2023 marks an important year for Memorial’s varsity swim team.
The Seahawks are proud to be hosting the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) Swimming Championships at the Works-Aquarena from February 10th to 12th.
The competition is free to attend, and the team welcomes support from the university community. For those who are unable to make the competition in person, all of the events will also be livestreamed at www.AUStv.ca.
See the full schedule for the competition here.
Swimming at home
Hosting AUS is especially significant to the Seahawks this season, as this will be the first time in eight years that Memorial has hosted the event. The University was scheduled to host the Swimming Championships last year; however, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the competition was relocated to Dalhousie.
Swim captains Max Kelly and Kathryn Stokes discussed how exciting it is for the team to be hosting the competition in their own pool.
As Stokes explained, the current team members have only ever competed out of the province until now, so racing against competing teams at home is an amazing opportunity. Kelly also noted that this competition is likely to be the only chance these swimmers will have to compete in an event hosted in the province.
Both captains are optimistic about the impact competing at home will have on the team’s performance. According to Kelly, “the home pool advantage for the first time in a long time” will be a considerable boost for the team since more of the team members’ friends and family will be able to attend the competition.
Stokes added that “the majority of people in the stands will be cheering and encouraging [the Seahawks] and it will be a huge boost to our swimmers as they compete against the best in the region”, which “will be a complete change in atmosphere” from what the team is used to in out-of-province competitions.
Overcoming challenges
The team has not been without its challenges in the past year as Kelly pointed out, when it came to “finding a balance between [their] athletic and academic commitments”. However, the captains highlighted that they were able to overcome these difficulties with support from their teammates and coaches. Kelly said that the swimmers are always ready to help each other through difficult times, and Stokes expressed the team’s gratitude for their “amazing coaches, Duffy Earle and Chris Roberts” saying that the team “really [has] them to thank the most at the end of the day for making [them] all the fantastic athletes [they] are today.”
This support system has allowed the team to progress with “hardly a hiccup” throughout their entire season as Kathryn said, and to successfully balance their athletic and academic commitments as is evidenced by the eight Seahawks swimmers who were recognized as USPORTS Academic All-Canadians for their academic and athletic excellence this year.
Hosting AUS at home will be a great payoff for the swimmers’ hard work this season.
Kelly and Stokes shared what they are most looking forward to at AUS.
“I am really looking forward to seeing our team’s performance at this competition. We have put in so much work in the pool this year and I am ecstatic to see it pay off for everyone. We are also hoping to add some swimmers to our USPORTS roster, as well as break some provincial records,” said Kelly.
“We are also excited to have direct support from our own athletics department and having them see what swimming is all about—with some appearances from some Seahawks Alumni as well! It is also my last competition as a varsity swimmer and I am looking forward to making the best of it at AUS,” said Stokes.
Goals for AUS
The captains also gave some insight into what the Seahawks hope to accomplish in the upcoming competition.
Kelly says, “our primary goal for AUS is to show Atlantic Canada what we are capable of. To do this we aim to set lots of personal bests, provincial records, and get as many of our swimmers on the podium as possible. Considering the training that we have done this season, I expect that we will be very pleased with our performance at AUS,” he said.
“Our team’s primary goals would be to swim at the best of our ability—whatever that may be depends on the goals of our swimmers. We all work together as a team setting goals for each season and work [our] best to achieve them. We hope to have lots of personal bests, top placing finishes, and to come together as a team to get each other pumped for the competition of the season,” said Stokes.
With hope, this competition will also be a step in the right direction in terms of the Seahawks’ long-term goal of expanding Memorial’s swimming program and bringing some exposure to the team’s well-deserving athletes.
Check out the Seahawks Instagram page @munswimming for updates on competitions and to show the team some support!