Connor Bailey - (Author)

6 Ways to Survive Through Swim Practice Surviving a swim practice can get a bit rough. Sometimes, it’s the workout. Sometimes, it’s just not your day. Every swimmer has their own strategies for making it through. Here are six of the most common ways swimmers endure their swim practices... 1. The Clo...

By Connor Bailey, Swimming World College Intern Teachers. If you’re reading this, you probably know a few of them —- be they swimming inclined, or otherwise. And, depending on who you are, you either love to love them, or love to hate them. A few years ago, I became one. After about a decade of swim...

By Connor Bailey, Swimming World College Intern There are men’s and women’s  teams for soccer, volleyball, water polo etc. Really, almost every sports is divided by gender, and when there are companion teams--say for a single school--they don’t really interact with each other. But, swimming is diffe...

By Connor Bailey, Swimming World College Intern Coaches seem to shout, “mind over matter” as if it were some magic spell that solves every problem—I guess it’s just my dumb luck that all my coaches have been muggles. A mini-industry has evolved to keep athletes motivated. It peddles easy-fixes and p...

Have you not gone to the pool in a while? Maybe you’re in between seasons? Or maybe you quit the sport a long time ago? No matter the reason, it’s been some time since you’ve been to the pool and really swam. And now you’re remembering it. Can you remember how it used to feel? Can you feel it now? A...

By Connor Bailey, Swimming World College Intern There was a pool in the backyard of the Bender household. When Lisa Bender was a baby, she would play in the shallow end of that pool with her sisters. And, because Lisa was a bold child, she would try to swim in the deep end at every opportunity. So, ...

By Connor Bailey, Swimming World College Intern Coaches are the glue of the swimming community. Though swimmers shine and fade with their athletic careers, a coach has a more permanent presence. Their experience with the sport lends them a wizened perspective. But, when we talk to coaches, it’s only...