With 2024 being an Olympic year, athletics are on our minds now more than ever. While Sudbury may be passionate about hockey, the town also has a proud history of swimming successes. And a lot of this success has its roots in the Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club.
Starting out as Laurentian University Swim Club, the club was founded in 1973. Last year, the club was thrilled to celebrate 50 years of teaching swimming skills to Sudbury locals.
“The club has been a leader in the community and the region, both in and out of the pool,” says Léa Bray, president of Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club’s board of directors.
SLSC has a lot to offer to new members who are curious to take the plunge. After their skill level is assessed, swimmers are welcome to join the club at any time throughout the season. There is also a two-week free trial period, giving individuals plenty of time to get a feel for the programming. The club’s programming is available to five-year-olds all the way up to varsity-level swimming.
Léa says that one way the club differs from regular swimming lessons is the amount of time spent in the pool. At SLSC, swimmers are moving and swimming throughout their whole practice. This makes their programs extra beneficial, both physically and mental health-wise. It also makes for a less socially intimidating atmosphere for new swimmers.
“There’s nothing to be nervous about; we all start somewhere,” says Léa.
As Léa points out, swimming is a sport for life. It might look different as we age, but it’s a form of exercise that has shown to reduce blood pressure, increase muscle mass, and promote cardiovascular health, as well as alleviating anxiety, stress, and low moods.
Swimming encourages team-building, and shows youth the benefits of dedication, hard work, and resiliency. Léa has seen this first-hand at the club, including from her own experience of being a SLSC parent herself.
"They learn so much about themselves, and that they can do hard things. They can feel challenged from time to time, but have teammates and coaches to support them.”
Over time, swimmers at the club accomplish skills that they might struggle with at first. They may not be skilled at one stroke, but through hard work and dedication, that can change. SLSC’s coaches are there to support and encourage every step of the way.
The club also encourages travel for their young swimmers, aiming to do a team travel meet every year. This past season, the team took a coach bus to Brantford for a meet. The club’s senior group had the opportunity to train in Spain for two weeks this past March, and another group trained in Ottawa for a week. Léa says that these trips are different and exciting for their swimmers, and are something for the younger kids to look forward to doing one day.
Other events on the horizon for SLSC include a swim-a-thon, which they used to hold before the COVID-19 pandemic. They are working on selecting dates and planning how they would like to distribute any funds raised by the event. For the club, who are currently using a couple different pools, the swim-a-thon will be an opportunity to get all the kids together in one place for a fun time.
After five decades of Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club, there are huge achievements from the club that still resonate with people in the community. Former competitive swimmer Alex Baumann started training at SLSC at age nine, going on to eventually win two gold medals and set two world records at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
More recently, SLSC swimmer Alexandre Landry, 21, just swam in the Olympic trials in Toronto.
Not bad for a kid from Sudbury.
For more information on SLSC’s programs, visit here.