Making a comeback to any sport is difficult, there are always mixed emotions and underlying thoughts and questions such as “Can I still do what I did all those years ago?” and “Is this all worth it”?
As most of us have experienced, swimming is one of the hardest sports to come back to.
The hours and hours staring at the bottom of a pool or chasing the black line as they call it, the sore shoulders and the early wake-up calls make it all seem a little too tough.
For some individuals, the above makes the journey even more special, which applies to our November AD Member of the Month.
Patricia Reid returned to the pool no more than 2 years ago and has shone and excelled ever since. She has had nearly 40 years off competitive swimming after competing in the Moscow Olympic trials at 15 in England.
Under the watchful eye of coach Ewen MacDonald and Jasmine, Patrica has returned to form and is making literal waves in the pool.
At the recent NSW Masters short course meet in Woy Woy, Patrica claimed an incredible 5 medal haul, this included 2 Bronze 2 Silver and a Gold medal.
Along the way to securing these medals, Patricia also managed to claim some personal bests and beat some challenging goals set out for her by coach Ewen.
As the season transitions into a new phase, Patricia is adjusting her focus to the long course. While adapting to the change, she remains committed to setting and pursuing goals, continuing her pursuit of records.
One thing to note was that, unfortunately, there were no other female competitors available for the NSW Championships, so the Club did not have the opportunity to enter a mixed team, let alone a full women’s team.
Patrica is hoping that her amazing effort will help inspire the next wave of female swimmers to join in the fun that is the Tattersalls swim club.
Well done Patrica on your amazing results. We can’t wait to see what the next few swimming meets have in store!
