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Swimming Storytellers: Authentic, casual and fun conversations with swimmers, by swimmers.
Episodes
Tuesday Apr 13, 2021
Tuesday Apr 13, 2021
The Social Kick are honored to have Dick Pound on the show this week!
The first ever President of the World-Anti Doping Agency and two-time Vice President of the International Committee, Dick Pound is a giant in the world of sport.
A chartered accountant and lawyer, Dick’s roots are in swimming. Representing Canada at 1960 Rome Olympics and 1962 Perth British Empire and Commonwealth Games, Dick held the Commonwealth record for the 110yards Freestyle.
Dick is the longest serving member of the IOC, playing a pivotal part in revolutionizing the Olympic movement in a multi-billion-dollar franchise by negotiating TV and sponsorship deals.
His drive and passion in the fight against drugs in sport has led to his involvement in world-wide news stories and controversies. Particularly, his work on the Ben Johnson drug scandal at the 1988 Seoul Games and motivation for change within drug-testing in sport.
Be captivated by his knowledge and motivation for change as we discuss his impactful career, Olympic involvement and remarkable cases.
Enjoy our chat with Dick Pound!
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
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Wednesday Apr 07, 2021
Wednesday Apr 07, 2021
Marie Wattel roars onto the podcast this week after her recent success at the 2021 FNN Golden Tour in Marseille. Marie won the 100m Freestyle and 100m Butterfly to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics this summer.
Competing for France, she trains at Loughborough University in England, a move she made in 2016 after deciding she needed a change in her training following her performance at the Rio Olympics.
We chat about her decision to move to England, French trials and how she adapted to training in France over lockdown. Marie also gives an insight into her next steps after graduation and the differences between her training in France and England (including no more 200m Flys)!
As she matures as an athlete, watch how Marie Wattel improves her training styles and tackles spaghetti arm freestyle.
One thing is for sure, Marie Wattel finds solutions.
Enjoy!
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
FOLLOW: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialkickpodcast/
Wednesday Mar 31, 2021
Wednesday Mar 31, 2021
Fresh off the block from Men’s NCAAs, breaststroker Reece Whitley joins us on The Social Kick.
Reece holds the second fastest ever time in the 200 Breaststroke SCY and has soared onto the international swimming scene over the last few years.
Looking ahead to the summer, we discuss his recent performance at NCAAs alongside his Cal teammates (even if he never sees them train), and the impressive roster working towards the 200m Breaststroke final at Olympic Trails.
Not just a great athlete but a great teammate, Reece talks about his pride in being a leader for the new recruits joining the Bears and gives us his best, on-the-spot, ISL draft pitch for this season.
In the wake of Eddie Reece’s retirement announcement, Reece credits Cal’s dominance in the pool over the last years to the coaching excellence of David Durden and how a good coach holds a lasting magnetism over a team.
A hardworking athlete and arguably the best reaction face in swimming, Reece Whitley is definitely one to watch. Enjoy!
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
FOLLOW: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialkickpodcast/
Wednesday Mar 24, 2021
Wednesday Mar 24, 2021
Shaine Casas is not just looking to win big at NCAAs this week, he's looking to break records.
The 2019 U.S. National Champion in 100m Backstroke joins us on the first day of Men's NCAAs to talk about his mentality and goals. Swimming for Texas A&M, Casas is the 4th fastest swimmer in the 200 Backstroke SCY and only a second away from Ryan Murphy's fastest swim ever.
An enthusiastic young athlete, Casas radiates energy and wisdom, bringing it on deck to every practice and meet.
Tune in to hear about his Olympic dreams, 'person before swimmer' attitude and impressive shoe collection.
Enjoy!
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
FOLLOW: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialkickpodcast/
Wednesday Mar 17, 2021
Wednesday Mar 17, 2021
2019 World Champ in 100m Butterfly, Canadian star Maggie MacNeil joins the show on the eve of NCAAs.
The Michigan swimmer exploded onto the international scene after beating reigning champion Sarah Sjöström at the Gwangju games.
Provisionally nominated for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, join us as Maggie recalls her unforgettable Worlds win, how her underwater dolphin kick is so powerful and her goals for the upcoming 2021 NCAAs.
A fiercely competitive athlete and a thoroughly enjoyable guest. Tune in to find out what Maggie is like in practice and how she views herself as a human first, swimmer second.
Breaking records and conquering practices. Hope you enjoy!
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
FOLLOW: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialkickpodcast/
Wednesday Mar 10, 2021
Wednesday Mar 10, 2021
We chat with a swimming hero, from her home in Holland. Enith Brigitha was the first black swimmer to win an Olympic medal with 2 bronzes in the 100 & 200 free at the 1976 Montreal games, and while such a monumental feat as breaking the podium color barrier deserves the utmost praise, tragically, her 100 free bronze should have been gold.
Enith burst onto the world scene as a young 17yr old at the 1972 Munich Olympics, finaling in 3 individual events and 2 relays. She’d come back a year later in 73 to win an individual silver medal at the first ever world championships. She was clearly headed for Montreal to do something big.
But just as Enith was ready to peak, the East Germans were making plans of their own, by creating one of the darkest periods in sports history as their systematic doping programme allowed the DDR to dominate world athletics for many years to come, and famously was on full display at the 76 Games where East German women won all but 2 swimming events. Enith was beaten only by 2 East Germans, both of whom an investigation would eventually prove were aided by performance enhancing drugs.
45years later, the IOC still has not disqualified their tainted results, which means Enith still doesn’t have her gold medal. It was a true honor for us to share this conversation with such a trailblazer, deserving of far more credit than she has received.
Tuesday Mar 02, 2021
Tuesday Mar 02, 2021
Over 300,000 people a year die from drowning globally, mostly in developing countries.
3500 Americans a year die from drowning, mostly from low to middle income and black and brown communities.
Contributors factors: access to pools and other bodies of water, fear of water, cost of learn to swim programs.
Our guest in this episode, is on a mission to change those stats, and by the way, leave it to a paralympian without full function of his limbs to show the world that anyone CAN swim. Jamal Hill is an American Paralympic swimmer currently competing in the S10 classification (for those of you who aren’t familiar with para classification, we talk about it). He’s a many-time US national champion and currently focused on qualifying for Tokyo.
Jamal runs a non-profit called SwimUpHill that teaches a learn-to-swim curriculum called the BOWL / BENCH / BUCKET method that doesn’t require a pool or body of water. Their goal: teach a million people to swim.
People if you’re not out there getting it done, listen to the words of this dude and go get after it. He’s awesome.
Here’s our conversation with Jamal Hill.
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
FOLLOW: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialkickpodcast/
Tuesday Feb 23, 2021
Tuesday Feb 23, 2021
Tudo Bem to Brazilian swimming royalty, with 4-time Olympic medalist, World, and NCAA champion Gustavo Borges and his son, University of Michigan sprinter Gus Borges.
For those who may not have followed swimming in the early 90s, Gustavo Borges was one of the best swimmers in the world. In his first Olympics he came 2nd to Popov in 92 in the 100free, and backed it up 4yrs later in Atlanta with a bronze in the same race. How big of a deal was he? Two more Olympic appearances later he carried the flag for Brazil in the closing ceremonies in Athens. He was the man.
So, what’s it like to be his son and decide you also want to be a swimmer? This conversation should be mandatory listening for all swim parents. It’s a masterclass in how to support your kids to find their passion and if you’re the kid, how to follow in your high-achieving parent’s footsteps without the weight of the world bearing down on you. These guys have been coached by some of the legends of the sport. In 1990 Gustavo moved from BR to the USA to train at the famous Bolles School in Jacksonville Florida under Gregg Troy, then onto Michigan to swim for Jon Urbanchek. When his son Gus eventually became a recruit himself, he was given only one restriction – can’t go to Ohio State. Gus followed in dad’s footsteps to become a Wolverine and swim for Mike Bottom.
Needless to say, they’ve picked up quite a few useful lessons along the way, and this conversation, is all about them.
Hope you enjoy it. Here’s father and son, Gustavo and Gus Borges.
SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLbmxjdMDo4UHcB9bEUWsQg
LISTEN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-social-kick-podcast/id1478682639
FOLLOW: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialkickpodcast/
Friday Feb 19, 2021
Friday Feb 19, 2021
Do you ever watch a really fast swimmer and think “wow, how do they do that?”
In this episode, we get to talk to one of them. Coleman Stewart. He’s one of the best underwater kickers in the world, proven as an NCAA champion in the 100 backstroke, and from recently stacking up backstroke wins this past season in the International Swim League. It’s no wonder Jason Lezak texted him the night the NCAA Championships got cancelled due to COVID recruiting him to the Cali Condors - he’s a stud in the short course pool and of course became a huge asset for the eventual ISL champions.
The Olympics however are long course, so we discuss his strategy for getting on the team, but not before nerding out on what makes Coleman so lightning fast underwater, and also hearing what’s in the special sauce that brought his college team NC State back to national prominence.
He’s such a down to earth guy. Felt like we were really talking to the person, not the swimmer. Super fun conversation. Hope you enjoy it.
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Triple World Champion Marco Koch tore up Season 2 of the ISL. He is a favorite to win the 200 Breast Olympic Gold Medal based on his recent form. Or is he? This is a packed event, but also an event waiting for that break through. What is Marco doing to be that star in Tokyo?