At the USA Swimming Golden Goggles event in mid-November Coach Michael was confirmed as the new Chair of the International Relations Committee. The committee is a direct report to the President of USA Swimming and is responsible for overseeing matters of protocol and strategy for USA Swimming in the global arena.

"I look forward to the challenges this new position presents," said Coach Michael following the announcement, "and am deeply honored to be trusted to plan and develop the agenda for expanding the influence of USA Swimming in the swimming world."

Coach Michael stepped off the Board of Directors in September after 13 years of service on the Board. During that time he spear headed several major initiatives for USA Swimming including the Club Excellence program, Athlete Partnership Agreement, two re-writes of organizational ByLaws and the development of online membership registration.

During his tenure (1999-2012) as the longest serving elected member of the Board he served as a Zone Director, Program Development VP and Chair of the Olympic International Operations Committee. He has also served on the Rules Committee, Club Development, Camps,  Age Group and Senior Committees.

The Greatest Coach. Of All Time.

Your pre-race routine starts during warm-up. Do not waste warm-up time or understand its importance on your race results. Everything you do in warm-up should be intended to prepare for your events that day. Think about what you are doing, what you are swimming today?  400 IM? maybe a little more kicking, especially fly and breaststroke. Trying to make a cut in freestyle? maybe a little extra attention to the catch is in order today.  200 back? better check my walls at speed. Don't waste your warm-up.

Know your events.  Check the entry before the meet. At minimum you should check your events during check in. There is NO EXCUSE FOR NOT KNOWING YOUR EVENTS FOR THE DAY.

Know, or at least predict, the timing and timeline. Is you event at 10:20am or 10:40am? How much recovery time between events? What is your strategy for recovery and re-setting yourself for the next event? There is NO EXCUSE FOR BEING SURPRISED BY THE TIMELINE.

30 minutes prior to your event

Championship meet -- re-check the timeline, light stretching and calisthenics, bathroom, check equipment, grab everything you need behind the blocks, water

Non-Championship meet -- re-check the timeline, water

20 minutes prior to your event

Championship meet -- pre-race talk with your coach, report to the Call Room, water

Non-Championship meet -- re-check the timeline, light stretching and calisthenics, bathroom, check equipment, grab everything you need behind the blocks, water

10 minutes prior to your event

Championship meet -- you are probably in the Call Room, light stretching and calisthenics if needed, re-check equipment. THIS IS YOUR LAST PRE-RACE PREP TIME!!! YOU DO NOT HAVE TO TALK TO ANYONE IN THE READY ROOM . . . just get ready. Water.

Non-Championship meet --  pre-race talk with your coach, report to the blocks, water

Over time you will find certain things work better for you than other things but the only way to learn these things is by establishing and practicing a routine over and over and over again. And again. And again.

That's what a routine is. Over and over and over. Again. 

Copyright, 2012, Michael Lawrence. All rights reserved. No republication permitted without the express prior consent of the owner.

Day 3 . . .  USMS Nationals     Up dark and early here in Greensboro, 500Freestyle was my one and only event today. Today was one of those days that reminded me why I love swimming.  Looking around the deck in the early morning hours and seeing swimmers of all ages up before the crack of dawn doing what they love, feeling the camaraderie, the nervous excitement is exhilarating. Everyone here is a Swimnut.

I used to think it was just plain weird to see adults all geared up in the latest swimming tech stuff especially when you are 95 years old. No joke, in the very first heat of the womens 500 FR a 95 year old women was helped up onto the block and dove(!) in for her 500 free that took just over 24 minutes. It truly is a sport you can do for a lifetime, I hope someone waits for me when I am that old!

On to my swim . . .  I was quite tired this morning and a bit sore from racing the last 2 days. A long warm up was in order. I learned long ago that warm up is very VERY important and it is not a prescribed set you do every time but rather you have to get loose, get warm and prepare for your swim.  I managed to swim around and feel good, and head to the block confident and ready to race. I was in a very tough heat, lots of fast girls. When I dove in I felt off, it was like my legs were kicking faster than my arms could keep up, good thing it was a 500 I had time to adjust. I focused on my stoke, kept and an eye on the other girls. I raced to the wall and took 3^rd managing to hold off the other girls in my heat.  I was pretty please with the swim, fastest time this season for me and not a bad finish!

One more day to go in Greensboro . . . sprint day for me 50fly and 100free! Looking forward to some shorter races!!

Day 2 is a big day for me, says Coach Laurel . . . my 2 favorite events were up first, the 100Fly and the 200Fr.

Day 2 . . .  USMS Nationals     Big day for me today, my 2 favorite events were up first, the 100Fly and the 200Fr. I love the 100fly because Butterfly is so fun to swim! There is a rhythm to it and if you hit the grove you can really go! By and large my best event and the one that I love to do the most in the 200Freestyle. I think I love it so much because you have to be tough,and embrace the pain! It is really a long sprint, go out hard and just don't slow down. It is in that middle place that sprinters don't like to go and distance people think is too short. Everyone has their niche.

The 100Fly was a great swim for me, I was very happy with my time. The first 50 felt great, long and fast. I usually breathe 1up/1down for the first 50 and switch to 2up/1down on the 3^rd to get a bit more air. I did that as usual today but felt like I was just pulling myself up instead of forward. I quickly switched back to the regular breathing pattern, took a peek at the girl that I was neck and neck with at the 3^rd wall and gave it everything I had on the last 25. Long arms into the finish with head down got the job done!

There wasn't a ton of time between events so I had to get in a good warm down and get ready to go again. The freestyle events in my age group are rather competitive this year. There were a few girls in my heat that just took off and I knew that it would not be smart to go with them, so I focused my side of the pool. There were about 4 of us all even at the 100, but that 3^rd 50 is what separates people. I managed to pull ahead of 2 of the girls but got dusted by one and ended up finishing 5^th. My time was my fastest this year but I was hoping for about 2-3 seconds faster . . . something to keep working towards for next year!

Coach Laurel captured 2nd place in the 1000 free on Day 1 of the 2012 US Masters Nationals. Here's what Coach Laurel has to say about the race . . .

Day 1 . . .  USMS Nationals          Great first day here in Greensboro, North Carolina! For those of you that don't know I am here to compete at the Masters National Championships. Today was the first day of competition and I swam the 1000 Freestyle.

Even after a many (many) years of racing I still got nervous! It is so hard to sit there and watch the heats go by and knowing yours is getting close, all the hard work, dedication and skill is on the line. I tried to relax and go through my pre-race preparations. Doing the same things before a swim and thinking about what you are about to do is key to swimming well.

Masters is a bit different than age- group swimming, sometimes they mix the men and women in the same heats for distance events, that was the case today.  It can really change your race strategy when the surrounding lanes are all men, they take it out harder and are stronger off the walls than I am. I found that out the second I dove in. My plan quickly went from “go out strong and controlled” to “stay in contact with the big boys and run they down later”. Having confidence and faith in your ability and not giving up on a swim is something you have to do every time you dive in.

All in all I had a great swim, I took second in my age-group and beat all those men in my heat :)

Looking forward to more fast swims tomorrow in the 200 Free and 100Fly, you can watch a live feed at www.usms.org/comp/scnats12/stream.php

Practice hard, swim fast . . . .  Coach Laurel

Voting members of the House of Delegates represent the 115 clubs in Illinois Swimming as well as the Board of Directors. Coach Michael has been a member of the Board for 29 years serving in a number of positions including President from 1997-2002.

In addition to the responsibilities in Illinois he has been a member of the USA Swimming Board of Directors for 13 years, currently the longest serving elected member. An active Board member, he has been a Director for the Central Zone (1999-2002), Vice-President for Program Development (2002-2004), Chairman of the Olympic International Operations Committee (2004-present) and a current member of the International Relations Committee.

Swimmers in the Yellow, Green and Bronze squads have been getting lessons from Coach Michael about how the best swimmers in the world practice and race. And they are getting a few lessons in world geography. Read the news using the links below

• Coach Michael Named To Lead US National Jr Team

• Hello From Chilly Moscow!

• It's Not All Swimming Here In Moscow

• Swimming In Berlin

• World Record Swim In Berlin!

•  It's Not All Swimming Here In Berlin

Tomorrow looks very promising and we are all confident that more exciting results are coming. More video when I learn how You Tube channels work!

Copyright, 2010, Michael Lawrence. All rights reserved. No republication permitted without the express prior consent of the owner.