POQSWIM:Van Moerkerke, Gryphs take aim at OUA swim meet

GUELPH — Evan Van Moerkerke and his Guelph Gryphon teammates are hoping to make a splash at next month's OUA swimming championships.

"So far, it's gone well," the 6-foot-9 Van Moerkerke said after a training session at the Gryphon pool Tuesday. "We kind of had a slow start, we had a lot of new people coming in this year, so just regular people getting used to the whole university system. University swim meets are a lot different than club swim meets.

"At the beginning of the season, it was a little slow because people were learning and getting better. It's going well now."

The university meets are team-oriented meets where points are important. Everything is geared toward gaining points for the team.

The Gryphs are to take their entire team of 32 — 18 women and 14 men — to the OUA championship meet at Ottawa Feb. 5-7. Those who meet the time standards will compete in the CIS championship meet at Victoria, B.C., Feb. 19-21.

After that, Van Moerkerke will be focusing on his individual goals as he chases a spot on the Canadian team for the 2016 Olympics at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

"It's gone well," he said of his season. "Again, I even had a slow beginning to the season just getting back into it. I took the summer off. I took a couple of months off in the summer and coming back in September was a little tough, but then training camp over Christmas break, that helped, and now it's going well."

Van Moerkerke is focused on next year's Olympic trials and thought last summer would be a good time for a little time away from the sport.

"Starting from this September, I'll be training straight through to next April for Olympic trials," he said. "I figured the time to take off was then because I'll be swimming basically straight through … and there won't be a break this summer."

Training can be gruelling. Van Moerkerke is at the pool eight to 10 times a week every week with each session lasting two to three hours.

"It can take a toll mentally and physically, so that little break was definitely needed," he said.

The 21-year-old from Tillsonburg, who lives in Guelph and also swims for the Guelph Marlin Aquatic Club, intends to swim in this year's trials for the Pan Am Games and the world championships at the Pan Am pool in Scarborough.

"It'll be a good indication for the next year coming up, for the Olympic year next year. It'll be a good indication of where I sit for 2016," he said. "Qualifying for the Olympics will be really tough. They only take the top two if you make the time standard, and it's only first place if you don't. Being first in all of Canada is very difficult, especially in my races. Being a sprinter for the 50m and 100m, it'll be tenths and even hundredths (of a second) that'll separate the top three places."

Van Moerkerke competes in the freestyle at the 50-metre and 100-metre lengths, and the 50-metre butterfly.

When he's at the Gryphon pool, the Olympics are never far from mind. Gryphon coach Don Burton has a Brazilian flag hanging in the rafters over the pool and an Olympic countdown clock in the lobby outside the pool.

"You walk in every day and see it. He had the England flag up there for London, and just outside the door he has the countdown for the Olympic Games," Van Moerkerke said. "We come in the back doors every day, and it's kind of right there when you come in. You see it more when you leave."

That helps put the Olympics in a swimmer's mind.

"This year will definitely be a building year from basically September to Olympic trials," Van Moerkerke said. "The Pan Am and world trials in April will kind of be a stepping-stone to see where I'm at and then I can go from there, planning for the next year into the Olympic trials. It's really to get a gauge just to see where I'm at. Definitely, the Olympic trials are the focus."