Once again showing the resiliency and adaptability of the artistic swimming community, CAS is going virtual with its 2020 Annual General Meeting.
The online agenda for Saturday, September 19 at 14:00 (Eastern) has been set, and features an overview of the past year in the sport.
Although the last half of the 2019-2020 year saw CAS teams, clubs, coaches and swimmers first isolating, and then adapting to the guidelines brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was still a year with much to celebrate.
Looking back to August of 2019, we were all cheering on our Senior National Team as they won gold at the Pan American Games in Peru, qualifying both the team and duet for the 2020 Olympic Games. They had an aggressive preparation plan outlined from September of 2019 right through to the Olympic Games in Tokyo, July 2020. They began with a successful Boot Camp in Stoneham, Quebec, and then spent time training at three clubs across Canada. They visited B.C.’s Prince George Water Lilies, Aquatica Synchro Club in Winnipeg, and Newfoundland/ Labrador Artistic Swimming in St. John’s. The visits were both beneficial to the team, and inspirational for the young athletes who welcomed them so warmly into their home clubs.
In September, our CAS Technical Conference gathered our top Canadian Coaches and Officials together in Montreal for the first time in many years. The collaboration and positive energy of the meeting was so dynamic, that a bi-annual technical conference plan, which will advance our sport in Canada, is now established.
The onset of the pandemic was a global situation that completely changed the landscape for everyone. The FINA Artistic Swimming World Series halted, the Olympic Games were postponed, and our CAS 2020 Qualifier, 2020 Canadian Championships, FINA Super Final and FINA 2020 Junior World championships were either cancelled or postponed.
And yet, our sport community has risen above this incredible challenge and has emerged determined to stay connected virtually and to carry on. This summer’s UANA virtual land skills competitions, thanks to the inventiveness of Canadians Lisa Schott and Erika Lindner on the UANA Technical Committee with leadership and creativity of Canadian officials and Provincial Members allowed us to recreate some of the energy and the excitement of competition among the athletes.
At the half-way point of our 8-year strategic plan, we have accomplished many of our objectives, with a clear alignment from club to provincial to national goals being seen.
We enter the 2020-2021 year with enthusiasm to look ahead, with confidence that we have re-imagined our competition plan to allow our clubs to carry on, and with a collaborative spirit that will see our sport thrive and grow.
For full details on the many activities of 2019-2020, view a copy of our Annual Report.