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Lloydminster Aquanaut Newspaper Articles.

Aquanauts golden at Edmonton meet

Josh Aldrich
Sunday July 03, 2005
Lloydminster Meridian Booste

There has always been just one top dog, one spot at the top – and its a goal that drives many athletes.

After winning silver in the 400 and 200-metre freestyle and bronze in the 100-metre backstroke and 50-metre freestyle, in last year’s provincials, Jonathon Smyth would like nothing better than to upgrade the colour of his medal.

The swimmer is on the right track. He has picked up gold in his last two meets, including this past weekend in Edmonton at the Camrose Sea Serpents & Sherwood Park Millennium Marlins meet.

“I’m expecting a gold medal every time out, sometimes it’s a harder competition, sometimes it’s not,” said Smyth. “I expect to keep beating my times, lowering my times and getting ready for provincials. You have to start early.”

His coach Tyler Totman is excited about the improvement that Smyth has already shown – setting a new personal best in the discipline at the meet – and the potential that still remains.

“He’s working towards a provincial record,” said Totman. “It will be interesting to see if he can do that because he has the ability.”

It was a successful meet for the Aquanauts who sent a smaller group to the competition, but they still came back with five agate medals – Luke Myers silver in the 9/10 boys, Cory Totman silver in the 15/16 boys, and Tyler Totman bronze in the 17-plus boys also came home with medals.

For A.J. Mokelky it was his second gold medals in as many events, the swimmer also set four new personal bests in the process.

“I wasn’t expecting to do well because I hadn’t been training going into it, I had been on vacation for a bit,” said Mokelky. “I just went in hard and it came out good.”

Totman has high hopes for this group, Mokelky and Smyth in particular.

“These guys are performing amazing and they keep getting better. That’s the main thing about these guys,” said the coach. “It’s early in the season and to be getting that many high-point totals and agate gold, and other medals and personal bests. It’s hard to improve, but they keep rising to the challenge every time out.”

Their next competition is July 9 in Fort Saskatchewan and Wainwright, and then on July 10 in Provost.
“(Provost) is a meet I really like because it’s an outdoor pool and it’s nice to get the kids out there on nice sunny days,” said Totman. “It’s hardest for the backstrokers because they have nothing to look up at to keep their line, but it’s fun, it’s different and you get to be in the sun all day long.