It seemed as though Brandon Swan’s time at the top was a thing of the past.
A three-time CrossFit Games veteran—2012, 2013 and 2014—Swan competed at the Pacific Regional for the last three years, but his performance fell short of Games qualification. He placed 10th in 2015, 11th in 2016 and 21st in 2017.
But after Day 2 of the competition in Sydney, Australia, this weekend, Swan’s right in the thick of things. The 27-year-old, who sat in seventh after Day 1, did himself a big favor on Event 3 with a fourth-place finish (9:40.44), behind Dean Linder-Leighton (8:44.97), Tom Lengyel (9:28.97) and Jordan Bender (9:30.70). After that event, Swan sat in fourth overall. Event 4 was a little tougher on him. He wound up 14th, bumping him to sixth overall, but he’s only two points out of fourth place and eight points out of third in a jam-packed leaderboard.
Swan credits his improvements in recent months to making big changes in his life, changes that brought him a ton of clarity, he explained. Not only did Swan get married this year, he also made a gym and coaching change. He now trains and coaches at CrossFit Kova in Queensland and is coached by Games veteran Michele Letendre, which Swan said has been “incredible.”
On top of all this, Swan also started coaching Regional competitor April Hering this season. Hering is competing alongside her coach in the women’s division and is sitting in 15th overall after Day 2.
“I feel like I am more comfortable than ever with who I am and why I do what I do. I am enjoying my training more than ever and have a purpose outside of the sport,” Swan said.
“I feel like that’s a really good balance to have. Good vibes and good people around you. That’s what you need.”
These good vibes helped Swan achieve his best CrossFit Games Open performance to date (33rd worldwide) this year. Meanwhile, coaching Hering has provided him with a healthy focus outside his own goals, he explained.
“We make a good team. It’s also nice to focus on someone else, as it takes some of the pressure off yourself. I found I was free to perform well in the Open because I was often thinking of her and how we can improve her performance, and not getting too tied up in what I was doing,” Swan said.
The two Regional athletes are also close friends and occasional training partners.
“We have two other close friends we often train with so there is always a lot of banter and fun around training, but she also takes my advice seriously, which I really appreciate,” he said.
Hering said training with Swan has been a great decision for her as well. The two decided to team up when they were on a flight together to Regionals last year. Hering was recovering from a back injury, and Swan offered to help her.
“Having Brandon as a coach has been such an amazing experience,” said Hering, who’s competing in her third Regional competition as an individual this weekend.
“We have been friends since 2014, so we know where we can push buttons, but we also know when it’s time to switch to coach-athlete. He’s very calm, which is what I like—doesn’t take it too seriously and knows how to have fun. You need to trust your coach 100 percent and trust the process. That’s what we have been doing, and it has paid off,” she added.
Before the weekend started, Hering said she wasn’t at all worried that her coach was also competing, meaning he wouldn’t be able to give her his undivided attention. She knows what she needs to do, and he knows what he needs to do, which allows for mutual support, she said.
“I know he also has a goal for himself, and I’m 100 percent rooting for him to be on that podium.”
With two events to go, there’s still a chance he could end up there.
