Approaching SWIMCON24 SCTA’s Brendon Ward charts success of Australian swimming

With SWIMCON24 - Australia’s premier conference for swim coaches and teachers, aquatic professionals and industry leaders - opening later this week, Brendon Ward, Chief Executive of event host SWIM Coaches and Teachers Australia has shared his thoughts on Australia’s 2024 success in elite swimming and its future potential.

Speaking in the aftermath of the Paris 2024 Games, Ward advised “the Australia Dolphins Swimming Team have just completed an outstanding Olympic campaign hauling an impressive collection of medals. This is a massive credit to our athletes and equates to Australia having the best coaches and support teams in the world.

“In swimming, and sport more generally, the Olympic/Paralympic cycle is often referred to as the ‘quad’. Planning for the next quad begins before each campaign is over, and reviews are conducted to inform planning and preparations for the next quad.

“Planning for LA in 2028 is well and truly underway and this inevitably involves some coaches changing programs. There have already been pre-Olympic movements as swimming clubs and high-performance centres look to secure the best possible coach for their squads, or coaches seek a change to reinvigorate themselves.

“While I’m sure some of Australia’s top coaches are considering their future options, super coach Michael Bohl is taking extended leave to recover and reassess his next steps. His head coach role at Griffith University has been filled by Melanie Marshall from the UK. Melanie is the coach who took Adam Peaty from a 12-year old junior swimmer to Olympic champion and world record holder, and will undoubtedly bring fresh ideas and new energy to that program.

“With this in mind, let’s explore the biggest challenges for coaches in Australia right now. The first is the massive expectation on the Australian Dolphins team. This expectation comes from the public, funders, sponsors, parents and athletes. Like every sport, much of this expectation falls on the shoulders of the coaches, especially with a home Olympics on the horizon. Another challenge is ensuring we don’t lose our top coaching talent overseas. We’ve already seen top Australian coaches working with other international teams and swimmers to achieve outstanding successes over the past couple of Olympic campaigns. Coach retention requires significant investment to allow competitive salaries, good work conditions and appropriate recognition of achievement.

“Swimming Australia are doing a great job with the development of the top 100 or so coaches across Australia. A pathways program ensures coaches and athletes who demonstrate talent are developed and nurtured. More broadly, there is a focus on education, continuous professional development and compliance with coaching standards. There is a need to ensure coaches are properly trained and qualified, have opportunities to hone the ‘art of coaching’ and can ply their trade in training and competition settings. All the while ensuring an environment which is safe and positive for athletes.

“In short, greater professionalisation of a sport which is continuing to evolve.”

SWIMCON24
Taking place from Friday 20th September through to Sunday 22nd September at the Events Centre, Caloundra on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, the SWIMCON24 program promises an immersive experience featuring insights from expert speakers, and engaging discussions aimed at shaping the future of swimming.

Looking forward to the event Ward noted that SWIMCON “provides an outstanding opportunity for our industry and sport to connect and network, create opportunity for learning and sharing, and celebrate the achievements and service of our best performers.

“It is estimated that across Australia there are about 4,000 swimming coaches. Collectively, Swimming Australia and ourselves are working collaboratively to ensure all coaches know and comply with their obligations, and have access to the very best education and professional development.

“In addition, there are tens of thousands of swim teachers delivering lessons each week. Our focus is to ensure that through those teachers and coaches, students and athletes build their confidence and competence in the water, becoming safer in the water and learning fundamental skills to propel themselves through the water. If this can be done in a way that gives them correct swimming technique, it will go a long way to creating lifelong swimmers who can thrive and succeed.

“You never know where the next Ariarne Titmus, Cameron McEvoy, Emma McKeon, Kaylee McKeown or Kyle Chalmers will arise.

“You can be confident though, that it will start in a swim school with a swim teacher instilling a love of water. From babies blowing bubbles to gold medals on the world stage, our swim teachers, swim schools and coaches will be there every step of the way.”

Click here for more information on SWIMCON24 

Images: Kaylee McKeown, who won five medals in Paris, including two golds, at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre earlier this year (top, credit: Delly Carr/Swimming NSW) and Brendon Ward (below).