Well I don't know where to start here, but I will try my best to recap my swimming career.
At age 7, I was living in Barrie Ontario and taking my first swimming lessons at the Barrie Y ... the lesson was to hold onto the wall and kick..to get my legs moving... I instead decided this was not enough for me and I started pushing off the wall and swimming back to it... apparently (as my mother tells me the story) the coach from the Barrie Y Neptunes Mr. Ralph West was watching in the viewing room with all the other moms. He asked the question ..."who's the mother of that kid"?...my mother reluctantly put up her hand and said mine. He proceeded to tell my mother that I was bored and to get me out of that lesson and onto his swimming club.
The next Saturday morning, I suited up for my trial swim with the team...I was nervous and excited all at the same time. I was put in the slowest lane with all the other young swimmers and proceeded to swim my little heart out to impress the coach. And this I did.... I was now officially a team member of this swimming club. Yippee!
After the workout, I stayed behind to watch the big kids swim/train and said to myself I want to be just like them. This was the true beginning of my swimming career. My first meet ever was at the pool at Midland. All the way there, my mom and a one of the big swimmers (Mary) talked to me about how to lose gracefully. That is was about giving it my 100% and that winning wasn't everything.... at the end of the day, my mother realized that whole speech was useless... I came home with 5 gold medals and a trophy! LOL
Yup, this was my sport!
I continued to swim for teams as we moved from location to location... always having to start at the bottom again and working my way up. On many occasions, I would be given the award for best improved swimmer (for that year), I had won many medals for my swims and trophies were displayed on my bedroom wall of all my accomplishments. I went through public school and high school with green chlorinated stringy hair, permanent goggle marks around my eyes and a scent of chlorine was evident everyday. Training 6 days a week, 2 times a day... and I loved every minute of it! I never complained and never wavered from my passion for swimming. At the age of 17, I was in prime form. Placing 3rd in Canada for my 200 m backstroke, I was ready for the Olympic trials coming, looking for that elusive spot on the 1984 Olympic swimming team. Unfortunately it was not meant to be. I got sick with Mono in the few months before the Olympic trials and was down to the odd training practice. Needless to say, I missed the Olympic trials by 3/100ths of a second and my Olympic swimming goal was gone! Poof... all that training..and now it was over... no need to train anymore, no desire to even get back into the water. I was devastated. As I watched my fellow swim mates compete at the 1984 Olympics I could only watch, wonder and yes cry. Shortly after that, I gave up swimming.
It wasn't until 1995, when I met someone who would change my life and brought me back to where I belonged..the water! Her name was Colleen Shields. Colleen had just became a staff member/teacher and we got a chance to chat and I found out Colleen had done something that I had always wanted to do, but didn't know how or even where to start. Swim Across Lake Ontario. We became instant friends. With Colleen's encouragement, I joined the Etobicoke Swim Masters swim team and I was now me again. It was a great feeling. This is where my "masters" journey started and continues to this day! In 1997, with Colleen by my side as my friend, my mentor and my swim coach I successfully crossed Lake Ontario. Becoming the 5th fastest female swimmer to cross.
I have competed at National Level, and World Level Competitions for Canada. I can't tell you how I feel and how proud I am of my accomplishments, but what I can tell you is this.... I am back! I love this sport with all my heart, body and soul. I can't imagine doing anything else but swim.
I can't fathom the thought of someone telling me that I am not good enough, that I don't deserve to do what I love, to be who I am and wish and have the opportunity to achieve my goals. This is why I am so passionate about the "Because I am a Girl" movement that Plan International encourages and achieves to succeed, and why our team of 5 amazing ladies are supporting! We all deserve to be who we are and to be proud of being a girl.
Please support our Because Girls Can relay of female swimmers... Be that "One" who says..You do deserve to be successful!
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