Social Kick

Ashley Twichell - Mom and Olympian, not slowing down - Episode 247

Faster everywhere she goes

It took a few attempts and many years before Ashley Twichell eventually became an Olympian at age 32, the oldest first time Olympian on the US team in Tokyo, but that wasn’t what she set out to achieve anyway. In this episode, we check in with Ashley a few weeks after giving birth to her 2nd child, which took place during the Kentucky Derby!

We cover everything from her journey from Duke to the legendary Mission Viejo workouts with distance guru coach Bill Rose, to winning the 5k World Title in 2017, to making the Tokyo Olympics, and then having her highest pool water finish with a 3rd place at the 2024 Trials.

Enjoy and don't forget to subscribe for weekly podcasts and daily shorts!

Leanne Smith - Superstar Paralympian - Episode 246

Three world records in one day?!?!

 

Superstar paralympian Leanne Smith may be on the best form of her career following her recent performance at the World Series stop in Indianapolis where she won 5 events and broke 3 world records in the 50, 100, and 200 free with all records happening on the same day! 

 

Following her diagnosis with dystonia, Leanne discovered swimming as part of her rehab but but the sport became an athletic pursuit as Leanne has amassed one of the most impressive resumes in swimming. Following her first Paralympics in Tokyo, Leanne smashed the 2022 Worlds where she won 7 gold medals! Then came a health setback that could have derailed her career, but she bounced back to make the 2023 Worlds team and still won a medal. Then came Paris where she won two individual Paralympic gold medals (50 & 100 free) and two silvers on relays.

 

Leanne is an inspiration and we had so much fun chatting with her and learning from one of the best to ever do it! Enjoy!

Oliver Morgan Team GB’s Backstroke Star Chasing History - Episode 245

Team GB’s backstroker has arrived, and he’s one of the world’s best. Oliver Morgan has been on a rapid rise the last few years including an assault on the British record in the 100 backstroke and now has won the backstroke treble twice at his country’s championship meet. Only fully committing to swimming around age 18, the now 21 year old recently dropped his best time in the 100 to 52.1, close enough to taste a 51 second performance which few men in history have done.

In this episode, we chat with Ollie as he looks ahead to the World Championships this summer and discuss how he trains, what he’s learned from years of cycling and football training before focusing on swimming, how he assimilates into Team GB and the great potential for British medley relays.

Enjoy and don't forget to subscribe for weekly podcasts and daily shorts!

Enhanced Games - Pros and Cons - Live Discussion: Episode 244

With all the conversation surrounding the Enhanced Games, we decided to hop on a live show to discuss the pros, cons, and everything in between!

 

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Becca Mann: From Child Prodigy to Swimming Legend, Memoir, Comeback & the Maui Nui | Episode 243

From crossing the Maui channel at age 10 to rocking the American flag cap for Team USA to becoming the first and only person to complete the Maui Nui triple crossing, Becca Mann has lived a swimming life full of triumphs and tribulations too good not to share with the world, so the accomplished novelist and screenwriter pivoted to non-fiction and wrote a memoir - Outside the Lanes: A Pro Swimmer’s Story of Resilience, Reinvention, and Redefining Success.

Becca joins us for a chat about her life, writing books, and swimming. She’s a riot and her energy is contagious. Following a five year break from competition, Becca is back in the pool aiming to get back on the US National team, having moved to North Carolina to join her old friend and World Champion Ashley Twichell in training. Judging by her results thus far, she looks to be right on track.

Caroline Bricker: Stanford's 400 IM Queen on Beating Olympians and Believing Big | Episode 242

The Stanford women were on fire this year and it was performances like Caroline Bricker had at NCAAs that led the Cardinal moving up the podium to take the 2nd place trophy back to The Farm. Dropping 12 seconds over the course of 2 years is something age groupers do, not often seen among the elite field who generally are chasing marginal gains and celebrating personal bests by tenths of a second. But not Caroline Bricker. Her self belief, as she explains in this episode, powered her with a winning mindset that she brought to the A final and unleashed on the field to win the 400 IM, pulling away from the Olympic silver medalist in the process to stamp her name in Stanford history as “400 IM U.”

 

A lot is changing though, with the recent departure of coach Greg Meehan to take the helm at USA Swimming, Caroline updates us on the search process and how other coaches and teammates are stepping in to keep the momentum going into long course season.

Lucy Bell | Stanford's 200 Breaststroke NCAA Champion | Episode 241

NCAA 200 breaststroke champion Lucy Bell, a Stanford junior, didn’t even swim that event she ultimately won when the season began.

While one of the best individual medley swimmers in the country, driven by a strong breaststroke leg, her “3rd event” at NCAAs had usually been the 200 butterfly. But Lucy’s intuition told her to give breaststroke a try so she asked her coaches, got a chance, and on her first attempt put up the fastest time in the country to that point of the season. She would go on to drop time over and over again, ultimately culminating in a NCAA title with a dominant victory. Good reminder to always keep exploring your athletic potential.

Lucy Bell is the perfect example that trying something a different way could unlock growth and performance to another level.

Enjoy and don't forget to subscribe for weekly podcasts and daily shorts!

Piper Enge | Miranda Grana | Texas Indiana Women's NCAA Recap | Episode 240

The 2025 college swimming season was a wild one, and to chat about women’s swimming and put a bow on the year that was, we’re joined by Texas stud freshman Piper Enge and Indiana mega point scorer Miranda Grana to talk all things swimming. 

 

Piper finaled in the 100 breaststroke (5th) at her first ever NCAAs as a freshman and swam short course best times this year, following up on her World Championships appearance in 2024. Texas finished 3rd in the team race following a tight battle with Stanford for 2nd. 

 

Miranda Grana scored 40 points for the Hoosiers in her first year with the program, led by her 3rd place 100 backstroke and 4th place 100 butterfly performances. IU battled Tennessee for the 4th trophy, and took home another large one to display in coach Ray Looze’s office. 

 

In this fun episode with two of the brightest young stars in college swimming, we look back on the year of swimming, discuss adjusting to college swimming and to a new program, innovative techniques, the difficulty situation with roster cuts, and expectations for next year.

Jonny Marshall Will Modglin Yamato Okadome Florida Texas Cal 2025 Men's NCAA Recap | Episode 239

3rd Annual Men’s NCAA Championship Recap Show featuring Will Modglin (Texas), Jonny Marshall (Florida) and Yamoto Okadome (Cal).

The dust settled another Texas vs. Cal title race with Texas taking the crown, some of the up and coming stars from the meet sat down for a cross-team chat about the meet and college swimming. Will Modglin scored 23 individual points, highlighted by a team NCAA championship for the longhorns and 3 A final appearance. Modglin had ups and downs, as he was on the national champion 200 medley relay, due to a Florida false start. Modglin had his own disqualification on the dreaded back to breast turn in the 200 IM.

Jonny Marshall had 25 individual points, placing 2nd in the 100 back (while breaking the NCAA record). He also was on the meet record 400 medley relay, just missing their own NCAA record which they set at SECs.

Yamoto Okadome, the only Japanese swimming competing in the division 1 level got a true taste of the sport, being thrown into the A finals in the 100 and 200 breast. He also experienced the ravenous Cal fans/alumni, cheering on the team in their sweaty bear costumes.

Enjoy and don't forget to subscribe for weekly podcasts and daily shorts!

Jassen Yep - The most surprising win of 2025 NCAA Swimming Championships | Episode 238

As a 5th year, even Jassen Yep didn’t think winning an NCAA Swimming title was possible until he touched the wall in the 200 breast. After touching, Jassen Yep let out raw emotion and excitement, resulting in a legendary swimming celly. Although it seems like Yep was an overnight success, there was a lot of hard work behind this win. Yep was an accomplished high school swimmer in California, representing Archbishop Mitty and swimming at PEAK with elite club coach Abi Liu. In high school, he went a 1:57 in the 200 breast to earn a small scholarship at Indiana. At Indiana, Jassen put in work and through various ups and downs, he dropped 9 seconds in the 200 breast to go a 1:48 200 breaststroke, becoming the third fastest performer in history. He is also the best dressed Social Kick guest of all time, rocking a tuxedo on the show and having Olympian Matt King serve him a chilled beverage. Entering the 2025 NCAA Swimming championships, Jassen Yep was convinced this would be his final meet. Lucky for us, he surprised himself, and we’ll get to watch him continue his career in the long pool. Enjoy and don't forget to subscribe for weekly podcasts and daily shorts!