Junior Waves & 13Us 2022/23 – Week 33 Update

Thanks to all the Team Managers and to Lisa for all the email and website updates. I will try not to duplicate efforts and present material from a coach’s perspective.

Congratulations to all of our 11U athletes that participated in the Provincial championships this past weekend. You all did great and you continue to develop and shine as WAVE athletes.

A special spotlight goes on our winning team. The 11U Champions from WAVE outscored the opposition 93 goals to 2 over the weekend. They will be singing songs about this team for years to come, you are the stuff of legend.

Our WAVE 11U teams are a testament to the WAVE model of being both a swim club and a water polo club. It is also a testament to Head WP Coach Rodrigo on his ability to see and develop talent and skills in our young athletes. As I like to say to Rodrigo, “I make ’em fast, you do the rest”. He certainly did.

Thanks to all the replacement coaches who stepped in to cover practices when we were away winning championships. Your commitment to the club is paramount to our success.

Swimming Regionals

Athletes that make Regional swim times (LINK) are to attend the Regional Championship to be held at the Nepean Sportsplex the first weekend in June. The water polo tournament in Montreal has no impact on the standing of our club, while the Regional Swim Championship does.

You are swimming for WAVE and representing WAVE. The list of Regional qualifiers will be out this week.

Other upcoming meets

We have two more meets, one in Brockville and one in Belleville. The expression of interest forms are now posted.

There are two sessions for Brockville and I have asked that we get placed in the second session as its at a later time.

The Belleville meet is an important meet for the club as it’s with our good friends in Belleville. The Belleville Beast has been a great supporter of our vision and our athletes. It’s also a fun way to end the year as there are many shorter events such as 25s. We will also be presenting the host club with a cheque from the money that we raised at bake sales this year. This money is for the Maddy Kort fund, the namesake of the meet.

As with all trips to Belleville, anyone making a PB (Personal Best) time will receive a milk shake from Reid’s Dairy.

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FORMS

Boogaloo – May 27 – Everyone interested in having fun
Brockville – June 11 – Limited to 45 swimmers
Belleville – June 24 – 25 – All athletes that have paid Swimming Canada insurance, hotel details at top of form

Behavior at tournaments and swim meets

I had an interesting conversation with an athlete in the stands this past weekend. I overheard the athlete talking about making spit balls in the changing room. I asked if they thought that was appropriate behaviour and also asked them to confirm what team was emblazoned on their hoodie. The athlete paused as if in deep thought and had a look on their face like I had just popped their balloon. I finally got a response.

“No, coach. It won’t happen again.”

I think we are getting somewhere. It is now a reality that misbehaviour in changing rooms and on-deck is at the source of lawsuits against clubs and against our governing bodies. We cannot afford this as a club and as a sport.

Open water

Open water is important to the history of WAVE. During COVID, the only swimming available was open water and it was during this time that Rodrigo and I mustered the energy to finally start a dual-sport club as we trained in the Ottawa River.

WAVE, as we know it now, was born in those waters, usually in discussions that took place 1 or 2 kilometers from the nearest shore.

Last year we had a dozen athletes compete in the Ottawa RiverKeeper swim. I hope that we can get that number again, or more. I have also entered the Bring on the Bay swim as well. Use the following links to sign up. Note that last year the Riverkeeper swim only allowed athletes 12 years and older.