The Gift of Casey Converse; Distance Legend Passes Away at 66
By CHUCK WARNER
Legendary United States distance swimmer and coach Casey Converse lost his battle to cancer earlier this week at the age of 66. Here is a tribute to Casey, written by Chuck Warner.
Are you a swimmer or coach with an attitude of gratitude? You might take a moment to consider appreciating the incredible gift that the life of Casey Converse has brought to all of us.
If the sport of swimming’s greatest aspiration is for someone to be able to work their way from nothing to something, from no name to know name, from entrant to champion, then Casey Converse is one example of what we can all aspire to. Growing up in Mobile, Alabama swimming for the Chandler YMCA, in his junior year of high school, he took the big leap out to California to join, enhance and invigorate the “Animal Lane” at the Mission Viejo Nadadores. Beloved by his teammates, he worked hard, improving the practice environment for everyone around him. Occasionally it was tough to get out of bed in the morning to get to practice. His coach Mark Schubert rewarded him with recording a “20,000 for time” and a lesson to meet his commitments. Casey completed the distance with no malice, accepting his responsibility as a team member.
On a winter holiday training trip to Hawaii, he was one of the first to crow joyously over the rainbows spanning the mountains, the racing between the lane lines and the laughter in the locker room. He described a 5000 for time racing in and around “the animals,” as “the most fun a teenager could ever have.” The skinny kid from the south etched himself into the team and became bold enough to begin another training session by pointing the groups minds toward their goal, when he bellowed, “I declare the Olympic Games of Montreal OPEN!”
Photo Courtesy: Air Force Academy
Casey climbed onto the 1976 Olympic team back before the USA was punished for its Olympic domination and three swimmers could qualify in each swimming event—just as is still the case in track today. In Montreal Casey didn’t medal, or even make the finals of the 400 freestyle, but he was the kind of “glue guy” that helped make that team the best Olympic men’s swimming team there has ever been.
You know Casey’s type? Every team has them. Teammates that make going to practice not only a physical workout but a social celebration. Some teammates you tolerate, others you delight in. Casey’s love and kindness for his teammates generated the same emotion back to him, forging a permanent bond.
We met in 1985 when I became the head coach of the Cincinnati Pepsi Marlins. I inherited his help as an assistant coach on the CPM staff. For me, a slow swimmer and coach from Connecticut, I had never been around an Olympian. Just like he’s done with so many colleagues, Casey quickly made it clear how he saw our relationship. We were standing by the “weight room” at the Keating Natatorium which was 50 plus meters, a stairway and a balcony away from our office. Casey said to me, “I want to clarify our relationship. If your pencil breaks, I will run up to the office and get you a new one.” He went on, “If it breaks again, I will run and get you another one.” His forthright humbleness launched a wonderful coaching rapport and friendship. And reenforced in me what kind of qualities a human is capable of.
Two years later my swimmers helped me become an assistant coach on the USA Pan Am Games staff. Skip Kenney was the head coach. Eddie Reese and Jonty Skinner, were assistant coaches with me. At our first staff meeting I told Skip that I wanted to make my relationship clear with him. I said if his pencil broke and there was a sharp one on the tenth floor of the hotel, I would run and get it for him. Other coaches echoed my sentiments.
In part, because of Casey’s example, our staff and team gelled into an egoless unit representing the USA with every ounce of emotional swimming or cheering we could give. Because of that, we were inspired to sing “America The Beautiful” together when we met our competition goals (okay, a self-conscious Eddie Reese just hummed the words).
The American Swimming Team is much more than Olympic finalists and medal winners. Our big broad tapestry of clubs, coaches, swimmers and national teams that make our sport’s flag wave with grace and pride, needs people that are seamstresses to sew our varied individual interests, backgrounds, or fabrics if you will, together.
Casey Converse was a seamstress to all who swam and coached on our team. Casey brought people together because of his love for the sport, and most especially, the people like you, that are in it.
Casey was a barrier breaker doing things others couldn’t and wouldn’t do. In his freshman year at Alabama, he became the first human to swim faster than 15:00 in the 1650. Ten years after becoming the head men and women’s coach at the US Air Force Academy, the school moved from Division II to Division I competition. It also decided to split the men and women’s programs with a head coach for each. It was much easier to recruit male national class swimmers to Air Force than women. Coach Converse was given his choice and elected to coach the women. He explained in a private moment then, “I wanted to do the most good for the most people I could.” In a recent phone call, he went further,
“Once we went into Division I, I knew that, overall, our women’s team wouldn’t be able to compete at the NCAAs. In many ways it was going to be harder to coach the women’s team. But those ladies had the same values to develop that the guys did from their experience in the sport of swimming. I wanted to help them do that.”
Courtesy: Rosie Converse-Soriano
About 2014, well into his cancer diagnosis he decided to give again by writing the book Munich To Montreal, because of the way he felt our women had been cheated by the East German systematic doping of their swimmers leading into Montreal. Casey wanted the women on his 1976 team to be recognized for what they had earned but had been denied. Wanting to fully vet his story, he flew to East Germany to interview some of the DDR women. The book helped support USA Swimming’s superb documentary “The Last Gold” about the 400-meter freestyle relay in Montreal for which he served as a consultant.
Casey was the waiter in a restaurant full of stars and egos, that provided each table the most timely, meaningful, satisfying and loving experience most could dream of. Casey Converse helped make us, The American Swimming Team, or more likely, showed us what role we could play: as a teammate, as a coach and, for those lucky enough, as a friend. Even more importantly he set an example as a father, a grandfather and husband.
Always on the search for a way to give to others, his life on earth was a gift to all who knew him, but also to every member of the swimming community that didn’t because his kindness and service reverberates throughout the sport he loved.
What a gift the life of Casey Converse has been.
What a beautiful tribute.
Excellent tapestry woven Chuck. My summation is simply, great swimmer, model coach, loyal friend, fine gentleman. A true blessing to everyone who met him.
nice artilce
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