Q & A with Scottsdale Aquatic Club Coach Kevin Zacher
By Michael J. Stott
Since 2002, Kevin Zacher has grown the Scottsdale Aquatic Club to more than 400 members, attained USA Swimming Gold Medal status, coached numerous swimmers to NAG records, individual championships, national Top 10 rankings and Olympic Trials cuts. He’s coached such standouts as Taylor Ruck,a two-time Olympic/five-time World Junior/four-time Short Course Worlds medalist, a four-time junior national champion and a three-time Arizona Swimmer of the Year; Ryan Hoffer, 2017 NHSCA National Boys’ Swimming Athlete of the Year and the top-ranked 17-18-year-old in the 50 yard (19.06) and 50 meter (22.80) freestyle, and Ashley Strouse, a 5-11 rising junior, seven-time state champion and seven-time NISCA All-American at Chaparral High School.
Q. SWIMMING WORLD: You grew up in Oregon and were a junior national and senior national meet qualifier before going to Iowa State. Any influences along the way?
A. COACH KEVIN ZACHER: I grew up in Roseburg, Ore., a small community with one team and a number of talented swimmers, including 1650 NCAA champion and 2000 Olympic bronze medalist (1500 meter free) Chris Thompson. During my high school years, I admired and was impacted by Rick Guenther in Corvallis, Steve Kerr in Eugene and Milt Nelms in Springfield.
At Iowa State University, I swam for Trip Hedrick. The way he built a team culture at ISU is something I strive to do. We all cared about each other and did whatever we could to help the team succeed. I cherish the memory of winning the 1995 Big 8 Conference Championships.
SW: Coaching style—are you a guidance counselor or taskmaster?
KZ: More of a guidance counselor. It is important to understand your swimmers and know when you can push and when you need to pull back. I want healthy, motivated and happy kids in the pool. If we can foster that, really good things happen.
SW: How have you been able to instruct swimmers with different learning styles?
KZ: It is important to know your athletes as people, as swimmers and how they learn. We have kids who listen well. Others are more visual. We constantly look for ways to coach and teach by using different methods. We have days where we print workouts for each lane. Other times, we explain each set verbally. I think it is important for the athletes to listen and process information that way. We also use video so swimmers get a visual image of the skills we want them to master.
To read our full interview with Scottsdale Aquatic’s Coach Kevin Zacher,
check out the June 2019 issue of Swimming World Magazine, available now!
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FEATURES
016 GLOBAL WARMING
by David Rieder, Dan D’Addona, Taylor Brien, Andy Ross, Erin Keaveny and Michael Randazzo
Expect the competition to heat up, July 12-28, as the world’s best aquatic athletes from all over the world converge on Kwangju, South Korea for the 18th FINA World Aquatics Championships.
PREVIEW: WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
016 WOMEN’S SWIMMING
019 MEN’S SWIMMING
024 OPEN WATER SWIMMING
025 DIVING
025 WATER POLO
027 ARTISTIC SWIMMING
028 SWEDISH SUPERSTAR
by David Rieder
Sarah Sjostrom’s swimming career has gone from teenage record-breaking dynamo to Olympic disappointment in 2012 to one of the world’s transcendent female swimmers. In Sweden, the 25-year-old is not ONE of her country’s swimming legends. She is THE legend.
031 REMEMBERING THE 1st WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – BELGRADE ’73
by Bruce Wigo
Swimming World takes a look back at the 1st FINA World Aquatics Championships in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in 1973—what was behind the start of a world championship meet and the intrigue behind adding synchronized swimming to the program…and the numerous controversies that led up to the meet as well as the ones that followed.
034 NUTRITION: AROUND THE TABLE WITH MICHIGAN LAKESHORE AQUATICS
by Dan D’Addona and Dawn Weatherwax
COACHING
010 LESSONS WITH THE LEGENDS: DON REDDISH
by Michael J. Stott
014 SWIMMING TECHNIQUE CONCEPTS: DEVELOPMENT OF AN OPTIMAL MODEL FOR TECHNIQUE: PART 7—BODY BASE OF SUPPORT FOR FREESTYLE
by Rod Havriluk
Since hand force is directly related to swimming velocity, controlling the arm motion on the push phase during freestyle has great potential for almost every swimmer. Unfortunately, it is a substantial challenge to independently push the hand backward while the torso rotates upward.
036 PLAN B: COLLEGE CLUB TEAM OPTION (Part 1)
by Michael J. Stott
College Club Swimming has been offering more and more athletes the opportunity to continue participating in the sport they love. In this two-part series, Swimming World explores some personal perspectives from swimmers pursuing their aquatic passion while enjoying a college experience unencumbered by the demands of a varsity athlete.
041 SPECIAL SETS: BREASTSTROKE REVISITED
by Michael J. Stott
John Smithson, co-head coach at Quest Swimming in Richmond, Va., has coached multiple Olympic Trials qualifiers, state record holders and state champions. Last March, two of his 14-year-old swimmers took home wins in the 100 yard breaststroke at the Virginia State Short Course Championships. Here he talks about some of the breaststroke sets that have contributed to his team’s success.
043 Q&A WITH COACH KEVIN ZACHER
by Michael J. Stott
044 HOW THEY TRAIN ASHLEY STROUSE
by Michael J. Stott
TRAINING
013 DRYSIDE TRAINING: EXERCISE EQUIPMENT SERIES—MEDICINE BALL AND CABLE EXERCISES
by J.R. Rosania
JUNIOR SWIMMER
039 GOLDMINDS: THE 5 SUPERPOWERS OF PERFORMANCE
by Wayne Goldsmith
Passion, persistence, practice, patience and peace are all within your grasp!
046 UP & COMERS: KAYLA HAN
by Taylor Brien
COLUMNS
008 A VOICE FOR THE SPORT
009 BEYOND THE YARDS
033 DID YOU KNOW? USA-USSR DUAL MEETS
047 GUTTER TALK
048 PARTING SHOT
Keep up the good work Kevin!!!