Many organizations, including sports clubs, periodically undergo some lapse in interest as well as increases in participation. The Yorkton Speed Swim Club has recently undergone a renewed surge in interest and participation. The club is currently riding a wave of increased participation, says head coach Ashley Benko. Currently the swim club has about 70 members. The number includes a large number of non-competitive swimmers who are new to swimming. "Hopefully after a year of non-competitive swimming they'll decide to compete," she says.
The club's recent developmental swim meet for beginners gave the youngsters a taste of competition. The meet which attracted 130 swimmers from Saskatchewan and Manitoba, including 30 swimmers from Yorkton. "It was unheard of for Yorkton to send that many swimmers," Benko claims.
The Yorkton Speed Swim Club starts youngsters as young as five years of age in the I Can Swim Program. Progressing at their own rate, youngsters can move through the I Can Swim Program and enroll in the Bronze Program which is the start of the competitive program, Benko reports.
In order to enroll youngsters in speed swimming, the club requires that kids have some comfort in the water. Stage one of the program which has a strong focus on swimming, has an instructor in the water with the young swimmers. "They learn all the strokes. By the time they're done with that program, they're very comfortable swimming laps in the pool," says Benko.
The Bronze Program offers youngsters the option to remain non-competitive or to enroll in the competitive program. The various levels of Bronze, Silver and Gold identifies the duration and intensity of training. Bronze level swimmers train three times a week for 45 minutes. Silver program swimmers train three times weekly for an hour and a half per session and the Gold level swimmers train four times a week for an hour and a half.
The club has five assistant coaches, including Brett and Benson McDowell, Laura Lazurko, Kayla Monette who are responsible for the I Can swim Program and Lindsay Schmidt.
The club has many young athletes who continue to improve times with every meet, says Benko. One swimmer, Jessica Sanftleben from Melville, is getting close to double A times, the top level of competition which allows her to travel to the bigger ManSask competitions which are the Manitoba and Saskatchewan championships.
The club plans to travel to swim meets all over the province as well as taking in a couple of meets in The pas and Winnipeg, Benko reports.
Benko expresses appreciation to all the volunteers who worked hard to make the local swim meet a success, including the national level referees who took part. "It gave the kids an opportunity to have a meet in their own pool and we couldn't do it without all the support," she states.
The Yorkton Speed Swim Club welcomes new members, Benko affirms. Anyone who might be interested in enrolling a child or who would like more information should contact head coach Ashley Benko at 783-7577.
