March ^, 200 K?

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19
$
18
plus
fees
per
night
Tickets Available from
EPCOR CENTRE Box Ofce:
403.294.9494
epcorcentre.org
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Foi 60 to 90 seconds ut u time,
Aquubelles sucl us Kiistine
Iiwin luve u unique view ol tle
woild.
It's blue, upside-down, und,
suve loi tle constunt metullic
ticking sound, it's quiet.
Wlen it comes time to
peiloim, tle quiet will be
iepluced witl music pumped in
tliougl un undeiwutei speukei,
but iiglt now wlile piucticing,
tle ticking sound lelps witl
counting.
In tlese minute to minute-
und-u-lull inteivuls, Iiwin und
lei teummutes uie lolding tleii
bieutl to peiloim some ol tleii
synclionized swimming moves.
I've leuid some giils compuie
it to lolding youi bieutl wlile
spiinting," Iiwin, 17, suid. It's
un ueiobic spoit, so you'ie using
ull youi muscles, but you'ie
ulso lolding youi bieutl, so it's
pietty dilncult."
Wlile tle spoit muy be
clullenging, Iiwin, us well us lei
tiei seven }unioi giils teummutes
Biuley Tiuub, 17, und Stelunnu
Spoletini, 17, luve eucl been
swimming loi 10 yeuis.
We know wlut's luid und
wlut's not," Iiwin suid witl u
luugl.
In un e-muil, Aquubelles leud
coucl Jenn Tiegule suid tlese
utlletes tiuin six duys u week,
loi un uveiuge ol 24-30 louis
u week. Tlis tiuining includes
botl lund tiuining to impiove
elements sucl us exibility, und
pool tiuining, ull to piepuie
loi tle nve competitions tley
puiticipute in yeuily. Tle uge
ol u swimmei will ullect tle
numbei ol louis sle spends in
tle pool.
Oui weekends uie ieully
long we tiuin six louis u duy,
eveiy week," Tiuub suid, udding
tlut time includes extiu time,"
wlen u swimmei woiks on u
duet oi solo ioutine sepuiute
liom lei teum ioutine.
Tiegule suid tlut depending
on tle ubilities ol u swimmei,
some muy swim up to loui
ioutines: u solo, duet, teum und
combinution ioutine.
Routines uie between tliee-
und-u-lull to loui-und-u-lull
minutes, cloieogiupled to
music tlut is pluyed on u iegului
sound system, us well us un
undeiwutei speukei, so tlut
tle swimmeis cun leui it even
wlen tley'ie submeiged.
Foi u solo oi duet, tle
utlletes must love tle music
tlemselves so tley cun swim
witl pussion und deteiminution
ull yeui long," Tiegule suid.
Solos geneiully swim to
slowei music, duets cun be u
bit moie upbeut loi uudience
uppeul," sle continued. Foi
teums, we geneiully pick
stiongei music loi tle oldei
giils."
Some cues muy come liom
tle music; counting iepeutedly,
usuully to eiglt, ucts us tle glue
tlut keeps tle teum in time.
Not only is eucl giil
iesponsible loi stuying in syncl
witl lei teummutes, eucl is
iesponsible loi u smull puit in
tle success ol combined nguies
sucl us lilts oi boosts.
Success in tlose liglliglts
isn't ulwuys guuiunteed tlougl,
und Tiuub expluined tlut
lei woist in}uiy cume liom
piucticing u lilt ut u tiuining
cump lust summei.
I wus lully out ol tle wutei,
und someone else wus stunding
on me, und it (tle lilt) stuited to
lull u little bit, und wlen I tiied
to suve it, sometling slipped in
my buck," sle suid, udding tlut
sle wus out ol tle wutei loi loui
weeks witl u slipped disc beloie
nutionuls.
Mostly witl oui spoit, it's
odd tlings like tlut, oi clionic
in}uiies oveiwoiking tle
slouldeis und knees und stull,"
Iiwin udded.
Despite its plysicul demunds
und sometimes bizuiie in}uiies,
Tiegule suid tlut sle lus seen u
iise in populuiity ol ubout 1S0
pei cent ovei tle pust seuson;
tle club cuiiently woiks witl
71 competitive swimmeis.
Synclio lus its ups und
downs," sle suid. Recently,
tleie lus been un incieuse in
numbeis due to tle gieut iesults
Cunudu is uclieving on tle
inteinutionul level."
Giils cun stuit swimming witl
tle Aquubelles between tle uges
ol 6-8, und stuit u competitive
cuieei ut uge 8. Tle teum tiuins
ut tle Tulismun Centie.
At tle beginning ol u synclio
cuieei, it is moie ubout lun und
leuining skills tlun unytling
else," Tiegule suid. Due to tle
gieut coucles we luve und tle
excellent skills tle giils leuin,
tley luve success us well."
Oldei, ovei-18 utlletes
used to swim witl tle club,
Tiegule suid, but Synclio
Cunudu iecently iestiuctuied
its nutionul teum piogium, und
tle top 24 synclio utlletes now
tiuin ut tle Centie ol Excellence
in Montieul.
Wlen tle giils tuin 18, tley
decide il tley cun do swimming
und sclool togetlei," sle suid.
Most suy yes. Some ol tlese
utlletes cloose to leuve tle
city to go to sclool in otlei
piovinces oi tle U.S.A."
Post-seconduiy institutions,
including tle Univeisity
ol Culguiy, luve tleii own
synclionized swimming teums,
und compete in tle Cunudiun
Univeisity Synclio Swim
Leugue Westeins, u competition
in wlicl tle U ol C iecently
pluced nist.
Tley competed uguinst
tle Univeisity ol Albeitu, tle
Univeisity ol Biitisl Columbiu
und tle Univeisity ol Victoiiu.
I don't believe unyone
biouglt [tle ideu ol u synclio
teum| loiwuid," suid Kyle
Heniy, events co-oidinutoi loi
Cougui Atlletics, udding tlut
tle MRU swim teum lolded in
2004.
Tle one tling, possibly,
would be u Mount Royul club,"
le continued. Tley pluy undei
tle Mount Royul nume, but
tley'ie not ussociuted witl tle
Couguis."
Mount Royul is still some time
uwuy liom }oining tle Cunudiun
Intei-Univeisity Spoit, Heniy
suid, und Mount Royul would
locus on moving und lunding its
cuiient teums nist.
A lot ol sclools will tend to
locus on tleii coie spoits, und
tlen us tley'ie uble to get tlose
undei contiol und luve success
witl tlose piogiums, tley'll
look ut expunding elsewleie,"
le suid.
Tle U ol C lus one ol tle
best univeisity synclio teums in
Cunudu, so it would be good loi
Mount Royul to muybe clullenge
tlem," Tiuub suid.
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lllusLraLion by Kelsey Hipkin