The Kings of Swimming. The Carpool Lane with Special Guests Ginny and Mark King
Today we had Lilly King’s parents- Ginny and Mark King join us on The Carpool Lane! We were able to hear first hand how they have supported Lilly through the ranks of swimming as she became the fastest breaststroker in the world. Both of Lilly’s parents were athletes and are coaches. They spoke about the importance of hard work, the college recruiting process, and the importance of not rushing the process in youth sports. Here are a few of my favorite takeaways from the Kings!
In life, nothing will ever be handed to you, even if you have a great deal of talent. At some point, you have to put in the work to be successful.
Role models are important to athletes- they can be from your same sport, or other aspects of life.
As parents in the stands, celebrate your child’s success, but be mindful who is around you, as someone else’s child may have just had a disappointing race.
Athletes should have their circle of true friends, and those are the people who matter. Focus on these people in your life rather than opinions of people you don’t know or people on social media.
After a race, great questions for parents to ask are “what did your coach say?”, “What did you think?”, and “why do you think the race turned out that way?”.
Every athlete is different, some athletes use their competition as fuel and motivation.
During the college recruiting process, encourage your child to have specific criteria they are looking for in a program. The right fit might not even be what they expected, but ultimately it is the athlete’s decision on what is the right program for them. Looking at things such as how the team interacts with each other and the coaches at meets (if possible) can be helpful.
Encourage your children to problem solve on their own.
As your youth athlete makes their way through their athletic journey, remember there is plenty of time. Slow down and focus on the process before you consider travel teams and scholarships.
Thank you so much Ginny and Mark for taking the time to join us on The Carpool Lane today! In case you missed the Kings, you can watch them here!
