Winskill Dolphins take on 12.2km Open Water Challenge

Winskill Dolphins take on 12.2km Open Water Challenge

Sep 4, 2020

There were 2 excellent articles published about our very own Winskill Dolphins this week. The Winskill Dolphins have been training in the ocean at Boundary Bay since the pandemic began in March. Seven of their swimmers, are taking on the challenge of swimming 12.2 km from Crescent Beach to Boundary Bay. We’re so happy to see swimmers challenging themselves and finding ways to train outside of the traditional pool setting. Good luck Winskill! For the full articles about the “2020 Ocean Challenge” see below: Delta Optimist – Teens to swim across Boundary Bay this Weekend CBC – When pools closed due to COVID-19, this youth swim team jumped in the ocean  

A Letter from Cory Beatt, Technical Director

Aug 28, 2020

Swim BC Members, I am in my second week as the Swim BC Technical Director and have been working with our dedicated Swim BC Staff in fully understanding the Swim BC Technical program over the past number of years. I will be continuing to dive deeply into all aspects of the program to ensure that we develop the greatest opportunities for our membership. I am proud to be working with Swim BC and our partners to grow swimming, the greatest sport. I have had many moments in swimming to recognized how special it is. We swim for safety, for opportunity, and for the pursuit of becoming a better self. Swimming is inclusive and swimming is for life. In British Columbia we are rich in resources. We have beautiful facilities, great partners, and amazing coaches, who I consider to be the best in the country. I look forward to working with our community to innovate and engage. In the coming weeks and months I will be rolling out information on the 2020-21 Swim BC Technical Program. I look forward to supporting you and seeing you on the pool deck. In Swimming, Cory Beatt Technical Director, Swim BC

Welcome Dawson Creek Seals

Aug 11, 2020

Swim BC is excited to have the Dawson Creek Seals join as a new club this upcoming season. They are a joint Swim BC and BCSSA club, who are looking to give their swimmers more opportunities throughout the year. The Dawson Creek Mirror did a short piece on their Return to Swimming plan and how they’re coping with COVID-19 which you can read here.

Elk Valley Dolphins Use Tech to Overcome Pandemic and Geographic Isolation

Aug 11, 2020

As the easternmost swim club in British Columbia, the Elk Valley Dolphins and their Head Coach Aidan Chudleigh are used to feeling a little isolated. Fernie isn’t close to any major urban centres, so competing either means swimming in a lane next to your neighbour, or travelling often prohibitively long distances to find new adversaries. Fortunately, in a normal year there are plenty of neighbours to compete with; EVDSC boasts more than 2% of the local population as members of the club. But what happens when a virus shows up and shuts down every pool in the region? That’s exactly what happened on March 18, 2020, and the pool has yet to reopen. With no aquatic facilities available anywhere in the region and athletes just getting ready to max out training for competition season, Head Coach Chudleigh had to pivot hard to ensure progress wasn’t lost and everyone stayed healthy—both physically and mentally. “Our goal during  COVID-19 is to keep the kids as connected as possible,” says Chudleigh. He started with weekly video chat meetings with his swimmers, keeping the tone fun and relaxed, even hosting some dress up days the kids loved. Chudleigh says, “the main message we have been trying to stress is to stay positive, because things will eventually get back to normal. As a club we definitely do not want to rush anything,” including dryland training. Instead of pressing swimmers into a rigorous dryland schedule, coaches have deployed a smartphone app called TrainHeroic that allows for easy, remote distribution of exercise routines to swimmers, complete with video how to guides. The app allows swimmers to complete the exercises on their own timeline, giving them the freedom to accommodate healthy hobbies and outdoor activities, especially during periods of good weather. Surprisingly, coaches have found that athletes have very different preferences when it comes to training, with some completing their exercises early in the morning, while others work out into the midnight hour. It’s something Chudleigh didn’t expect to learn and coaches are looking at adding this component to the regular training schedule even after the pandemic has subsided. Technology has also enabled Elk Valley swimmers to travel greater distances than they would normally be able to. The club has been meeting Hamilton Southeastern Swim Club in Fishers, Indiana, for weekly virtual yoga sessions, an activity that encourages healthy bodies and minds during a stressful time. Doubling down on mental health, coaching staff also hosted two mental health sessions with Olympic bronze medalist Chantal Van Landeghem and sports psychologist Shelbi Snodgrass. “It was amazing for our swimmers to have the ability to open up and talk about how they were handling the pandemic, which made the majority of them realize they were not alone,” says Chudleigh Going forward, the club is hoping to see their pool reopen sometime in September. Until then, with the arrival of summer weather and the completion of their return to sport plan, swimmers will be able to get in the local lake for their first ever round of open water training. Coach Chudleigh is optimistic about the future but also concerned about competition opportunities if meets are going to be regionally limited. With Calgary three hours east and Kamloops seven hours west, meets may be hard to come by for clubs in the Kootenays. “We are going to have to get creative and get involved in as many virtual meets as possible,” he says. Luckily, the pandemic has provided plenty of chances to learn the technologies that will allow his swimmers to continue to excel. One of the club’s best uses of video conferencing technology was their end-of-year wrap up presentation night. Over one hundred members attended, snacks were delivered to the homes of all the swimmers, and COVID-19 wasn’t mentioned at all during the hour-long celebration of the achievements of EVDSC athletes. “It was a great success and I think all 117 of our members are looking forward to the 2020-2021 season, whenever we can safely make that happen.”
SFA Swimmers Still Training Thanks to Resilience and City Help

SFA Swimmers Still Training Thanks to Resilience and City Help

Aug 6, 2020

Simon Fraser Aquatics swim club, located in Burnaby and normally operating from six aquatic facilities in the area surrounding the university, is home to 75 full-time competitive swimmers plus dedicated coaches and administrators. After 19 years helping young athletes reach for their best, the swim season was abruptly cancelled in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only were scheduled competitions delayed or cancelled completely, regular pool training days and the hotly anticipated annual spring break training camp were also called off, and the club lost its main 50 metre pool when it was turned into a COVID-19 testing centre. “The instability of not knowing where and when we would commence training made it extremely difficult to focus on progressing as athletes,” says Ryan Skomorowski, Head Coach and Director of Swimming for the club. Add to that the technological limitations experienced by some swimmers and families attempting to train virtually and it’s easy to see the uncertainty that could percolate through the swim community. However, Skomorowski was happy to report that the majority of athletes coped well with the cancellations, remaining as active as possible by utilizing detailed dryland training concepts aimed at improving strength and flexibility, as well as daily routines emphasizing staying healthy. Club administration has worked hard to convey the message that as a team, they are all in this together and swimmers and parents have been patient and understanding as the club works toward restarting. “It has been difficult on the coaches not being able to physically train our athletes but we have all adapted to our new reality and are making the best of it,” Skomorowski says. Thanks to much appreciated assistance from the City of Burnaby, on July 6, 2020, SFA was able to get back in the water at Robert Burnaby Outdoor Pool, which coincidentally is located next to park land that is an excellent venue for our dryland training. Coach Skomorowski noted that, “we were very grateful to Swim BC as many other sport organizations did not have the comprehensive plan Swim BC gave us. Some sports are still sidelined or struggling with getting back to training, whereas we have been full-time for a month, operating safely and successfully with our City of Burnaby partners.” Upon returning to the pool, the club has focused on technique and gradually building up fitness levels, as many of the swimmers were a little rusty due to time away from the pool. Amazingly, some swimmers have actually improved strength and conditioning during lockdown thanks to significant dryland training. In addition, swimmers, families, and coaches have adapted to the new regime of health checks, social distancing, masks, and respect for the rules established by pool staff. There have been some positives to come out of the pandemic as well. With fewer swimmers in the pool at any one time, athletes are able to focus on more intense stroke work and individualization, a benefit that SFA hopes to maintain into the future. Furthermore, SFA’s  relationship with the City of Burnaby has greatly improved, leading to better collaboration on future projects and planning. Going forward, the club will continue training the best they can, aiming to compete in smaller meets once they can be held safely. Due to the reduction in the number of swimmers allowed per lane, in the short term SFA will require more lane space or more coaching hours, putting strain on staff and resources. If the pandemic continues, all swim clubs may have to consider restructuring their programs in order to accommodate health protocols. For now, SFA swim club is back in the pool and getting ready to race. Skomorowski’s advice for clubs waiting to restart: “The City of Burnaby has really stepped up to the plate in recognizing the community benefits of keeping our youth healthy and active. If there is some water somewhere in your city that is open, then you can use it to have very successful training. Be as inventive as possible, the cities are more willing than ever to be creative for safe solutions to get you back in the pool.”

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