The College by the Harbour - St Aloysius
The College by the Harbour - St Aloysius
The College by the Harbour - St Aloysius
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CAS Swimming Championships<br />
Aloys got <strong>the</strong> power!<br />
71st Annual Swimming<br />
Championships of <strong>the</strong> Combined<br />
Associated Schools<br />
This year is was <strong>St</strong> <strong>Aloysius</strong>’ <strong>College</strong>’s turn to coordinate<br />
<strong>the</strong> stylish and exciting CAS swimming<br />
carnival. It is a mega-event staged at <strong>the</strong> lavish,<br />
brightly lit venue of <strong>the</strong> Olympics at Homebush. <strong>The</strong> aura<br />
of Australia’s splendid victories at <strong>the</strong> last Games still<br />
lingers. To be still a boy and mount those same blocks and<br />
plunge into <strong>the</strong> same blue waters in front of five thousand<br />
excited and vociferous supporters seems to me at once<br />
most exciting and a tremendous privilege. How much<br />
more, I wonder, would you need to motivate you on those<br />
dark early mornings at training? This is what it is all for,<br />
Tom Austin (Year 12) said to me when I asked him how<br />
it felt to be at his last CAS. Swimming is often a family<br />
affair: <strong>the</strong>re are <strong>the</strong> Hawkins, <strong>the</strong> Boyers, <strong>the</strong> Austins, <strong>the</strong><br />
Birrells, for instance.<br />
Last year I attended <strong>the</strong> CAS swimming to support<br />
students of mine in <strong>the</strong> team and out of curiosity to see<br />
how things had changed since I was at school. <strong>The</strong><br />
experience changed me. I was taught an important lesson<br />
in values and took up a new sport.<br />
‘Play hard and with integrity, and have lots of fun’, Sir<br />
Donald Bradman once advised. Our swimmers learned<br />
this lesson before I did. In<br />
71 years <strong>St</strong> <strong>Aloysius</strong>’ has<br />
won <strong>the</strong> CAS swimming<br />
only once, back in 1935.<br />
This lack of success<br />
nei<strong>the</strong>r deters nor<br />
disappoints <strong>the</strong>m. <strong>The</strong>y<br />
swim because <strong>the</strong>y love <strong>the</strong><br />
sport regardless of<br />
victories or defeats.<br />
Despite <strong>the</strong> lonely hours<br />
of following <strong>the</strong> black line,<br />
<strong>the</strong>re is an unrivalled<br />
James Boyers (Year 11) companionship among<br />
this group. Boys of all ages train toge<strong>the</strong>r, socialise<br />
toge<strong>the</strong>r, eat toge<strong>the</strong>r, travel toge<strong>the</strong>r and compete<br />
toge<strong>the</strong>r. When I suggested to one swimmer that it might<br />
help to ease <strong>the</strong> burden on such a relatively small group to<br />
seek to enlarge it, he said, "That might spoil things. It is just<br />
like a family as it is". You quickly realise <strong>the</strong> truth of this<br />
when you mix with <strong>the</strong>m: <strong>the</strong>re is a great deal of mutual<br />
encouragement and support. <strong>The</strong>y are very protective of<br />
each o<strong>the</strong>r. Older ones inspire and nurture <strong>the</strong> younger<br />
ones. <strong>The</strong>y have something precious here and <strong>the</strong>y know<br />
it, and none of it depends upon winning.<br />
In talking to some of <strong>the</strong> swimmers, I wanted to know<br />
what attracted <strong>the</strong>m to <strong>the</strong> sport. While some took it up<br />
for health reasons, Dominic Monckton (Year 11) for<br />
instance, o<strong>the</strong>rs spoke of this mysterious affinity with <strong>the</strong><br />
water. I remembered Shane Gould once saying this. I<br />
Samuel McConnell Year 7<br />
wanted to know more. Feel <strong>the</strong> water, one boy directed,<br />
just feel <strong>the</strong> water. I decided to try. I started training. All<br />
my life I had been a runner: at least every second day I’d<br />
be on <strong>the</strong> track regardless of <strong>the</strong> wea<strong>the</strong>r. I joined up at my<br />
local swimming pool. I read books, watched <strong>the</strong><br />
techniques of <strong>the</strong> best swimmers. Gradually I came to<br />
experience and understand. Now, no day is complete<br />
without time in <strong>the</strong> water. That feeling of semiweightlessness<br />
relaxes, invigorates and soo<strong>the</strong>s. I have<br />
learned to feel <strong>the</strong> water.<br />
As I waited back at <strong>the</strong> end of this CAS swimming<br />
championships, though, I was tempted. I thought how<br />
exciting it would be if our school could just one more time<br />
win on this night. Just to show <strong>the</strong>m we could if we<br />
wanted to. I started to reflect on what would be involved:<br />
a much bigger squad, training at least six times a week<br />
instead of two, regular weights sessions, nutritionists’<br />
planning special diets, a physio<strong>the</strong>rapist, specialist coaches<br />
for each type of stroke, possibly swimming scholarships to<br />
attract champions from o<strong>the</strong>r schools, a five-year<br />
development plan. Hmm? Perhaps not. And we did beat<br />
Cranbrook again after all.<br />
Robert Schneider (SAC 1958)<br />
Senior School <strong>St</strong>aff<br />
17