Taking part in sport is a fantastic way to help children develop life skills and build confidence. Swimming is no exception as it is a perfect example of how setting goals and perservering towards them can lead to amazing results.
This month, proud dad, Daniel Woodhouse shares the story of his daughter, Emma. She is a true embodiment of what swimming has to offer.
“It's hard to imagine a time in Emma's short life that swimming hasn't been some part of her weekly routine. From her very first swim in her Nana's backyard pool at a few months old, she was like a duck to water.
Emma started weekly swimming lessons shortly after and it just all came together from that point forward, where she progressed through all the levels and through pre-squad, with her swim school journey finishing with her winning three individual gold medals at their yearly graduation competition. She was now hooked and it was time to join a club.
Emma is quite shy, so joining the right club that fit her was critical. A number of the larger club's in the area showed some interest in her joining, however that feeling was certainly not mutual.
We organized a few trial swims with the Diamond Creek Swimming Club, a small community based club that values inclusion and giving it your best over winning. It's fair to say that didn't go as planned. The first session she did not get in the water and left early, the second session she agreed to go back and just watch, and the third session she finally got in the water. The coaches and committee immediately saw some potential and really nurtured and encouraged her development from that point on.
Just under 4 years later we're now here today. In that time Emma has competed at numerous state championships for her school and club, with her most recent state championship meet being the 2019 Victorian Age Short Course Championships. It was her performance in the 100m Individual Medley, finishing 29th, which is one of the most impressive, as due to a shoulder injury she had been unable to swim competitive butterfly from 2017 until earlier this year.
Emma has come a long way from first trial with the club, now a strong and confident swimmer, a young leader within the club and just last month announced as a club captain, at just 13 years of age.
Our family is very proud of Emma's achievements, the medals and trophies are just bonuses."
Our mission is to help celebrate wins and inspire many more, by hanging medals properly.
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We're super excited about this as we know that behind every collection of medals is an awesome story!
