Make no mistake - the second leg of the 2022 FINA Swimming World Cup hosted recently in Toronto was a very big deal.

With the likes of Maggie MacNeil, Katie Ledecky, Kylie Masse, Summer McIntosh and a variety of other international competitors and world record holders on hand, the event was a highly significant one within the Canadian swimming scene.

All of which should give Sudbury representatives Hannah Nordquist and Alexandre Landry ample reason to be incredibly proud of being named to the field, part of the “domestic” delegation that were given this opportunity despite not necessarily falling within the very rigid FINA “A” standard times.

“For me, it was more about executing the race as best as I could instead of focusing on the environment for future opportunities,” said Nordquist, a 19 year-old who is now in her second year at Guelph University but in her freshman campaign as a member of the Gryphons varsity swim team.

“It was cool to see so many high caliber athletes swimming with us. I knew that this was a fantastic opportunity to get some early season racing in. I think I performed pretty well for it being so early in the season. Just competing with athletes of that caliber was a great experience.”

Not that the multi-sport talent - Nordquist was also a notable volleyball talent during her time at Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School - was spending a great deal of time fully investigating all of her race surroundings. “I was so focused on myself, sometimes I didn’t even notice who I was swimming with,” she said.

“Afterwards, my mom or a friend would tell me that I was swimming with someone super important, maybe a world record holder.”

Maintaining an inner-focus has been a big part of the recent transformation of Nordquist, a long-time member of the Sudbury Laurentian Swim Club (SLSC) who took advantage of the pandemic to recharge the batteries, of sorts, taking a self-imposed hiatus that likely cost her a chance at cracking the Guelph roster in her rookie year - but definitely worked out for the best in the end.

“Swimming is a sport that I have loved since I was a kid - but taking a break from it from it was probably one of the best decisions I have made, both for my physical health and my mental health,” noted the young woman who signed on with the Guelph Marlins club team last year and quickly regained in best previous form - and then some.

“I would have to say that it was more of a mental change than anything I did physically,” said Nordquist. “I used to be very anxious and concerned with how everybody thought I was performing and worrying about how everyone else was performing at practices.”

“Last year, I developed a mindset that I was only going to focus on myself.”

The results, as partially witnessed via the invitation to the World Cup, have been spectacular.

“I didn’t expect the significant improvement that I saw,”Nordquist summarized.

Speaking of improvement, that was but one of the goals as SLSC head coach Dean Henze made his way with 30 club swimmers to the NEOR #1 meet in Sault Ste Marie last weekend. “The expectation for the older kids is not particularly high,” said the 2020 Ontario Coaching Service award recipient.

“Those guys usually need a pretty big block of work and some rest to get their PBs - and it’s only October. What I am looking for is an aerobic fitness, showing the ability to be tough throughout the course of an entire race - and for them to stay engaged in the race.”

“For the little kids, just the fact that six months has gone by, they need to be better. Usually they are bigger or stronger, so hopefully they can swim better since the last time they raced.”

In many cases, that premonition would come to fruition.

Callum Duncan recorded seven first place finishes, establishing new personal best times in each and every one of his events, with Jack Smith cracking the top three in a half dozen races, also chopping noteworthy times of his own standards. Georgia Lepage (three 1st place finishes; eight top three), Jacob Guillet (five top three, eight PBs), Lauren LaPrairie (eight personal bests) and Matthew Abbott (two 1st place, seven top three, eight PBs) were among the other standouts.

Also topping the podium in individual races for the SLSC were the likes of James Bertrim, Hudson Green, Zoey Dunn and Adan Lindfield.

“From our senior side, we got some good swims from some of the boys who hit their PBs in October,” noted Henze. “When you’re 15 or 16 and you’re pretty good already, that’s pretty exciting. Some are getting access to a different level of work than they are used to. Combined with learning how to do some things better, they are coming out with some positive results.”

Back to Hannah Nordquist for a moment.

Nordquist is but one of a very impressive Sudbury quartet of female swimmers who are very quickly helping to raise the overall prominence of the Guelph Gryphons OUA women’s swim team program.

Joining Nordquist on the team are veterans Abby MacDonald, Isabella Mastroianni and newcomer Ali Bertrim, all of whom are serving notice of being more than competitive with the Ontario elite.