Jackie Stewart - Brisbane, Australia
I was very lost for a while. I didn’t make the team. I was gutted.
This had been everything I’d worked towards and dreamt of. I picked myself up, saw opportunities in coaching and haven't looked back since.
"My first ocean event was off the beautiful Manly beach, Sydney (Australia) in 2000 – the distinct sound of the shark alarm went off shortly before we checked in for the 2000m swim. I was young enough to accept the commentary from my peers that the alarm was actually a good thing for us. . . . the event organisers now knew where the beasts with big white teeth were – yip, just out there beyond the wave break waiting for the ocean swim novices like me!
"I recall requesting that my event number to be scribed on all four limbs so that they would know it was me if anything untoward did happen. The prizes were so good I didn’t want to not do the swim so I dashed in focused on getting to the first turn around buoy.
"It was either my natural competitive spirit or the concerns of the alarm-activators being out there somewhere . . .but luck would have it, I won my age group and the great prizes, including a towel which I love and still have – even though it’s threadbare."
My swimming start
"My mum correctly informed the swim school assessor that a pre-lesson assessment was not required, as neither my brother Troy or myself could swim, and we had had no previous lessons . . . we were real beginners.
"Although we lived in land-locked Canberra (Australia), there were numerous beautiful beaches only a two-hour drive away. As a family, we spent every holiday at the beach and loved being in and around the ocean. Troy and I had no fear of the water, our innocent water explorations would get us into difficulty, so Mum and Dad decided we had to learn to swim. I remember starting lessons aged five, in what the swim school called ‘D’ group in a small pool with 4 other children. The simple aim was to put our face in the water, blow bubbles, and perform a basic torpedo front float, with and without kicking. Troy and I ticked these skills off first go. Up to the next level (‘C’ grade) we went, as we did again the next week, quickly finding ourselves in ‘A’ grade. It seemed we moved up levels each week during our first month of lessons – I was so proud of being promoted and good at something. I quickly became ‘hooked’ on swimming."
Hooked
"Swimming became my life as a youngster. It was my happy place and I wanted to one day become an Olympic or Commonwealth Games swimmer for Australia. I used to cut out articles on my swimming heroes and made my parents buy any magazine that featured swimmers. During these years there was a magazine called ‘The International Swimmer’ which I subscribed to from a young age and read every page.
"I remember my coach saying to me if I wanted to be a good swimmer, I had to be 'a student of my sport', something that’s always stuck with me. So I used to read a lot and be curious about what else I could be doing to get the edge on someone else that was as keen as me. I developed a mindset to be prepared to do something different or be tougher than your opponents. I quickly built a reputation of being a ‘hard trainer’. I wanted to get on the starting blocks every time with no regrets, knowing I’d done everything to prepare myself. Coach Scott also shared the book 'Winning isn’t normal' (Keith Bell) amongst our squad one year. As this would have been near 30 years ago, it must have resonated with me.
"My genuine passion for swimming led me to teaching swimming and then coaching swimming. I just love the sport and enjoyed helping others.
"I reflect how lucky I was to start working in the swim school where I learnt to swim, and then moved through the school and club ranks, to become a junior squad coach and eventually head coach in Canberra (at my club) and then on to clubs in Sydney and Cairns."
Swimming has influenced everything.
"Gosh as a swimmer, I just lived for carnivals and loved travelling away with my family and friends to compete. I loved going to the New South Wales State Championships in Sydney and loved competing against the best from across NSW. As I progressed, which I was fortunate enough to do easily in my younger years, I was soon competing at the Australian Age championships, which meant interstate travel, then at Australian Open Nationals with more destinations to travel to.
"Apart from my love of competing, the comradeship of being away as a team was special to me. Hong Kong was a destination for one of my trips, a team of approximately 15 swimmers from our club visited Hong Kong for a swimming-culture exchange during one of our school holiday periods. Two weeks in Hong Kong quickly made an impression on me and was definitely an experience I relished. These opportunities increased my hunger to compete on the international stage and to travel when I was older."
What about some of your other favourite memories Jackie?
"My first swim meet away from Canberra (Shell Age). A 50m only championship in Sydney for swimmers who had not placed in the top 3 for that stroke in the NSW State Championships. I remember how cool it was to go away for a swim meet and stay in a hotel with my team. This was also my first experience of heats and finals. I won my age group 50m backstroke final that day and caught the bug for swimming competitively.
"My first NSW state record in the 10 years 100m breaststroke and winning gold. I also placed 2nd in the 200m breaststroke. The meet was televised, so very excited to have it on tape.
"Winning a silver medal in the 12 yrs & under 4 x 50m Medley relay at the Australian Age Nationals when I was 11 years old. I’ll never forget it, as I was swimming the freestyle leg (not my best stroke) Being full of nerves, not wanting to let my teammates down, I swam a massive PB that day. Relays were a favourite event for me, where I often produced my best times.
"When I was 12 years old, I placed third in the 200m medley at the Australian Age Championships. Chariots of Fire was played over the music system as we walked to the dias … I still remember feeling the onset of goosebumps. This music is still special to me, I quickly return to that moment and the euphoric feeling.
"Being selected for an Australian team training camp in Queensland when I was 14 years old, and being surrounded by amazing Australian swimming icons like Duncan Armstrong, Michael McKenzie and Julie MacDonald. I recall Jon Sieben shared his story of the lead-up and his win at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in the 200m fly in 1984. Another time at an Australian Age Championships (Perth 1989) I raced 10 events, all PB’s, finaled in seven, medaled in three. . . I felt on top of the world.
"The announcement of eight of my club team onto the Australian team to go to the 1986 Commonwealth Games. I’ll never forget how cool that was and how, as a young swimmer at the time, I was inspired by them."
Swimmer to Swim Coach
"My competitive swimming led me into one of my main careers, swim coaching. I started as a swim teacher, teaching after school at the weekends where I had swum. When my university studies started (Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences majoring in Marketing and Law), an opportunity popped up to become Assistant Coach at my old swimming club (Burley Griffin swim club). I grabbed it with both hands, throwing myself and my swimming passion into helping the young swimmers to launch their own swimming careers.
"Over the next two years I built a reputation as an up and coming coach (let alone a female swim coach!). In 1998, a few years after graduating from uni, I was offered a coaching scholarship to study a Graduate Diploma in Elite Sports Coaching through the Australian Institute of Sport. There were 14 coaches chosen, selected from all different sports through the Australian Sports Commission, and we studied together completing assignments on our specific sports. This was the most enjoyable study I have ever undertaken, and it took my coaching to another level.
"Studying and sharing ideas within this cohort of coaches from different sports generated deeper thinking and discussions around how to be smarter in our own program. We became a melting pot of successful ideas and innovations which fitted naturally alongside the formal learnings of the diploma curriculum.
"In December 1999, not long after I completed this diploma I moved to Sydney to work with Greg McWhirter, one of the swimming coaches I met through this degree course at the AIS who inspired me every day to be a better coach. Greg was incredibly passionate about swimming, was very creative and thought outside of the square to get the best results. Coaching alongside him on a daily basis has been my favourite couple of years as a swimming coach, as we worked incredibly well together and challenged each other capitalising on the strengths and weaknesses which complimented each other. We had a lot of success as a team with Age Group and Open swimmers achieving some huge improvements, successes and making Australian teams and camps for both Open and Age categories, including such events as World Cups and Open Water World Championships. While Greg focused on the older aged swimmers, I focused on the age group swimmers. It was exciting times as the club gained significant success at local, state and national level competitions.
"As is common in swim coaching, success often opens up other opportunities. For me this was the option to join the Lane Cove Swim Club as Head Coach. I was ready for this, with Lane Cove being different from my previous coaching, I was now starting squads from scratch and starting my own business. A new challenge in itself. During my time at Lane Cove I was managing the swim school at the swimming pool complex during the day and coaching early mornings and evenings. Many huge days and really long hours but it paid off, within a few years we were running out of lane space and in the position where both the swim school and squads were at capacity.
"A calling from the north of Queensland landed on my desk in 2006 and before long I was coaching in Cairns (Trinity Anglican School). This change also had me thinking that I would enjoy working less hours, compared to the massive hours at Lane Cove, and also enjoy being an employee once more.
"It was good to have a change of pace in Cairns, but I soon started to miss the sports science support network I had in Sydney, and the level of swimmers' performances, . . . it was time to try something entirely different. I left after a year and a half for a career in the banking industry.
"Turning my back on swimming for the first time was initially a shock. I was now surrounded by a different demographic of people and swimming wasn’t something many of my peers knew much about, or enjoyed. To me this was strange, and I needed to do something about it!
"During my time managing a bank branch in Townsville, a few of the staff wanted to enter a team into the local Ironman event; however they were short of the swimmer. I quickly put my hand up, 'pick me, pick me. Yes, swimming was back in my life. Still to this day I am incredibly grateful for being part of the team. It felt like coming home! Getting in the water again and doing something that came so naturally to me and made me feel so good."
Swim Coach to Bank Coach
"In 2015 the opportunity to become a ‘coach’ in the banking sector was offered to me, which I snapped up. What I find interesting in this role is I now find myself tapping into the bag of coaching skills I used for many years in the swim coaching environment. In this corporate world there are many crossover coaching strategies, techniques and tips from the elite sports world into the corporate environment . . . I am bringing my two worlds together”
What are the fundamentals that swimming initially taught you, that you now use in the banking sector Jackie?
How to perform under stress
Being able to prioritise and plan
Perfect Practice makes perfect – don’t just practice with sloppy technique
Resilience
Adapting to change
Making the most of different situations that might be more difficult
Mindset
Visualising
Having a clear vision and setting goals all my life and knowing you just keep taking a step towards that goal and vision. Don’t lose sight of it and don’t do things without having a look at the bigger picture and having a plan/vision. You need to believe it.
Being able to focus
Being present and in the moment
Being a hard worker
Loving travel and being a part of a team
Being prepared to be different and not always blend in
Feedback
Coaching styles
Being honest so that anyone you’re coaching can develop and grow
Be specific about what I really liked that someone has done in any part of my life – let people know
A reflection on non-selection
"I truly believed representing Australia at Commonwealth Games was possible. Eight swimmers from our Club had been on the team in 1986 when I was a young swimmer and I looked up to them, trained as hard as them and thought I could do it. The piece I didn’t get right was the rest and recovery. I thought if I worked harder, then I would have the edge but instead when I raced at the 1990 Commonwealth Games trials I was anaemic, felt burnt out, with post trials blood tests indicating that I had symptoms of having had glandular fever, possibly chronic fatigue. I should have listened to my body more, undertaken tests earlier. It's easy to say this now but no one could have stopped me from overdoing it at the time. I wanted to make the team so badly. "When I didn’t perform well at the trials and didn’t make the team, I was gutted. This had been everything I’d worked towards and dreamt of. I was very lost for a while. But I picked myself up, saw opportunities in coaching and haven't looked back since."
And now in later years - why do you swim now?
"It is my happy place. It makes me feel good, very therapeutic, almost like meditation. It’s where I am me!. As I move through my 40’s, I still enjoy the regular swim sessions I participate in each week where I am amongst like-minded people. I pull a lot of energy from the group, and put a lot of energy in, leaving me centred as I start the day . . . it sets me up for a great day. I am currently swimming at an outdoor 25m pool in north Brisbane Chermside Pool, I aim for a consistent four swims per week within the adults’ squad, diving in at 5:00 am. The squad is an eclectic mixture of kids, adults and also some very talented down syndrome swimmers. Everyone is training for different events from ocean swims, triathlons, open water swimming, Masters, competitive club swimming, school swimming and of course just keeping fit. There’s also no pressure, but we challenge each other and ourselves in a very healthy way.
"It is my happy place. It makes me feel good, very therapeutic, almost like meditation. It’s where I am me!.
"This squad has me ready for any events (individual or team) that come my way. Being part of another Ironman team is always on my radar, plus the growing event list of ocean swims that is sweeping across Australia over the last few years. I admit that a half marathon swim (within a team) seems to be grabbing my attention. I find I am a lot fitter, faster and stronger when I swim in a squad as opposed to doing it by myself."
What are some of your favourite places to swim Jackie?.
All of the Northern beaches in Sydney for ocean swims and their ocean pools
Alexandra Headlands beach on the Sunshine Coast
Mooloolaba beach on Sunshine Coast
Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast
ABC Manly pool - indoor and outdoor options
The TAS pool at Whiterock (Cairns)
Chermside pool in Brisbane (just because of my swim mates)
Is there a ‘bucket list’ swim you are determined to tick-off?
“I’d really like to go on a swimming holiday overseas where you go with a group and swim in beautiful places every day, Great people, great places to swim.”
Jackie, do you have favourite swims or ‘sets’ that you prefer to perform in your swimming?
“Previously I loved doing medleys, any distance and couldn’t get enough of it. Nowadays, I gain most satisfaction from the base aerobic sets including pull sets.
“For example, 20 x 100 freestyle on the same cycle. I may break the 20 repeats into 10 swim and 10 pull - this type of set allows me to find my flow and build rhythm.
“Medley sets (or mixed sets) are still part of my sessions, as they rapidly increase my base conditioning, always a heart rate lifter.
“A good test for me is 4-6 x 400m freestyle.
“Finishing a session with kick (fins at times) and a swim down is a preference”
And what about ‘swim coaching’ Jackie? Would you return?
"After 10 years of sitting on the idea, in 2019 I returned to swim coaching, in a different form. With support from a work friend delivering the web site developing expertise, I created an online swim coaching business for adults. ‘Myswimcoach.com.au’ . In the future, I will extend the offering to encompass learn to swim for toddlers and children, junior squads and competitive swimming sessions. This side business sits alongside my own swimming and career. The majority of my clients are athletes who have a triathlon focus, aiming to improve technique and conditioning. In addition there a number of former swim squad members who I previously coached and now swim to keep fit, race the occasional ocean swim event, triathlon or Ironman swims. I truly enjoy consulting with my clients, setting their pathway towards their goals; establishing programs and offering technical advice. Many have a limited swimming background, they are out of their comfort zone and having a crack! I find this incredibly inspiring”.
Connect with Jackie: #jackstar12 (insta) #myswimcoachau (web)
