The swim season kicks off this weekend for the KISU Swim Club with its annual Penticton Triple Pentathlon meet at the community centre pool.
A total of eight teams and over 300 athletes will take part in the 10th annual event of its kind that gets underway Friday afternoon and runs through Sunday morning.
“It is kind of a special meet. It’s a really tough format,” said KISU head coach Tina Hoeben who has been with the club for over two decades. “It’s a great early season opener in that the challenge is two swim all those events on that day and you just get a bunch of times to either see where you’re at or go best times It is a great way to start off the season.”
READ MORE: Penticton KISU Swim Club brass shine at awards
Each competitor swims five events each day, in the opening events the athletes will swim 100-metre races with a 200-metre individual medley (IM) at the end of the competition.
Day two is the toughest with four 200-metre events followed by a 400-m IM and the last day is the sprint portion with 50-m events followed by a 100-m IM.
Along with KISU, other clubs include Kamloops, Salmon Arm, Summerland, North Vancouver, Chilliwack, Kelowna and Vernon.
A new, permanent face on the pool deck for the club this season is world-renowned Penticton triathlete, Jeff Symonds.
READ MORE: KISU swim meet used to gauge athlete performances
He worked with KISU in a relief format last year but came on board full time this September when the club got started.
“As an athlete, he really brings a lot to the picture,” said Hoeben. “He speaks from his own experiences and his attention to detail really can really be a great motivator.
“His coaching skills are also great so we’re really looking forward to having him working with us.”
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Mark Brett | Reporter
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