Diversity of Ideas : Speakers & Interviews

Rick DeMont is one of our greatest swim coaches. And an excellent human.
100% inspiration and self-giving to a sport that certainly did not offer him the same care when he needed it. Even as we understand it better now.

We should honor this swimmer/coach.
I love the way Rick always has an air or look of disbelief and thrill at swimming he has seen or the potential of the training.
I'll never forget him describing the Arizona kicking philosophy to a room full of coaches at the NorCal Clinic in Napa maybe 5 years ago.
Kick em - kick em any way you can!
Get creative... use fins - use kick boards - scull while they kick - BUT KICK EM! KICK EM HARD and KICK EM LONG!
Ha Ha!
I went home to my own training and coaching - and still ever since, my own head coaches have not been into training kicking!
But Rick Demont convinced me about kicking that day in Napa and he was right!
Whether coaches believed him or not, he tried to share the wealth. True to his philosophy of diversity.
Love from an ex-Marinwood Waterdevil

I watched Rick swim for Marin Acquatics and Don Scwartz at San Rafael High in 1970. He took the fewest strokes and swam the fastest of anyone in freestyle in the world for several years in the 1970's. In 1972, at the age of 16 yrs. he won the 400 free Olympic gold Medal and would have easily won the 1500 free, but the US Olympic team made a mistake and approved his asthma medicine incorrectly. The next year he broke world records in the 400 and 1500 free several times (after stopping taking asthma medicine).
Ths was one of the great screw ups ever by the US Olympic team. He registered his astma medicine with the US Olympic team and they said it was fine to take it, when in fact it was not OK. He deserves his Gold Medal!

wonderful interview:)

DeMont is the man.

This guy is great! Almost all of the top coaches you have interviewed have said the same thing about sharing their ideas. America trains almost all of the other country's great swimmers as well as dominating the Olympics with our own. That strength has to be caused by what Rick and the other coaches all say, "We share the wealth of knowledge". Lets hope Floswimming can continue to spread this kind of thinking. It is all for the growth of our sport!