USA Swimming star Shaine Casas: What a mental reset did for me

Shaine Casas is proof that confidence can both make and break an athlete.

As a student at Texas A&M, the California native’s self-belief helped him become one of the USA's most talked-about young swimming stars.

He won the national 100m backstroke title in 2019, before winning three events at the 2021 NCAA championships.

Casas then qualified for the USA Olympic Trials in 2021 and was widely tipped to make team in 100 and 200 backstroke.

But the occasion got the better of the young talent, and a third-place finish in the 100 was followed by sixth in the 200.

With only the top two finishers making the team for Tokyo 2020, his dream was gone.

“I failed for a specific reason. Maybe it was because I trusted myself a little too much, I guess, so kind of have to learn to listen more,” Casas told Olympics.com.

“I think that's my biggest thing because I'm pretty stubborn and at the end of the day, I always did what I thought I needed to do and I think that might have hurt me in the end. You can fake it for a while, but at the biggest level, you have to truly trust your coach and your training.

“I felt like I let my ego get in between my coach's vision and my vision. Swimming transitioned from something I love to something that got me what I liked, like media attention and the accomplishments and all that stuff, which is not something you should really chase.”

Casas decided to take two months off from swimming in order the process the hurt and avoided even watching the Olympics.

He then did something quite unexpected for a non-Olympian and turned professional.

The move to rival school The University of Texas at Austin was exactly what the backstroke star needed.

At the 2021 Short Course World Championships in Abu Dhabi, he won six medals, including gold in the 100 backstroke and 4x50 medley relay.

That momentum was carried into the 2022 Pro Series, where he secured 100 butterfly and 100 freestyle victories over Olympic gold medallist Caeleb Dressel.

Shaine Casas' new mentality

At the USA World Team Trials, Casas was finally able to execute, finishing second in the 200 back and securing his place at the 2022 FINA World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

“I embraced this new side of swimming that I never really thought of. I kind of feel young again because I was just knocked back down to zero,” he continued.

“The way I got to the level I did, even before missing the (Olympic) team, was by being extremely confident in myself and I haven't let that go. But at the same time, I’m now trying not to take over and overlook my coach’s experience and knowledge.

“I don't really have disappointment or regret because if I made it my life would look different now. And I like the way it looks right now. I learned from my mistakes and I guess it made me more hungry.”

Gravitating towards Michael Jordan

Casas is an uncompromising competitor, and his mindset is perfectly encapsulated by one of his tattoos.

While he admits that most of his body art is decorative rather than inspirational, he does have “The World Is Yours” written on him, which is the tagline from the movie Scarface.

“I guess I gravitated to that because I’m a huge fan of the film and it’s a good thing to live by,” he revealed.

He also revers another tough competitor in NBA legend Michael Jordan, who won basketball Olympic gold as part of the USA’s Dream Team at the Barcelona 1992 Olympics.

“He's the only person I really follow because I like how he is and his mindset. I watched (Jordan’s documentary series) The Last Dance like eight times. I have a bunch of posters and magazines about Michael Jordan. He’s just a GOAT and has that persistence.

“Basketball and swimming both require a lot of skill and practice. You can't just pick it up. You can be talented but to get to the top level, you need years and years and years of work.”

Swimming is the cornerstone of Casas’ life, and it is clear that the disappointments he has suffered are helping him evolve into being the best athlete he can be.

However, the 22-year-old admits that being so focussed on the sport may mean that it takes a while longer to discover who he is away from the pool.

“That's the tough part about sport. People kind of lose themselves because it takes 100 percent of their time, and then extras out of the water. So I feel like I haven't really gotten to that point where I can figure out who I am.

“I don't really know quite yet, but I will know soon and I'll get to know over the years. I think I'm just somebody that's eager and anxious to just prove myself and while swimming is awesome, at a certain point in the day it will be over. Whatever is after that I'm excited for, and I'll have the same approach: I want to be the best or carry myself the best I can.

“But right now swimming is my focus and to just keep it cool. It’s all about speed.”