Twelve teams from across Saskatchewan will be heading to Humboldt this Saturday for the first invitational swimming meet of the summer season. The Humboldt Hammerheads swim team will play host to 200 swimmers taking part in a variety of events.  

“This is a sprint meet because about half of the teams have outdoor pools,” says Leisl Lefebvre, head coach for the Hammerheads, “So their pools have opened only in the last few weeks. So the first meet of the year is traditionally a sprint meet where all of the race distances are cut in half. We’re looking at 50 or 25 metre distances, which in our pool is one or two lengths.”  

Freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly styles are all part of the mix, along with the 100 metre individual medley where a swimmer utilizes all four of the strokes. Participants range from seven years of age to adult classes of ages 18 and over in summer swimming.  

The Hammerheads are expected to put up a strong showing with a stable of 74 registered swimmers, nearing the club’s capacity. Training for the athletes has been going on since the regulated open date of May 1. All have been training hard, including the Pups division in their first year, just learning to master the various strokes.  

The event gets under way at 9:30. Limited viewing space is available, but people are welcome to come down, catch a glimpse of the action from the viewing area. 

“It’s a fantastic event,” says Lefebvre. “People from across the province enjoy coming to Humboldt for the meet, and that’s why we end up with 200 registered swimmers.” 

There will be more action upcoming from the Hammerheads throughout the summer.