ELITE swimming, with its early rises and required commitment from a primary school age, can dominate a young person’s life.
Amy Lucas and Gianna Leone are two athletes who have been swimming for more than a decade after being identified by talent programs.
Each has known great success in the pool, collecting several WA open and age titles over the years, while Lucas still has several WA junior backstroke records to her name.
But such an extended period of commitment can dampen the enthusiasm and last year, the pair felt the need to step back from swimming for a while.
“I had been at my old club for 13 years and needed a change,” Lucas said. “I’ve been swimming since I was six or seven.”
In July last year, VenuesWest appointed Paul Bruce as Arena Swimming Club’s head coach, who motivated the pair to move north.
An elite coach for more than 13 years, Bruce worked in various roles in the USA, Canada and Australian Institute of Sport before moving to Perth.
The tonic of a break and a new coach might just be the factors that launch the pair into the Commonwealth Games squad when trials are held in Sydney next month.
Lucas (20) won the 100m and 200m backstroke, and was second in the 50m backstroke after making five finals at the State Open Swimming Championships last month. Leone (18) swam four finals, claiming the 100m and 200m butterfly, as well as a second in the 50m butterfly.
Despite the victories, both admitted their meets were far from perfect but it delivered much-needed race experience.
The State titles were Lucas’ first major competition for her new club, and Leone’s second after the State Age titles in December.
“It was a step up from the State age meet,” Leone said. “I swam better here.”