-By Angie Abdou
On the weekend of April 20th, the Elk Valley Dolphins hosted their 23rd annual spring swim meet. The meet, now sponsored by the Fernie Fox Hotel, drew its biggest crowd ever. Over the 3 days, the Fernie Aquatic Centre saw 382 swimmers, 2147 individual swims, and 88 relays. Previously, in 2023, The Fernie Fox Invitational Swim Meet hit its biggest numbers at 328 swimmers and 1785 individual swims. As the team and its meet continue to grow, meet manager Wendy Howse had her hands full, but she pulled the high-energy event off without a hitch.
The meet also highlighted the growth of the Dolphins. 97 local swimmers competed in the event. Those athletes achieved 364 personal best times, 58 podium places, and 12 club records. “It was a very successful weekend,” said Assistant Coach Randi Thrun Goertzen. “Swimmers saw new personal best times, learned new skills, and gained higher levels of confidence as they pushed themselves out of their comfort zones. We couldn’t be prouder!”
Head Coach Aidan Chudleigh agreed. “We’re especially pleased with the growth of boy participants in our club. Swimming is a great sport that supplements kids’ other activities and helps develop better multi-sport athletes. You can’t get a better competitive athlete than someone who swims!”
The male athletes did shine at the Fernie meet. TJ Dube set 5 new 10 & under club records (50 free, 100 free, 200 free, 100 back, and 200 IM). Ethan Sauve set 13–14-year-old records in the 50 back and 50 fly. The 11–12-year-old boys’ relay team of Matthew Cassidy, Noah Dodds, Tim Choroszewski, and Sage Demers also clocked the fastest 4 x 50 free relay time in Dolphins’ history. Mathew Cassidy added to the success of the male swimmers with the two records he set the weekend before in Nelson (50 breast, 50 fly).
Not to be outdone, the Dolphin girls set two new relay records at the Fernie meet. Annalynn Nguyen, Brooklyn Irving, Maeve Clarke, and Jolene Schafer broke the 4 x 50 free record for 10 & under girls, and Layla Rella, Brody Dube, Emilie Harrup, and Nola Locker set the record for 11-12 girls 4 X 50 medley relay. Layla Rella also set new records in the 50 breast and 100 fly.
Other highlights of the weekend include Sage Demers and Annalynn Nguyen qualifying for AA ManSask Provincial Championships, allowing them to join the (so far) 7 other qualified athletes traveling to Regina in early July, for the provinces’ highest-level championships. After recent near misses, Sage Demers’ training efforts were rewarded, and he smashed the qualifying standard in the 50 free. With equally impressive effort, Annalynn Nguyen (now the youngest Dolphin to qualify) also sped past the 50 free qualifying standard with time to spare.
Training efforts of the senior group are now focused on preparing for the championships in July. Before then, the club will travel to competitions in Cranbrook, Medicine Hat, Cochrane, Calgary, Radium, and Montana. The coaches predict continued improvements and applaud the athletes’ success.
