The SwimSwam Podcast

In this GMM takeover of the SwimSwam podcast we have Head Varsity Coach at The Bolles School Jake Gibbons. This is Jake’s second time on the podcast. We skip most of the biography this time, digging into what intelligence Jake has gathered developing high-level swimmers inside one of the most storied programs in the sport. We start with the rapidly changing landscape of college swimming and recruiting. Jake supports Bolles talent in navigating the college process, giving him a ground-level view of how roster limits, the transfer portal, recruiting, and the changing economics of college sports are impacting high school swimmers. We talk about what college coaches are actually looking for now and what swimmers and parents should be thinking about before choosing a program. From there, we go global. Bolles has always had a strong international footprint, and Jake has spent time studying how young swimmers are developed around the world. At Bolles, Jake is also wrestling with a challenge familiar to every program: how do you continue evolving without losing what made the program successful? We talk about building team depth while simultaneously developing top-end athletes, including Ethan Bathala, who became Jake’s first swimmer to make the USA Swimming National Junior Team. Then we get into training. Jake’s philosophy continues to evolve, and he is increasingly putting speed at the center. Instead of viewing speed as something added after building an aerobic foundation, Jake looks at aerobic development, skills, power and recovery as tools that ultimately support swimming fast. Finally, we talk about swim parents. Youth sports is becoming increasingly transactional, with recruiting, rankings, scholarships and outcomes dominating the conversation. Jake offers some perspective on what parents should protect along the way and why optimizing every decision around swimming success can sometimes destroy the very experiences that make the sport valuable.

This is a GMM takeover of the SwimSwam podcast. Joining us today is Van Mathias, one of the most fascinating comeback stories in American swimming. Mathias' path to becoming the American Record holder in both breaststroke sprints was anything but conventional. At Indiana, Mathias was primarily a butterfly and IM swimmer before breaking through in the 100 breaststroke, finishing second at the 2023 NCAA Championships in 50.60. Then he essentially disappeared for two years and eventually returned to Indiana as the program's director of swimming operations. In the summer of 2025, Mathias decided to race again. After roughly eight weeks of training, he won the 50 breaststroke at U.S. Summer Championships in 26.76 and finished second in the 100 breast in 59.74, putting himself back on the U.S. National Team. Over the next year, Mathias dropped his 50 breast from 26.76 to 26.57, then 26.39 and finally an American Record 26.30. In the 100 breast, he went from 59.74 to 59.45, then 58.19 before breaking Michael Andrew's American Record with a 58.01. At the 2026 Pan Pacific Championships, Mathias proved he could perform on the big stage. He won gold in the 100 breast in 58.02, took silver in the 50 breast in 26.42 and silver in the 50 butterfly in a personal-best 22.84. He also earned gold as part of both U.S. medley relays, including the world-record-setting mixed 4×100 medley. Beyond his breaststroke American Records, he's now been 21.62 in the 50 free and 22.84 in the 50 fly, which raises the question: Was Van Mathias training for the wrong events—or training the wrong way—for most of his swimming career?

In this GMM takeover of the SwimSwam Podcast, we have Gretchen Walsh, fresh off her haul of seven medals at the 2026 Pan Pacific Championships: five golds and two silvers. And Pan Pacs was arguably her weakest overall competition of the year. In 2026, Gretchen made the choice to travel and race fast everywhere: Beijing, Rome, Fort Lauderdale, U.S. Nationals and Pan Pacs. She noted that she took for granted all the racing she did as an NCAA star, and she wanted that experience back. The results were impressive, but Gretchen is candid that she was not satisfied with her times at Pan Pacs. She talks through that frustration and explains how she evaluates a meet where the medal count says one thing but her own expectations say something else.

This week on the SwimSwam Breakdown, we are discussing how likely it is to see Leon Marchand competing in freestyle at LA28, US Pro's finding new training bases, and the return of the International Swimming League.

2024 Olympian and recent Pan Pacs silver medalist in the 200 Breast Josh Matheny has announced he's leaving Indiana University in search of a new training home. In June, after having a rough first season as a pro swimmer and not performing how he'd hoped at the Pro Swim in Indianapolis, Matheny decided he needed a change. He asked USA Swimming National Team Director Greg Meehan if he could train at the Olympic Training Center until Pan Pacs, to which Meehan agreed. After discussing this change with Indiana coach Ray Looze as well, Matheny spent his last 6 weeks of summer preparing for Pan Pacs in Colorado Springs. In Irvine at Pan Pacs, Matheny neared his best time in the 100 breast, 59.2, making the final and ultimately finishing 4th, and set a PB in the 200 Breast at 2:08.2, earning silver. In the coming weeks, Matheny will talk with numerous teams throughout the country and hopes to find a good training fit for the next two years in the lead up to LA2028.

Hungary's Hubi Kos had a triple-crown performance in Paris at the European Championships. Winning the 200 Back and 200 IM individually, Kos also swam on Hungary's winning 4x100 free relay. Kos' Hungarian teammate, fellow superstar swimmer Kristof Milak, anchored that relay in a historically fast split, 46.2.

Before the meet, Kos had publicly voiced his frustrations about Milak sitting out of the relays in the past. Kos wanted to earn a medal for Hungary in a relay badly and knew that Milak would be key to that success. However, to Kos' surprise, Milak ended up swimming on Hungary's free relay, netting not just a medal, but gold.

Kos reflects on what winning a relay gold means to him and the historic times he posted in both the 200 Back and 200 IM.

Jack Alexy joins this GMM takeover of the SwimSwam Podcast to break down his Pan Pacific Championships performance and where those swims place him in a very elite, very crowded global sprint field. Alexy won the 100 freestyle in a Pan Pac Championship Record of 47.14, took silver in the 50 free in 21.42, and delivered a pair of sub-47 relay anchors for Team USA. He split 46.78 on the winning 4x100 freestyle relay and 46.97 on the winning 4x100 medley relay. And, of course, Alexy owns the 100 free American Record at 46.81, set at the 2025 World Championships. But the international competition has only gotten faster.

2x Olympic medalist Carson Foster returned to the SwimSwam Podcast to debrief the recent Pan Pacific Championships and the 2025-26 season. At Pan Pacs, Foster hauled in 3 silver medals, taking 2nd in the 200 Fly, 200 IM, and 400 IM. He was notably left off of USA's 4x200 free relay, a relay he's been a big part of for Team USA for the last 4 years. He isn't shy about his desire to be on the relay, but also defends Team USA's decision. Foster also speaks on tapering with Bob Bowman and what the mood of the Texas Pro Group was like when not everyone was having the meet they had hoped for in Irvine. 

Sam Short had a historic summer that saw him break numerous barriers and top the podium nearly every time he got in the pool. At the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Short swept the 400-800-1500 freestyles and led off Australia's winning 4x200 free relay. Two weeks later, at the Pan Pacific Championships, he swept the same three events, breaking Ian Thorpe's 400 free meet record from 1999 and Grant Hackett's Australian record in the 1500 from 2001. 

Today, Short sits down with SwimSwam to reflect on his remarkable consistency throughout the season and dissect his best races. We also speak about Johannes Liebmann's newly minted 14:26 world record in the 1500 and which world record Short would break if he could pick one. 

Join as we go IN DEPTH and discuss everything European and Pan Pacific Championships.