Monday, May 07, 2007

Kingston & District Sports Hall of Fame & DREAMS

Last Friday evening, May 4, 2007 was the induction dinner for the KDSHF at the Ambassador. There were many wonderful and memorable moments, but the ones that stood out for me were remarks by swimmer Karin Helmstaedt. She came for the induction from Germany where she now lives, quite a tribute to the Hall.

Although she doesn't know it, her swimming career and my sport admin careers are intertwined. She competed at the World Aquatic Championships in Madrid, Spain in 1986 where I served as the Assistant Chef de Mission for the Canadian Team. She competed for Canada in 1987 at the Pan American Games in Indianapolis, USA. I was the Assistant Chef de Mission of the Canadian Team at those multi-sport Games.

To get back to her comments, though. She had a distinguished swimming career, and now has a distinguished journalistic career. Karin went to U of T and swam for the university's team coached by expert Byron MacDonald. One of her memorable observations was this: if there had been a 50m swimming pool in Kingston, she would not have had to leave Kingston to continue her swimming career.

An athlete who wants to swim on the national/international stage for Canada, cannot stay in Kingston and train in a 25m pool. It is just impossible to become a Pan Am Games swimmer or Olympian without regular, on-going training in a 50m pool. Wouldn't it be great to have our young swimmers training here in Kingston, then going on to a Canada Games, a Pan Am Games then an Olympics! Wow! What a great thing for other young people to see and strive for!

Not only will a 50m pool allow our swimmers to stay home, an aquatic centre will be a centre of activity for everyone in the community! It will be a gathering place for young parents and their small children (and babies!), offering them the opportunity to become comfortable in and around the water, and learn how to respect the water. Kingston is perfectly located for water sport activities, and respect for our rivers, lakes, ponds is essential.

Additional activities available to citizens will include diving, water polo, underwater hockey, scuba diving training, synchronized swimming, inner tube basketball (you haven't tried THAT? great fun!!), winter kayak training....Red Cross and Royal Life Saving Society lessons and diplomas, fitness for seniors, hydro-therapy for persons with disabilities or injuries of some kind, .....the list is endless!!

I wonder how many little Karins we have in Kingston, wanting to follow their dream of becoming an Olympic swimmer or diver, and not able to do it.

The new Aquatic Centre will be an exciting, state of the art facility for every Kingstonian to use, and will give those little Karins an opportunity that isn't available now.

What a thrill!

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