A Star-Studded Field of Olympians at the

2010 Austin Grand Prix
TBAY Central has 18 swimmers qualified for the 2010 Austin Grand Prix meet that is being held at the University of Texas.  More than 1,000 swimmers will compete in the meet, including a large group of Olympians and U.S. National Teamers. In addition to Aaron Peirsol, Olympians from Longhorn Aquatics who will swim in Austin include Garret Weber-Gale (Milwaukee, Wis.), David Walters (Yorktown, Va.) and Kathleen Hersey (Atlanta, Ga.). Other Olympians that will be at the meet include Olympic gold medalists Natalie Coughlin (Vallejo, Calif.) and Rebecca Soni (Plainsboro, N.J.), Matt Grevers (Lake Forest, Ill.), Margaret Hoelzer (Huntsville, Ala.), Dana Vollmer (Granbury, Texas), Megan Jendrick (Tacoma, Wash.), Cullen Jones (New Brunswick, N.J.), Christine Magnuson (Tinley Park, Ill.), Katie Hoff (Towson, Md.), Peter Vanderkaay (Rochester, Mich.), Mark Gangloff (Akron, Ohio), Kara Lynn Joyce (Ann Arbor, Mich.) and Amanda Weir (Lawrenceville, Ga.).
 
TBAY Central Swimmers that have qualified are Alexander Blustein, Emily Carideo, Emily Clifford, Mari Flanagan, Haley Hahmann, EJ McCargar, Will Miller, Elle Munns, John Nolte, Savannah Savitt, Emma Siewert, Rasmus Skjaerpe, Oscar Slaatmo, Rosalie Spada, Chris Swanson, Rebecca Werdine, Katie Westbrook and Carylyn Waite.

In Austin, preliminary heats will be held in the 25-yard pool (short course) while finals competition will be held in the 50-meter pool (long course). Race footage from each night of finals, as well as interviews from the Grand Prix meet, will be broadcast online at www.swimnetwork.com. Results

Coach Bowes invited to Clinic
I was invited for a 3 day clinic at the University of Georgia lead by the Bulldogs Head Coach Jack Bauerle. Coach Bauerle is a 4-time Olympic team coach, has won 4 NCAA national championships and 9 SEC Championships. He is one of the most respected and accomplished coaches in the nation.

The 3-day clinic included the ability to attend all UGA swim practices, interaction with the entire coaching staff, including Associate Head Coach Harvey Humphries, and strength trainers. Each coach gave a presentation of how UGA swimming and diving operate. It was very interesting to hear how they work together as a coaching staff. Being able to interact with the staff over three days was an amazing experience. The staff was extremely professional. They wanted to share as much as they could, from training methods to how they develop such fantastic athletes and win so many championships. The head men and women’s strength coach, Jeremy Heffner, invited me into one of the team’s weight sessions. He is an incredibility passionate and knowledgeable person who does an unbelievable job at training the team.

During my stay I also attended the Dual meet between Georgia and the University of Tennessee. It was a great meet where the Bulldogs swept the Volunteers. Following the swim meet we went to the men’s basketball game where unranked Georgia beat #8 Tennessee. I was also able to spend time with TBAY alum Chelsea Nauta. It was awesome to see Chelsea train and compete while I was in Athens. She had a fantastic meet and looks great going into next month’s SEC championships. I was extremely lucky to have had the opportunity to have been around such interesting people. I want to thank Coach Bauerle and his amazing staff for being so gracious during my stay. Photo above: TBAY alumni Chelsea Nauta, who attends the UGA, and Coach Jason.