Forbes Carlile: Swim Coach Mover Down Under by Chris Van Slooten
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ASCANewsletter AMERICAN SWIMMING COACHES ASSOCIATION 2014 EDITION | ISSUE 12 FORBES CARLILE: SWIM COACH Mover Down Under By Chris Van Slooten In This Issue: Forbes Carlile: / 01 Mover Down Under By Chris Van Slooten Let Swimming Belong / 15 to the Child By John Leonard Food For Thought / 16 By Coach Don Swartz Short Interview with / 18 Brent Rutemiller By John Leonard The Immutable Rules / 21 of Improvement for Swimming and Life By John Leonard Questions Every Game / 22 Changer Must Answer William C. Taylor Book Excerpt Building Your Club / 24 By George Block The Real Pathway- / 27 Discovering Talent by Gordon Bloom Book Review by George Block 2014 EDITION 12 | ASCA NEWSLETTER 1 ASCA Newsletter Official ASCA Sponsors Published for the American Swimming Coaches Association by the American Swimming Coaches Council for Sport Development. Board of Directors PRESIDENT: Gregg Troy VICE-PRESIDENTS: Jim Tierney, Steve Morsilli MEMBERS: Don Heidary, Ira Klein, Matthew Kredich. Michael Lawrence, David Marsh, Amy Montgomery, Tim Murphy, Kathleen Klein Prindle, Bill Wadley, Chuck Warner EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: Jennifer Gibson, Tim Welsh ASCA Staff EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND EDITOR John Leonard CLINICS AND JOB SERVICES Guy Edson SwimAmericaTM Sponsors INTERNATIONAL DIRECTOR Duffy Dillon ADMINISTRATIONS Judie Doggett FINANCE Kim Cavo BOOKKEEPING & SALES Lenora Hayes MEMBERSHIP SERVICES Melanie Wigren CERTIFICATION Kim Witherington TECHNICAL SERVICES AND WSCA Matt Hooper WEB & MEDIA DIRECTOR: Mary Malka PUBLISHING: Devan Martin SWIMAMERICATM & ALTST Julie Nitti GENERAL COUNSEL Richard J. Foster The Newsletter for Professional Swimming Coaches A Publication of the American Swimming Coaches Council for Sport Development, American Swimming Newsletter (ISSN: 0747-6000) is published by the American Swimming Coaches Association. Membership/subscription price is $70.00 per year (US). International $120.00. Disseminating swimming knowledge to swimming coaches since 1958. Postmaster: Send address changes to: American Swimming Coaches Association 5101 NW 21st Avenue, Suite 530 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309 (954) 563-4930 | Toll Free: 1 (800) 356-2722 | Fax: (954) 563-9813 swimmingcoach.org | [email protected] © 2014 American Swimming Coaches Association. 2 ASCA NEWSLETTER | 2014 EDITION 12 Forbes Carlile : Swim Coach Mover Down Under By: Chris Van Slooten, ASCA Fellow 2013 Reasonable people adapt themselves to the world. Unreasonable people attempt to adapt the world to themselves. All progress, therefore, depends on unreasonable people. - George Bernard Shaw It is 5AM. In their modest 1920’s home at 16 Cross Street, Ryde, Sydney, Forbes Carlile (93) and his wife Ursula, a spritely 77, are extracting the most from the day. Forbes is at his desk opening overnight emails and Ursula will soon return from her gym/swim workout. She has been up since 3:30AM feeding the cats, attending to desk-work and house hold duties. She calls Forbes for breakfast. In the back yard of the Carlile home is the first indoor swim school in Sydney, built by the Carliles in 1962. It soon will be busy teaching children, many with parents and even grandparents who themselves had learned to swim the “Carlile way” at Cross Street. Modest Carlile 1920s home (second story bedroom added) with Sydney’s first indoor heated lesson pool. A knock on the backdoor results in “come some attesting to many awards including half a century. Much of this memorabilia in”, a hearty handshake and entrance to a his 1973 award from ASCA for his life-time is to be found across a connecting bridge in treasure-trove of swimming history packed contributions to swimming. Forbes explains the Carlile’s next door house which they on walls, shelves and in many boxes. The he is in the process of sorting out this material purchased 30 years ago to accommodate their walls are covered by numerous photographs, to be viewed for the first time in more than already burgeoning “historical” collection. 2014 EDITION 12 | ASCA NEWSLETTER 3 Forbes Carlile: Swim Coach (Continued) while Florence was in in Australia. Cotton was an accomplished the nursing profession. national swimmer, who just missed selection When Forbes was 2, the as a member of the Australian 4x200m relay family moved to Sydney team which won silver at the 1920 Olympics. and always lived close to In the 1940’s, Cotton redirected his academic the harbour. He was first interests to the physiology of muscular introduced to swimming exercise. He then found a kindred spirit in at the age of eight at the physiology student Forbes Carlile, who was Balmoral Rock Pool; a also a NSW State Backstroke champion, to reluctant participant at become his assistant in establishing the first first, he soon took to the sports science laboratory in Australia. In the water and a year later early 1940’s, Japan was threatening much of competed in his first race. the Pacific including Australia. On a return Soon enthusiasm for the flight from a conference in London, Cotton sport grew and Forbes, was in Darwin in Australia’s Northern in his late teenage years, Territory when the Japanese bombers made began amateur coaching. their first raid. It gave him the opportunity While he experienced to observe physiological reactions to stress success in the pool, he including taking heart rates. At this time, was not excelling in the Cotton was developing the “aerodynamic classroom; a teacher anti-G flying suit” to be used by pilots to wrote to his parents “His handle the g-forces during combat. low marks are a natural result of neglected Cotton found a kindred spirit in Forbes, both Over 50 years of unsorted Carlile archives homework and poor were passionate in developing sports training concentration”. As a on the basis of reliable science. As Forbes result of his lack-luster recalls his time with Professor Cotton, he academic performance, More impressive than the stacks of research, states the Professor gave him (Carlile) the his parents decided to send him to The Scots articles, and letters written and received from free reign in carrying out his research, and College so that he may better focus on his coaches spanning numerous decades are the they would have lively discussions about academics; a decision which proved very endearing qualities of Forbes and Ursula moving academic courses from science to fortuitous since Forbes distinguished himself who welcome you into their home with exercise training (with this focus on sports both academically and athletically becoming charm and hospitality. It does not take long in an academic institution, Cotton endured the Deputy Head Prefect (1939), Honour before one truly experiences Forbes’ passion great criticism from his colleagues). Carlile Cap for sport (1939), the Blackwood Cup for for swimming. Indeed, one only needs to recalls “He was into exercise physiology and I Sport and Studies, captain of the swim team, quickly scan his current office to witness became his right-hand man, but I concentrated and awarded colours nine times in swimming, his dedication to his wife, swimming, and on swimming. We started applying science to shooting, rugby and athletics, member of the learning. When asked what has allowed him sport. In Australia swimming hadn’t been school debate team and played the violin in the to be an instrument of change Forbes replies scientific at all till then,” although America school orchestra. “I have always grasped the opportunity had been better served by TK Cureton and to be my own boss”; in a word freedom. others. In 1946, while working with Professor Freedom has given Forbes the means to make While at The Scots College (1935 – 1939), Cotton, they created the first Sports Science decisions that are aligned with his vision for Forbes came under the influence of Science Laboratory in Australia which was located in swimming; whether conducting research, Master Louis Simmons who first kindled his the Old Medical School. Cotton was focusing standing up to the governing bodies of aptitude for science. Dr. Simmons helped foster his work on rowing ergometry while Forbes Australian Swimming or FINA, or allowing the inquisitive minds of his pupils through assisted in “particular in the formation him to overcome many obstacles. As we shall teaching methods systematic questioning what of concepts on the scientific training of see, Forbes Carlile is a man of many parts—a is seen, proven what is unseen, and defending swimmers.” Forbes was looking for a skin man of yesterday and today. one’s convictions. The passion for science application to reduce drag through the water. combined with his athleticism provided a solid foundation in which he was to build his career Forbes, named after his mother’s surname, Forbes applied scientific discipline to as an athlete, coach, and advocate. born in Armadale, Victoria on the 3rd of June swimming and through research and testing 1921, was the only child of Oswald Carlile and drove himself to understand the effects of Florence Forbes, who met in England during Upon graduating from The Scots College he training on the body in an attempt to use Oswald’s service in World War I. His father came under the orbit of Dr. Frank Cotton, this knowledge to design training methods was an accountant and company secretary considered as the Father of Sports Science and provide adequately for recovery. Forbes’ 4 ASCA NEWSLETTER | 2014 EDITION 12 Australian Marathon Championship 1950 Aftermath of 42 kilometer run pioneering work included ground breaking By the end of World War II, entrenched in In preparing for the running section of studies on the heart action from the graduate work and lecturing, Carlile finished the modern pentathlon, Forbes decided to systematically study his reactions to running electrocardiogram including inversion of playing in the Sydney University Rugby a marathon, not a popular activity in the the T-waves in stressed athletes and changes Team and competitive swimming, as a result early 1950’s.