Those 4 summers as Head Coach went by so fast! It feels like yesterday when I was walking on deck as head coach for my first day. I was so nervous and I just wanted to make the swimming experience for these kids as good as I remembered it growing up. Summer swimming in Lethbridge seemed to have lost relevance. The once Provincial power-house was finishing way off the podium at the provincial stage and the amount of older (15-17) swimmers in the club had plummeted.
 
My main mission over my last four years was to make swimming a fun place for these kids to come to everyday. I wanted swimming to be something that these kids would go home and talk about every night, and look forward for big events. Along with the help of an amazing coaching staff and supportive board, I am glad to say that we achieved this goal! Over the past 4 years we’ve increased average meet attendance at each meet, we’ve increased our members number from 116 (2015) to 171 (2019), we’ve gone on a region-f winning streak of 39-meets spanning 4 and a half seasons, doubled our ASSA Provincials attendance, improved our Provincial ranking from 7th (2015) to 2nd (2018 and 2019), kept swimmers in the club to an older age pushing us to create a second senior group, and much more. In my first year as Head coach, the oldest swimmer in my senior group was 15 years old. This year, my senior group included 16 swimmers who were aged 15&O. Of those 16 swimmers, 8 of them either graduated high-school or aged-out of ASSA this summer. This senior group retention stat is one of the things that I am proudest of during my time as Head Coach. I want to give a special thanks to each and every member of my Tier I group who kept coming back. I loved coaching you guys so much and I loved seeing you grow and mature. I hope many of you will stick with swimming and continue on to the next level.
 
My favourite moments have always been watching best time after best time at Regionals and Provincials. In all the meets I have both coached and competed at, the atmosphere at these two meets are almost unbeatable. Year-after-year, Orcas swimmers step up and create some amazing memories at these meets. I don’t know what will ever compare to that split second of coach-to-swimmer eye contact that happens immediately following a race.

I cannot thank the board enough for all of their support over the past 4 summers. Carly Ginther puts so much time and effort in behind the scenes and this club would not function as smoothly as it does without her. I have also had to pleasure to work with members such as Kristy Togo, Drew Ginther, Chantelle Smith, Dave Lutterotti, Jason Pilsner, Julie Sisson, Shauna Armstrong, Sue Weighill, Keith Lundquist, Jen Vanden Elzen, Curtis Polec, Alanna Odorski, Kathy Kremenick, Sheldon Tymko, and so many more. For those who haven’t worked on the board, but volunteered at meets, you are also amazing! We need volunteers of all sorts of capacities for meets and seasons to be run successfully. I have seen a steady increase in parent volunteers from our club and hope that continues!
 
To the coaches I’ve had the honour to work with, thank you so much! I’ve loved every summer working alongside you guys! Coach Keeley and I are the only two that have coached all four years and she’s become invaluable to the club. She’s slowly taken over many administrative roles and have done them far better than I could ever imagine. Combine all the efforts we’ve put in with all the other coaches’ efforts (Josh, Steve, Caileigh, Aaron, Owen, Soleil, Kara, Taylor, Ardelle and Jenn) and we have really created something to be proud of.
 
Mentorship is something that cannot be overvalued. I would also like to thank Kent Aitchison. For those who don’t know Kent, he was one of my head coaches as I swam through the program. He was my role model and instilled a sense of fun and passion in the sport that would inspire my University and coaching careers in the sport of swimming. When I first started coaching, I would go through my archives to find all of his old emails. He was so organized and a real master of the keyboard. A large part of my success is due to Kent. He has continued to mentor me throughout my 4-years. He regularly stays in contact and also returns to Lethbridge to run Summit Swim Camps and mentor us coaches.
 
My parents obviously also deserve a huge thank you. They put me in swim lessons and swim club at a very early age as they did not want me to drown at a birthday party. Little did they know I would find one of my life’s greatest passions out of it. Thanks for having my safety at heart, driving me to countless practices and meets, and letting my love for the sport develop naturally.
 
I also want to thank all of the other families in Region F. When you’ve been swimming for a couple years, you start recognizing regular faces on deck. People such as John Dozeman, Morgan Dozeman, Nanette Dupont, Steve Mowers, Keith Hopkins, Lyle Douglas, Lisa Sygutek, JoAnna Sutter, and so many more have been around volunteering and running these meets for years. Without your continued support, we wouldn’t have a place to make such amazing memories.
 
I’ve loved every minute of coaching this club. Summer Swimming, either swimming or coaching, has been a main focus of mine every summer since I was 6 years old (2002-2019). I will always cherish the opportunity I was given to swim through the program and then have 5 years of coaching the club. Thank you so much for reading. I’m sorry if I missed anyone in these thank you’s. There has honestly been so amazing people who have made this an amazing ride. The Orcas are in great hands and I cannot wait to see what the team can achieve in the coming years.

The Orcas closed out a successful season at the 2019 ASSA Provincial Championships in Edmonton. After a fourth-straight undefeated season in Region F competition (region F winning streak = 39 meets), the Orcas looked to be competitive at Provincials. Last season (2018), the Orcas age-group team broke through in a big way, finishing 2nd at Provincials after a 5-year hiatus from the podium. This season, the Orcas proved that they are here to stay as they defended this position from last season. The masters’ team also did very well as their 2nd place team finish secured the 4th-straight year the masters’ team has been in the top-2.
 
Only those who ranked in the top-2 of each event from Regionals qualified to swim at Provincials. This makes this meet highly competitive to compete at. In total, a club record 72 Orcas made the trip to Edmonton to compete in 2019. The Orcas have shown great growth over the past years. In 2016, the Orcas had 35 swimmers compete at Provincials to finish in 7th place. Four years later, the Orcas are more than doubling those numbers and are a very competitive team. 

​An absurd number of 71 medals were won by Orcas swimmers at the 2019 Provincials, 34 of which were gold. Below is a list of gold medalists from the Championship meet:
 
Josh Adams B18&O 100 Fly
Josh Adams B18&O 100 Free
Kira Armstrong G18&O 200 Free
Kira Armstrong G18&O 200 IM
Kira Armstrong G18&O 400 Free
Maddie Bennett G17&U 100 Back
Morgan Bos G17&U 100 Fly
Tyson Chomiak B17&U 50 Back
Tyson Chomiak B17&U 100 Free
Tyson Chomiak B17&U 50 Free
Tyson Chomiak B17&U 200 Free
Aaron Gamble B18&O 800 Free
Aaron Gamble B18&O 1500 Free
Riley Ginther G 8&U 25 Breast
Taylor Ginther G 10&U 50 Back
Taylor Ginther G 10&U 25 Back
Owen Guyn B18&O 100 IM
Owen Guyn B18&O 50 Free
James Kwan B18&O 200 Free
Zada McLean-Borggard G8&U 50 Breast
Bentley Togo B8&U 50 Breast
Bentley Togo B8&U 25 Breast
Bentley Togo B8&U 50 Free
Bentley Togo B8&U 25 Free
Jens Watt B17&U 50 Breast
T. Ginther, D. Letourneau, E. Pilsner-Roberts, S. Clamp G10&U 100 Medley Relay
M. Bennett, O. Bos, M. Bos, C. Vanden Elzen G17&U 200 Medley Relay
N. Suarez, K. Watt, K. Armstrong, S. Letourneau GOpen 200 Medley Relay
K. Armstrong, N. Suarez, S. Letourneau, K. Watt GOpen 200 Free Relay
D. Sheppard, J. Watt, D. Kindley, T. Chomiak B17&U 200 Medley Relay
J. Adams, J. Odorski, O. Guyn, J. Kwan BOpen 200 Medley Relay
J. Kwan, J. Adams, A. Gamble, O. Guyn BOpen 200 Free Relay
K. Weighill, R. Ginther, C. Pilsner-Roberts, B. Togo X8&U 100 Medley Relay
T. Chomiak, J. Watt, M. Bos, C. Vanden Elzen X17&U 200 Free Relay 

In addition to the 71 medals, Orcas swimmers were also able to attain 4 Provincial Records of the course of Regionals and Provincials. Provincial records that were taken down by Orcas swimmers over the championship season were:
 
M. Bennett, O. Bos, M. Bos, C. Vanden Elzen – Girls’ 17&U 200 Medley Relay – 2:06.40
D. Sheppard, J. Watt, D. Kindley, T. Chomiak – Boys’ 17&U 200 Medley Relay – 1:53.78
Owen Guyn – Boys’ Open 50 Free – 22.78
Owen Guyn – Boys’ Open 50 Fly – 25.30
Josh Adams – Boys’ Open 100 Free – 52.14
 
Very notably, an Orcas swimmer also won the ASSA Award of Excellence. This award is presented annually to the 15-17 male who accumulates the most points in his individual events at the ASSA Provincial Championship Meet. Tyson Chomiak earned this Award of Excellence as he won gold in all 4 of his individual races. He was also a member of 2 relay gold medals, one of which broke a provincial record. Tyson’s highlights came in the 50 and 100 freestyle events. He is now ranked 2nd All-Time in both events, with respectable times of 24.17 and 53.44 in those events. Tyson was the first ever male Orcas swimmer to ever win this award at Provincials.

Others considerably deserving of recognition include Orcas who won the Lethbridge Orcas Top Performance Awards. These awards are given annually to the top female and male Orca in each age group. The individual in each of these categories who earned the greatest amount of points in their individual events at Provincials receive this award. In the case an age group that did not have a swimmer score at Provincials, this award is given to the top scorer from Region F Regionals. This season, the top performers for the Lethbridge Orcas were:
 
G6&U: Kylie Kozub
G7-8: Zada McLean-Borggard
G9-10: Taylor Ginther
G11-12: Hannah Lundquist and Lily Petry
G13-14: Ava Caputo
G15-17: Olivia Bos
G18&O: Kira Armstrong
B6&U: Reid Pinder
B7-8: Bentley Togo
B9-10: Wesley Cummins
B11-12: Jake Odorski
B13-14: Ben Adserballe
B15-17: Tyson Chomiak
B18&O: Owen Guyn

​The 2020 Orcas season will start on May 1st. Registration will be announced later this year and will take place in early April. You don’t want to miss out on what seems to be a tsunami of momentum!

The Lethbridge Orcas were back in action between August 9-11 at the University of Lethbridge Pool for Region F Regionals. Not only was this the Championship Meet for the southern zone of the ASSA, but it also acted as a qualifying meet for the ASSA Provincials that are in Edmonton between August 16-18.

With 107 Orcas in attendance, the Orcas trampled the field to capture the Gross Points Banner and the Regional Champions Trophy. Not only was this a record setting 15th consecutive Region F Regionals victory, but it was also a record-tying 39th consecutive Region F meet victory. Here are a couple ways to put into perspective how long both of these streaks have been going on for:
 
Region F Regionals Streak:

• The last time the Lethbridge Orcas did not win the Region F Championships, Head Coach James Kwan was 8 years old and had qualified for Provincials for the first time. This year will be the 15th ASSA Provincials that he has attended.

 
Region F Meet Streak:

• The Orcas have not lost an in-region meet since 2015, back before Coach James started as Head Coach in 2016. Since their streak has begun, some meets have even stopped giving out a gross trophy altogether. Most recently, this happened at the Claresholm Kraken Invitational where they decided to only give out two net awards – a small and large team net award. Not only did the Orcas capture the most points at the meet, but they also won the large team net award on Kraken soil. Some parents in the region have also advocated to eliminate acknowledgement of the gross award at Regionals, pushing for the less inclusive net award (which essentially promotes anti-participation and elitism in clubs). Thanks to the governing ASSA Rules and Regulations, this idea was stifled.

​Orcas coaches were really happy with their club’s meet attendance on the weekend. Head Coach James Kwan crunched the stats, saying: “I was very pleased with our club breaking 100 swimmers at Regionals for yet another season! Not only do we have the largest club in the region, but we also regularly populate over 1/3 of the swimmers at any given meet. With the Orcas team being nearly 3 times larger than the next largest team in the Region, one would expect us to have greater issues recruiting swimmers to compete at meets – but it is actually contrary to this belief. At this years’ regionals, the Orcas had 70.86% of their active swimmers compete, a higher participation rate than any other team in the Region! In addition, 80.18% of our eligible age-group swimmers competed!” (The attendance rates for the other teams in the region were: Brooks – 61.54%, Claresholm 62.50%, Fort Mac – 37.04%, Nanton – 19.51%, Pincher Creek – 46.30%, Crowsnest Pass – 36.11%, Taber – 49.02%, and Medicine Hat – 19.51%).

A total of 221 medals were won by Orcas swimmers this weekend (37 in relay events and 184 individual medals). Of those 221 medals, 101 were gold. 5 Orcas were able to pull-off Michael Phelps-esque weekends by earning gold medals in 100% of their individual and relay swims. Those swimmers were: Kira Armstrong, Tyson Chomiak, Owen Guyn, Lily Petry, and Reid Pinder. 6 more Orcas were able to come 1 medal short of going a perfect 6/6, as they won 5 gold medals; those swimmers were: Aaron Gamble, Taylor Ginther, Hannah Lundquist, Devlan Sheppard, Bentley Togo, and Keeley Watt. Notably, Bentley Togo was able to win all of his individual events, ending an undefeated season in individual events in Region F meets – Bentley won 36/36 of his races this season. Also very notably, Lily Petry on the girls’ side nearly had an undefeated season within Region F – Lily won 32/33 of her individual events this season.

​Accompanying the medals were 379 individual best times by Orcas swimmers. This averaged out to just over 3.5 best times per swimmer. 35 Orcas is the number of swimmers who were able to swim a best time at least once in each of their individual events this weekend. Those swimmers were: Josh Adams, Liam Adserballe, Maddie Bennett, Brandon Boras, Ava Caputo, Samantha Clamp, Wesley Cummins, Annie Edwards, Josiah Edwards, Walter Figueroa, Brooklyn Filipenko, Anna Friesen, Aaron Gamble, Teagan Gaskell, Owen Guyn, Elizabeth Hill, Carmen Letourneau, Hannah Lundquist, Zada McLean-Borggard, Hannah Merriam-Harper, Jake Odorski, Aki Oshima, Toshi Oshima, Lily Petry, Colby Pilsner-Roberts, Luke Pinder, Reid Pinder, Emi Polec, Devlan Sheppard, Cadence Smith, Nicole Suarez, Hugh Swain, Jayda Tymko, Petra Tymko, and Kallen Weighill. Notably, Jayda Tymko had a 10 PB weekend. Jayda was the only swimmer in the club who swam a best time literally every time she hit the water. This means that she swam a PB in prelims of each event, then beat her PB in finals in each event, and also swam PB splits on her two relays.

The Orcas will finish their season at the ASSA Provincials in Edmonton between August 16-18. 72 Orcas will be making the trip. The Orcas are looking to match or improve upon their 2nd place finishes in both the age-group and masters’ categories from last season. As of August 12th, the Orcas were ranked 2nd in the age-group standings and 1st in the masters’ standings.
   
Photo Links:
Shannon Bos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/146206833@N02/albums
Steve Kwan: https://www.flickr.com/photos/93976654@N02/albums/
Derek Chomiak: https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPuVIriG0xrkENl_VJxYX4QiMOyC6JJR5jfImN96xTjp7hyP-21FDKhXfagHAMSkA?key=VmR2YlROSnlQaWwtdlp4Z1JRb3RnX25kRzJIT0lB