David Marsh's Next Wave Technique: Butterfly

with David Marsh,
Cal Berkeley Men's Assistant Coach;
Team Elite Aquatics (San Diego) Head Coach;
Israel Swimming Association Professional Adviser;
UCSD Head Coach from 2017 to 2019;
2016 USA Women's Olympic Team Head Coach;
14 Marsh-coached athletes competed in the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympians Games;
Head Coach, SwimMAC Carolina from 2007 to 2017 (3 consecutive USA Swimming Club Excellence Championships);
Auburn Head Men's and Women's Coach - 1990 through 2007;
12x NCAA Team Championships - 7x for the Men's program, 5x for the Women's program;
including Men's/Women's sweeps in 2003 (1st time in NCAA history to have a Men's/Women's coach sweep Championships) , 2004, 2006 and 2007 ;
8x NCAA Coach of the Year;
3x USA Men's Olympic Team Assistant ('12, 00, '96);
has coached 49 Olympians from 19 different countries;
2000 & 2003 National Collegiate and Scholastic Swimming Trophy;
North Carolina Swimming Hall of Fame - 2016;
Auburn Swimming Hall of Fame - 2015;
competed at Auburn (5x All-American; backstroke)

David Marsh is a world-class coach and stroke technician who has won 12 NCAA championships and coached numerous Olympians. In this presentation, Coach Marsh shares essential drills for helping swimmers and coaches develop a masterful butterfly. With the assistance of an elite-level swimmer, Coach Marsh starts with the basics of executing the whole of the stoke correctly and then progresses to more advanced drills that work on timing, rhythm and power.

The butterfly is one of the most difficult strokes to learn and master. With Coach Marsh's "Press and Release" drill progressions, you can overcome the challenge by developing correct body position in the water. These drills teach athletes that the more they press and release the chest without using a power driving kick to create speed, the more potential there is for faster performances.

Today's best flyers have a flatter stroke that stays more connected through the pull. Coach Marsh's pulling drills emphasize an early high elbow catch that accelerates as the hands move under the body, which is very similar to a freestyle-pulling pattern. The goal is to land the stroke in no more than four inches of water.

The timing of the breath is one of the hardest aspects of the stroke to learn. Correct timing involves getting a breath early in the stroke and staying low to the surface of the water. To help swimmers learn this technique, Coach Marsh uses a "Triangle Drill." This drill teaches swimmers to breathe early in the stroke and to keep the head from staying up too long.

This comprehensive presentation teaches the stroke using very basic drills for beginners and drills for developing power in the stroke for more advanced swimmers. By practicing these drills regularly, athletes will learn the proper timing of the butterfly stroke and will develop a more efficient and effective stroke.

BONUS
Watch as Coach Marsh shares a teaching session he conducts with some of his younger SwimMAC athletes. You will see Coach Marsh work his technical magic as he shows how the drills and technical nuances he uses with his professional swimmers are just as effective with his developing athletes. The Endless Pool creates an intimate teaching situation. Swimmers watch themselves in the bottom mirror and get immediate feedback on the technical aspects Marsh presents to them.

53 minutes. 2014.