The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 76 - Do The Greats Think Differently

This week on the podcast we sit down with the newly crowned Swimming Australia Olympic Program Swimmer and 9 time Olympic medallist Kaylee McKeown. Kaylee talks to us about her amazing Paris 2024 experience and how she went back to back in the Women's 100 and 200m Backstroke events. We discuss what it took both Mentally and Physically going from the 200m Backstroke final into the 200m IM semi final, and what Kaylee learned from this experience. We talk about her coach Michael Bohl and what makes him one of the best to ever do it. Some of her favourite sets getting ready for Paris, and of course what is next for her and the program with Bohly's departure at the end of this year. All this and so much more, don't miss this great chat with an Aussie Superstar

This week we have the absolute honour of sitting down with one of the best to ever do it Mr Bob Bowman. Shannon and Bob talk all about Paris 2024, Leon Marchands amazing Olympic games as well as Bobs other athletes who performed well over the week as well. We talk about college swimming, and Bob's transition to Texas as well as what Bob is still learning about at this stage in his legendary coaching career. Bob gives us some of his best underwater and kick sets, and gives us some of his tips to help your program and coaching. I could keep writing more, but to be honest all you need to do is click play and listen to these two legendary coaches talk about swimming at the highest level. Enjoy

This week Shannon and I  sit down with Australian Dolphins Head Coach Rohan Taylor to discuss all things Paris 2024, including the teams success, and what he learned from the experience that he'd like to take forward looking ahead. We discuss LA 2024, and Rohan gives his advice to coaches around what to look for if you have aspirations of getting swimmers on the team. Whether its in your programming, or event selection, or even around preparing your athletes to be at their best at all times. We talk about the "silly season" and how it's important to get all coaches and athletes in their programs and roles before we starting planning too far into the future, and we talk about the success the Aussie Paralympic team is having at the moment and what we can learn from then heading into Paris with a different preparation strategy. All that and a whole lot more

Former World Record Holder and Expert Commentator Bobby Hurley and I sit down with Olympic Gold Medal winning Australian coach Tim Lane. Tim talks to us about his work with Cam McEvoy and that 50m Freestyle Gold medal winning performance from Paris, how they got there and of course what the experience was like for him as a coach over at the games. We also talk to Tim about how he transitions his coaching philosophy around training and sprinting for Age group swimmers and what that program looks like week to week, following his success at Junior Pan Pacs with Josh Conias. We are very lucky to have Tim sit down and share his coaching ideas and programming with us and can't wait for everyone to hear it 

This week on The Shannon Rollason Podcast, Shannon and I look back at the weekends NSW State Short Course Champs and some of the super fast swimming we saw in the pool. Shannon also gives us his thoughts on his own athletes performances over the 3 days. We discuss Junior Pan Pacs in Canberra and the USA teams dominance with 44 medals in total. Where Australia did well, and where we can improve looking ahead. Looking ahead to Brisbane 2032 what do we need to do to get our best athletes prepared? And who needs to pull their socks up to help us get there? The Coaches or the Governing Bodies? All that and of course song of the week, don't miss it

Off The Blocks is back for a new season and what better way to kick off than with the KING and 3 time Olympian      Kyle Chalmers. Kyle sits down with me to look back on a massive Paris Olympic Games and the road he was on to get there including, change of coach and program, back injury and pain management and finding confidence. We talk all about his incredible Men's 100 Free Final where he placed 2nd, what that experience was like, and was he happy with his performance. We break down his heats to semis to finals progression success and why he is so good at making it look so easy, as well as what he felt he could have executed a bit better from the final. We discuss how much the relays mean to him, swimming for the boys and his country and how the Men's 4x100 free from Paris gave him all the confidence back he needed to know he could try and win the Men's individual final. Kyle talks about setting goals moving forward and how he is far from done in the pool, with many more new and exciting mountains to climb. This chat more than shows why Kyle Chalmers is one of the greatest Australia Swimmers of all time, with so many great take away pieces of advice from a man who has podiumed at 3 Olympic games in a row, thats why they call him King

This week two of Australia's greatest ever coaches sit down and talk all things Paris Olympics when coaching legend Michael Bohl sits down with Shannon for a chat. Bohly takes us through his thoughts on his teams performances in Paris, including Kaylees 200 IM and where he feels she can still improve and be even faster. The two discuss coaching and programming for Kaylee also, looking at some of the sets she does to prepare her for competition. And Bohly gives us some great advice that all coaches out there need to here around finding your own identity as a coach and what works best for you and your program. It's a big week on the podcast, dont miss it

Welcome back to the Shannon Rollason Podcast for another week. This week we talk Junior Pan Pacs in Canberra, and NSW State Short Course coming up. Shannon talks to us about his chat with Patrick Miley, coach and Dad of the team GB legend Hannah Miley. He tells us about how improvements can be made in the race model, and pacing areas. We get into a chat about how the greats of any sport think differently. Do they lack empathy for those who aren't as talented? Do they lack the ability to understand how everyday people think when it comes to competition and steely focus? We get into it. And of course the world famous song of the week    Its all here this week, don't miss it 

This week on the podcast Shannon and i discuss the post Olympics merry-go-round that happens within the coaching ranks and the flow on effect it has onto our elite athletes. We also talk about opportunities for coaches to make changes, take risks and even move to coach overseas leading into LA2028. We talk about the Aussie team as well, who needs to take a break for a while to freshen up, and who needs to capitalise on the momentum off the back of Paris. Shannon gives us his surprising race of the week from the games, and also we discuss the pool again and theories as to why it quickened up at the end of the week. All that and of course song of the week, don't miss it

The Olympic A team are back together as Bobby Hurley and Meagen Nay join us to go through all of the triumphs and tears that were the Paris Olympic Games in the pool. We discuss Michael Phelps and his disappointment in team USA results over the 9 days, and what that means for the direction of the team leading into LA 2028 and a home games. Adam Peaty and Phelps have called out WADA on their stance on doping violations for athletes, both wanting much tougher punishments for those who test positive. We get right into all of this, including the commentary around the Chinese team and PANS world record. We go through the immergence of some generational superstars in Leon Marchand, Summer McIntosh and David Popovici, and what we can expect of them in the next 4 years.   The Aussie teams amazing results, as well as Coach Bob Bowman and Dean Boxalls incredible medal haul as coaches. The team give us their MVP of the week, Biggest disappointments and biggest surprises of the week that was in the Paris pool.   Dont miss it