Aimee glides through lockdown

KNYSNA SPORT NEWS - Aimee Canny, Knysna's golden swimming girl, still has her eyes very much fixed on Olympic qualification despite the huge disturbance in her training schedule due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last year, Aimee did her town and country proud when she not only took part in her first international swimming gala but also broke new ground by setting two new South African age-group records in the process.

Held in August 2019, at the Fina World Junior Swimming Championships in Budapest, Hungary, the 15-year-old Aimee set a new SA U15 record for the 100m freestyle, posting a 54.87 sec time in the semifinal before placing fifth in the final with a time of 54.93 sec. In the 50m freestyle, Aimee set another SA U15 record when she posted a time of 25.29 sec in the semifinal before finishing fourth in the final.

After returning home, Aimee took a small break before jumping right back into the pool in preparation for her next goal – qualifying for the Summer Olympic Games. With a new coach in the form of Francois Boshoff, who has coached medal-winning Olympians in the past such as Cameron van der Burgh and Gerhard Zandberg, Aimee began working towards the national swimming championships which would act as a means to qualify for the Olympics. "I was reading the paper when we were told nationals were cancelled as well as the Olympics," a disappointed Aimee said. "I felt like I was in really good form and was very disappointed when it got cancelled. I had been prepping for months and was so ready."

The new year kicked off on a tough note for Aimee, as she began Grade 10 – notoriously a significant jump up from Grade 9. "The start of the year was challenging because I was missing days of school when I went to the Grand Prix and training camps, so felt pressure when I got back and had to catch up," she said. Aimee has also had to grow accustomed to her new coach's schedules: "It took time to adapt to Francois' training but now I'm slowly getting used to his sets and they are making me stronger, and I was really happy with the work I did this year in prep for nationals."

Even though she's been cooped up at home without access to a swimming pool due to the current lockdown, Aimee continues to work hard. "Unfortunately I don't have a pool so I've had to stick to 'dryland' workouts. It's been challenging but I'm just trying to maintain fitness levels so I'll be strong when I get back in the water," she said. "It has also been fun because I get to find new drills and exercises to do that incorporate the muscles I use while swimming, which can be hard but enjoyable."

Aimee remains very much fixed on the task at hand. "The aim is to get back in the water as soon as possible and get as many sessions in as I can do, into a routine to eventually get back in top form. The postponement just gives me more time to hopefully qualify and improve my times, still focusing on the main goal which is to swim faster and qualify for Olympics."

Aimee Canny. Photos: Blake Linder