The love of swimming still shines bright in Okotoks.

Head coach Emma Hesterman says she's feeling very positive about being back on deck with the Okotoks Mavericks Swimming club

"We're trying to get back to normal as much as possible. The kids are reconnecting cause it was tough, really tough for them at the beginning of the season."

She said she had to start things out very slowly.

"They've now not been swimming very much in 20 months. We had two periods where we were back during the lockdown where we were able to come back for two months at the end of last year and two months at the beginning of this year."

Though it's been a long hiatus, they're already ahead of the game on their speed.

"Most of them are actually knocking off time every single time they're swimming, which is unusual for this part of the season. So they're swimming exceptionally well for this time of year."

They had a meet in Lethbridge to mark their first one in over a year.

Then on Nov. 5-7, they hosted their own Jack Frost meet in Calgary. It was their first home-hosted meet since February 2020.

Hesterman says one of the only drawbacks was the restrictions regarding vaccination for the Seton pool at the Brookfield Residential YMCA facility, requiring vaccination without accepting negative tests.

"It was a very small meet, probably one of the smallest meets we've ever had. But it was just fun for the swimmers, especially being their second meet back."

Their next meet, the Killarney Invitational, went well at the Repsol Sports Centre in Calgary on Nov. 19-21.

"And again, very successful meet, was very busy. It was like being back old times, a lot of swimmers there, over 500."

They will be hosting another meet at the Seton pool on Dec. 11.

 

Questions, comments, or story ideas? Email news@okotoksonline.com