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On Saturday 14th October, our AISG swim team competed at the British School of Guangzhou Invitational. It was the first meet of the season, and an eventful one to say the least! “Our first meet of the season is always the most exciting; it sets the bar for all our following competitions,” says senior Kyohimeko Ka.
With over 160 individual events, the 6-hour meet saw 10 schools, from all around Guangdong, compete against each other to claim that top spot.
Setting off from Ersha campus at 7:00 am, the bus ride was like many others for the swim team – the swimmers were fast asleep! Upon arriving early at BSG, the swimmers had time to look around the campus, admire the view of the lake and even look through the yearbooks laid out in the reception area. Due to Guangzhou’s sudden weather change and the decrease in temperature the week before, the swimmers weren’t very happy when they jumped into the outdoor pool and realised that the water was a little too cold for a Saturday morning swim!
After each of the 10 teams had a chance to warm up, the events began. First, the 100m Individual Medley (one length of each stroke – butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle respectively), that saw 3 of our 9 swimmers compete in. Swimmers were able to get two 2nd place and one 3rd place finishes overall, a result that definitely set the mood for the rest of the meet. Throughout the next events, swimmers swam their best, many setting new personal records! “It was so much fun!” says sophomore Mulayne Lee.
After all the 160 events were done, it was time for relays. My favourite! The thrill, the elevated cheering, the chaos and the uncertainty of who will come out on top are just some of the many excitements of a relay. Our boys and girls competed in both the 4x50m freestyle relay and the 4x50m medley relay. Our boys placed 1st and 2nd respectively and our girls placed 2nd and 3rd respectively. Marco Fiorito, a senior on the swim team, said: “despite being at the start of the season, the team definitely came together, not only in the relays but also in the individual events!”. What an achievement we can all be proud of!
This year, our swim team welcomes new teacher and coach Ms Higley, who has years of swim training, coaching and competitions behind her. With a bigger and more committed team than ever, our AISG swim team is excited and eager to see what Coach Higley has to offer to our team!
Thank you to Coach Allan and Coach Liddell for accompanying us to BSG and cheering us on as always! The swim team appreciates your support and dedication to the team and are excited about this new season!
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