Melanie Barratt, a gold-medal winning Paralympian, swims tethered to an elastic bungee in a small pool on her own. But, after 20 years of fitting personal goals around motherhood, new ambitions are burning – she’s desperate to try open-water swimming. Being blind, the only way to do this is to ask for help, but asking for help is a complex and often controversial issue for disabled people. Melanie has always hidden her disability because of social stigma and internalised ableism, but the lure of new adventures is greater than the shame she feels. What happens next surpasses all expectations as she not only finds community, but also an increasing pride in her identity as a disabled woman. With the support of her ‘Ironfish’ friends, she not only learns to swim in open water but enters the record books by becoming the first blind woman to swim the English Channel.
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FACT Unites With Tide Swim School for Inclusive Swimming Program | WAVY TV 10
Families of Autism Coming Together has teamed up with Tide Swim School for adaptive swim lessons, with the goal to help prevent drownings while exploring the fun water can offer for people with disabilities.
See WAVY
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Speed in Swimming – Think Smarter Not Just Faster | Wayne Goldsmith
Three Important Things to Remember:
Swimming fast is a byproduct of swimming efficiently, not a goal itself;
The harder swimmers try to force speed, the slower they become;
Elite swimmers focus on flow, rhythm and technique – speed follows naturally.
Every young swimmer makes the same mistake. They think swimming fast means trying hard to swim fast.
Wrong.
I’ve worked with world record holders who could break their personal best while looking like they’re swimming in slow motion. Meanwhile, I’ve watched age groupers thrash themselves into exhaustion chasing times they’ll never achieve.
Here’s what elite swimmers actually think about during races: stroke length, rhythm, breathing pattern, body position. They’re not thinking “go faster” – they’re thinking “swim better.”
Get the full article here: https://swimminggold.substack.com/p/fast-swimmers-arent-trying-to-swim
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Balancing Work and Swimming to Race at the World Aquatics Masters Championships | World Aquatics
Luke Bibby shows how the World Aquatics Masters Championships keeps the flame alive for athletes after their competitive careers, while he balances training and work to stay ready for competition.
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How Bob Bowman Stole Three Olympic Systems to Create One | The Exponential Athlete
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Scottish Swimming CEO John Lunn Talks About the Crucial Role of Swimming Pools | Scottish Swimming
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Elizabeth Beisel: Music, Media and Life After Swimming | CBC Sports
Elite swimmer turned media-personality joins The Ready Room to chat through some her career accomplishments, both inside and outside the pool. How she keeps it fresh when interviewing athletes like Summer McIntosh, and we learn what’s next on the horizon; there’s music on the way.
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Most Coaches Don’t Teach These 4 Ways to Swim | Skills N’ Talents
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An Olympic Swimmer’s off Season Protocol | Baby Scare, Farm Life & More | Kyle Chalmers & Ingie
Kyle’s Olympic Recovery Program → what training and protocols look like in the off season after the World Championships.
Farm Updates → we’ve got new cows, new cattle yards in the making, and… let’s just say flat-pack weed sprayers are not Kyle’s strong suit.
Life Update → we almost had our baby two days ago (!!) – sharing the rollercoaster of emotions around that.
A New Car → a little off-season upgrade.