Meet McKenzie Coan!

19:01:56 Live captions provided by Rev.com. For 99% accurate post-meeting transcripts and captions, visit Rev.com. 19:31:26 (Captioner Standing By) S:>> MICHAEL STEWARTN hi, everyone. 19:31:38 My name is Michael Stewart and I'm the director of education here at the OI foundation and I'm excited to welcome you to this evening discussion with 19:31:50 McKenzie Coan. We are so happy she is here with us today. She is going to be talking about her new memoir that just came outbreaking free. 19:31:59 And she's going to talk about about her gold medalist Paralympic swimmer. 19:32:10 Before we get into that conversation. I want to go over few housekeeping announcements with everyone. If you attended some other 19:32:22 OIF virtual events before, this will be similar to that. We are going to be having everyone muted throughout today's conversations so we can best hear 19:32:32 Mick Kenzie and Kara Ayers who will be joining us so we can best hear the information being shared. Also, you will notice that today's session has 19:32:41 live captioning, like other OIF events. So feel free to use that as well throughout today's session. You will also notice today's session is being 19:32:51 recorded. And we're going to post this later online in OIF website in our YouTube Channel. So you can check it out there. In addition, we're going 19:33:02 to post some relevant links into the chat at different points. So with that said, I want to introduce Kara Ayers. So Dr. Kara Ayers is a former Board 19:33:18 member at the OIF as well as the University of Cincinnati USAID program. And in addition, she is a OIF virtual national conference 19:33:27 speaker, and she is just a person we're so thankful to be with us today as well. And she'll be with us to help us interview McKenzie Coan. So Kara, 19:33:29 thank you so much for being here. 19:33:37 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Thank you, Michael. I'm so excited about our discussion tonight. Let me tell you I'm resisting the urge to wave to everyone so I'll 19:33:47 get that out of the way. So good to see familiar faces and new friends as well. Let me tell you about McKenzie before we jump into our discussion. 19:33:56 Like many of us, McKenzie was diagnosed with osteogenesis imperfecta. And she is going to share some about that as well 19:34:11 as her swimming career. So she is 2, soon-to-be 3 time Paralympian and 4 time paraOlympic medalist. And she plays 6 in the 400-meter free in the 19:34:24 London games. Four years later in the 2015 ri I don't Olympic, she reached the podium taking home 3 gold medal and one silver medal. In 2018, 19:34:32 McKenzie broke her first world record by staggering 37 seconds, which I can tell you in swimming does not happen often and that was incredible. That 19:34:43 was in the S7800 freestyle. It's a classification number and McKenzie and I are going to talk about that and what that means to Paralympic swimming. 19:34:54 So McKenzie is Jong us tonight from Colorado springs Colorado. So I cannot wait to kick this off. Thank you for joining us. 19:35:04 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Thank you, Kara, for the introduction. And I also need to wave to everyone. I see so many familiar faces. Hi, mom. Hi, dad. I'm 19:35:07 super-excited to be here. 19:35:13 >> DR. KARA AYERS: I'm happy you're here as well. So why don't you get started by telling us about this book, what made you want to write this book. 19:35:16 And tell us little bit about the process. 19:35:24 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Yes, so I actually think this process goes all the way back to when I was a young age group swimmer. I had a lot of unique experiences 19:35:33 being an athlete with osteogenesis imperfecta. And there were things that would happen, and I would be with my parents. And we talk about it like 19:35:44 this is so crazy. Swimming with a broken femur or broken back. And you can't make that stuff up. And I was like I would love to share this in a book 19:35:56 one day we would always joke. And it became a reality back in 2018. I finished up my NAA career and signed up with CG sports sports management. And 19:36:06 I won't forget on my call with the company, CG asked me what are your goals one day and I listed them all off. They asked me what I wanted to do as 19:36:15 a professional athlete. And I very hesitantly said you know I love to write a book one day and I was sitting there so nervous. What is his response 19:36:24 going to be? Almost immediately, he goes, we're going to make that happen. So I really think it started quite a while back and it became a reality 19:36:27 in the last few years. 19:36:29 >> DR. KARA AYERS: And we'll be able to read it soon. 19:36:35 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Definitely. It's been a fun experience writing it. Definitely been reflective. 19:36:43 >> DR. KARA AYERS: And I had a huge privilege to read it over winter break actually. It still stands out even in the midst of holiday, I've got to read 19:36:51 more, because there's so many good stories in there. If things that I could relate to both as swimmer and somebody who also has OI. So I can't wait 19:36:59 to get to some of those. But first, I want to hear your start in swimming and what led you to competitive swimming? 19:37:06 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Like a lot of us on this call, I started physical therapy very early. I think I had my first appointment with my parents and the physical 19:37:14 therapist when I was just 6 months old. So I was going probably couple of times a week up until about four years old, and the physical therapist told 19:37:25 my parents it would be really awesome if they can get me in water for aqua therapy. Water provides a weightless place where I'm really safe and 19:37:35 able to move around a lot more than I would be able to on land. So I went to my very first aqua therapy session. And I remember, yeah, I've been in 19:37:44 the pool before, but never without my parents in the water with me. And I remember I had this little zip up life jacket on. And I was in the class 19:37:53 with probably two other kids who also had special needs. But I remember thinking to myself, I can figure out how to get through the water faster than 19:38:02 them when we do things. And I figured out for the very first time, when you pull the water apart, I was already doing breast stroke, that's funny because 19:38:10 that was my worst stroke. But I can pull the water apart and I can beat them. And so I started thinking to myself, I could be fast. 19:38:19 And it helped that I'm the middle child of two brothers. And they already started on the swim team and I was on the therapy pool and they were 19:38:29 over at the lap pool. And I decided one day I had enough of this and I didn't want to be in the baby pool anymore and I want to be in the with the 19:38:38 other kids because I can beat them. And I told my mom I want to be there. And she unzipped my life jacket and through it in the trash. And she told 19:38:47 me the requirement to be with the team, I had to swim one laptop on my own without my life jacket and I could join the team. She pulled me aside and 19:38:55 I jumped in. I actually swam about 6 laps before I stopped. And I'll never forget. We had the head coach over there cheering me on and everyone. 19:39:06 And I thought this is so cool. And, really, becoming a part of the team from that point on was a really interesting experience for me. Because it was 19:39:15 the first time where I was in a large group with other kids who none of them looked like me. None of them had physical differences like myself. 19:39:24 But it didn't matter. I was accepted as part of the team. I worked right alongside them. I learned how to adapt when I needed to. So as much as I 19:39:37 learned in the water about, you know, swimming, and technique, and everything, I began to learn a lot about myself. And how to manage my life with OI. 19:39:46 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Totally, and I think swimming offers that unique. There's lots of sports people with OI can play and participant in. But that chance 19:39:59 to be an integrated team and inclusive team, swimming can provide. Looking back what a an incredible experience 19:40:03 that would have been like to have growing up. 19:40:04 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Absolutely. 19:40:11 >> DR. KARA AYERS: So your typical day in training has changed. So what is your typical day like? And how did you fit writing into that? Because 19:40:18 your typical day is challenging, so how did writing come into that? 19:40:27 >> MCKENZIE COAN: There's definitely long days amidst of training for sure. My co-author, Holly, who is on this call right now. She's amazing. We 19:40:39 started writing Breaking Free late September, early October. So I just gotten out to the training center. I'm in the Olympic training 19:40:46 center in Colorado Springs. And before that I've been home for six months in Georgia. And I decided they opened up slots for the national team to 19:40:56 come out here. And basically, live in a bubble, if you will. So it's a very small group of people living at the training center currently. And we 19:41:04 have access to really amazing facilities. It's been such a gift to be able to do that. But I would literally wake up at 6:00 a.m. I go to practice 19:41:16 from 7 to 9:00 a.m. And then Holly and I would jump on a call right after. And we talk for an hour or two. We had specific stories, or topics that 19:41:26 we wanted to touch on. And those were probably some of the funnest conversations I've ever had. And none of it ever really felt like work. And we 19:41:35 hop on that call. We talk about it. We plan the next day or day after that call. And then I would eat some lunch. And then I take a small nap. 19:41:45 I go back to training for a second time during the day. And they happen after that, it was all about recovery and getting to bed to wake up and do it 19:41:54 again the next day. So it's definitely very busy. It keeps me kind of very task-oriented throughout the day, because I know I'm sure always going 19:42:02 to have two training sessions each day, and I have be able to get in recovery somewhere and do any of the work stuff I needed to do. But let me tell 19:42:12 you, after my college experience, I swam for four years as part of an NCAA division program while going to school full-time, while also being a member 19:42:22 of the national team. You will never learn better time management skills than in that time period. So I feel like all that kind of prepared me to take 19:42:31 on this challenge of swimming full-time as a professional, getting ready for the games while writing Breaking Free. 19:42:40 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. It feels a little freer without the classes. 19:42:48 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It almost feels a little easier at times dare a say. Shouldn't I'd be a little more run down than this? I'm used to that. 19:43:01 >> DR. KARA AYERS: You mentioned recovery. What is it like being in recovery? You've never been an athlete without OI. 19:43:10 >> MCKENZIE COAN: As an athlete with OI, it's o proper to get recovery. After I get out of the water and back to the athlete center here where our dorms 19:43:19 are, I always grab bags of ice and put them on my shoulder and back right away soon as possible. Because I know it's so important for me since I'm 19:43:28 so upper body dominant to keep those parts of my body going. So I always like to make sure I'm already doing something at least to try to get that inflammation 19:43:38 out before my next training session. Ice is a must. And I use also a foam roller. I have to be very careful with that, you know? Because obviously, 19:43:47 some foam rollers are rougher and they have different textures on them. So I can't push down too hard in certain places. And as many of us on this 19:43:56 call know with OI, it's all about adapting and figuring out how to make it work for us. And I think that's been really crucial in my recovery process. 19:44:08 And obviously, I am 25 now. I don't quite recover as quickly as I used to. So, it's been, you know, a challenge figuring out exactly how much I need 19:44:16 to keep going on a daily basis with the workload that my body is taking on. 19:44:24 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, that definitely makes sense. So if we get into kind of the nitty-gritty of Paralympic swimming here, can you explain the process 19:44:29 of classification and what your experience has been like? 19:44:39 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Absolutely. So classification is a very complex system. I have a lot of respect for clarifies. They have a difficult 19:44:48 and demanding job. Obviously, they see a broad range of disabilities. And all kinds of things out there. So I do not envy their job, and I have a 19:44:59 lot of respect for them. There are ten physical impairment classifications. S1 being the most impaired. You might see an athlete who literally has 19:45:09 one limb who is swimming. Whereas S ten on the other end spectrum is least impaired of the physical impairments. And for me personally, I fall into 19:45:18 the S7 category. So kind of somewhere in the middle there. But let me tell you, I have been probably every classification you could possibly imagine. 19:45:31 When I was younger before I had kind of developed into my OI a little bit more, I obviously had more range of motion, I was more flexible. So I 19:45:43 actually started out as intermediate E, which is non-eligible 10NE. And basically, what that means, the only stroke I was eligible to swim was breast 19:45:53 stroke at the time. So you have have an S class, SB class and then you have IM class. So the only thing I could swim was breast stroke. That 19:46:04 was about a yearlong process to get reviewed again. So I only swam breast strokes at Paralympic for a year and they reviewed me and they made me S9 19:46:14 because I developed into my OI little more and less range of motion. And from there, I spent four year as S9. And that was a challenging experience, 19:46:24 because I was the only one in my S9 classification who got around in a wheelchair. And I would always get questions, oh you're an S9? Well, OI is a 19:46:34 very complex disorder. And you know, be I think eventually I'll go down, but this is how it is right now. And then in 2012, just before the London 19:46:46 trials, I was classified down as an S8. And that kind of started fitting a little bit more where I have always felt I belonged on a pool deck and in 19:46:57 the classification system. So I was an S8. And from there, my very first meet as an 8, I made the merging team if national team, and next meet was 19:47:08 trial and ended up making my first games team. From there, I've spent probably 3 or 4 years as S8. And right before Rio, I went down to S7. So you 19:47:18 can kind of see my classification experience how I've progressed and how it's shown in me dropping classifications, which I think is really 19:47:29 interesting. But it is a scary experience being somebody who has OI going into classification. Because the system, you know, you have two different 19:47:40 parts of the classification itself. You have a bench test and you have a water test. On the bench test, the classifiers, again, they have a difficult 19:47:52 job. But they pull on you, they twist you, they calculating your range of motion. They do all the things you're basically not supposed to do 19:48:03 who has OI. Every time I went in there whether it was with my mom or coach, or member of the national team staff, I had a tendency to hold my 19:48:12 breath a little bit. Okay, we're going in there. And I wasn't scared of the outcome itself. But just being pulled on by everyone. Because you can't 19:48:20 tell them to stop. Because it's part of the process. So it has been tricky at times. But I've been very fortunate in my last couple of classifications 19:48:30 to be able to explain to the classify fires, it's all about communication. To explain to them what OI is. And if you want me to to do something, 19:48:40 just tell me before you grab on my or don't pull on me if you want me to do something. Let me do it myself. So I always tell young swimmers in the 19:48:51 paraworld coming up, communicate with your classifiers. But I think no matter what, it's always a little bit nerve-wracking going 19:48:54 in there. 19:49:06 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, I definitely remember that. So when I swam, I was an SB4 was my lower number. And then I was 6 in the free stroke backstroke 19:49:16 style and 5 on the IM side. So I was all over the board. So depending on what stroke I was swimming depend on which classification. And my hope is 19:49:25 more swimmers with OI are taking part in this system so also it can naturally, the system can figure out, like you said, it is complex. We have all 19:49:34 different kind of ranges of the way that OI impacts us. And another piece of the advice I've given to people, and we even talked about this when you 19:49:43 were younger was, when you go to the classification room, they ask you questions like can you walk without your wheelchair? And I think it's a tendency 19:49:56 for us, for example, my kids kid me. Because when people ask me that, sort of. And my kids are like, no, you can't, mom. No you can't. Because I 19:50:06 cannot walk functionally at all. I can hold on to something and take a few steps but it's not walking. If in the classification room they asked me, 19:50:13 I would have said yeah, I walk. And so it's a weird environment. It's not that you want to lie and say you can't do things that you can do. But it's 19:50:22 not the same environment maybe like your doctor's appointment where you want to tell them, here's everything I can do. You kind of got to hit this 19:50:29 middle, or else what will happen is you can end up in a number group that's just not fair. 19:50:39 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Yes, absolutely. It's interesting, Kara, when we first met back in, I believe it was 2010 at G technical. Actually, I have to tell 19:50:49 the story real quick. Because I think it's so funny how we, my mom and dad and I met you. Okay, so, my mom and I were sitting at a computer. And 19:50:58 she was trying to figure out, you know, I was like two years away from getting my learner's permit or license or whatever. And we were trying to figure 19:51:09 out how we would get my wheelchair into the car safely. So she literally Googled it on her laptop. And pulled up this video. And Scara was putting 19:51:19 her chair into the car. And we were watching. And my mom goes, she goes like this at the screen and says she looks exactly like you. And we Googled 19:51:31 you some more. She's a Paralympic swimmer. She's a Paralympian. And oh my about to do, we were going to a meet in Ohio and you lived in Ohio. 19:51:40 And it couldn't have been more perfect. I remember you came and this is just before your daughter Hannah was born. And that, and the entire session 19:51:49 watched my swim and we got to hang out after and talking about everything. Even the classification system. And I probably mentioned, yeah, I'm a 9 19:51:58 now. It doesn't quite fit. But I'm hoping in the next few years that will change maybe. But it's so funny that you brought that up, because I remember 19:52:04 distinctively having that conversation you with the very first time that we met. 19:52:12 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, I'm just so glad you stuck with that. That speaks to your love for swimming because it can be a unique experience. Because 19:52:21 Paralympic swimmers are incredibly to watch. All the different disabilities, it's just incredible. But when you're competing. You've worked hard. 19:52:30 And everybody else around you is like, you know, literally dancing without any assistance, because on some meets, they used to have dances. But they 19:52:39 got rid of that. So it can be weird. It's important that number, is somewhat accurately try to capture where you are. It's tough. It's hard to factor 19:52:42 in OI, I think. 19:52:50 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It is. It is really difficult. Everything I went through with classification, I always tell people with OI, it might be a fight 19:52:59 sometimes. But I promise you, it's always worth it. Stick it out. There were some low points, some more difficult classification appointments and 19:53:09 experiences that I had. And sometimes it did feel like I was fighting an uphill battle that I of the going to win. But I tell you, I have never been 19:53:18 so grateful and thankful that I kept going. And that was really from, you know, the support of my parents, my family, my doctors, I cannot tell 19:53:29 you how much documentation I would bring from them and x-rays, and everything under the sun with me. And if it wasn't for that support, I don't know 19:53:38 what would have happen. But I always tell people with OI to stick it out. If you want it, you'll find a way, and the system will work for you eventually 19:53:42 down the road. But you have to see it through. 19:53:49 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That's a great point, too, of bringing the documentation. Because I think much of the classification system is built for athletes 19:54:00 who have amputation, who have form of little people, but OI seems like we have so much going on under our skill that you can't see. You can't see hip 19:54:09 issues, and spine issues. I mean, you can see some of it, but you know what I mean. So bringing those x-rays was helpful to helping them know 19:54:11 all that's going on. 19:54:13 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Absolutely. 19:54:20 >> DR. KARA AYERS: So if we move kind of beyond classification for a minute, how do you think OI has impacted your swimming career? 19:54:29 >> MCKENZIE COAN: I actually think it's made me a stronger athlete. I will always believe OI has shaped my life in so many ways, ways that I can't even 19:54:38 explain to you. But you know, I'm sure many of us could attest to this on this call. Every single break that I've ever gone through has only made 19:54:47 me a stronger person and a stronger athlete. There are some days, and even out here, I was thinking about it the other day. We were going through one 19:54:58 of the toughest 400 free pace sets I've ever done in my entire life. And there was a moment we were halfway through it. Like we were just halfway 19:55:06 up the hill. Like we still had to go down it. And I remember thinking to myself, okay, I've been through worse than this. I have had to push through 19:55:13 difficult things. There's no reason why I can't put my head town and finish this set right now. So I think being able to look back on the experiences 19:55:25 that I've had with OI, all the bad, but also the good experiences had made me stronger. Had made me more confident. Sometimes when I'm standing behind 19:55:38 the block at big meets, I think back to days in the hot where I went through a rodding surgery. Or I was getting a tough round of permanent 19:55:46 danae. And I know I can do this. 19:55:55 And actually one of the interesting things, and I talk about this in Breaking Free is my focus. I really think that going through procedures with OI 19:56:08 and going through fractures have given me the ability to focus and really high pressured stressful situations. I'm able to key in on the task at hand. 19:56:19 I'm able to be task-oriented. I'm able to be task focused. I can put aside emotions and get the job done. And I actually credit that and attribute 19:56:25 that to having OI and going through some really difficult experiences with that. 19:56:32 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That's super-interesting. Kind of the hyperfocus no matter what, you know, no matter what the body is doing, everything, the environment, 19:56:33 yeah. 19:56:41 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It is. And I think it's definitely prepared me for that. And I think those are tools I'll use throughout my entire life. My job, 19:56:49 whatever it may be. I think that's something that OI has really given me, and I'm sure a lot of people on this call can attest to that as well. 19:56:57 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, I think so too. One of my favorite kind of stories from the book was your tech suit story. So I didn't know if you wanted 19:57:01 to share that a little bit with the audience? 19:57:11 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Yes, so one of the hardest things. You know, it's just such a crazy thing, because nobody ever thinks about this. Having OI, and 19:57:22 you know, as a swimmer, we wear these super, super tight tech suits when we go out to race. We wear maybe 4 sizes too small sometimes. So getting 19:57:32 on these tech suit is a very tricky challenge for someone who is not supposed to be pulling, not supposed to be yanking or twisting and grabbing things 19:57:42 with her body. And I share these stories in the book. But I have to actually lay down on the floor to get these tech suits on. Because I kid you 19:57:52 not, there have been experiences where I'll go out before a big race, and I normally don't wear, I try not to wear tech suit during warm-up if I can 19:58:01 help it because I want that moment when I dive into the race I feel the weightlessness the tech suit gives me. But I have to lay down on the floor, 19:58:10 and slowly, it's probably like a 30 minute process pulling this suit up. And before I used to do that, I would stand up. And there have been times 19:58:20 when I popped my shoulder out of place. Or I hurt my back real badly one time. One time I really messed up my shoulder putting it on. And only 19:58:29 to get it on and to realize I had a hole on the side of it. So it was all for nothing in the end. But it's one of those really crazy things that nobody 19:58:35 thinks about putting on a tech suit is so dangerous when you have OI. Let me tell you. 19:58:45 And I get more nervous to put on that suit than I do for the actual race. It is like nerve-wracking. I feel like the suits on, the job is already 19:58:49 done. Just got to go out and finish it. 19:58:55 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, for sure. It's like got so many flags. The locker room is somewhat slippy. 19:59:04 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It is. Kara, I'm a little bit of a germaphobe. So you can only imagine what it's been like during the COVID-19 times. But I've got 19:59:10 My Lai sole bottle and like spray it down the floor before I get down on it. 19:59:14 It's very entertaining. 19:59:21 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, for sure. We'll be thinking about that as we wait for you to get on the block. Yeah. So thinking about that, I would love 19:59:33 to hear your thoughts about, well, of course, we're all wondering how Tokyo will be different. What's the village like and what are you excited 19:59:35 about this year? 19:59:43 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Yeah, what's interesting is I've really obviously we've lived through something so difficult and so devastating in the last year. 19:59:54 I mean, COVID-19 has really impacted all of our lives and will continue for a while probably. But yeah, looking at these games as no surprise. London 20:00:06 and Rio were two completely different games. I think about them and just two completely different experiences. And I've done a lot of work with sports 20:00:15 psychology. We always think about, well, Tokyo is obviously going to be different from Rio and London and you won't know or expect everything coming. 20:00:22 But this obviously takes on a different tone. We're going through a lot of different policies just to be able to get on that plane and leave for games. 20:00:32 We're going to have daily COVID testing. We're going to have certain groups in a village that were we're allowed to be around and others we won't have 20:00:43 much interaction with. I already saw from the village cafeteria they have plastic barriers. So it's like we're eating in a box. 20:00:50 That will be a unique experience. But just remembering that every game is different. And it's something that we'll deal with each thing as it 20:00:52 comes along. 20:01:05 As a professional athlete, we're trained in sports psychology to deal with unexpected. And unexpected come at you quite quickly sometimes. 20:01:14 And as a group of team USA, we have to band together and face those challenges head on and support one another. And that's exactly what we're going to 20:01:23 do in Tokyo. So I expect we're going to have a lot of challenges come our way, but our training over the past year, and especially when lockdown 20:01:30 started last year, these are things that we work on because we couldn't train in a pool. So we've got extra time to work on our mental state and what 20:01:38 to expect when the time comes. So I'm expecting the unexpected. And I'm confident that we'll be able to face that. 20:01:47 But at the same time, seeing all the Olympians, you know, post pictures of the village, and realizing we're still going to 20:01:58 the Paralympic village and we're going to have that Paralympic experience that's going to be a little different. I wish we could have 20:02:07 spectators and have my family there and that will be bittersweet. But are having that support from home, I can feel it. 20:02:15 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, we'll definitely be cheering you on. And I know you'll make the best of it and the changes. But I think it will still be so 20:02:23 special in so many ways. And I really liked, hopefully, those that have tuned in follow you on social media. 20:02:28 I can't remember if it was Twitter or Instagram that you shared what was in your bag? 20:02:30 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Yes. 20:02:41 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That made me wonder what kind of is in your bag or kind of too big for your bag related to OI. I'm sure you're going 20:02:46 to bring your wheelchair. What else are you packing with your OI related needs in mind? 20:02:54 >> MCKENZIE COAN: I think there's specific things. I have certain pillows I like to sleep on. Obviously, when my sclerosis and everything in my hip, 20:03:04 I like to prop it up at night. So I'll definitely be bringing that. I'm bringing my emergency break kit, as I like to call it. Because I am someone 20:03:17 who is very prone to running into things. And running into walls on finishes. And lame ropes and whatever else you could physically run into. So I'll 20:03:27 be bringing that to tape up toe or finger fractures if I need to. But I always have that in my swim bag. It's just a little bag. And it has tape. 20:03:37 It has Advil. It has anything that I need to kind of splint or break with. And that's important for me to have. So that will definitely be with 20:03:44 me. My wheelchair and my wheelchair tools. Just anything that could possibly. I say we're going to expect the unexpected. And I'm going to pack 20:03:47 for the unexpected as well. 20:03:53 >> DR. KARA AYERS: And I think it is kind of nice. At least for our games. And I think it's still the same for this. You don't have the same worry 20:04:02 of your wheelchair being damaged when you fly. Because like the whole flight is kind of ready and prepared for that. We did have the issue of when 20:04:14 they unloaded our chairs for some apparent reason, they took off all the wheels and piled them. I have this awesome picture of 12-foot high pile of 20:04:24 wheelchair wheels. And some of us individually tagged the wheels. And Paralympickians were on the groundfishing through like 20:04:32 this is my wheel? Besides that hiccup, you don't have the same concern that your wheelchair is going to make it. 20:04:40 >> MCKENZIE COAN: That's actually so funny now. Maybe I'll take a Sharpie and put my initials on mine in the corner or something? 20:04:44 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, I was definitely thankful I over tagged. 20:04:46 >> MCKENZIE COAN: So funny. Oh my gosh. 20:04:55 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Well, you need patience to travel with a lot of other athletes with disabilities. Takes a long time. Yeah. 20:05:04 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Patience and understanding. And I'm a person, I love traveling alone. I think it's so much fun. I don't know why, 20:05:15 but when you get into those situations, it takes a lot of patience and understanding one another. And plus, you're about to together for a month on 20:05:20 this trip so might as well not start off on the wrong foot. 20:05:27 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, you don't want a dispute on the way over. And I also wanted to let people know if you want to drop questions in the chat. 20:05:37 I saw couple come in but we would love to have your questions in a few minute. I have couple more questions for you, McKenzie. I wonder how your mind 20:05:48 set has changed. I know you talked little bit about how each game is different. But specifically now that you achieved huge milestones and world record 20:05:54 and gold medal. So how do you set that higher bar for yourself and what does that look like for you? 20:06:03 >> MCKENZIE COAN: When I take a moment to reflect and I was writing Breaking Free, and Holly and I was going through all the stories and digging up all 20:06:13 these feelings. Last couple of years since 2016. I graduated from college. And I was training full-time for whatever meet was coming 20:06:24 up next. And then I was thinking about law school and studying for the LSAT so I never sat down and think about what I had 20:06:35 done from Rio. I was being back to full-time college student. I went into classes a month late. I never had had time to think about what I achieved 20:06:45 and live in the moment. So process of writing Breaking Free, I was able to reflect. And it brought up a lot of feelings I had never really looked 20:06:55 into or felt before. And that was really, really cool. And just being able to recognize what I went out and did in 2016 was a pretty incredible thing. 20:07:05 And just living in that while we were writing the book was amazing. But it also made me think about why am I still swimming? Why am I still doing this? 20:07:16 And you know, I still feel like even though I did all that in 2016, I want more. And I know that there's more in me. I know I show up to the pool every 20:07:25 single session, even if I don't have the best day, I'm going to give it my all. And I always think there's room to be better. And that's the amazing 20:07:32 thing about swimming. You can always be better than you were the last time you dove in. It just takes a lot of work and sacrifice, and determination, 20:07:39 and especially, showing up on the days that you don't feel like it. Or when things aren't going well, not crumbling and getting through it. And that's 20:07:48 what it takes. So to be able to reflect on that was really amazing. But also to realize, I could be better in those world record I set. I could win 20:07:59 more medals or do more things than I did in 2016. But I think beyond all of that, there's a bigger recognition about what I want to do in Tokyo and 20:08:08 what I'm trying to achieve. And bigger than any medal, bigger than any world record is being able to go out there and show the next generation what 20:08:19 is possible. Show and inspire kids who are up-and-coming to go out if do what we're doing, but to do it even better, and even bigger. And that dreams 20:08:30 have no limitations. So I'm at a point where I've had success and tasted success and that's amazing and I 20:08:39 would love to have more, but it's about something so much bigger and it's about bringing the next generation to do it even bigger. 20:08:46 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That's awesome. I can't wait to see that either. We can't wait to see you in Tokyo. How can we watch you? 20:08:59 >> MCKENZIE COAN: So it will be on NBC. And it will be live on NBC at those times and it will also 20:09:12 be on the next day. You can catch on NBC, NBCSN. I think they're going to do 15,000 hours of air time on NBC. So you'll be able to catch it. Swimming 20:09:21 actually goes on throughout all ten days of the games. My program doesn't start until day 5. So I'll go day 5 throughout the rest of the games. And 20:09:32 I'll have about 5 individual events. And, hopefully, two relays. So I'm really excited. And obviously, having this on NBC and having many hours 20:09:42 of coverage we're going to have is something absolutely monumental to the Paralympic movement. I remember back at my first game when we were in London 20:09:51 in 2012, I think you could barely find, I don't think you could find I livestream on the U.S. We had about, if we were lucky, it might have been an 20:10:05 one-hour special. It might have been a two hour special on NBC and CSN. And all the special crammed into the special about every Paralympic sports. 20:10:16 And we had air time in Rio. And now the amount. Hours we have now is so amazing. And the coverage and exposure for the Paralympic movement 20:10:21 in the U.S. is something really incredible. And it's taken a long time to get to. 20:10:30 But I feel like we're finally in a really good place and matching other countries. You have Great Britain who has done it for a long time and 20:10:35 done it the right way. But to finally be on that level feels really good. 20:10:44 >> DR. KARA AYERS: It has been great to see the excitement build. And it's one of the first years, too, so many commercials and endorsement joined Paralympic 20:10:53 and Olympic athletes. And to see those together is really, I think a cool representation. And I think just in talking to people about the games, too. 20:11:01 People are starting to understand the differences between. But also maybe more importantly how much they're similar. And we've always joked in our 20:11:10 house, that if more people had a chance to watch the Paralympics, they realize in a lot of ways, we're biased around here, but we think they're more 20:11:19 interesting. I mean, there's so many more incredible finishes, and stories, and there's so much more diversity and athletes and disability types. 20:11:29 If the general public had a chance to see these games, they would never not want to see them each time they come around. So I hope this is the year that 20:11:31 we all have a chance to do that. 20:11:38 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It's really incredible, because years and years ago, I never would have thought you see, I'm sure a lot of you seen the Toyota commercial 20:11:48 with Jessica long coming on. It has played every single time I've watched the Olympics at least once if not two or three times while we've been watching 20:11:55 the game on TV. And that type of representation is incredible. And then I watched a com cast commercial the other day. This is really exciting to 20:12:07 me, Kara. At the end of the commercial, you know, what usually comes up is proud sponsor and has the Olympic rings and Kara will be after it. No, 20:12:16 proud sponsor Paralympic and that came up before the Olympics. And it struck me how far we've come and it made me excited for what's to come. Who knows 20:12:21 what it will be like in 2024 at this time. 20:12:29 >> DR. KARA AYERS: It's a huge change. I used to be excited because I knew certain big companies like the Hartford and are big names spoashessed 20:12:38 sponsored the Paralympic but they didn't put it on the endorsement pages or commercial. So it's a huge shift. And I'm excited. I also 20:12:48 want people, as we cheer you on from over here, for you to know that, because I remember it's a grueling several many days. And you mention like the 20:12:56 stretch too. I think one of the things that's hard about swimming and a lot of people don't realize, you're going to be busy, and focused, on 20:13:06 your A game the whole time. Whereas the other sports are done day four and they can, of course, they won't be like hopefully partying in Tokyo. But 20:13:17 they're relaxing and taking in the games and having a good time. But as a swimmer, with your heavy schedule load, 20:13:28 you will be on the whole time. So I know there will be tiring moments but know your OI community behind you. 20:13:35 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It's absolutely the best time of your life and most grueling. I try to explain this to someone. There is no tired quite like the 20:13:45 tired that you feel when you get on the plane to leave a Paralympic game. It is a different kind of tire. And it hits you so differently. So that 20:13:58 is definitely true. It's exciting if grueling but knowing I have the support from the community keeps me going for sure. 20:14:03 >> DR. KARA AYERS: I want to jump to the chat box. But first how can we get a hold of your book? 20:14:11 >> MCKENZIE COAN: So you can go on Amazon. There is a preorder link there. You can type in McKenzie Coan book or McKenzie Coan breaking pre. And 20:14:22 Breaking Free and it will come right up. And it's also listed in the swimming book section. It's also available 20:14:35 for preorder on target.com. And preorder will be up on August 11 when the book is officially released. You can also go on my website McKenzieCoan.com. 20:14:47 And you can order the book there. And we put up a link today to get an autograph copy from that. So couple of different ways you can find Breaking 20:14:48 Free. 20:14:56 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Awesome. Thank you. And I've already had the pleasure of reading it. I'm going to preorder copies, not because I want to spread 20:15:05 the joy, but also I've been learning preordering is an important indicator for the book market about what's going to be hot and trending. So one of 20:15:20 the ways we can help other people see this book and get recommended in the list is by preordering. I guess preordering gives it that extra boost. 20:15:22 So that would be fantastic. 20:15:31 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Preordering is amazing. And also this is really important to me. Every preorder that sold, I'm actually going to give back a percentage 20:15:40 to the OI foundation. And it was really important to me coming from this community and having so many amazing people and the foundation making such 20:15:50 an impact on my life to be able to give a little something back to something that's been such a presence in my life, in my swimming career, and everything. 20:15:57 So that's really important to me as well in these preorders. 20:16:08 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That's awesome. Thank you. We have some great questions. So I'm going to try to start around the top. How much physical therapist 20:16:11 been involved in your training? 20:16:22 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Quite a bit. My physical therapist, Colleen O berry. Since the time I was 6 months old when I went to my first physical therapist, 20:16:33 but we met Colleen when I was 1 or 2. So she was my second physical sthis but she's been with me ever since. And Colleen has been such a presence 20:16:42 in my life. I was going couple of times a week when I was younger and as I got older, we would go in when things happened. When I was trying to come 20:16:52 off a fracture and heal and everything. But Colleen has always been there day and night. We call her up. She stops everything she's doing just to 20:17:01 help me. Even as I got older and entered adulthood. And Colleen has been so much more than a physical therapist. She's literally a part of my family. 20:17:11 And I can say without a shadow of a doubt, I would not be as healthy today and I wouldn't be swimming today if it wasn't for her, her guidance, and 20:17:14 her support. So she is a huge part of my life. 20:17:24 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That is awesome. I'm glad you have her. So this is an interesting one. This is from AnnMarie. So she's wondering how much if at 20:17:34 all statute come into classification. If you have two people with the same muscle strength, how much does height come in? 20:17:44 >> MCKENZIE COAN: This is a great question, because there is a very big height rule change back in 2016. It was right before the Rio games. And it 20:17:54 actually came out just as I was going in for a classification review. It just so happens they rewrote the rules into the book. If you are below a 20:18:06 certain height, they have a minus rule one, minus 1 rule in world paraswimming now. So I fall below that height requirement. So even if I bench test 20:18:19 an S7 and in the water test I'm an S7, since I'm below a certain height, I would go minus 1 from that classification. So let's say, like an example 20:18:31 like I bench tested 8 and I was in the water. They gave me S8 in my water test. I'm below a height, so I drop down to S7. So that came into play in 20:18:41 2016. But before that, unless you were a dwarf or a little person, they didn't really take height into consideration that much. So those were written 20:18:51 in back in 2016. So very, very big rule change and has definitely affected the classification system. 20:18:58 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That makes a lot of sense. Because swimming, your body height makes a difference. 20:18:59 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Definitely. 20:19:06 >> DR. KARA AYERS: We have a great question from Jack. He's 12 and swims a lot. He has not tried to join the swim team yet. But what do you think 20:19:17 is the path for getting into the Paralympic? Before the Paralympic, what is a way people could get into adaptive swimming? 20:19:26 >> MCKENZIE COAN: That's such a great question. So I actually started as part of an age group swim before I joined adaptive swimming. I didn't know 20:19:36 when I was on an age group team, I didn't know about the Paralympic. I didn't know those opportunities existed actually. So I joined an age group 20:19:45 team first, but I would absolutely recommend, go to Google, wherever you live. Sermon your area and state and find an adaptive swim program. And start 20:19:56 from there. You can also, if you're already in age group swimming, talk to your coaches and you can reach out to your state LSCly and get connected 20:20:09 with different adaptive swim program. And I was in a legacy organization of 19 the 6 Paralympic games. And they were fantastic. I really 20:20:18 learned about Paralympic through them. I was able to move through the ranks from regional swim meets to junior nationals, and then national from there. 20:20:27 So it's a great stepping stone to be able to learn what you need to know as you're going through the ranks of Paralympic by joining an adaptive program. 20:20:37 They will give you your start. And blaze sports did so much for me and I learned so much and I'm grateful I went to them first before I started going 20:20:41 to Paralympic swim meets. 20:20:48 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That makes sense. Few years automatic, you used to have a grant program that were Paralympic sports club in number of cities, and 20:21:00 I'm not sure if that's continuing in all the cities. I know in Cincinnati, ours is not an official Paralympic swim club but we still have the swimming 20:21:11 part of it. But a lot of people adapted athletes, sometimes you have to drive a bit to get to the city. So maybe you don't practice every day with 20:21:18 your team if your team is ways away. But maybe you're able to get to meets. 20:21:29 >> MCKENZIE COAN: That's a great point. Because I grew up in rural northeast Georgia. Great town. But it was 2 hours from Atlanta. And 20:21:42 my parents and I would drive 2 hours to Marietta to swim with blaze. And it really worked out because I still got to be with my age group program and 20:21:51 still got to be with my blaze sports. There's flexibility there which is amazing. And you can also go on the U.S. Paralympic website and go to swimming. 20:21:58 And they have resources there to connect with coaches. So you can reach out to them through email. And they will probably put you in contact with 20:22:13 the members of national team staff. And they will help you get in contact with someone to get you into a program as well. So this one is Joe and he 20:22:22 does sipgized swimming. And artistic swimming. So Joe wants to know how do you swim with a broken bone? 20:22:33 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Great question. So, throughout my career, I've certainly faced this many, many times. And I think it's all about mindset. You know, 20:22:41 when I would break a bone, and in particular, I'm sure a lot of you can attest to this on this call. A femur for me was always the hardest fracture 20:22:55 to get over. So a day or two after breaking my femur, I would take small steps to get back into practice. And I would go walk around a little bit and 20:23:05 try to move it around, and slowly I started adding swimming back in. But I never try to be out of the water few days or week after a fracture. You 20:23:13 know living with OI, you don't want it to ruin your entire life. You want to get back to your normal life soon as possible, because if we stopped every 20:23:22 time we had a fracture, you would never live life. So I try to take it step-by-step getting back into it, and remembering that as much as up I want 20:23:31 to just get back to swimming and everything, that's also part of my recovery. So when I go in with a broken femur, sooner I got back in the water, the 20:23:42 better and faster I would get better. So it was part of my recovery and also a way to get back to my normal in a sense. 20:23:51 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That makes sense. And want to correct myself, I think I said, so Joe had typed in the question. But I actually recognized the author, 20:24:01 because she had a Instagram fame there in her synchronized swimming video. Hey, we both messaged each other and we were like, we have to find this 20:24:09 little girl. So there she is. 20:24:17 >> MCKENZIE COAN: When I saw that video, I was like oh my God. I shared all my Instagram story and I was so excited and so many people sent it to me. 20:24:22 Keep it up. That was awesome. I love it. 20:24:34 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Way to go. Now I'm fanning here. Another future swimmer. And I think maybe this could apply to what you said about easing it in. 20:24:44 But this question is about the daughter is 5 years old. What would you suggest to help a child get into swimming, kind of get over the fear part? So 20:24:52 this parent wants to take her swimming, but how can you get over that fear part especially for little ones? 20:25:04 >> MCKENZIE COAN: I think honestly, the best place to start having aqua therapy for me gave me a chance to strengthen 20:25:13 my bones and my parents have always been super supportive and I loved having them right there. But that was my first real taste of independence was 20:25:20 getting in with that group without my parents right there and being able to do it with an instructor. So I would say finding the right instructor, 20:25:33 getting them in swim lessons. Or getting them in aqua therapy group while giving you the confidence 20:25:41 to overcome that fear of the water. I think was huge for me. And that day we pulled that life jacket off, I don't know if I would have been able to 20:25:49 do that without having first gone through aqua therapy and feeling like what it was to swim on my own and have that kind of independence in the water. 20:26:00 So I think that's really where you start to build it. Get them on lessons like that. Get them on somebody else doing it. I think it's extremely important. 20:26:09 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. We're hearing from other people that have also, swimming has been part of their recovery. And other 20:26:17 fans of sing crow. 20:26:20 >> Do you do air water training? 20:26:29 >> MCKENZIE COAN: It's funny, every day we hop in the pool is absolutely freezing. And taking a cold plunge every day at 7:00 a.m., no matter how long 20:26:37 you've been swimming is not the most pleasant thing. But once you start moving and get into those difficult sets and getting really hot, I've never 20:26:47 been more grateful that the water is freezing. But at 7:00 a.m. when you're hopping in, I wish I was getting in a hot tub and not a freezing cold pool 20:26:56 for sure. So competition temperature is usually not pleasant until you're racing and you need it cold. 20:27:00 >> DR. KARA AYERS: You can enjoy warm water in your retirement. 20:27:14 >> MCKENZIE COAN: I'm going to be in one of those classes with the dancing and like the aqua aerobic. 20:27:23 >> DR. KARA AYERS: I thought my daughter would love swimming and little kids. And she tried out her first team and hit that cold water and was no thank 20:27:25 you. 20:27:30 >> MCKENZIE COAN: I still resonate with that. It's the hardest part of my day. 20:27:33 >> DR. KARA AYERS: What stroke is your favorite? 20:27:36 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Freestyle. Hands down. Definitely freestyle. 20:27:41 >> DR. KARA AYERS: What about relays or individual races? Which do you think you enjoy the most? 20:27:51 >> MCKENZIE COAN: I got to tell you. There is, I love swimming my individual races. Like the 400 free is my favorite and it always will be. But I 20:28:01 think there's a lot of pride going out there and especially if you're swimming a relay for team USA, you had to swim on to that relay. You had to prove 20:28:16 you're one the best team on the USA team. And my favorite from Rio was 400 free relay, because doing it as a group, if doing it as a part of team USA, 20:28:26 it just meant a lot. And maybe even so much more than my individual races. Being selected to go out there with 3 other women to do that is just an 20:28:29 indescribable feeling. 20:28:34 >> DR. KARA AYERS: That's awesome. We'll be watching for you for those because you won't know. 20:28:41 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Won't know sometimes the day of our couple of before. 20:28:49 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Well, I've got two more questions. What kind of strength training do you do for upper body? Lower body? 20:28:58 >> MCKENZIE COAN: That was the trickiest part figuring out the strength training part of it. And like a lot of swimmers, I didn't start seriously strength 20:29:07 training until I got into college. There is a certain time when you put that muscle on and there's a right time to do it for everyone. And so getting 20:29:17 into the weight room, I'm not going to lie, was little bit intimidating. But for me, especially with my OI, best way to go about that was to use smaller 20:29:27 weights but more repetition. So whereas a lot of my teammates here will go for bigger weight, I'm using smaller. But I'm doing more of that than they 20:29:36 are. And then obviously, with abcircuits if things, it's all about what I can tolerate with my back and sclerosis. And I'm lucky to be out here at 20:29:44 the training center and have some fantastic lift coaches who are able to work one-on-one with me to put together programs that are not only going to 20:29:55 be beneficial to me, but also keep me safe. And in Baltimore, I was lucky to have that as well. So it's all about being adaptive. But also reminding 20:30:04 myself to be smart about it. You know, the last thing I want to do is get hurt. So don't overdo it. And really use my brain when we go to do something 20:30:06 for sure. 20:30:12 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Definitely. And then the last question we have, I think this is a great one to finish up. So what is something you're looking forward 20:30:16 to in Japan besides competing? 20:30:18 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Oh my gosh, I went to. 20:30:32 Japan in 2018. And I finished a documentary for one of the production company wow wow. And I got to meet, it will be difficult 20:30:42 this time, even my Instagram DM, volunteer for the games. We're so excited to see you and we can't wait. The people there are so friendly. Each in 20:30:51 the midst of such a different game and what we're going into, they're so friendly and they're so excited to welcome us there. So the little interaction 20:30:59 I will have with people, I'm really looking forward to that and just being able to say hi to people. I think it's so cool they've seen me there already. 20:31:04 So I'm really, really looking forward to meeting people. Even from a distance. 20:31:07 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Right. Waving from afar. 20:31:09 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Literally. Hey, what's up. 20:31:17 >> DR. KARA AYERS: Well, we're so proud of you. And I know Michael is going to close us out. But thank you so much. This has been a treat to catch 20:31:21 up and we'll be cheering you on for sure. 20:31:30 >> MCKENZIE COAN: Thank you, Kara. S:>> MICHAEL STEWARTN thank you, McKenzie for being with us this evening. We posted a link to preorder McKenzie's 20:31:41 book in the chat. And you can find that on the OIF website as well. And we'll post it to our Facebook later. McKenzie, on behalf of the OIF and just 20:31:52 everybody here, not that you need it, but good luck. We're rooting for you. We're so excited to cherry you on from afar. And we know that we can't 20:32:03 ask for a better representative. Thank you so much. Kara, thank you so much for leading us today. I think it was super fun and informative. I know 20:32:16 I learned a lot. Just people asking if they can get an autograph copy. On your website, there is a link to get an autograph copy as well. And one 20:32:25 day in the future when we are doing an in-person event and you are there, I'm sure you would be willing to do so as well. Thank you, all,