TRURO, N.S. – Madison Bond will test her skills against the top swimmers in the country next week at the Canadian junior championships in Calgary.
The Truro swimmer will compete in the 100m and 200m breaststroke events in the 15 to 17 age category.
“I’m really excited to see what I can do at this competition,” said Bond, who is seeded 10th in the 200m, and 13th in the 100m. “I really want to see what I can do, maybe bump up to top-five would be awesome for my first year in my new age category.”
Bond, 15, just missed being able to compete in the 13-14 age group. Her birthday is July 22, bumping her up to the higher age group.
“Going into this competition, if I were still 14 I would have been going in top-three, so medal potential, but now 15 to 17 age category it’s more of a challenge to make finals, to place top-10,” she said. “I think it’s good, I don’t feel pressure to win a medal, I feel more relaxed and exited to see where I can get for the first year.”
Bond, a member of the Truro Centurions, has enjoyed great success in the pool since taking up competitive swimming seven years ago. She holds provincial 13-14 long-course breaststroke records in the 50m, 100m and 200m, and also owns the short-course 200m record. She also holds the Nova Scotia U12 long-course record for the 200m breaststroke.
Bond is one of two Centurions attending the national event. Craig Bush, of Sackville, will swim in the 100m and 200m butterfly events in the 16 to 18 boys division. Bush attended junior nationals last year and was also a member of the 2017 Nova Scotia Canada Games team.
Bond, who will enter Grade 10 at Ecole acadienne de Truro in the fall, will be attending her third national junior championship. She competed last year in Winnipeg and in 2017 in Toronto.
“It’s really nice to represent your club at a national level; it really boosts your confidence going into it and doing well. It’s really nice to achieve goals at a high level.”
Bond, who leaves Monday for nationals, enters the event after winning a bronze medal in the 100m breaststroke and finishing fourth in the 200m at the Eastern Canadian championships in April in Quebec City.
Eleven Nova Scotia swimmers will compete at nationals and about 550 swimmers from 130 clubs across Canada are expected to take part. The competition will run from July 24 to 28.
Craig Bush will compete in the 16 to 18 age category in the 100m and 200m butterfly events.