CLEVE DHEENSAW
sa国际传媒
Being an Olympian gives you a certain cachet, especially with young athletes who look up to you. Jeremy Bagshaw brought that with him this month as he conducted a series of clinics for young competitors in the Island Swim Club at Saanich Commonwealth Place.
“It’s pretty cool to be that role mentor and a nice part of being in the sport for so long,” said Bagshaw, 32, who was co-captain of the Canadian swim team in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“Coming up in Victoria, there were so many athletes who played that role for me. Now it’s my chance to do that for current kids,” he said.
“It’s been cool to tell my story and tell these kids: Look, I was in their position exactly at their age.”
It is part of a series of youth sports and coaching clinics and lectures throughout the year in which experts are brought in to address young aspirant athletes and coaches. The series is sponsored by 94Forward, the legacy fund from the 1994 Victoria Commonwealth Games,
“This is a great way they are doing it, by having older athletes come in and imparting that wisdom to younger athletes,” said Bagshaw, who came out of St. Michaels University School to swim in the NCAA at University of California-Berkeley.
“The biggest thing I try to impart is that pretty much anybody can go through it. There was nothing special about me when I was a young kid in Island Swimming Club. If it’s something you want to go for, then go for it and don’t be afraid to ask advice from people who have gone through it.”
It wasn’t the destination but the pathway there, said Bagshaw: “The Olympics were cool but the whole journey along the way was what really mattered and all the people I met.”
What made Bagshaw’s journey even more compelling is that he became an Olympian while also completing medical school.
“It was actually quite do-able to balance because I was surrounded by people who were so supportive,” he said.
Bagshaw is now interning at Royal London Hospital in the U.K. and plans to return to Victoria to practice family medicine.
“That is definitely needed here,” he said.
Another thing he feels is needed in the region is a replacement for the Crystal Garden pool and has lent his name to a group advocating for a yes vote in next month’s City of Victoria pool referendum.
“It is not only for elite or competitive swimming but also for the positive impact it can have on the Greater Victoria community,” he said.
“A new, updated facility will help promote a more active community and provide more space for swimming lessons, which should be an essential skill since we live on an Island surrounded by water. There is already such difficulty in having access to swim lessons and a lot of strain on Saanich Commonwealth Place.”
