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Canada's Andrew Willows and Richard Dober Jr. race to first place in the semifinal heat of men's 500-metre race.
Expect a post-Olympic surge at the Malcolm-Knox Aquatic Centre
Pointe Claire residents and friends cheered their athletes on
Alycia Ambroziak
The Gazette
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Canada's Andrew Willows and Richard Dober Jr. race to first place in the semifinal heat of men's 500-metre race.
The summer Olympics might be over but, at the Malcolm-Knox Aquatic Centre, the surge is just about to begin.
“After every Olympics, we get a 10 to 15-per-cent increase in the number of registrations for diving and swimming lessons,” Gary Malcolm, director of the Pointe Claire aquatic centre said early last Thursday morning as he and more than 100 people were posted in front of a television set up in front of a huge Canadian flag, watching as émilie Heymans – who trains at the aquatic centre – clinch the silver medal in the 10-metre platform dive in Beijing.
The aquatic centre’s reputation for forging champion swimmers and divers – Heymans’s name will be the 27th Olympic swimmer and diver engraved on a plaque just inside the lobby – has been created over the years with a lot of dedication and the ability to attract a roster of national calibre coaches, including Heymans’s coach, Yi Hua Li, and four-time Olympian Dave Bédard.
As well, construction of a new Olympic size pool is slated for completion next spring, and that will be followed by a complete renovation of the existing 50-metre pool.The aquatic centre also has a 23-metre pool and a wading pool.
“The new pool will have a 10-metre tower which will be built to allow for synchronized diving, which we don’t have now in our existing pool,” Malcolm said as the crowd watching the television held their breaths whenever Heymans came on the screen.
“The new pool will give us more space and allow more time for our swimmers and divers,” he added.
Included in the crowd were a gaggle of children already enrolled in the centre’s swim and diving programs, a lot of parents, members of the aquatic centre, including Bédard, Pointe Claire Mayor Bill McMurchie and members of the city’s canoe club.
They also met at the club at 3:45 Friday morning to watch the final competition of Pointe Claire canoeist Tom Hall, the 2008 overall world cup champion.
Early Saturday morning, everyone got together to watch kayaker Andrew Willows in his final competition.
Hall won bronze. Willows and fellow kayaker Richard Dober finished the k2 500M Olympic final in sixth place.
For Bédard, who dove in the 1984,’88, ’92 and ’96 Olympics, watching Heymans was almost more than he could bear.
“It’s very emotional,” he said. And when Heymans got inched out of a gold medal, Bédard called the moment “bittersweet.”
“She deserved the gold.”
Michelle Malcolm – Gary Malcolm’s 16-year-old daughter and an up-and-coming diver, along with 14-year-old Kathleen Tooker and 12-year-old Bryan Starick, had a front-row spot to watch Heymans’ competition.
“She was amazing, she pulled off all of her dives,” Michelle Malcolm said.
Swimming classes at the Malcolm-Knox Aquatic Centre range from parent and tot (6 to 24-months-old), right up to Olympic level. There are also gym and swim classes, lifesaving, special programs for children, including adaptive aquatics for children who are physically or intellectually challenged, as well as group fitness and more.
Registration at the aquatic centre for Pointe Claire residents takes place Sept. 4 until Sept. 20, and for non-residents on Sept. 5 for special programs and 6 for all programs, again until Sept. 20.
The Malcolm-Knox Aquatic Centre is located at 98 Douglas Shand Ave. in Pointe Claire. The phone number is 514-630-1202. or visit the website at www.ville.pointe-claire.qc.ca
The Pointe Claire Canoe Club is located at 75 Lakeshore Blvd. in Pointe Claire. The phone number is 514-630-1256.