July BETWEEN THE LINES 2008

Fishers Greenfield SOUTHEASTERN SWIM CLUB OF Pendleton Mission "Our program encourages swimmers to reach their full potential and Statement develop essential life skills while having fun!"

Important Dates President’s Perspective by: Dan Johnson July How fast does the summer go--we are already in July, our meet is right around the corner, and the 11-13 SSC Summer Sizzler Championship Meets are at the end of this month. In August, all of the country will be watching the 21 SSC Night at Victory Olympic Games where is always one of the areas in which the USA dominates. With this Field in mind I started thinking about how great our sport is and why. I found an article on the “Top 10 Reasons Why Our Children Should Swim”: 25 Final Splash of Sea- son—Tri-Dual @ Craw- fordsville HS 1. Swimming is an outstanding activity for young people. 2. Swimming promotes fitness and teaches a child to strive for physical achievement. Many August super-stars in other sports started out as swimmers and gained strength and coordination that helped them excel. 1-3 2008 Long Course 3. Swimming is an exciting individual and team sport. Age Group State 4. Swimming is a technical and specialized activity involving extensive skill development. 6-10 Central Zone Champi- 5. Swimming is a healthy “lifetime” activity. Participants may be 4 or 101 years old. onships—Indianapolis 6. Swimming is relatively injury free in comparison to other youth sports. (Mega-Zone—all 15 LSC’s competing here) 7. Swimming teaches the life lessons of sport and sportsmanship which include learning to deal with winning and losing, as well as working with officials, teammates and coaches. 9-16 Olympic Games in 8. Swimming motivates participants to strive for self improvement and teaches goal orientation. 9. Swimming cultivates a positive mental attitude, time management skills and high self-esteem. 17 SSC Summer Awards 10. Swimming can prevent drowning. Banquet/Pool Party @ I look at these ten reasons and I am proud to say that I’ve had a lifetime of involvement in this great HSE, 5-8pm sport. I look forward to many more seasons of meeting great athletes and parents, because without the parents support no athlete will succeed in our sport. Thank you to everyone for making SSC a great club and also never resting on our past, Dan Johnson

Hello SSC! Coach’s Corner What a great time for our program! This June had our club competing at meets locally and nation- ally, conducting a training trip for our senior athletes, and sending an athlete to a seeded heat at the Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska. By Andy Pedersen It has been an outstanding month of competition for our team with great meets at HSE High School, Carmel High School, and the Aquatic Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Our athletes have not only been competitive, but they have also been enjoying each other and becoming a more unified team. It gets better as the end of the month had us competing in the second oldest meet in the nation. Congratulations to all of you that swam at the 70 th Annual Clayton Shaw Park Summer Invitational in St. Louis. I know that you had a great time at Six Flags on the Mon- day after the meet as well! I have just returned from the Senior Trip where over 45 athletes visited the following schools: University of Louisville, University of Tennessee, Warren Wilson College, University of North Carolina-Wilmington, College of Charleston, , and Emory University. I can only tell you that as I watched our athletes interact with the coaches and admissions personnel Continued on page 3 Page 2 Southeastern Swim Club

2008 Olympic Swim Team News USA Swimming Names 2008 U.S. Olympic Swim Team and Coaching Staff (7/6/2008) Following the conclusion of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming in Omaha, Neb., USA Swimming today named the complete roster for the 2008 U.S. Olympic swim team. In addition to the 43 athletes named to the team, the swim team’s coaching staff was finalized. The men’s Olympic team coaching staff will consist of head coach , and assistant coaches Bob Bow- man, , and men’s open water head coach John Dussliere. The women’s coaching staff includes women’s head coach , and assistant coaches Paul Yetter, Teri McKeever, Sean Hutchison and women’s open water coach Bill Rose. The men’s Olympic swim team consists of , , , , , , , , Garrett Weber-Gale, , , , , , , , , , Ben Wildman- Tobriner , , and . The women’s swim team features , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , and . On Monday, July 7, the entire U.S. Olympic swim team will head to Palo Alto, Calif., for the team’s domestic training camp prior to its departure to the Olympics in Beijing. On July 12, the team will hold an open practice from 7-9 a.m. PT and members of the team will have media availability from 9 -10 a.m. PT. Media wishing to attend can visit www.usaswimming.org/media to apply for a credential. The Olympic pool competition will take place Aug. 9 through Aug. 17 at the Beijing National Aquatic Center. The women’s and men’s 10K Olympic marathon swim will take place on Aug. 20 and 21 at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park in Beijing, . All members of the U.S. Olympic swim team are subject to final approval by the Olympic Committee. Page 3 Southeastern Swim Club

SSC Goes to Victory Field July 21, 2008 It’s time for more summer fun with the swim club. We have a scheduled a club outing to Victory field to watch the Indianapolis Indians play the Charlotte Knights on July 21, 2008. We have a group rate of $11.00 per seat for box seats. We will be sitting along the first base line. The game starts at 7:00 pm and its $1.00 menu night at the concession stands. That means Hotdogs, popcorn, peanuts etc… all a dollar. Sign up on-line by July 9 th and meet us at Victory Field.

Summer fun with SSC.

from these schools, I was hoping that my daughters will have a similar opportunity someday. I was so im- Coach’s Corner —cont’d pressed with how seriously our athletes took the college visits. As adults, we all know how soon that critical college decision will come for them, but often they are less understanding of that. Not with this group – they were By serious and inquisitive. All of SSC would have been proud of them! Andy Pedersen Every four years, our sport gets the opportunity to select a team to represent the USA at the Olympic Games. And, this year our own Lindsay Rogers represented us at the Olympic Trials. She had a phenomenal swim in the 100 Breast and moved from a seed of 22 nd to 17 th place. At a stress-filled meet that historically sees fewer than 30% lifetime bests, it is even more impressive that Lindsay went a best time and moved her World Ranking in the 50 Breast to 27 th and in the 100 Breast to 81 st !!! I hope that all of you will be join me in congratulating her efforts. She has done a phenomenal job and we all wish her well as she pre- pares with her teammates to close out her season at the US Open and Speedo Junior Nationals in Minneapolis, MN. I have a feeling that July and August will be even better – keep up the good work and enjoy your summer! See you poolside, Coach P.

July Birthdays

Kevin Broad 2nd Megan Lo 2nd Megan Schwartzkopf 3rd James Davisson 5th Lauren Kirkwood 6th Kyli DeMers 7th Leigh Weston 9th Evan Rhinesmith 10th Breanna Oaldon 10th Jessica King 11th Zachary Curran 11th Nicholas Dresser 14th Ryan Cockman 14th Olivia Cox 15th Elijah Heindricks 16th Abbigail Carr 21st Aubrey Hertzler 26th Morgan Goodwin 28th Samantha Lodde 30th Hannah Pugh 30th Andrew Creemer 31st Samantha Gulden 31st Alison Stinger 31st Page 4 Southeastern Swim Club

Pre-Race Meals—Tip of the Month From USA Swimming

This week’s Tip of the Month comes from Jessica Knowles, a sports nutritionist from Evergreen, Colo., and a member of USA Swimming’s Sports Medicine Database. Knowles offers advice on pre-race meals. Knowles’ Tip: Pre-race meals should always be low-fat and high in carbohydrates. Fat slows down the absorption rate in your GI tract, which is not ideal. What you want is easily digestible carbohydrates so your body can use them for energy during the race. Depending on how much time you have between when you eat and the start of your first race, there are some general guidelines for the type and amount of carbohy- drate to consume. If you eat 3-4 hours before the start of your first race, you need 1.5 to 2 grams of carbohydrate per pound of bodyweight. For a 130-pound athlete, that is 195-260 grams of carbohydrate. You want low fat, low fat proteins and low fiber (fiber also slows digestion). Good sources are cereal, fruit, fruit juices, breads, bagels, yogurt, non-fat milk and preserves. If you eat 2 hours before the start of your first race, the amount of carbohydrate needed is 1 gram per pound of bodyweight. Now our 130-pound athlete needs 130 grams of carbohydrate from low-fat, low-fiber sources of food. Good sources are again cereals, fruit, fruit juices, non fat milk, yogurt and preserves. If you eat 1 hour or less before the start of your first race, the amount of carbohydrate needed is .5 grams per pound of bodyweight. Our 130-pound athlete now needs 65 grams of carbohydrate. At this point, you need to emphasize liquid sources of carbohydrate and avoid protein, fat and fiber. Good sources are fruits and fruit juices.

Handling Nerves—Tip of the Month From Speedo

This Speedo Tip of the Month is an excerpt from the July-August 2006 issue of Splash, in which special correspondent Linda Hass writes about handling nerves before a big race. Here are some guidelines. The Tip: Nerves. They can paralyze you behind the diving block or provide the adrenaline rush that propels you through the water. The trick, experts say, is to channel that energy so it works for you and not against you. "Getting moderately nervous before a big meet is a good thing. It means your adrenaline is flowing, and you're ready to go," said Jennifer Carter , Director of Sport Psychology at Ohio State University’s Ath- letic Department.

• Swimmers should avoid extremes on either end – the lackadaisical attitude that undermines at least a little excitement, and the high anxiety that causes sweating, shallow breathing and trem- bling.

• Athletes should cultivate a healthy sense of excitement by exercising proper breathing tech- niques before their events and positive self-talk, among other tools.

• To combat high anxiety, swimmers should take a couple deep breaths, breathing down deep from the belly. This helps to slow their metabolism and puts more oxygen in their blood.

• To avoid lethargy or extreme nervousness, swimmers should visualize successfully executing one key aspect of their race, like a tight streamline. This will bring a positive focus to their energy.

• Proper nutrition is another important tool. Nervous tension can sometimes mask hunger. Swim- mers should avoid skipping meals, however, since this can cripple their performance.

• Athletes also should avoid caffeine, which can contribute to a jittery, nervous feeling, she added. Page 5 Southeastern Swim Club

SSStickingSticking With Swimming….What Can a Parent Do? The Unfortunate Path that Many Swimmers Follow: The swimmer’s career often starts with 8/under success and high parental enthusiasm. The child is encouraged by parents and others to excel and a big deal is made out of every accomplishment. As the child changes age groups and moves into the 9/10 group, even the most successful child may struggle because he or she has a harder time finding success against 10 year olds. What successes are achieved may not be as noticeable. Unfortunately, as many as one-third of the young swim- mers and their families do not make it past this point. By the time swimmers are 10 or 11 years old they (or their parents) may realize that twice a week practices or summer only swimming is not enough to compete with others who are practicing more frequently. Physical ability and natural coordination can still help athlete to stay competitive and have success but it is getting harder to stay on top. More big changes and rude awakenings are lurking in the future. The first Big Change: From 10/under to 11 & 12 • Events become longer going from 25’s and 50's to 50's and 100's and even some 200's and distance freestyle events. • Competition changes from sprint competition to race/pace/competition. • In some programs, one half of the athletes and their families do not make this change. They never give the coaches or the program a chance to help the athlete adapt to the changing nature of swimming competition. The second Big Change: From age 12 to 13&14/Senior swimming. • Events change again. Now it is all 100's & 200's along with 400/500 and 1000/1650. • The athlete must develop a work ethic and intensify the training aspect of swimming. • Physical changes affect both male and female athletes. Athletes get bigger and stronger, but many, especially the girls, may struggle to cope with their “new bodies.” • This can one of the most rewarding phases of an athlete’s career, yet many will give up. The third Big Change: A focus on college swimming • Swimmers who remain in the sport start to look at the possibility of swimming in college. • Questions arise concerning the choice of colleges, the level of swimming, the possibilities of scholarships and the willingness to compete and train for another four years. Let’s put these changes into “real” numbers: Suppose a team has 12 Novice swimmers. • Only 8 will remain in swimming past the first Big Change • Only 4 will remain in swimming past the second Big Change. • Only 2 will remain in swimming past the third Big Change.

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TTTheThe Role of the Parent in Navigating the Big ChangesChanges:: Sometimes, unfortunately, it is the parents who are responsible for their child leaving the sport. For example:  Parents who are former athletes, especially former swimmers, may have unreasonably high ex- pectations.  Parents believe that they are in charge of the athlete’s happiness and that only “winning” can bring happiness.  Parents believe that early success equates with long term success. The 8/under star will, of course, become an Olympian.  Parents may not understand the need for technical and skill development before “swimming fast.” Parents must examine their own motives. Form a philosophy that emphasizes the process, not the outcome. Be the guides on the “fun path” not the “victory path.” When parents use these words, their emphasis is misplaced: We --- Beat --- Win --- Fast --- Lost --- Try --- Only ––– My What Can Parents Do to Reverse the Trend? Parents must develop, progress and grow the just as athletes do. Experience is the key and communi- cation is the mode. Swimmers already have coaches, friends and teammates. They need a parent to fill the parental role. “Coaches coach children, parents raise children. “ Here are some of the benefits your child will garner if he or she sticks with swimming: Life Lessons: Only one swimmer can win the race. Does this mean everyone else is a loser? Of course not! Swimmers need to constantly be reminded that a top-notch effort on their part will result in per- sonal satisfaction and a contribution to their team. Most USA Swimming clubs design a program of competitive training and competition for our younger swimmers based on long term development. Therefore, we may not stress early competitive success with a great deal of fanfare. Remember that swimmers under the age of 12 are very inconsistent which can be frustrating to a parent or to the swimmers themselves. Fun and patience are the keys here. Leadership: In many cases, our team leaders and successful Senior swimmers were not outstanding age group swimmers. Those who “stick with it” often develop into outstanding leaders, having learned patience, dedication and commitment. Steady progress and understanding the meaning of various accomplishments will make a motivated, well adjusted Senior swimmer. USA Swimming clubs go to great lengths to provide opportunities for all swimmers equally, although sometimes it may seem that more emphasis and time is spent on Senior swimming. An 8/under will swim no more than 45 minutes two or three times a week, while a Senior swimmer may be in the wa- ter 18 hours per week! Both swimmers are having their needs met as part of a long term progression. Understanding the long term benefits and the long term progression will help parents navigate the waters of a swimmer’s career. If you associate “time” with “attention”, the longer a swimmer stays with swimming the more attention he or she will receive.