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Recreation

Swimming discipline

The swimming coach of Olympic medalists returns to Brandon to instill personal discipline and commitment in young swimmers.

By TERRY JONES
Published December 2, 2005

BRANDON - One man in swim trunks and a T-shirt stood alone at the end of the 50-meter pool, his eyes glued on the swimmers.

His head moved side to side, absorbing every move of each swimmer.

"Keep your arms even and closer to your body," he said to one swimmer finishing a turn.

"Use your feet more in your kick," he said to two others.

Even as teenagers chatted and others milled around the pool, his eyes never moved away from his swimmers.

Peter Banks, the coach who trained Olympic medalist Brooke Bennett, was poolside again in Brandon.

Banks, 50, earned a national reputation as director of swimming for the Brandon Swim and Tennis Club from 1989 to 2001. Then, he left to serve as senior head coach for Broward Aquatics in Fort Lauderdale.

Last year, he returned after new owners purchased the Brandon facility and changed it to a nonprofit organization.

Banks became head coach for the Blue Wave Swim Team and director of sports development.

"I now have decisionmaking authority in some of the direction of the overall program," Banks said.

While at Brandon the first time, he developed two Olympic medalists. He started training triple gold medalist Brooke Bennett at age 8. Silver medalist Maritza Correa started in his program a couple of years after Bennett.

Banks, a former USA National team assistant swimming coach and former assistant Ireland Olympic coach, also trained 45 swimmers that earned partial or full college scholarships.

This time, he's not solely focused on finding the next Olympic champion, he said.

"There is much more to training young swimmers than coaching Olympic gold and silver medalists," Banks said.

"The personal discipline and commitment experienced in the training program makes our athletes better disciplined students and more sensitive as community contributors - and even more understanding and involved parents somewhere down the line.'

Already, though, the Blue Wave experience has influenced local high school swimming.

Blue Wave swimmers Jason Taylor, Aleks Ans, Aarun Ghosh, Dan Clancy and Justin Waterman helped Newsome High School win its first district championship in October.

In the Class 2A state championships in early November, Taylor, a first-year student, placed seventh in the 500-yard freestyle event. Ans, a sophomore, placed eighth in the 200 individual medley.

Ans, 15, moved to the area with his parents from Latvia about a year ago. He trains with the Blue Wave from 5 to 7 a.m. and again from 5 to 7 p.m. daily.

"When I am on my way to the pool in the dark each morning, I think of all the people who will compete against me and how they are missing my training," Ans said.

In addition to Newsome, Blue Wave swimmers contribute to high school teams at East Bay, Riverview, Bloomingdale, Brandon, and Durant.

Alicia Thompson, 16, swam for three years, the last year with the Blue Wave. She leaves home at 4 a.m. four days a week to be in the pool with her teammates by 5 a.m. It is a 45-minute to one-hour drive, depending on traffic.

"Yes, it is a commitment on my part, but I believe it is well worth it," Thompson said. "I have already dropped five seconds off my 100-yard freestyle event and more will follow. I dream of one day making the Olympic team."

Ball, 14, is an East Bay freshman who trained in Apollo Beach until Banks returned to Brandon. His parents, who drive him to the pool, share his early-morning commitment.

"We have to get up at 4 a.m. and leave by 4:30 to be on time," Ball said. "Punctuality is part of the discipline of the program."

Banks is on the pool deck precisely at 5 a.m. to start his future stars on their first lap of the day.

Assistant Mio Vasic is there also, working with younger swimmers.

Recently, Banks added a new element to the program. He works with high school swimmers only interested in training five hours a week - not five days a week - to become a little more competitive in high school meets.

Banks doesn't know if he will train another Olympic gold or silver medalist, but he hopes to help all swimmers achieve their potential, he said.

"It all starts with the community contribution and the commitment of swimmers and parents," Banks said.

"I get many calls from nonchampions saying they are better students, parents, community contributors and feel they do better in life because of the personal discipline they learned in swimming."

[Last modified December 1, 2005, 09:34:11]