Friday, 20 May 2011 10:00
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It's not just a calling, it's a sport
by Bryan Allott
Lifesaving started out as a purely voluntary movement (and largely remains as such) with most clubs being all-male. And as with most sports throughout history, this remained the status quo until just after the seventies. As women started joining the world of sport, we've seen performances from the fairer sex equal to, and in some cases, even surpass those of the, erm, hairier athletes. A notable example from today would be Chrissie Wellington recording the fastest marathon split in the field at the Ironman in PE recently.
In lifesaving, we too see our fair share of top female competitors leading open mixed races. So much so, there are times when male competitors dread hearing the referee rule "the ladies will race with the men" in order to complement the field. Then we - really - have to work hard!
And one such fast and furious competitor is Eloise van Geysen from Fish Hoek Surf Lifesaving Club. We chatted to her a little about who she is and about the sport of lifesaving...
Bryan: How long have you been involved in the lifesaving movement. When and where did you get started?
Eloise: I started when I was 9-years-old as a nipper with the False Bay Surf Lifesaving Club.
B: And what motivated you to start?
E: Friends from my swim club encouraged me to come down and try it out. As a youngster I was terrified of water, in fact it wasn’t until we got a pool at home that I started swimming. Shortly after I joined the surf club, and ultimately it pushed me to conquer my fear of the water.
B: Conquered indeed :) Now there are basically two bodies within lifesaving; Surf and Stillwater; how would you explain the difference between the two?
E: As the name implies surf is raced in the coastal cities, at the various beaches around the country. The Stillwater code is made up of dam and pool events. Surf is made up of various disciplines, such as swimming, running (in the form of Beach flags & sprints and long run), Board paddling, Ski paddling, Ironman & body board (nippers: the gromets of lifesaving ie U14).
Stillwater is the tamer version of the two but also the more unforgiving, and is raced in the pool and at the dam. The pool consists of 6 individual events, involving carrying a manikan (weighing up to 70kg for the senior competitors), wearing fins and using a rescue tube. It also includes a simulated rescue, which is fantastic for spectators.
B: Now you represent in both codes; what made you decide to do both when most lifesavers are either surf or still?
E: I participated in surf since I was 9, and as a nipper it was just a fun alternative for me. I swam competitively up until the age of 20, and at the beginning of 2004 I developed a stress fracture on my L5, which meant I was out of all sports for 8 months. I was told to decide between the two sports and thus and it was with a heavy heart that I turned my focus to lifesaving. How I came to competing in Stillwater was because in order to make a national team, especially as a swimmer, you have to be strong in the pool events too. I have been competing in both cods of the sport since 2005.
B: Lifesaving is also slightly different to most sports since it has a community service angle. Briefly, what does this entail?
E: You have to do voluntary service at your beach, which is what you see the guys in red & yellow over the weekends doing, to keep the beaches safe. You need a minimum of 30 hours, and have to complete a LA (Lifeguard Award, comprising of CPR, signals, theory paper and a timed run-swim-run). Also, in order to race in lifesaving you have to meet these fitness and duty commitments.
B: Stepping back a little into you past; you have trained in Oz for Northcliffe – a little background about that opportunity and experience: How did it come about? How long were you there for? And who did you train with/under?
E: There were many underlying factors, but the deciding factor was at Rescue 2006 (World Champs), held in Melbourne. I fell in love with the whole experience of it. The discipline, dedication and absolute passion that not only the athletes put in is infectious. Not to mention their professionalism and facilities. I decided to head back in Nov ’06 and join in for the season and compete in the Australian Nationals for the Gold coast based club of Northcliffe. I spent three seasons in total there, under the guidance of Pat ‘O keefe (Head coach), Dan Norton Smith and Barry Newman. (Swim & Assistant coaches).
B: What’s one of the biggest learnings from that experience?
E: I learned many skills there, and honed in on my craft abilities, but also made me love my swimming again, and realize just how important it is when you are a iron specialist. My biggest learning was that it taught me to open myself up and be the best competitor I could be. You are constantly challenged and pushed beyond your limits both physically and mentally everyday. At points I remember thinking to myself “what am I doing here-who you kidding!” but then you have to put it in perspective, you are training with world champions everyday and that cant put you down. You have to use every opportunity thrown your way, and how many competitors can say they train with the best of the best in their sport – find a way and use that energy to positively grow you as an athlete. Leading up to my 3rd season there I had the great honour of being included in the Northcliffe World champs team touring to Germany in 2008, which took the title for the No.1 club in the World. That was an amazing experience!
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