We don’t swim – we sync!
Sudbury Synchro Swim Club operates out of the Jeno Tihanyi Olympic Gold Pool at Laurentian University. Our club offers novice, masters and competitive levels of synchronized swimming. The club started in September 2003. That very first year, Lindsay Wandziak and Stephanie Westphal won gold in their duet at the Ontario Winter Games. Now Lindsay is the club’s Head Coach and Stephanie has returned as a guest coach. We have 60 novice swimmers, 9 masters’ swimmers, 24 competitive swimmers, and a number of experienced coaches and judges involved with our club.
Synchronized swimming combines swimming, dance and gymnastics, with swimmers performing a synchronized routine comprised of different figures, skills and movements choreographed to music. Synchronized swimmers are strong swimmers with great strength, endurance, flexibility, grace, artistry and precise timing, as well as the ability to hold their breath for long periods of time even while upside down in the water! Synchronized swimmers are not allowed to touch the bottom at any time during their performance. And yes, they can hear the music underwater because they use underwater speakers!
Every October Sudbury Synchro participates in a Burning Bright for Breast Cancer event. (Breast Cancer is the charity of choice for Synchro Ontario). Prior to the event, all swimmers with the club get pledges and donations. On event day, the swimmers participate in an hour long relay where they pass a burning candle from swimmer to swimmer while doing the eggbeater. There are hundreds of pink rubber ducks floating in the pool during the relay. Each year, Sudbury Synchro has been the top fundraising club in Ontario!
Two years in a row the club has hosted Olympians for a weekend. Last year the club hosted Olympian Elise Marcotte and this year the club hosted Olympian Tracy Little. Both Olympians performed parts of their Olympic routines for the swimmers and parents, and two full days in the water, on the pool deck and in a gym mentoring the Sudbury swimmers and coaches.
For three years our club has had swimmers selected for the Provincial Team. A number of members of the club are working towards becoming Provincial Judges. In late spring, watch for information about our “Try Synchro” events where swimmers can get in the pool with our coaches and swimmers and decide if synchro is the sport for them.
The club has already had the first of two water shows (December and April) where all routines are showcased. At the end of February, our 11-12 competitive team (coaches Chelsea Wandziak and Dana Yawney, swimmers Bronwyn Ashley, Alexa Bates, Emily Binks, Laurel Duguay, Rebecca Haferer, Sarah Ieropoli, Stacie Kohan and Georgia Speck, swimming to Inspector Gadget music) and our 13-15 team (coach Courtney Stasiuk, swimmers Kamryn Butler, Katherine Caddel, Mya Duguay and Megan Sarmatiuk, swimming to Kung Fu Panda music) are both attending the Ontario Winter Games! This is a very exciting opportunity for our club! Three duets will also be attending the Ontario Winter Games. A number of our novice teams will be off to a meet in Burlington at the beginning of March. A Regional meet is held towards the end of March for our competitive teams, a Hilton Invitational meet is held in April where our 8 and under competitive team (coached by former National Team member Carrie Wilson) will make its first meet debut. And finally our season ends mid-May in Windsor for the Ontario Age Group championships, which is a five day meet with teams from all over Ontario competing.
The club continues to grow year after year as we instill a lifelong love of the sport of synchronized swimming into our athletes. For more information on the sport or our club, please visit www.sudburysynchro.com.
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Order your rain barrel today to help the club with operational costs such as pool rental and lifeguards on duty. Funds raised will also contribute to coordinate special events for the club and competition registrations. Submit your order for pick up on April 26th by visiting: www.RainBarrel.ca/SudburySynchro