John Urbancheck inspired the entire swimming community to 'keep moving'
Last week, American swimming lost a legend when John Urbanczyk passed away at the age of 87. In the days that followed, tributes poured in from across the swimming community, from athletes and professionals who swam for Urbancheck at the University of Michigan, and from the sports community. other coaches. Almost every monument evoked Urbancheck's favorite phrase for life both in swimming and outside of sports: “Keep moving!”
Almost all comments can be summarized as follows: He's a great swimmer, but he's a great human being.
katie ledeckyShe swam with Urban Check's group during her first pre-Olympic training camp in 2012, and said, “He has been a coach, a mentor, and a friend ever since. I learned a lot from him, and I know all of my coaches learned a lot from him as well.” Emily Brunnemann Clouet“The impact you have had on me, my career and my family is unparalleled,” said the former U.S. national team swimmer and current mental health worker for the organization. is written.
A powerful statement from Katie HoffHe swam for Urban Check at the USA Swimming Training Center in Fullerton, California, and said, “How can I put into words the joy and meaning you have brought to so many lives, including my own?'' ” he asked rhetorically. Hoff added, “Thank you for always caring about me as a person first and an athlete second.” Hoff recalled how Urban Check would pretend to forget his assigned workouts twice a week, and that he had a “contagious energy that made you want to keep playing the sport, even though you were going through it.” I remembered what he had given me.
At Michigan, Urbanczyk led the Wolverines to the NCAA team title in 1995 and retired as head coach in 2004 before being replaced. bob bowman and mike bottom Both implored Urbancheck to remain as an assistant. Bowman and Bottom each shared their memories publicly, with Bottom's statement calling Urban Check “the Yoda of world swimming, adding a sense of humor and sometimes just in need of a warm hug.” His wisdom grew and expanded over the decades. ”
There are very few people in the world who are loved, but Urban Chek was part of that exclusive club and was truly kind to everyone. One of the sport's elder statesmen in recent years, having led the University of Michigan for decades, he supported the Wolverines as a coaching expert at Fullerton for six years, even serving as an assistant, and has played in all kinds of pools. It brought youthful joy and energy to the deck. Dave Salo He received his Ph.D. from the University of Southern California and ended up working for several years as a technical advisor for the USA Swimming National Team.
During that time, hundreds of championship competitions were held, but perhaps not everyone. few It was even more important than his appearance at the U.S. Masters Nationals in Riverside, California, in April 2017. ryan lochteHe then trained with Salo and Urbancheck at USC and competed in his first race since the infamous gas station incident at the Rio Olympics. At the time, Lochte was still suspended by USA Swimming, but the USSMS cleared him to race, and Urban Check followed suit.
Were they the best competitive swimmers in the world? Of course not, but Urban Check was in his element. “There’s a lot of competition in the pool and good vibrations all over this deck,” he said. “I feel like I'm still in the Coachella Valley. All the vibrations are coming from here.”
Urbancheck pitched his tent in a corner of the deck separated by caution tape and a sign that read “John's Gang.” It was an exclusive group, but it may not have taken into account all the people who knew the coach on deck.
I interviewed Urbancheck at that meet, primarily about Lochte's return to swimming, but the conversation went far beyond that. He talked about how much he enjoyed supporting his successors at the University of Michigan, Bowman College and Bottom College. If you have any problems, go see him! I'm just an assistant. ”
Urbancheck recalled how he ended up on deck part-time at the University of Southern California. Salo finds out he lives in Los Angeles and asks for help, and Urbancheck's wife says, melanie, had graduated from USC. Urbancheck said she said, “You gave your life to Michigan. How about dedicating the rest of your life to my school, the University of Southern California?”
He shared how “Keep it move!” That mentality was contagious to the swimmers he trained with at the time. “When you go to USC, there are a lot of young, enthusiastic people. I suck it all up and push it right back at them. They always ask me, 'John, what are you so happy about?' Masu. I say, “I have the caffeine and I have your energy.” I usually drink a quad latte. That’s four shots,” Urbancheck said.
“They ask, 'John, what makes you so happy?' It's 5:00 a.m., 5:30 a.m.” “Hey, I brought you some juice. I'm still enjoying it. I'll probably continue to do it as long as I'm healthy.” My wife says that just because I retire doesn't mean I'm going to stop coaching.I just want her to get out of the house three days a week. “
And at one point in the conversation, Urban Check actually praised Lochte for breaking the world record in the 200 IM, albeit in jest, noting that Lochte first qualified for the Olympic team in 2004 and that he was leading the way. It reminded me of when I swam with the Urban Check group. On to the game.
“We're doing some IM work and I see him do the classic turn and do the IM from his back to his chest. “I don't even know how to do a crossover turn. How in the world did you get to this level?'' I said. ” Urbancheck said.
“Katie Hoff was on the team, so I said, 'Hey, Katie, why don't you teach Ryan how to do a crossover turn?' And she didn't get it. Ryan didn't get it. I couldn't. So I'm on deck like this in my board shorts. “(Damn) That's it!” I'll jump in and show you. (Damn)! Finally, he set his 200 IM world record. I think he probably still has that record. I said, “Ryan, you owe me that 5 percent.” It was my turn!
Our conversation on a sunny spring day in Southern California was typical of Urban Check. Starting with a few specific questions, he ended up spending 14 minutes laughing at Urban Check's spirit and enthusiasm. He was the first coach to receive the International Olympic Committee's Lifetime Achievement Award, and the reason goes far beyond his ability to write workouts. Simply, the person could be an inspiration.
