Vikes rookie makes history at Canada West swim championship

Sinclair Photo: UVic Photo Services

By Mike Tucker

In a sport like swimming, medals are often decided by hundredths of a second, so it should come as no surprise that UVic Vikes swimmer Nick Sinclair is not one to waste time.
In just his first year of varsity competition, the 18-year-old Victoria native rewrote the record books at the Canada West championship Jan. 22–24 by becoming the first swimmer to win Athlete of the Meet and Rookie of the Meet. Sinclair later earned adulation as both the Canada West and Canadian Interuniversity Sport Athlete of the Week.

Resulting in six medals during the three-day championship, Sinclair’s performance was Michael Phelps-like. He captured gold in the 400m individual medley (IM), 200m butterfly, 200m backstroke, 100m backstroke, and added silver medals in the 50m backstroke and 400m medley relay.
“It was good,” Sinclair stated modestly, taking little time to celebrate his achievements, as by Tuesday morning he was already back in the pool at 5:30 for the first of two scheduled workouts. “I didn’t expect it going in, but it worked out really well.”

Of Sinclair’s four first-place finishes, perhaps the most impressive was the victory in the 400 IM, as it is widely considered the most challenging race. Michael Phelps, the current world record holder in the 400 IM characterized it as “one of the hardest races” and says that he would rather not swim it in the future. The race includes all four strokes, swum in order—butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle—and can be as mentally draining as it is physically.
UVic swim coach Peter Vizsolyi summarized the difficulty of the race. “There is never going to be a day that all of your strokes are on, and the challenge is learning how to deal with not everything being perfect.”

Sinclair’s two best strokes are the fly and the back, as evidenced by his earlier medal success, and he had to balance attaining an early lead against saving enough stamina for the final push.

“The 400 IM was definitely the hardest race. I knew going in that most of the guys I was racing were a lot better at the breaststroke, which is the third length, so I took it out fast in the fly and back. They caught me on the breast, but I came back on the freestyle to win it.”

As bright as the rookie’s future appears in the pool, his prospects in the classroom provide an even higher ceiling. By his own admission, “academics is what sets me up for the rest of my life, but swimming is something I do to challenge myself.”

Coming out of Oak Bay High School a year ago, Sinclair had plenty of options both academically and athletically. However, despite entertaining offers from several US schools, he decided to enrol at UVic. “UVic is home, and studying here allows me to get the best training I can. I could have gone to the States, but it is expensive even with a full scholarship.”

With a 98-per-cent average, Sinclair qualified for a significant entrance scholarship to UVic and is currently enrolled in general sciences. He plans eventually to attend medical school.

“In order to swim at this level and stay on top of your studies, you really need to be organized. Nick is incredibly determined to be a success in both aspects, and that type of focus spills into competition,” says Vizsolyi. “It’s something you don’t always see from first-year students right away and reflects his focus on both the classroom and the pool.”

Nick and the Vikes swim team will return to the pool for the CIS Championship Feb. 25–27 in Toronto.