Lelia Fack’s first non-virtual swim meet since March of 2020 proved to be a memorable one.
Fack, 14, broke two provincial records competing for the Langley Olympians Swim Club (LOSC) at the Spartan CSI Pacific Athletes Meet in Chilliwack on May 22 and 23, taking first in the Women’s 50m freestyle, where she set a new club record and a new 13-14 provincial record with a best time of 25.56, breaking Jessica Luo’s 2017 record by 0.37.
Fack, a South Surrey resident who travels to Walnut Grove to train with the LOSC, also set a new women’s 100 13-14 yrs freestyle provincial record with a time of 55.96, just beating the previous record set by Alex Gabor in 2007 by a margin of 0.01.
“I felt confident going in and had practiced really hard,” Fack told the Langley Advance Times.
“You never really know how a race is going go, especially since I hadn’t raced with swimmers outside of my club since before COVID.”
She described her mood as “excited to race but still nervous.”
“I love racing but winning even more so this felt really rewarding,” Fack confided.
“Breaking two records was more than I could’ve hoped for. I would really like to thank my coach, Brian Metcalfe, and my teammates for their support and his strategic coaching.”
Her long-term goal is to swim competitively for UBC or UVic, “but also to swim for Canada at the 2024 Olympics.”
Fack also placed first in the mixed 50m butterfly with a time of 27.46, and second in the mixed 50 freestyle with a time of 25.56.
She was one of five LOSC athletes who participated in the Chilliwack meet that welcomed seven teams within the Lower Mainland.
Langley Olympians Swim Club swimmers placed first overall and reached the podium in 11 events:
Hugh McNeill, 17, placed in four events, first in the mixed 100m backstroke, mixed 100m freestyle and mixed 200m backstroke. He also placed second in the mixed 200m freestyle.
Aiden Erickson, 16, placed second in the mixed 400m freestyle.
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Bailey Herbert, 18, placed third in the mixed 100m breaststroke and fourth in the mixed 400 individual medley.
Katelyn Schroeder, 15, placed fourth in the mixed 100m backstroke.
Among the rules governing the Chilliwack meet, masks were mandatory at any point the athletes were out of the water, no spectators were allowed on the pool deck, and warm up and warm down lanes were limited to four swimmers per lane.
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LOSC coach Brian Metcalfe noted two clubs in B.C. have now successfully held “safe and successful”events in May, and the LOSC hopes to be able hold their own swim meet soon with the permission of the Township of Langley.
Have a story tip? Email: dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
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