It might be hard to believe, but the coach of the Olds Rapids Swim Club was actually “extremely nervous” when he returned to the water at a competitive level this season.Graeme Gordon, 35, who has served as the club's coach for six years, decided to start swimming competitively again after a seven-year absence from the sport to help out his team.He said the Rapids had an opportunity to compete in the mixed relay event at the provincial championships earlier this year and he wanted to make himself available if he was needed on the relay team.Gordon started competing at various events this season with the Rapids and the decision to become competitive again has paid off.Next month, he'll head to the FINA (International Swimming Federation) World Masters Championships in Montreal to compete in the 50-, 100- and 200-metre backstroke events as well as the 50-metre butterfly stroke and the 200-metre individual medley events.There is a possibility he could also compete in relay events at the championships.Gordon qualified for the championships, which run from July 27 to Aug. 10, after breaking a club record for the Rapids in the 50-metre backstroke event for ages 17 and over at the Lethbridge Spring Invitational swim meet held in May.He finished the event with a time of 33.16 seconds, breaking the record previously held by club member Cody McArthur.The finish placed Gordon in fifth place in Canada for his age group in this category this year.He said he'll compete at the Montreal event from August 4 to 9.This is the first time Gordon has competed on an international stage, having reached the national championships in Vancouver in 2002.When he was swimming competitively, he took part in meets across North America.“The best part of my swimming career was swimming with the University of Calgary and representing that team,” he said.Although it had been seven years since he went head to head with other swimmers prior to this season with the Rapids, Gordon said it didn't really feel like that long an absence from the sport.“The only thing that feels like a seven-year gap is not being as fit as I was.”He added he did feel some trepidation upon his return to the pool because of the ages of his rivals but his confidence quickly came back to him.“I held my own fairly good for not being in the water as much,” Gordon said. “I can't train as much as they are.”While Gordon said as a coach he tries to “gain experience and try and translate it to the kids” on the Rapids team, he added the team has given back to him in many ways.“It's been good to see the kids try and push me too,” he said. “Once in a while I do get in the water and I do race the kids. Sometimes it's a little bit closer than I want it to be but just seeing them succeed really does help me to want to improve myself and do better.”Gordon is preparing for the Montreal competition by training in Olds and Sundre.According to FINA's website, the “World Masters Championships is the Federation's biggest competition in terms of participation, for the reason that it welcomes, every two years, swimmers, divers and water polo players aged 25 to more than 100 years old from all corners of the world.”[email protected]
