Swimmer Connor Matthezing picks past Olympian
As a teenager, Connor Matthezing had little reason to question his swimming coach Mike Meldrum.
After all, who could question an Olympic swimmer? Matthezing used Meldrum’s teaching as a launching pad to collegiate swimming at the University of Calgary.
Now well into his second year of university competing on a national scale for the Dinos, Matthezing still has a strong relationship with the coach who taught him what he knows today.
“Something that made him so special was just how my teammates and I could relate to everything he taught,” says Matthezing. “Probably because he swam all of his life, he was just so great at showing us exactly what he meant and what he learned from his experiences.”
On top of the Olympic appearance, Meldrum won a silver and bronze medal for Canada at the 1987 Pan American Games. However, what made Meldrum stand out to Matthezing had little to do with swimming.
“He didn’t just coach me in swimming, but in life,” says Matthezing. “If I have anything I need to talk about he always makes himself free to talk and gives some life advice.”
Matthezing recently returned to learn more from Meldrum during a four-month gap between first and second year of university.
“Four years isn’t a long time to know someone, but after seeing them every single day, eleven months out of the year, it builds a strong relationship.”
bstasiewich@cjournal.ca
The editor responsible for this story is Natalie Holland, nholland@cjournal.ca