The Clarenville WaveRunners swim team made a big splash at the Marystown Marlins Invitational Swim Meet earlier this month.
The WaveRunners — who just hosted the swimming event of the Regional Vista Games earlier this month — won the overall Top Team award, accumulating the most points for placements in each event and age group.
Approximately 40 swimmers of the club’s 115 members, ranging from ages seven to 18, competed. A total of 140 swimmers from four clubs — Marystown Marlins, Bay Roberts Sea Lions, Grand Bank Southern Sharks, plus Clarenville — were registered for the Aug. 8 event at the Marystown Swimming Pool.
The Clarenville team also took six of the 12 Top Achiever awards: Jordan Vokey, Boys 17-18; Mykala Pardy, Girls 17-18; Noah Pardy, Boys 13-14; Raelene Fulford, Girls 13-14; Emma Hiscock, Girls 11-12; and Mia Winsor, Girls 9-10.
Swimmers accumulate points for the Top Achiever awards based on their placing in their races. The event featured competition in breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly, freestyle, individual medley and medley relay.
The WaveRunners are headed by two volunteer head coaches as well as four student coaches.
“We’ve got great coaches… they’re so organized with their plans,” says club president Kim Davis-Winsor on the team’s success in Marystown. “The kids and coaches, they work hard every day — they get in the water and just swim.”
According to Natalie Moody, the WaveRunners’ communications representative, the team has been steadily improving over the summer. They’ve been training five days a week to improve their technique and endurance in preparation for the Provincial Summer Swim Championships in Gander on Aug. 27-29.
“We work through a schedule every day,” adds Davis-Winsor. She says they’ll be bringing in a head coach from CBS to work with the team on diving, turns and touches, the breaststroke and any areas that need improving.
The provincial meet in Gander is the biggest swim competition for the year. For the last two years the WaveRunners have won the most spirited club award at that competition.
“We’ve got great parents cheering on the kids, and we’ve got the kids with great spirit. If this is any indication of how the team is improving, I think we’re going to do great (in Gander),” Davis-Winsor says.
The WaveRunners also look forward to a two-day swim camp this weekend, a pep rally at Elizabeth Swan Park to gear up for the Provincial Championships, and the team’s annual closing banquet.
For more information on the Clarenville WaveRunners or to find out how to get involved, visit www.waverunners.ca.
rborja@thepacket.ca
.jpg)
.jpg)
