrue? withoutaspecificgoalinmind.Manyoftheswimmers trainingcentre and being identified not with their
JT 1don'tbelievewehadmoremoneyinthe1980s interviewedsai—dhowniceitwastomakethenational home club but with the training club. Now, as a
whentheCanadianprogramthrived.Todaytheclub Olympicteam butwinningamedalandgettingon coach, I would have a tough time with that; the
system isnowherenearwhere itwas in mid-1980s. thepodiumistherealultimatepurposeofgoingto personwhostruggledtobringaswimmeruptoage
Andthereismoretoitthanjustmoney.Inthe1980s these big international Games. It's not a 13-14andsuddenlydoesn'thaveanyauthorityinthe
themoneywasinvestedintoprogramsthatproduced developmental opportunity. With the exception of training of this individual, and preparing this
results.Wespentmoretimeandmoneyonprovincial MarianneLimpert, Ididn'thearofanybody,except individual's future. So I think coaches may have
andnationalyouthprograms.TodaytheCanadian perhapsJoanneMalar,whowasreallyangryfornot takenexceptiontothisintheirapproachtotraining.
youthprogramisvirtuallynon-existent,andforthe winningagoldmedal. It'sveryhardtosay,butcertainlythefocusandthe
last two or three Olympics, we've relied on three philosophy of swimming personal bests may be
veterans:MarianneLimpert,JoannaMalar,andCurtis SJ YousaidtheCanadianOlympicteamwentto overehadowing that ultimate desire of everybody
Myden.Thereisnoback-upsystemorfeedingsystem Syd—ne}'withoutaplan. Wl]ydoyousaythat? reachingtheverytop.
tosupporttheveteransandbringinnewblood,and JT Well,Iamreadingbetweenthelines.Butsome Theenticementofgoingtothenationaltraining
suchprogresswill not happen unlessthereexists a ofthecommentsweheardaboutthepreparationof centre isnotjustifiedatall. Perhapstheygetmore
viableyouthprogram. the athletes and howtheywere loo—kingforward to financialsupport,perhapstheyreceivealittleextra
pursuingpersonal-besttimesisfine butthisisan thanifyouwerestayingathome.ButIthink—it'smore
SJ—Whatdoyoumeanby "youthprograms"? indicationofaprogramthathassortofcometoan thanthat.Whatgoesonbehindcloseddoors Ihave
JT Imean atalentidentificationsystem,suchas end at aswim meet. But I am talkingabout long- noideaandIamnotgoingtosecondguessanybody,
LaurentianUniversityandmycolleaguessubmitted rangeplans,plansthatarequadrennial,thatstretch butI'veheardsomeshoddydealingsgoingon.Ifyou
to Swimming Canada, and were always told they overfouryears,whereathletesdevelopstrategy,develop cometotheNationalTrainingCentreyouwillbeable
didn'thavethemoneyforit.Talentidentificationis tactical—prowessingoingintobigGames,tolearnhow todothesesortofthings, but ifyoustaywithyour
the basisofyouth programsthroughouttheworld, torace howtoracetheracethatisathandandhow homeclub,withyourcoach,whoisprobablyjustas
andAustraliaisagoodexampleofthis. Iknowthat toraceotherindividuals,andwin. technicallysound as anybodyelse,you maynotbe
6 SWIMNEWS/MAY-JUNE2001
—— — —
able to do the following. And obviously, the perk some money to run your program. It was a real provincialrightsfowardandseehowmuchtheycan
dangledb—eforetheyoungambitiousswimmerisvery struggleinmylastcoupleofyearswhenIwasinvolved gain.Sothepresentsystemofprovincialrepresentation
attractive andthehomecoachprobablylosessome withNancySweetnam,becausewehadnofinancial isnotthebestwayofgoingintothefuture.
enthusiasm.CertainlyIwould. assistance.Wehadnofinancialaidtodothethings
InthefirstplaceIwouldn'tallowmyswimmerto thatwewantedtodo.Eventually, ittookitstoll. It's SJ Canadian swim coachesare the experts in
goifIwasabletodowhateveryoneelseisdoingand notbecauseIsuddenlylostitasacoach,it'sbecause technicalmattersinthesport, butdocoacheshave
ifIwasgiventhesupport.Inthe1980s,ifmyswimmer Ididn'twanttobeinvolvedinapoliticalballgame rea—linputintheseareasatSwimmingCanada?
wantedtogoswim againstallthepotentialmedley anymore.ItwasCanadianswimming'slossthatIam JT Ibelievethatanoldboysnetworkhasestablished
swimmers who were a threat, or at least potential notinvolvedanymore,itwasn'tmyloss. Ithurtsme itself in Canadian swimming at the upper level,
finalists in 1984, I said I wanted him to go swim thatthesystemisnotprogressingasitshould.So,I which is making it very difficult for new ideas to
againstthosepeople. SohewenttoEuropetoswim justslowlyfadedawayintothesunsetandthatwas emerge.Andwithoutnewideas,there'snoprogress.
againsteverybody.Andhewentdowntothe U.S. to that. Isimplydidn'twanttobeinvolvedwithpeople Therearealotofgreatwonderfulcoachesoutthere,
swimagains—teveryonedownthere. Iwasgiventhat whoweremoreconcernedwiththeirpersonalgains butthestruggletheyhavetogothroughtotryandget
opportunity notrainingcentrecanreplacethat. I thanthegainsofCanadianswimmingatlarge. tothetopbecausetheyarenotpartofthatoldboys
wasabletodevelop astrategythatwasbuiltonnot network,becausetheyarenotpartofthatlittletight
gettingbeaten. SJ Arethepoliticsreallythatdetrimentaltoother group at the top who make coachingpolitics very
coa—ches? unpleasant.Andthat'swhatIdidn'tlike.Ididn'tfeel
SJ AndaretheseNationalCentresreallyassisting JT ^Youseethesamepeopleinthesamepositionfor Ihadtobeinsidethedoortobeabletodomanyofthe
oth—ercoaches? three, four Olympic quadrennials, and there is thingsthatIwasdoingascoach.
JT I hear from other coaches that the training absolutely no innovative changes taking place in Ithinkcoachingshouldbeanopen-doorprocess
centresdonotsupporttheclubsystem.AndIthinkthe Canadianswimming.Andwhatsomepeopleperceive whereyou can come and go asyou likewith your
fundamentalprinciplewhenthediscussionswereon to be changes are really nothing more than re- ideas.Andbycriticallyanalyzingthoseideas,ifthey
thetablewastocreatethesetrainingcentrestogivean allocation of some of the financial resources and work,thenlet'spursueit.Thesystemisalsoforcing
additionalopportunitytobringindividualstogether personnelresources.Andthat'snostepforward. thecoachestosucceedinprobablyamannerthatis
periodicallyandmaybeevenmakethecentresmore A long time ago, itwas "let's supportCalgary contrary to the best process for developing young
specialized.Bringintheindividualmedleyswimmers financially." And then we found that a lot of the athletes.Thesystemisrushedbecausethereisnothing
fortwoweeks,bringinthebackstrokersforamonth, moneythatwaschannelledintotheCalgaiyprogram atthetop.Solet'spushafewathletesthoughandlet's
andsoon,andretaintheclubsystem.Ibelievethisis wasmissingelsewhere.Andthat'swhysomeofthe seeifwecanfillafewgapshereandthere.Andoneof
not happening. And that may be one of the most other programs were cut out. Now let's channel themajoraspectsofdealingwithyoungchildrenisby
important critical analytical points that one could moneyintosomeotherphantomprogram.Andlook, respectingthedevelopmentalprocessanddeveloping
makepost-mortemaftertheSydneyOlympics.How someofthoseprogramsthatgotalargepercentageof athletesovermanyyears,notafewskillsoverafew
canwemakethisworksowecansupporttheclubs? the money from the Canadian system produced days or a few months or a few years. I think it's
Support the swimmers? It's created a few jobs, absolutelynothingotherthannationalchampions. documentedinafewpublicationsthatdevelopingan
channelledafewthousanddollarsintothesystem, Nationalchampions are great, andthat'sprogress. internationalathletetakesapproximatelyeightyears.
withoutanyseeminglypositiveresults.Certainlywe Butintheinternationalarena,youhavetotakethat Andtodevelopsomebodytothelevelwheretheycan
havenotadvancedmuch. extrastep. And I believe that the system, the lame becomeaninternationalathletetakesanotherfour
system thatwe entered into, with lame leadership, orfiveyears.Andit'snotalltraining;it'sgrowthand
SJ—Wl}ydidyouleaveinternationalcoaching? preventedit. Youcan'tfocuson the top andtotally development.
JT ^Asyougetalittlebitolder,youcan'tcarryon neglectthebottom. Ithinkthesystemisforcingcoachestoignorethe
three or four jobs. I have a full-time job at the AndIhavetogobacktoyouthprograms.Ithink developmentalprocessofthechild.Weshoulddevelop
universityandthatwasjustahobbyofminetocoach oversevenyears,ouryouthprogramwouldhavehad alltheskillsthatarenecessaryfirst,thentrainingwill
theclub.AndifSwimmingCanadawouldhavecome paid phenomenal dividends. But Canada wasn't becomemorebeneficialduringthehigh-performance
andsaid,"look,wearegoingtopay50%ofyoursalary interestedinthetalentidentificationprogram.They yeare.
ifthey allowyou to continue coaching," then the weren't interested in any sort ofyouth program. I I think most programs are rushing into the
universitywouldhaveprobablyallowedmetocontinue thinkagood50%,ifnotmore,ofthemoneyofwhat processofdevelopingfastswimmersquicklyrather
doingthat.Butthisdidn'thappen. is available shouldbeput into the developmentof than developing athletes over a longerperiodwho
Obviously SNC wasn't interested in doing youthprogramsandnotsupportasystemthattotally willbemoreresilientandmorecompetitiveandwill
anythinglikethat.Butbeyondthefactthatyou get neglectstheclubsystem. beabletoraceatahigherlevelatmaturity.
tired and you need to get back into your real life Certainlythereneedstobesomechangestothe I believe therewere more listeningears in the
sooner or later, for some time I was really structure. Ithasalwaysbeen adisturbingsituation past than we have today. Whether it's a social
contemplatingnotgettinginvolvedwithSNCanymore for me. SNC has over 20 members oftheboardof phenomenonorit'sjustchangeinfocusorattitude,
simplybecauseIcouldnothandlethepoliticsanymore directors.InAustralia,therearenine.Youcanimagine I don't know. There's a different mentality of the
thattookmyfocusoffofcoaching. howmuchmoneygoesintothemereproductionof parentsupportgroupattheclublevel.Anditcarries
Youalwayshadtocutthroughalotofnonsense information forjusttheboardmembers, andthen through totheprovincial andthenational level. It
at meetings, whether it was coaches' meetings or flyingtheboardmembersintomeetings,andsoon. wouldgoalongwayifthecountrywouldputmore
administrativemeetings.Andyoualwayshadtocut And the inability of the group to really come to emphasisonphysicalactivity,physicaleducationin
through a lot ofnonsensewhen you tried to raise consensus because everybody wants to push their schools,andthatfocuswouldcontinueontohigher
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levelsandtheneedforexpertopinionwouldbemore immature in some respects—. In politics, politicians no coachingbackgroundto speak of. At the highest
respected. don'ttakeissuespersonally theycanstillsitdown possiblelevel,whentheathletesneedthehighestpossible
and have a social occasion with their opposition. careandattentionwiththegreatestamountofcollective
SJ ForaCanadiancoachtoproducetoptalent, However,itseemsthatinswimming,contraryideas experiencethatonecouldbringtothetable,yes,this
whatisreallyneededfromsportgoverningbodies createanimosity.Andthisisonebigreasonwhywe sortofdecisionwillcertainlymakecoachesveryskeptical
lik—eSwimmingCanada? areunabletogetoutofthose leadshoesthatwe've anddistrustthesystem.Itcertainlydidn'tcontributeto
JT Idon'tthinkSNChasdoneenoughmarketing beenanchoredinsincetheearly1990s. ourperfonnanceattheOlympics.
of swimming the way other countries have done.
Manypeopledon'tknowwhatswimmingisabout. I SJ What about the National Coaching SJ Yourswimmerswhohavemovedtocoaching
knowit'sahockeycountry,andIknowfootballhas Cer—tificationProgram?Doesitreallyhelpcoaches? andyoustillkeepin contactwith, howdotheyfeel
its season and so on, but based on the amount of JT Ithinkthereareperhapssomeredundanciesat abo—utthecoachinge?ivironment?
money thatwe have spent, swimmingcould enjoy differentlevels. Itseemstomethatcoacheshaveto JT Certainly those involved in some sort of a
morepopularity.Ibelievethatthereneedstobesome fulfillsomeobligationsthatmaynotbeasnecessary swimming activity as a coach, administrator, or a
changesmade. assomeofthepeoplewhodesignedthoseobligations parentaredisappointed.Butthesystem,unfortunately,
PerhapssomeofthefocusofCanadianswimming seeit. Unfortunately, manyofpeoplewhodesigned createsthisfeelingofdistrustandever^'bodyisworried
foraperiodoftimeshouldmovetothelowerlevels, thecoachingeducationobligationsneverhadmuch aboutsucceeding.
butnotnecessarilyattheexpenseoflosingsightofthe todowithcoaching.AndIalwaysfeltprettyluckyin Thereisacertainamountofexpectationsbynew
upperlevels. I thinkyouhavetokeepmaintaining that I as acoach was also an educator. And I saw coaches when they get out into the system. And
whatwehavenow,butIthinktheemphas—isshouldbe thingsfromadifferentperspective.Perhaps,coaching unfortunately, some of those expectations are soon
puton the kindergarten ofswimming the youth education needs to be more practical, made less turnedintodisappointmentsbecausetheyseethatin
program. invasive into people's time and lives and more factit'snotasrosyasonewouldhopethatitmaybe.
Andforgetaboutspendinghundredsofthousands acceptabletocoaches.Therearetoomanydemands
ofdollarsoncoachingeducation.Coachingeducation put on coaches. Theyhave toproduce taskswhich SJ WhatchangesdoesSwimmingCanadaneedto
canberesolvedinalessexpensivemanner.Ileftthe havelittleapplicationtoeverydaypracticalcoaching do—toreallyhelpcoachesdoabetterjob?
coachingeducationprogramtoobecauseIdidn'tfeel JT There'snotreallyallthatmanythingsthatneed
thefocuswasright.AndIlookedatitfromthepoint SJ—Howiscoachingappreciatedinthiscountry? tobechanged.Somechangeinattitudeinwhatneeds
ofviewofapersonwhospent35yearsintheeducation JT Certainlycoachinghasneverbeenlookedupon to be important in the process of the development.
system and40years as acoach.And I hadagood inthiscountryasaprofession.Coachingisaprofession Changesinthecontrolsystem,howthemoneyisspent
marriage of the two, and I could see where our elsewhere. A coach is an educator. A coach is a forexample,isaveryimportantpoint.Andwhoshould
coachingeducationreallylagged,theemphasis,and teacher.AndwhatmakesitdifferentIsuppose,perhaps makethosedecisions?Coacheshavebeenshutoutof
whereweneedtomakesomechanges.So,weneedto inEurope, isthatcoachesarehiredasalegitimate decisionmakinginthepast.Anditwasalwaysastruggle,
do an in-depth critical analysis of what ails us. occupation. Iremember,asmuchasIalwaysfeltrespectableinthe
Secondly, howwe can move our sport to the next InCanada,andIamnottalkingabouttheelite system,becauseIalwaysunselfishlycontributed.People
stepforward? level, coaching is largely avolunteerconcept, and don'tallowyoutocomeintotheircourtandtrytomake
Weachievedthatoncewhen SportCanadawas whoneedscoachingeducationfortheguyswhoare changesveiyeasily.
headedbyAbbyHoffman. Manyofthecontributors outthereplaying,havingfun,orbaseballchildrenor FromthemanyintemewsthatI'veheardafterthe
were brought to Ottawa and we had two days of childrenengagedinsoccer?Butitstartsthere. Sydney Olympics, it was very clearly voca—lized that
critical analysis.AndIthoughtthathelpedsportin Coaching could be looked at as a real job in change is essential and needs tobe made and the
Canada a greatdeal. And a lot ofpositive changes which people earn a living and make important soonerthebetter.Andthepeoplewhoareresponsible
weremadeatthattime. decisions,andcontributeveryimportantlytothelives needtositdownandcriticallylookatwhathashappened
Weneedtobringinpeoplewhohavecontributed and well-being of many individuals out there, during the last eightyears and learn from that and
inthepastandmaystillhavesomethingtocontribute especiallyyoungpeople. makechangesimmediately.There'snootherway.
for the future. I rememberwhen Howard Firby no
longercoached,butwas—stillabletodosomeofthe SJ You'vementionedseveralareasthatthreaten SJ Whydidyoufeelitwasimportantforyoutodo
thingshewasfamousfor thenwastotallyforgotten theswimcoaches'abilitytoproduce.—TheShauna this—interview?
byCanadianswimming.Todaywehavesimilarpeople. Noldencontroversyoflastsummer didithurt JT It'spainsmetoseewhatishappeninginCanadian
PaulMeronenhasmovedtoIceland!AndIamsure coa—ching? swimming.IfeelthatIhavealottocontribute.Someone
thattherearemanyotherpeopleinthiscountrywho JT Well, I thinkitleftmanypeopledistrustfulof outtherejusthastoaskmetogetinvolved.Iamnottoo
havecontributedagreatdealwhohavebeenignored. thesystemandnotconfidentinthosewhoaremaking sureifIwanttobeinvolvedinfront-linecoachingat
decisionsconcerningthat.NowIamnotquestioning thisstageinmylife,butIwouldcertainlyliketoshare
SJ—Wl)yarecoacheslikeyouignored? theneed,ornoneed,ofappointingafemalecoach. my experiences, my knowledge about training and
JT Contrary ideas are often looked upon as It's not the question of being female or male in athletedevelopment.
threateningideasbecausepeopletendtotakethem coaching.It'smatterofbeingabletoandpreparedto TheCanadianswimmingsystemmustlookatits
personally. And often such coaches get ostracized dowhatisathand:todothejob. rootsmoreseriously,andintheverynearfutureenter
merelyforbeingopen-mindedaswellasoutspoken. HerewearetalkingabouttheOlympicsandhow into the development of a viable youth—program to
Thisattitudeonthepartofthoseinpowerisindicative poorly Canadian swimmers have done and we developthefutureofCanadianswimming otherwise
of immaturity, and maybe swimming is a litde nominateacoachwithlittleinternationalexperience. wewillberevisitingthesameoldissueeveryfouryears.
8 SWIMNEWS/MAY-JUNE2001