At 78, Nancy May Lalonde is at the top of her swimming game.
Recently returned from the 55+ BC Senior Games in North Vancouver, Lalonde brought home a silver and three bronze medals.
“When I dive off the blocks, I swim for gold,” said Lalonde, “and any medals I get are a bonus.”
After injuries befell two members of her team, Lalonde was the sole swimmer from Powell River at the games.
With more than 3,000 athletes registered, she said she met lots of people and had a great time.
Swimming in the 74 to 79 age category in Zone 2 with athletes from Vancouver Island North, Lalonde won silver in the 100-metre freestyle and bronze in the 50-metre breaststroke as well as the four-by-25-metre freestyle relay and relay medley.
“I really like freestyle swimming,” she said. “The breaststroke and relays are such fun too.”
After raising four children, Lalonde said she took up competitive swimming in 1997 following her husband’s death in a boating accident.
“I swam all my life, but I didn’t know how to swim the Olympic way,” said Lalonde. She had to practice hard to learn how to swim freestyle and do flip turns.
The social and health benefits are a big plus, she said. She always takes time to chat and rest while finishing 30 to 40 laps during her Tuesday and Thursday swims at Powell River Recreation Complex.
“The camaraderie is a plus,” she said, “and the doctors get happy when you swim.”
Lalonde said she wants more people to join the team, for fun and for their health.
“I have so many people say to me that they don’t know how to swim,” she said. “I didn’t know how to swim either, but I learned and it’s fun.”
The 55+ Games were held on August 25 to 29. “God willing,” Lalonde said she will be competing in next year’s games in Port Coquitlam.
For more information about how to join the seniors’ team, Lalonde said interested readers can find her at the pool.
