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"You Can't Fix Confidence At Championships: Jack Brown" is an episode of The Swim Brief. Runtime 1 hr 13 min. Published October 19, 2026. Hit play above to stream it here, or open the free Spot Sports app for background play and offline downloads.
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You can’t wait until championships to teach swimmers how to handle championships.
Wisconsin head coach Dr. Jack Brown joins Chris DeSantis to discuss why mental skills deserve the same deliberate practice as physical ones. Drawing on his own struggles as an elite swimmer, Jack explains why “just focus” often fails, how coaches accidentally amplify performance anxiety, and when goals stop helping athletes and start getting in their way.
They also explore Jack’s transition into head coaching, a disagreement over the development of elite female swimmers, and what it takes to build a coaching culture where commitment to winning can coexist with commitment to family.
Jack’s book, The Six Questions, is available on Amazon.
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