0
0
Tritons Swim Club’s spot at 2020 Olympic Trials Postponed
Team continues to train with passion and determination
Mike Glenn
Wolfville Tritons Swim Club athlete Ava Vial, eligible to represent Nova Scotia at this spring’s Olympic trials, must wait another year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many swimmers across Nova Scotia and Canada are left high and dry as pools and training facilities shut down during the Covid-19 outbreak.
The news of the postponed trials has not stopped Ava from training and doing her best as she, like so many others, strives to represent Canada at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. “I miss the pool, I miss training with other swimmers, but this has not stopped me from training hard. Now, I just train differently.” Tritons’ Head Coach Hayden Adams agrees: “It’s not exactly business as usual, as workouts are sent virtually and consist of mostly dry-land training, unless swimmers have access to a pool at home.”
The postponement of the Olympic trials comes with mixed feelings. 17-year-old Tritons swimmer Bo Stokesbury-Price will use this extra time to work toward the swim times he needs to qualify for the trials (now scheduled for April 7-11, 2021). Bo had hoped he would have another opportunity to reduce his time by 2 seconds in the 400 metre freestyle at the recently cancelled Saint John meet. Bo and Ava led the way at the recent David Fry meet in March, with both making multiple podium appearances.
Coach Hayden was blown away by the team’s overall performance at the David Fry meet: “I went into the weekend with high expectations, and the swimmers definitely exceeded them. This was a four day long competition, which is extremely taxing, but most swimmers were still swimming faster than their best times on day four. This shows that not only were the swimmers fit and rested, but raced with guts and purpose.” Reflecting on the entire Wolfville Tritons Swim Club, Coach Hayden further adds, “this group is incredibly determined and passionate. Seeing each and every one of them swim as well as they do is extremely satisfying as a coach. We will continue to work hard to keep setting the bar higher and higher.”
Keep watching as the Wolfville Tritons Swim Club pushes toward big goals for a spot in the next Olympics at Japan 2021. For more information on the Tritons Swim Club, visit tritons.ca
