Off The Blocks Swimming Podcast

Off The Blocks with Tim Lane

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 

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 78 - Pull Your Socks Up

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 with Kyle Chalmers

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

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 77 - Michael Bohl

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

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

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 

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 75 - Post Olympics Merry-Go-Round

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

Off The Blocks - Merci Paris ft Meagen Nay and Bobby Hurley

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

Off The Blocks - Paris Olympics Night 6&7 Finals REVIEW

Bobby Hurley and i talk all about the amazing action from Paris on night 6 and 7 finals.

Including Leon Marchand and his 4 Gold medals with todays 200 IM performance, as well as our own Kaylee McKeown and going back to back doubles winning the Women's 200 Back. Cam McEvoy wins the first Gold medal for an Aussie male in 50m Freestyle, and we congratulate him and his coach Tim Lane on the incredible journey they've been on to get to this Paris victory.

We look back on Night 6 as well, with Sarah Sjostroms amazing 100 Freestyle win, Marchands incredible 200 Fly, 200 Breast double up. And of course we discuss PAN and his unbelievable 46.40 WR in the men's 100 Free

 

 

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 74 - We Just Witnessed History

Shannon and I couldn't wait until next week to discuss all of the history making moments of Night 5 Finals action.

From the unbelievable 46.40 NEW WORLD RECORD from Pan, and Kyles courages Silver medal which make 3 Olympic Podiums in a row. Or the greatest female sprinter of all time Sarah Sjostrom upsetting the Aussie party and winning Gold at her 4th Olympic Games.

What about Leon Marchands moment of history also winning the 200 Fly ahead of one of the greatest butterfly swimmers of all time Milak and then backing it up by winning the 200 Breast again defending Olympic champion Zac Stubblety Cook an hour later. Bravo Leon, and Bravo Coach Bowman.

All this and more, we couldn't wait another week, we were too excited 

Off The Blocks - Paris Olympics Night 3&4 Finals REVIEW

Bobby Hurley and i go through all of the action in the pool from Paris in Nights 1 and 2 of finals competition.

We discuss Kaylee McKeown's amazing 100m Backstroke title defence going back to back, as well as Dan Wiffens impressive 800 Free gold medal. We touch on the massive night French star Leon Marchand has ahead of him with the 200 Fly and 200 Breast double against stars Milak in the fly, and Stubblety Cook in the Breast, Can our Zac spoil the Paris party? Also we preview the blue ribbon events with the Women's and Men's 100 Freestyle, will we see a night of Green and Gold on the podium with stars Kyle Chalmers, Mollie O'Callaghan and Shayna Jack in action, or is there an upset coming our way with strike power coming from everywhere chasing the Olympic Gold.

We also look back on the amazing finals that were Night 3, Ceccon's Gold in the 100 Back, Smith winning 100 Breast and of course the incredible Women's 200 Free between the two Aussie stars Ariarne and Mollie.

We discuss covid being in the village, and what that means for the athletes trying to stay healthy and fit for their races to come.

 

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 73 - Slow Pool, Exciting Races

Shannon gives us his thoughts on all the action so far in the pool at Paris 2024 Olympics, including all of the exciting close finishes we have seen.

We discuss the slow pool theory, how to combat it and how it is actually making the racing more exciting with finishes coming down to a touch.

Don't Miss it

Off The Blocks - 2024 Paris Olympics Night 1&2 Finals REVIEW

Bobby Hurley and i go through all of the action in the pool from Paris in Nights 1 and 2 of finals competition.

We discuss Leon Marchand and his dominating win in the Men's 400 IM which got the home crowd loud and proud. Italian Breaststroke star Martinenghi and his upset win over Breaststroke legend Adam Peaty in the Men's 100 Breast. Speaking of upsets, Torri Huske beating home her USA Teammate and World Record holder Gretchen Walsh in the Women's 100m Butterfly.

We also look back on night one and the massive success that it was for the Aussie team. Ariarne winning Gold in the Women's 400 Free over Young Canadian Summer McIntosh and US legend Katie Ledecky, as well as the 4 peat for the Australian 4x100 Free Women's team taking another Gold ahead of the US and China. And of course Elijah WInnington's stand out performance in the Men's 400m Free taking home the Silver Medal just behind German star and Olympic Gold Medallist Lukas Martens.

Slow pool? we discuss some factors that may be making the pool in Paris a little slower than we had hoped for.

 

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 72 - IT'S SHOWTIME IN PARIS

This week on the podcast, Shannon and i talk all about the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Shannon gives us his tips for Athletes and Coaches during these Olympics, including getting enough sleep, not letting the big name stars around you in the village be a distraction and even being cautious of too much bed hopping. Yes we really cover it all haha.

We go through the relay events in Paris and Shannon gives us his thoughts on who's looking good, who's got question marks around them and who needs to get team selections spot on for success.

Shannon gives us some of his predictions as well as the old favourite song of the week.

It's Games time baby, you wont want to miss this

Off The Blocks - Complete Paris Olympics PREVIEW (Men's Edition)

The countdown is almost over and now, IT'S SHOWTIME.

With the 2024 Paris Olympic Games about to kick off in 2 days time, we have assembled two Aussie Swimming Legends in Former World Record Holder Bobby Hurley, and 2 Time Olympian Meagen Nay to take you through all of the action you can expect over the next 9 days of competition.

Time for the boys, as Meagen, Bobby and myself talk all about the amazing matchups coming our way including the showdown in the blue ribbon event the 100m Freestyle as Kyle Chalmers comes up against world record holder Pan Zhanle and former world record holder David Popovci and not to leave out American Jack Alexy, also Cam McEvoy, Ben Proud, Caeleb Dressel and Flo Manaudou in the 50m Free and of course Sam Short, Elijah Winnington battling it our against Lukas Martens and Kim Woomin of Korea. We get into potential relay success as well, andwill we see the rise back to dominance of USA teams.

Our experts also give us their predictions on, Race to watch of the week, Star of the week, and Dark Horse swimmer of the week, as well as a whole lot more.

If you are as excited for the Paris Olympic Games as we are, Don't Miss This

Off The Blocks - Complete Paris Olympics PREVIEW (Women's Edition)

The countdown is almost over and now, IT'S SHOWTIME.

With the 2024 Paris Olympic Games about to kick off in 2 days time, we have assembled two Aussie Swimming Legends in Former World Record Holder Bobby Hurley, and 2 Time Olympian Meagen Nay to take you through all of the action you can expect over the next 9 days of competition.

Starting with the girls, Meagen, Bobby and myself talk all about the amazing matchups coming our way including the rematch of Ariarne Titmus, Summer McIntosh and Katie Ledecky in the 400m Freestyle, also Mollie O'Callaghan, Sarah Sjostrom, Siobhan Haughey, Shayna Jack in the 100m Free and of course Kaylee McKeown, Regan Smith, Kylie Masse and Katharine Berkoff in the 100m Back. We get into potential relay success as well, and who has the edge the Aussie's or the US teams.

Our experts also give us their predictions on, Race to watch of the week, Star of the week, and Dark Horse swimmer of the week, as well as a whole lot more.

If you are as excited for the Paris Olympic Games as we are, Don't Miss This

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 71 - LIVE From Canet, France Week 3

This week on the podcast, Shannon come to us once again LIVE from Canet over in France as the Australian Olympic team set up camp there on the road to Paris in July.

Shannon takes us behind the scenes on what a staging camp looks like in the third week as the team prepare to move on, and Shannon prepares to fly home.

Shannon talks to us about the handover between home coaches and team coaches during this process, as well as what his final words to Bronte will be before he boards his plane.

We talk about relay selection and what that process looks like, as well as the US media bringing back Cate Campbells comments made last year following Fukuoka World Champs.

Shannons final episode from Canet, don't miss it

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 70 - LIVE from Canet, France Week 2

This week on the podcast, Shannon come to us once again LIVE from Canet over in France as the Australian Olympic team set up camp there on the road to Paris in July.

Shannon takes us behind the scenes on what a staging camp looks like in the second week with training ramping up, and what the coaches are looking for over the next few weeks. We discuss balancing training schedules of all the team, and how much Shannon is enjoying being in the Olympic team environment again

We discuss briefly the announcement of Mel Marshal as the NEW Head Coach at Griffith Uni from 2025 following the announcement of Michael Bohl taking some well deserved long service leave, And whether it was a good time to announce this or could it have waited.

Don't miss this as we get access to the inner sanctum of the Australian Olympic Swim team as they prepare for the biggest Olympic Games in recent memory

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 69 - LIVE from Canet, France Week 1

This week on the podcast, Shannon come to us LIVE from Canet over in France as the Australian Olympic team set up camp there on the road to Paris in July.

Shannon takes us behind the scenes on what a staging camp looks like, and what the coaches are looking for over the next few weeks. Shannon and women's clothes, Shannon and wine tours, Bronte's progression while she has been in camp and a whole lot more.

Don't miss this as we get access to the inner sanctum of the Australian Olympic Swim team as they prepare for the biggest Olympic Games in recent memory

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 68 - Shannon's Week in Brisbane

The Shannon Rollason Podcast is back and Shannon is fired up and ready to go.

This week on the podcast, Shannon and I look back at his week in Brisbane at the Australian Olympic trials for Paris.

Shannon talks to us about the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to the program, production and overall feel of the meet itself, as well as gives us a great insight into his own week as a coach with his team and helping get Bronte Campbell onto her 4th Olympic team for Paris.

We touch on the US and their trials, David Popovici's amazing swims at Euros and a whole lot more

Off The Blocks - Aussie Olympic Trials For Paris with Bobby Hurley Part 2

Welcome back to Off The Blocks Swimming Podcast for 2024, this week we are taking a look the 2024 Australian Olympic Trials for Paris up in Brisbane with none other than former World Champion and World Record Holder Bobby Hurley, and World Aquatics Expert Commentator Bobby Hurley.

Bobby Hurley and I look back on the rest of the week up in Brisbane at Olympic trials including the team announcement. We go back to the Women's 100m Free final and the amazing show those 8 females put on for the nation, as well as the send off the crowd and swimmers gave legend Cate Campbell following her 50m Free and missing her 5th Olympics.

We discuss the Men's 100 Fly, Women's 200 Fly, Men's 100 Free, as well as the make up of this years Olympic team with balance between youth and experience.

We also chat US trials, and the massive production and show they are putting on right now in America and what we could learn from that heading towards Brisbane 2032.

Off The Blocks - Aussie Olympic Trials for Paris with Bobby Hurley Part 1

Welcome back to Off The Blocks Swimming Podcast for 2024, this week we are taking a look the 2024 Australian Olympic Trials for Paris up in Brisbane with none other than former World Champion and World Record Holder Bobby Hurley, and World Aquatics Expert Commentator Bobby Hurley.

Bobby Hurley and I look at the week of action from Brisbane so far including Arnies amazing WR in the 200 Free and her battle with teammate Mollie O'Callaghan. Cam McEvoys 50m Free win, as well as Australian Olympic team QTs and Bobby's thoughts on them.

We look back at the week so far as well and Kaylee McKeown's amazing swims, Short and Winningtons battles in the pool and a whole lot more.

We also make some predictions for the days to come, don't miss it

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 67 - Olympic Trials Stories

SPECIAL BONUS EPISODE

In this special bonus episode, Shannon takes us back to his 8 Olympic trials preparations and gives us some great stories of the past.

Stories of triumph, tears, laughter and some very fast swimming.

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 66 - Paris Olympic Trials Time

The Shannon Rollason Podcast is back and Shannon is fired up and ready to go.

This week on the podcast, Shannon and I look through the massive week of racing up in Brisbane at the Olympic Trials. All the big names are racing and Shannon casts his eye over the field to give us his thoughts on which athletes and events are going to be red hot.

We discuss all the big races and Shannon gives us his race to watch of the week, and whether it will be a week for the young or for the experienced. As well as an update on his own teams chances up in QLD.

Don't Miss it

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 65 - The Ultimate Men's 200m Breaststroke Olympic Final

The Shannon Rollason Podcast is back and Shannon is fired up and ready to go.

This week on the podcast, we look at the the ultimate men's 200m Breaststroke Olympic final off the back of the passing of one of the greatest breaststrokers of all time UKs David Wilkie.

During this episode Shannon also gives us great insight into what makes a great 200m Breaststroker, as well as how the event and stroke has evolved over the years.

All that and a whole lot more, yes including the world famous song of the week lol

The Shannon Rollason Podcast Episode 64 - The Ultimate Men's 1500m Freestyle Olympic Final

The Shannon Rollason Podcast is back and Shannon is fired up and ready to go.

This week on the podcast, due to the success of the men's 100 Freestyle and women's 400 Freestyle episodes, we do our ultimate men's 1500m freestyle Olympic final list. And this is by far the hardest final to put together so far.

We also discuss Summer McIntosh and her amazing WR in the 400IM, the Canadian Men's under the radar results from trials. Also Shannon gives some tips for doing a good presentation at a conference, as well as touching on how to coach in a woke 2024.

Song of the week is back and a whole lot more