AV俱乐部 swimmer David Sharpe is officially headed to London 鈥� and making history in the process.
Mr. Sharpe was nominated to Canada鈥檚 Olympic team back in March after a come-from-behind win in the 200-metre butterfly at the Olympic trials in Montreal. However, because he finished just under the official qualifying time, he had to wait until last Friday for Swimming Canada and FINA, the international governing body for competitive swimming, to confirm his spot on the roster.
He will be the first able-bodied male swimmer from Nova Scotia to ever compete in the Olympics, and only the third able-bodied swimmer period (the first in almost 30 years).
鈥淚t鈥檚 all starting to come together right now,鈥� says Mr. Sharpe, who met with media and supporters at the Dalplex pool Tuesday morning. Tomorrow, he leaves for Montreal to train with the rest of Team Canada鈥檚 swimmers.
鈥淚 still have a month more of preparation, and I鈥檓 excited to head to Montreal and post a fast time at those meets. It鈥檚 been difficult [training the past few months], and the uncertainty added to that, but training is always hard.鈥�
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After Montreal, Mr. Sharpe, a BSc student and Academic All-Canadian at Dal, will travel to Italy with the team for a two-week staging camp before heading to London. He competes in the pool on Monday, July 30. Heats for his event, the 200-metre butterfly, are scheduled to start at 10:38 a.m. London time 鈥� that鈥檚 6:38 a.m. here in Halifax.
His family鈥攑arents Jim and Helen, and sister Susan鈥攚on鈥檛 need to worry about the time difference, as they鈥檒l be watching from the stands of the newly-built Aquatics Centre in London.
鈥淚t鈥檚 so gratifying, when you鈥檝e seen him work so long for this,鈥� says his mom, Helen. 鈥淲e always knew he had great athletic ability, but this last year he鈥檚 really shown his ability to work with his coaches on strategy as well.鈥�
Inspiring future athletes
Sue Jackson, president of Swim Nova Scotia, says having Mr. Sharpe on the Olympic team will be a huge boost for the sport in the province.
鈥淚t鈥檚 wonderful for all those kids in the pool who have those dreams,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey now have a face to look up to. They sat on the deck with David Sharpe and think, 鈥業f he did it, I can do it.鈥� The dreams get bigger now.鈥�
鈥淲hen I was a little kid, when I was young, I didn鈥檛 have any Olympians walking around on deck, or even anybody on the national team,鈥� notes Mr. Sharpe. 鈥淪o now, hopefully I can be that guy to the younger kids. They can see me and be, 鈥楾hat鈥檚 how good I can get training in Nova Scotia.鈥欌��
Karen Moore, director of varsity athletics at Dal, hopes Mr. Sharpe鈥檚 success inspires other students who want to make athletics part of their lives at the university.
鈥淭he biggest message it sends is that you can come to university out east and get to the highest level of your sport,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 think it will be a great thing for AV俱乐部 and for swimming programs across Nova Scotia to prove to people that we can train here and reach that level.鈥�
The swim of his life
Mr. Sharpe is a methodical athlete, and he鈥檚 razor-focused on performing to the best of his abilities in London. To him, everything else about the Games鈥攖he social experience, the other sports, the cultural events鈥攊s secondary to the race.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to race, to get up on the blocks and post a good time. After that, I can enjoy the whole Games experience. But I鈥檓 going as an athlete, not a spectator; my primary goal is racing fast.
鈥淚 hope to get a best time, and have the best swim of my life.鈥�
Mr. Sharpe wasn't the only Dal-linked Haligonian to earn an Olympic spot weekend: former Tigers standout Geoff Harris made Team Canada after winning his first 800-metre national title at the Canadian track and field trials in Calgary on Saturday.