Kickboard News

Philly Welcomes Josh & Brendan!

Brendan Hansen and I had a blast this past Sunday at our BREAKout! clinic just outside Philadelphia...the City of Brotherly Love!

We were feeling the love from our host family, the swim parents, and the amazing swimmers of the Upper Dublin Aquatic Club in Fort Washinton, PA!

First, our host family for the weekend was awesome because it was Brendan's parents! I got to see where this world-record holder grew up! Now I know how he became the best in the world...he has an amazing family! They are incredible people. His mom is a great cook and hostess, and both his parents are so kind and generous.

One of my messages at the BREAKout! Clinic is that a parent's unconditional love is a important part of succeeding in anything you do. After observing the unconditional love Brendan receives from his parents, I can see why he has so much motivation and love for this demanding sport.

Our host team, Upper Dublin Aquatic Club, was awesome too! "Swim Mom Extraordinaire", Stephanie Smith, did a super job as clinic host...from the advertising and registration to passing out goodie bags and working with local media. It was one of the smoothest and most enjoyable clinics we've ever done...many thanks to Stephanie!

The highlight of the day for the kids was at the end of the clinic when Brendan demonstrated why he's the best breastroker in the UNIVERSE! The kids cheered him on as he attempted to break the pool record of :58 seconds in the 100-yard breaststroke. With the swimmers' support from the deck, Brendan destroyed the record with a :53.9!!!

Brendan was feeling the love from the kids! Brendan is an awesome example of a world-class athlete who is so generous with his time and energy, and the swimmers in Forth Washington, PA will never forget their experience...especially when they watch Brendan dominate in Beijing!

Looking forward to heading back to the east coast this weekend, so stay tuned...the Mutual of Omaha BREAKout! Clinic Tour is just getting started! Thanks for joining me on this amazing ride!

Josh Davis

Josh Davis and Brendan Hansen Inspire Pennsylvania Swimmers

By L. Stephanie Smith, Special Correspondent

On Sunday, just about everyone was watching the Chicago Bears defeat the New Orleans Saints. I say “just about” because eighty swimmers, their parents, and coaches were in the Upper Dublin High School pool learning about swimming and life from two giants in that sport. The BreakOut! Swim Clinic, hosted by the Upper Dublin Aquatic Club in Fort Washingto, Pennsylvania, was a once in a lifetime opportunity to bring young swimmers together with 5-time Olympic medalist, Josh Davis, and 3-time Olympic medalist, Brendan Hansen

Through demonstrations and drills, the children, ranging in age from 6 to 18, learned how to improve their skills in Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke, and Butterfly. Josh and Brendan swam with the kids to show them how to get the most out of their strokes and how to break bad swimming habits.

Parents watched in amazement as their children soaked up the knowledge and put it to use right in front of them. As one of the fathers watching the backstroke drill put it, “I could see my son slicing the water like butter and really getting more pull out of his stroke.”

Lisa Fantini, the head coach of the Upper Dublin Men’s Swim Team, pointed out that “many of their [Josh’s and Brendan’s] stroke tips re-emphasized what I already know, but I liked hearing some of their motivational tips.”

“We say a lot of things the coach usually says. It just comes from a different perspective,” said Josh Davis. “We’ve got the gold medals and we’ve got these experiences and these stories, and for some reason it clicks…The funniest thing is that after the clinics, the kids go up to the coach and say, ‘Coach, they’re saying the same things that you’ve been telling us all year long. Now, I understand!’ We try to emphasize the messages the coach and parents are trying to give them all the time. We’re fortunate to have this platform to really sink it into their minds.”

In between swimming sessions, the swimmers listened as both men described how hard work and dedication brought success to their lives. “We want to relay to them that we’re just regular people that worked really hard; focused a lot on technique; spent a lot of time; and did everything we could to make sure that we could achieve our goals…Our goal was the Olympics. For these kids it could be anything,” said Brendan Hansen.

The themes of commitment to excellence, working through adversity, and maintaining a positive attitude did sink in. Scott Solakian of Ambler, Pa. said it best: “I liked the stories of how they became great swimmers because I want to be as good as them in my life!”

For more information about Upper Dublin Aquatic Club, visit their website www.udac.us. For more information about Mutual of Omaha BreakOut! Swim Clinic, featuring Josh Davis and other Olympic swimmers, visit www.breakoutswimclinic.com.

Bayou "BREAKout!" in Louisiana

Olympian Shares Winning Edge with Local Swimmers

By Patrick Johnson
The Town Talk Newspaper
Alexandria, Louisiana

Although Alexandria Senior High School swimming coach Wally Fall commands a lot of respect in Central Louisiana, he knew the city's young swimmers could benefit from listening to a new voice.

That new voice belonged to five-time Olympic medalist Josh Davis, who travels around the nation for Mutual of Omaha Insurance, not only to teach swimming clinics, but to teach the importance of leadership, responsibility, hard-work and discipline.

On Monday afternoon at the ASH pool, Davis met with a host of current ASH swimmers, City of Alexandria Swim Team members, and other swimming enthusiasts. Davis didn't talk much about his swimming success.

What he did discuss was he improved his life through swimming.
"When I started out in the eighth grade to prepare for swimming in high school, I was terrible," Davis said. "My freestyle was bad, my backstroke was bad, my butterfly was awful, and my breaststroke wasn't even legal."

After being told that he should take up another sport, Davis trained even harder in the pool, eventually setting what was then the high school record in the 200-freestyle. Davis went on to win three gold medals in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and two silver medals in the 2000 Sydney Games.

Davis' talk to the group of young swimmers hit especially hard on the importance of teamwork, as all of Davis' medals came in relay events.

"There's something magical about those other guys depending on you to get the job done and having such confidence in your abilities," Davis said. "It really is a unique experience."

Davis' trip to Alexandria was his fourth stop in what will eventually be a 100-city tour.

One of the reasons why Davis chose Alexandria is because his parents moved to the city three years ago and had nothing but good things to say. Josh's father, Michael, works at Christus St. Francis Cabrini Hospital.

Fall was adamant about bringing Davis to the area.

"The kids can hear one thing from me, but it's different to hear things from an Olympic medalist," Fall said. "I try to focus on one theme a day in practice, and I think that Josh exemplifies the characteristics that I want my swimmers to achieve."

Davis also instilled a sense of national pride in the young swimmers as he recalled his best Olympic memory.

"It was after my first gold medal in the 800-freestyle relay, they put that gold around my neck," Davis said, "I'm wearing those USA colors, and then they play 'The Star-Spangled Banner', and I realized it doesn't get any better than this."

Davis, Gangloff Inspire Kentucky Swimmers

Quality time in the water

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALISTS INSPIRE HOPEFULS

By Barbara Isaacs
HERALD-LEADER STAFF WRITER

(LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY) -- For Nikki Southall and Derry Delventhal and 59 other young swimmers, it was a chance to touch Olympic gold medals and refine their strokes with two men who earned them.

Yesterday the Beaumont Centre Family YMCA hosted a swimming clinic featuring Josh Davis and Mark Gangloff, who both earned gold medals in the Olympic Games. The event, the Mutual of Omaha Breakout! Swim Clinic, will travel to 70 cities this year.

Davis, 34, won three gold medals at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and won two silver medals at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Gangloff, 24, won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

"I think they're excited," Lisa Dattilio, the head swim team coach at the Beaumont YMCA, said of the young swimmers who participated. "It's a chance to touch and feel and see a gold medal. ... We hope it will spark something for the kids."

Before the event began, the swimmers signed autographs and posed for pictures with the young swimmers. The clinic cost $50 per participant for the intensive four-hour session.

Then, at poolside, Davis and Gangloff gave a brief motivational talk before jumping in the pool to give hands-on feedback as the young swimmers did the freestyle, butterfly, backstroke and breaststroke.

Gangloff told the group that he was 12 years old when an Olympian visited his swimming club. It was Mike Barrowman, a breaststroker who won Olympic gold in 1992. "He said, 'Someone from this club could win Olympic gold.' "

Gangloff said he hoped that their visit would also inspire strong dedication to swimming.

"I want you to really start dreaming big," Gangloff said. "Anything you want to do in life is possible."

Davis told the kids that it's cool to go to the Olympics because "you get lots of free stuff." The kids chuckled at that.

But he said the best part of the Olympics was seeing how proud his parents were of him -- both at events where he won the gold and even when he finished in fourth place. "I really believe the most powerful force in the universe is unconditional love," he said.

"To have this come to a Y here is pretty impressive," said Marianne Delventhal, mother of 12-year-old swimmer Derry Delventhal, who, like most of the attendees, competes on the Beaumont Y Barracudas swim team. Delventhal said the event was perfect for her daughter, who wrote a poem at 10 picturing herself winning a gold medal.

It was a similar story with Nikki Southall, 8. "Her dream is to be an Olympic swimmer," said Jackie Wagoner, Nikki's mother. "To touch and see a medal definitely motivates a child."

Mutual of Omaha & Josh Davis Launch BREAKout! Swim Clinics

Mutual of Omaha and Olympian Josh Davis will be bringing an exciting swim clinic experience to over 100 U.S. clubs, starting this month.

Mutual, an official sponsor of USA Swimming, unveiled their BREAKout! swim clinics in a press release on January 3.

Davis, a five-time Olympic medalist and one of the foremost swim clinicians in the country, will emcee the events. Davis will be joined by an all-star team of Olympians and U.S. National Team Members including Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Kaitlin Sandeno, and Kate Zeigler.

These four-hour clinics include small-group personal instruction on all four strokes and participants will also learn how their body, mind and heart affect swimming performance.

Davis, one of the most visible ambassadors of the sport over the last ten years, expressed enthusiasm about the 100-city BREAKout! clinic tour.

“With Mutual’s help, we will be bringing the most challenging and fun clinics to thousands of young swimmers this next year,” Davis said. “The scope of Mutual’s vision to reach 100 clubs in one year is unprecedented, but it reflects their unwavering commitment to the coaches and families of this sport.”

All clinic participants will receive a free BREAKout! t-shirt, poster,international meet DVDs, and other souvenirs. The Olympians and National Team Members will also sign autographs and pose for personal photos.

“We all remember when we were that impressionable young swimmer who is trying to improve and reach that next level,” Davis continued. “The swimmers at our clinic will undoubtedly be inspired, encouraged, and motivated by our team of Olympic champions and world-record holders.”

Davis and Peirsol will be kicking off the BREAKout! tour on January 6 when they visit the New York Sharks Aquatic Club in Suffern, NY. Additional clinic sites in January include Herndon, VA, Lexington, KY, Shreveport, LA, Ft. Washington, PA, Webster, NY, and Caldwell, NJ.

BY SAM DAVIS, Editor - USAswimmer.com & KickboardNews.com

The official web site for the Mutual of Omaha BREAKout! Swim Clinics is www.breakoutswimclinic.com.