ASSINIBOIA - While it is not exactly known how long Assiniboia has had a swim club, multiple responses on a recent social media post indicate that there have been competitive swimmers, known as the Assiniboia Aquarians, dating back to the late 1960s.
Memories were quickly shared from participation in the club on a recent social media post, including the gratitude for well known businessman, Malcolm Fraser, who provided bags of cut oranges for team road trips as well as Don Johnstone from the Assiniboia Creamery who always supplied chocolate milk for swimmers.
James Dahl shared his memory of this renowned Assiniboia swim club on an Assiniboia Facebook page recollecting the Aquarians, “My sister, Leora Dahl, is in the middle row far left. She took the swim club lessons all the way to a relay swim of the English Channel and we swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco together. Quite the foundation that little pool provided”
Jaclyn Gibson, current coach, says of this year’s club, “We are lucky to have three coaches this year, including myself, two for the competitive group and one for our Intro to Speed Swim group that we call “Pups”. On the administrative side, we currently have three members on our executive, but are always looking for more.”
The Aquarians held their first swim meet since pre-COVID times. Gibson said it is a huge undertaking to host a competitive meet so their small club feels accomplished in this success as it brought over 80 swimmers and their families to town.
The 2024 swim club includes 21 swimmers and three coaches, with the season beginning May first and runs until provincials that occur near the end of July.
“We practice four nights a week for one and a half hours and have a swim meet almost every weekend from late June and July to attend. We travel to meets in other communities with summer swim clubs like Swift Current, Oxbow, Regina, Estevan, and Weyburn,” added Gibson.
Competitive swim season for Aquarians’ participants includes a summer filled with numerous practises and training sessions, as well as competing at swim meets across the province, showcasing commitment by all of the athletes involved.
As with the Facebook responses to the archived photo that was shared by Laurie Hysuik, Gibson affirms that the great camaraderie that participants have on the team is one of the highlights. Kids from the age of seven right up to age 17 support and challenge each other in their training and goals, as well as competition.
“Although our club is one of the smaller ones, the majority of our competitive swimmers qualify for the Provincial Swim Meet,” said Gibson,
Challenges are similar to any group in a small town with declining registrations and volunteers. Both are imperative to the continuing the longevity of this almost six-decade old competitive swim club.
Gibson acknowledges, “We are really proud to have had two of our swimmers, Radu Bumbac and Hayley Gibson be selected to the South West District swim team at the 2024 Saskatchewan Summer Games in Lloydminster this July. “
