Master stroke: Olympians teach Murray Bridge swimmers a lesson

It’s not every day a young swimmer can dive into a master class with an Olympic gold medallist.

But it was in Murray Bridge on Tuesday.

Olympic swimmers Kyle Chalmers and Ingeborg Løyning spent two hours with members of Murray Bridge Swimming Club, running drills, signing memorabilia and answering questions.

Løyning, a Norwegian backstroker, led the juniors through a series of increasingly ambitious stretches at the poolside before they jumped into the water.

Chalmers, a South Australian freestyler and Løyning’s fiance, then offered pointers on the swimmers’ technique as they launched off the wall and did laps.

Later in the evening, the locals lined up to have the pair sign swimming caps and pose for photos.

What was Chalmers’ number-one tip for any aspiring Olympians?

“Goal-setting is very important, whether you want to be a swimmer, a footballer or get into university,” he said.

“For me, my long-term goal was I wanted to be an Olympian.

“I set myself daily or weekly or monthly goals that would help me get to being an Olympian.

“I think it’s very important, if you can, to write down some goals; then you get a pretty positive endorphin hit when you go home and highlight that goal you’ve achieved … it helps you stay motivated.”

Even after 10 years on the Australian Olympic team and dozens of international race wins, there were still goals he hoped to achieve, he said.

“I haven’t swum a personal best time in six years now,” he said.

“My goal six years ago was to swim 46.7 seconds for the 100 freestyle, and I still haven’t achieved that.

“That keeps me going when I might be struggling with motivation or going through an injury.

“I also think about the people around the world that are doing everything in their power to beat me … I know that they’re not missing training or getting themselves out of the pool.”

The road to an Olympic Games is long

Chalmers had wanted to be a footballer when he grew up in Port Lincoln, he said, and to follow in the footsteps of his father Brett, who played 75 games for the Crows and Port Adelaide.

It wasn’t until the 2015 World Championships, when he swam in front of a crowd of 15,000 people, that he decided swimming could be just as cool.

Løyning said she had only fallen into swimming because her friends liked it better than soccer or cross-country skiing.

By age 14 she had set her heart on the sport’s highest heights, and at 16 she moved to Oslo to chase her dream.

She admitted it had sometimes been hard to stay motivated during the “dark times”: the three long months each year when the sun would never rise in her home town.

Murray Bridge’s winters might not be so arduous, but it was frustrating that the local pool closed for six months each year, some of the grown-ups said.

What could local swimmers do to stay in form during that time?

Chalmers recommended any exercises that kept their core, lower back and shoulders working; plus a steady diet of aerobic exercise, like riding a bike.

He was asked about his favourite meals: pasta the night before, yoghurt and muesli in the morning, a banana on his way into the rooms, lollies or Gatorade at the pool and a protein shake right after a race.

They learned he had gained his first sponsor at 13; his favourite pools were Adelaide or Berlin; his hobbies included collecting reptiles and basketball cards; and he had worked hard to balance swimming, footy and high school.

His teenage years involved a lot of early mornings at the pool, and breakfast and lunch breaks spent doing homework.

That might not sound too glamorous, but the results speak for themselves.

Chalmers’ resume includes more than 30 international gold medals across the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, Swimming World Cup, various world championships and the Pan Pacific Championships.

He remains the current short course world record holder in the 100-metre freestyle, and jointly holds two relay records.

He and Løyning will soon be off overseas for their next adventure, and who knows?

Maybe a swimmer from Murray Bridge will someday follow in their wake.