Your clinicians for this camp with be Olympic gold medalist Gunnar Bentz along with Coach Mike Murray. Gunnar will be in the water instructing and providing feedback on high performance technique.

NOTE: if you are looking for the swim camp for swimmers ages 12 & older, please click here.

Location Change - Saturday ONLY: Gold’s Gym, 181 Freeman Ave. Islip, NY

Suggested Participants

There is a maximum of 36 participants ages 8-11 in each session. Sign up before prices increase or the sessions fill up.

Curriculum

SESSION 1: DIVES, BACKSTROKE STARTS, UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING, AND BREAKOUTS

The start is your opportunity to cover as much ground as possible in a very short period of time, with great efficiency and momentum heading into your underwater kicking and breakout. There are countless intricacies to performing a start and you only get better with practice. Olympic gold medalist Gunnar Bentz will share his experience on how he found time to practice and improve his start both in and out of the water and some of his most effective strategies to execute this explosive and athletic movement.

STARTS: How you set up on the block including proper hand and foot placement can allow your swimmer to explode forward with a lot of explosive power. Gunnar will work with each swimmer to find their best position on the block as well as how to launch their body forward into a tight streamline and enter through a small hole.
BACKSTROKE STARTS: Getting into the right ready position with a straight back, hips high on the surface of the water, and feet positioned to get maximum power is extremely important to being able to execute a fast and clean backstroke start. Gunnar will work with swimmers at this session to achieve a beautiful back arch over the water so that they can have an advantage in every backstroke race!
UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING: The not-so-secret weapon of elite level swimmers is their underwater dolphin kick. Gunnar is known as one of the best underwater dolphin kickers in the world and he specializes in teaching swimmers how to unlock their potential in this important skill.
BREAKOUTS: Learn how to carry momentum from the underwater dolphin kicks into the breakout by timing the first stroke and staying streamlined. Your swimmer will practice keeping their head down and it'll make a big difference in their breakout!

SESSION 2: FREESTYLE, BACKSTROKE, & FLIP TURNS

Freestyle and backstroke have a lot in common including the body position, rotation, and an early press back into the water! Working on both strokes together deepens a swimmer's understanding of the importance of these aspects. Your swimmer will learn drills and skills to race faster in both free and back as well as how to accelerate through every flip turn with Gunnar Bentz!

FREESTYLE: Participants will learn how to hold a straight and solid body line so that they can cut through the water with less drag. Practice keeping a still and low head position (especially during the breath!) while driving a strong flutter kick. Gunnar will also teach participants how to get an early and powerful press backwards on the water in the arm pull to get more out of every stroke. From the 50 to the mile, your swimmer will learn skills that will allow them to drop time in every freestyle race.
BACKSTROKE: Engaging your core not only allows you to swim stronger, but it also allows you to hold the proper body position. Olympic gold medalist Gunnar Bentz will help swimmers learn the importance of rotation and how to use it to their advantage for more power in each stroke. The arm pull in backstroke should press the water all the way through using the whole arm to achieve maximum propulsion. Backstrokers are often the fastest kickers on their teams, find out why and learn to have a stronger kick!
FLIP TURNS: Your swimmer will learn how to carry their momentum through the turn to get in and out of every wall faster. Swimmers will practice accelerating into the wall with long strokes and then using their core and arms to get through the turn. They'll practice planting their feet on the wall for a powerful pushoff in the perfect streamline. Gunnar will give the swimmers drills and exercises to help them master this athletic skill now as well as in the future!

SESSION 3: BREASTSTROKE, BUTTERFLY, & OPEN TURNS

The short axis strokes are butterfly and breaststroke! These are very similar and challenging strokes to master due to the importance of rhythm! Participants at this session will learn not only how to have a stronger pull and kick, but also WHEN each movement should happen so that they can swim more connected and with more efficiency! Participants will also learn how to improve their open turns with Gunnar Bentz!

BUTTERFLY: Perfect the complexities of balancing power and fluid rhythm in one of the most dynamic athletic movements. Elite butterfliers maintain forward momentum by setting an immediate high catch with a perfectly timed kick. They are committed to a breathing pattern, perfecting their distance per stroke, and maintaining a horizontal body position - Gunnar Bentz will help your swimmer become committed to these same skills to make them their habits every time they swim fly!
BREASTSTROKE: Your swimmer will begin with a strong understanding of the timing of the kick and pull and begin to utilize the same strategies world class breaststrokers use to minimize their footprint in the water. Participants will learn the skills of swimming in a horizontal plane, keeping the hips high throughout the entire cycle and utilizing a small but powerful kick while generating power forward with their recovery.
OPEN TURNS: Think about the open turn differently! You should not be making an open to turn around and swim the next lap. If you're doing this - you're actually stopping and then trying to regain speed again. An expertly executed open turn involves spinning backwards. This enables you to carry momentum into the pushoff. We're going to teach you how to cut a lot of time on this turn... helping you in all of your breaststroke and butterfly races!

ASK QUESTIONS

Swimmers and parents are invited to ask Gunnar questions during a Q&A session. Gain insight into his training regimen, diet and nutrition, and recovery tactics.

WATCH THE CLINICIAN

Observe Gunnar swim at full speed and demonstrate a progression of perfectly executed drills to achieve powerful, efficient and fast swimming.

PUT YOUR SKILLS TO THE TEST

Swimmers will get to practice what they've learned by taking their stroke to top speed with one of the best swimmers in the world! They'll work on holding onto their form while challenging themselves.

Take a photo while wearing Gunnar's medals, get autographs, and a gift from TYR Sport!

Inquisitive, Educated Swimmers are Faster Swimmers! Sign up today!

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