Swimming Waikato Membership

First of all, I want to wish all the Swim Mums out there a belated Happy Mother’s Day, I hope you were all spoilt rotten.

Before today’s Government announcement at 4PM today, I wanted to take a moment to write a few reflections on the last few weeks and to highlight some of the great work that is going on behind the scenes throughout the Waikato.

Firstly, I want to recognise the efforts being carried out throughout the region to ensure that our clubs can start operating when Level 2 is announced and that they have a bright future ahead. I would like to thank the Club Presidents and Secretaries for their continued correspondence and for keeping me updated throughout these challenging times. 

To the Coaches, I would like to congratulate you all on the extraordinary work that is going on behind the scenes to keep your swimmers engaged, healthy, and educated. I have been blown away by the creativity of engagement and the buy-in from your membership.

Swimmers, once we have the green light, I hope that you will enjoy being back in the pool and that you have a fresh appreciation for the opportunity you all have. You are all in very capable hands, so please continue to listen to the guidance of your home coach and take one day at a time. Time for competing again will come , but for now its time to focus on staying health, injury free and remembering how to swim.

Although the last few weeks have been challenging, for me and my family and you and yours; I feel that there have been several valuable lessons learnt. The sport of swimming Globally is in a transitional period and must adapt and move with the times, I feel this is now more important than ever. We must put our time in reflection to use and work collectively to make the changes we feel necessary to advance our sport.

I have been encouraged with the level of Coach engagement at National, Regional and even Global level, to discuss how we navigate our sport into the future. Although we face several challenges ahead, I place my confidence in our fantastic team of Coaches’ and Clubs in the Waikato. I know they will continue to work together, as well as with our colleagues and clubs throughout New Zealand to build a bright future for our sport.

On a personal note, I would like to thank all the Coaches’ that have endured my countless requests for Zoom meetings, your input and time has been well received.

Information relating to Alert Level 2 (when it is announced) and what this means for swimming can be found on our Covid-19 Support Page

Keep up the great work Waikato!

Darren Ward

Regional Hub Director