ESTEVAN — The Estevan Golden Eels just finished off their season with an Olympic-themed wrap up party, and a supper afterwards.
The Golden Eels, Estevan’s summer swimming program, still had a season despite COVID-19 restrictions. They started their season in May, and their windup party was held on July 27.
“The windup was based on the Olympics that are happening this summer in Tokyo,” head coach Auriel Bill says, on her inspiration for the unique two-hour party. “We wanted to have a bunch of different events, most in water, some of them that we can just play, to amplify the Olympics and get the kids excited about it.
“We did multiple sports, different events, like we had our synchro event, baseball, we had relay swimming, we had a diving competition, and we just tried to throw in a little bit of everything. I know the one thing that’s really important with kids is to have them not specialize in one sport at a young age, and I think it’s really fun to kind of just open them up to new things. It’s really good to just get the kids motivated to just be in the water no matter what purpose.”
Bill was the head coach for the entire season, teaching along with Charlotte Andrist, Carson Wheeler and Gabrielle Jocelyn. The four of them are all former Eels swimmers, and were all excited to return as coaches.
“When I was in Eels, when I was a little tyke, I always looked up to my coaches, and I always aspired to be in that position one day,” Carson Wheeler recalled.
“The reason I started coaching Eels is… I’m super passionate about the water, I mean I’ve been playing water polo since I was six years old, swimming with the Eels, actually, since I was six,” Bill says. “And it was just fun to get back into the program that got me started in the first place, and hang out with a bunch of great kids, and teach them the sport that I’ve loved for years.”
The Eels wished for a more eventful season, but followed the restrictions put in place for the COVID-19 pandemic. Masks were enforced on deck, and a sign in before each practice was mandatory. Swimmers weren’t permitted to share lanes, which greatly reduced the amount of swimmers that could be in the water at one time. Their practices were two days a week, unlike normal seasons, which would be Monday to Friday, and no tournaments were held.
“I think the Eels board made it really easy to transition with all the COVID-19 rules and restrictions that happened this year,” Bill says. “As coaches, we just had to make sure that the rules were implemented, but the kids were super resilient, showing up and doing exactly what they needed to do to keep everyone safe, and even though it’s said to be a challenge, our kids took it straight on and they did amazing with it.”
On July 11, when restrictions were lifted, the sign-in was still required, masks and single lanes were no longer enforced, and swimmers were allowed to go to practice from Monday to Friday.
Swimming is a timed sport, and this year, without tournaments to compete in, Estevan’s swimmers competed against themselves, and their personal best time in their events. They raced their past selves, and the gap between May and July is wide.
“The kids this year did absolutely amazing,” Wheeler says. “I, we, could really see that they have improved so much since their first day in May to now. We had some swimmers who took off 20, 30 seconds since May, and it’s really been so great to see the improvement, and to see that our hard work has paid off.”
“I think it was really exciting to see the different levels we have across the board, I mean everyone came in with a really competitive spirit and it was really nice to see,” Bill says. “Just having the kids back in the pool … The results are one thing, but to see their smiling faces everyday just, really takes the cake.”
