July 20, 2021 – Swimmers Win Big in the Pool!
This past weekend, July 17 and 18th, the Burnaby Mountain Mantas Swim Club competed in one of the first sanctioned multi-club amateur swim meets in Canada since covid hit. The Mantas competed at Centennial Pool in Port Coquitlam, and competed against the Poco Marlins and the Port Moody Aquarians in a tri-meet. This was the first time these swimmers have competed in a real swim meet since 2019. With 230 athletes in attendance at the outdoor venue, swimmers were happy to finally have some sense of normalcy to their lives. There was cheering, friends playing together, and of course, lots of fast swimming.
The Burnaby Mountain Mantas had an amazing swim meet. With 100 Mantas swimmers in attendance, they were a presence in every single event. In fact, the Mantas won gold in 11 of the relays on Saturday and 10 of the relays on Sunday, winning the most relays of any team.
Winning gold: Crystal Yu (100 IM, 50 free, 50 Breast), Jinsei Yamamoto (100 IM, 50 free, 50 fly, 100 free), Kyra Tamagi (200 IM), Justin Wiebe (200 IM, 100 Fly, 50 Fly, 100 free), Nathan Li (200 IM, 50 breast), Kayla Thai (50 free, 50 Fly, 50 breast, 100 free), Lucas Ma (50 free), Sophia Morton (50 free, 50 fly, 100 back), Eliana Zhao (50 free, 100 back), Christopher Ng (50 free, 100 fly, 50 fly, 100 free), Kevin Wei (50 free), Samuel Kim (50 fly, 50 free, 100 fly, 100 free), Billy Song (100 back), Beck Yu (50 fly, 50 breast, 100 free), Matthew Shuen (50 breast), Angela Guan (100 breast), Daphni Li (100 breast), Claire Guo (100 breast), Liam Russell (100 breast) and Helena Zhao (100 breast).
Winning Silver: Kayla Yap (100 IM, 50 free, 50 back, 100 free), Sarah Wiebe (100 IM), Mason Seng (100 IM), Lucas Ma (100 IM), Matthew Shuen (100 IM, 50 free), Zennea Chen (200 IM, 50 fly), Bree Livesey (200 IM, 50 free, 100 back), Evan Ghannason (200 IM, 50 free, 100 back, 50 fly), Richard CH Li (200 IM), Ronan Livesey (200 IM, 100 fly, 50 fly, 50 breast), Mia Herrera (50 free, 50 back, 50 breast, 100 free), Daniel Ma (50 free), Qyunh Anh Ha (50 free, 100 free), Caitlyn Liang (50 free), Beck Yu (50 free), Sophia Liu (50 fly), Emma Liu (50 free), Lucas Ma (50 fly), Kiera Lo (50 fly), Kayla Liu (100 fly), Nathan Li (100 fly, 50 fly), Matthew Marinov (50 fly), Matthew Shuen (50 back), Boris Zhang (100 back), Casian Chen (100 back), Sophia Liu (50 breast), Natalie Zheng (50 breast), Chloe Wong (50 breast), Jayden Yap (50 breast), Taryn Wong (50 breast), Alicia Mui (50 breast), Billy Song (50 breast), Burton Li (50 breast), Sophia Morton (100 free), and Kevin Wei (100 free).
Winning bronze: Burton Li (200 IM) Liam Russell (200 IM), Billy Song (200 IM), Matthew Marinov (50 free, 100 free), Jayden Yap (50 free), Katrina Lo (50 free), Boris Zhang (50 free, 100 free), Mason Seng (50 fly), Katrina Lo (100 fly), Matthew Wiebe (100 fly, 50 fly), Daphne Li (50 fly), Elaina Zhao (50 fly), Daniel Wang (50 fly), Quynh Anh Ha (50 back), Joseph Wang (100 back), Wilson Wang (50 breast), Daniel Wang (50 breast), Rachel Hui (50 breast), Harry Kim (50 breast), Simon Bourke (100 free), Mason Seng (100 free), Angela Guan (100 free), Elaina Zhao (100 free), Yen Nhi Ha (100 free), Martin Livesey (100 free), Gordon Yen (100 free), and Richard CH Li (100 free).
Run completely by volunteers, the Burnaby Mountain Mantas are members of the BC Summer Swimming Association. BCSSA is a non-profit, athlete centered program aimed at making the sport of swimming accessible to swimmers of all abilities.
When covid hit in March 2020, Mantas swimmers, like other swimmers across the world, lost an entire season of racing. This past weekend’s meet brings back the return of amateur swimming competition in British Columbia. The Burnaby Mountain Mantas are looking forward to their next competition at the Simon Fraser Regionals Championships August 6-8th at Central Park Pool in Burnaby.
June, 2021 Hello everyone,
Next time you see Andrew on deck – make sure to wish him a big GOOD LUCK!! Andrew will be competing next week at the 2020 Candian Swimming Olympic Trials – which is the meet that chooses the Canadian Olympic Swim Team for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo this summer. Andrew was hand selected to compete in this meet, as one of the top swimmers in Canada in the 400 IM and the 1500 m free.
Information on the meet can be found here – https://results.swimming.ca/2020_Olympic_Swimming_Trials/
Andrew will be swimming in the
- 1500 m free, session 8, Monday, June 21 at 12:30
- 400 m IM: session session 14, Wednesday June 23, 12:30
If there is a live stream, Andrew will send us the link so we can virtually cheer him on. GOOD LUCK ANDREW!!
Thank you 2021 Sponsors
Thank you to the following sponsors:
Everbloom Auto Repair
AutoMind Collision LTD – Richmond
Golden Gear Ltd
These generous sponsors helped our club financially to help us this summer to be able to get enough pool time to continue to social distance during the pandemic. Mantas families – if you need auto-repairs – please consider the above companies. Thanks so much!!
May 1, 2021
Welcome to summer 2021! We have an exciting season planned for all our swimmers. Your practice schedules have been emailed out to you. We have two official time trials in June – June 6 and June 20 at Bonsor Pool. Try to keep August 7/8 open for a potential regionals competition. See you in the pool!
Summer 2021
February 2021. We are busy getting ready for our summer season. Mantas will follow all provincial health orders applicable at that time. While we are still just booking pool time right now, here is our plan:
Practices: We are expecting to book Kensington Pool for our main training pool. Similar to last season, we are expecting to have the pool each weekday evening, and each morning. Young kids will most likely only swim in the afternoons, older kids will swim in the mornings and afternoons. Morning practice times are usually 6:30 – 8:30 am and evening practices are between 5:30 – 9:30 pm. The later time slots in the evening are usually reserved for the older swimmers. We are also hoping to book an indoor meters pool at least once a week, most likely on the weekends. (note: Kensington pool is yards and not official length).
For swim practices, expect a short dryland workout (usually 30 minutes, includes running, games, sit-ups etc) followed by an hour long session in the pool.
New to the club? New swimmers will be assessed on the first day, and placed in a group of kids with similar skills. These groups and their coach will stay together for the entire season.
Attendance is encouraged, but not mandatory. It is okay if you have to miss practices here and there. Many of our swimmers have other activities in addition to swimming, and that’s okay!
Covid19: Mantas follows all provincial health orders, and will continue to update protocols as required. Accommodations may include smaller group sizes, cohort systems, and/or social distancing, depending on the current state.
Swim Meets: Swim meets are optional, and they are free. Parents will sign their swimmers up for each meet if they would like to participate. Mantas will do our best to give every age group two official time trials prior to regionals. Time trials will occur during pool time pre-booked for practices. There will be a starter, referee, stroke and turn judge, and timers. Social distancing rules will apply for all people involved, both racers and officials/timers. Swimmers will remain in the park area until their time to race. Only swimmers in that heat will allowed to enter the pool deck. Mantas will put safety first at all times.
Regionals: The Simon Fraser Region is planning to host Regionals in early August, spread out at two pools. We are hoping to get Spani in Coquitlam and Central Park in Burnaby, however this will depend on if the pools are available. Half the clubs will be at one pool, and the other half at the other pool. This will greatly reduce the number of swimmers at each pool. Expect the format of the meet to be different than previous years. The region will follow all rules on total group size, social distancing etc. that will be applicable at that time. Details will be confirmed in the summer, when we know more about the current pandemic situation. Note: it is unlikely that there will be any relays this year.
Results from both pools will then be combined after the meet to determine the winners.
Most likely there will be no Provincials competition this year. Instead, results from each Regionals meet may be combined to determine the provincial winner. However, this will be decided in the summer.
Note: just like in previous years, swimmers will have to compete in at least one race in the regular season to qualify for regionals.
Winter Maintenance
November 29, 2020. Winter maintenance is in full swing. Our safety plans have been approved, and our swimmers and coaches are doing a great job of keeping everyone safe while practicing.
Swimmer of the week – July 20-25
We am pleased to announce that the Swimmer of the Week from July 20-25th is Chelsea from coach Casian’s group! Chelsea showed great focus during dryland sessions and completed practices to the best of her ability. She took feedback from the coaches and worked on it to improve her skills both in and out of the pool. Chelsea was listening attentively to Casian’s instructions and participated eagerly. Great work this week Chelsea!
Swimmer of the week – July 13-19
We are pleased to introduce our swimmer of the week awards for the 2020 summer season. The first winner is Irene, from coach Colin’s group.
Irene shows up to every practice ready to work hard. She listens attentively to instructions and takes feedback very well. She demonstrates great work ethic during dryland and swim and is always on top of the set. Many other swimmers follow her when they are unsure of a set or instruction. Although she is very quiet, her effort speaks much louder.
Congratulations Irene!
2020 Update
We are pleased to announce a tentative start date to the summer swimming season on July 6, 2020! The executive and coaches are busy planning and booking pool time.
Firstly, we want to reiterate that safety is of the utmost importance of our revised summer program. The BC Summer Swimming Association (BCSSA) and the clubs have established safety protocols for social distancing inside and outside of the pool. Our pool safety protocols have been updated to address COVID, and are required to be approved by the City of Burnaby and abide by BCSSA guidelines.
Our intent is to be able to provide a means for our Mantas swimmers to maintain their love of swimming and keep our strong sense of community. This program also allows for the swimmers to stay physically active and to add some structure to the swimmer’s daily schedules this summer, which is important during these times.
Practices will include modified dryland (to allow for safe distancing) in the park, followed by swimming in the pool. As usual, athletes will be grouped with kids of similar ages, skill and ability, and will remain with that group for the entire season.
COVID19 Update – May 1, 2020
Hello everyone,
May 1 is our typical start day to the summer swimming season, but unfortunately this year, we will not be able to start in May. Burnaby Mountain Mantas continues to follow BC Ministry of Health Guidelines on social distancing. We have just been advised that pools in Burnaby will remain closed until at least the end of June.
The Simon Fraser Region is looking at moving the season back into July and August in a safe manner. Currently, Dr. Bonnie Henry has asked all amateur sports teams to create a “safe return to play” plan. The BCSSA board is creating what “safe swimming” will look like.
What we do know as of today: swimming this year will not look like it normally does. Even if the season starts in July, it is unlikely we could host swim meets. Already we know May and June are cancelled, and we do not know what July and August might look like. It is quite possible the entire season is cancelled.
All we can do right now is wait for more direction from Dr. Bonnie Henry and Adrian Dix. In the meantime, Burnaby Mountain Mantas is happy to offer FREE zoom workouts to all full members of the swim club. Unfortunately at this time, due to age concerns, we will not be able to offer these workouts to the mini mantas.
We will offer these zoom dryland workouts for free for the month of May while we wait for more direction on what we can and can’t do this summer. However, you must sign the attached waiver before you can participate in the zoom drylands.You must complete a separate waiver for each swimmer. The dryland links will only be sent to those families that sign the waiver. It is also important that only registered swimmers with BCSSA do these dryland workouts. So if you have other children who are not registered with BCSSA, they cannot participate (for insurance reasons.)
Coach Colin will reach out to the team directly with the dryland plans and schedule. In the meantime, please sign the waiver if you are interested in participating in the workouts.
Refunds:
The club will be refunding families for the lost portions of the summer season. We are just waiting to see what the season might look like before we start the refund process. Please be patient with us as we figure this out.
Thanks everyone for your patience. Also – thank you so much to our coaches who are volunteering their time right now. This idea was the coaches idea – they miss our swimmers and want to spend time coaching this summer, and have offered these sessions to help us all connect in these hard times. So thank you so much.
June 1, 2020:
Thank you Mantas families for your generous donation to Burnaby Hospital.
Message from the president: April 8, 2020
As of right now, we are still planning on a summer season.
The BC Summer Swimming Association has just cancelled our traditional Provincial Championships at UBC. However, this does not mean the season is cancelled. The Provincial board felt Provincials at UBC would not be possible due to the large number of athletes and parents in a small area, and the travelling involved in this meet. There may be provincial champions determined by comparing results from smaller meets throughout the season, or from comparing the winning times from each Regional Championship.
In other words, we may still have a season, but the timing of the season may be shifted to later, and it may only involve local teams. We are really hoping to have a season, but I can guarantee you the season will look different than it normally does.
We are still in a waiting game and must follow social distancing rules. But we are still hopeful that the season will occur in some form.
I ask for your patience while we wait and see. None of us can see into the future, and for now, all we can do is wait.
Kelowna Swim Meet
February 29, 2020
Mantas will be attending an out-of-town meet this year. The meet is in Kelowna, July 4/5 , in the H20 Adventure and Fitness Centre. The pool is really nice – 50 m indoor pool with waterslides, and kids pool. There is day camping on the field next to the building. The meet is heat and finals.
The meet is open to all members of the club, no matter your age or skill level. Also a reminder that Provincials are in-town this year, so this will be the only out-of-town meet all season.
Our preferred spot to stay will be Bear Creek Campground. http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/explore/parkpgs/bear_crk/. The campground is right on Lake Okanogan, and right on the edge of town so a short drive to the pool each morning. The campground has flush toilets and showers. If you want to book in at the campground, you will need to do it 4 months in advance. So if you want to check in on Friday night, you will need to book your campsite on Tuesday, March 3rd at 7am.
To book your campsite, log on to Discover camping https://discovercamping.ca/BCCWeb/, search for Bear Creek Campground, then pick your dates. I highly recommend you open up the website by 6:45 am on Tuesday morning, have it all ready to go, pick your site, and the second it turns 7 am, hit the reserve button. Unfortunately, if you wait until after 7 am you may not get a spot. (make sure you are logged in before you hit the reserve button!).
If you do not like camping, you can stay at UBC Okanagan residences. A family of 4 can get a room for roughly $179.00. Or you can stay at a hotel. There is also overnight RV parking for trailers and motorhomes but no tenting in the H2O parking lot.
February 1, 2020
Message from our Head Coach:
Hello Mantas,
Happy New Year and I hope everyone had a wonderful winter break. Quickly approaching is our Winter Mock Meet! We are so excited to see all you new swimmers getting your first taste of swimming competition, and to see all our returning swimmers re-entering the world of racing. Please await further information about the mock meet this coming week which will include warm up times, event entries, and more. See you all on deck!
Colin
Dec 8, 2019
Holiday Skating Party
Mark your calendar folks! The annual Mantas Skating event is happening on at the end of December. Log into the members only area to view details. A signup sheet was sent to you via email.
This is always a fun social event. Hope to see everyone there!
2019 Provincials Recap
Congratulations on an excellent 2019 summer season! Top team in the SF Region, and Second in the Province!
2019 was an excellent year for the Burnaby Mountain Mantas. Mantas won the 2019 Simon Fraser Regional Championships, and came in second overall at the 2019 BC Summer Swimming Association Provincial Championships. Well done to all our swimmers! The following swimmers won medals at our provincial championships:
Gold Medals:
- Andrew Woinoski – 200 IM Div 8
- Armaan Basi – 50 Free O-cat 2
- Armaan Basi – 100 Fly O-cat 2
- Beck Yu – 50 Back Div 2
- Carson Wong – 50 Fly – O-cat 2
- Natalie Zheng – 50 Breast Div 1
- Beck Yu – 50 Breast Div 2
- Vivan Yang – 100 Breast Div 4
- Yolanda Ling – 100 Breast O-cat 2
- Nathan Li – 100 Breast O-cat 2
- Vivian Yang – 100 Free Div 4
- Armaan Basi – 100 Free 0-cat 2
- Richard Li/Beck Yu/Aaron Lim/Lucas Ma – Div 2 Medley Relay
- Jenny Xu/Yolanda Ling/Keira Wong/Elva Yu – O-cat 2 Medley Relay
- Armaan Basi /Nathan Li/Carson Wong/Samuel Kim – O-cat 2 Medley Relay
- Zennea Chen/Keira Lo/Angela Guan/Jessie Hua – Div 3 Free Relay
- Vivian Yang/Katrina Lo/Sophia Morton/Michelle Li – Div 4 Free Relay
- Michelle Li/Claire Guo/Katrina Lo/Vivian Yang – Div 4 Medley Relay
- Keira Wong/Amy Zhu/Elva Yu/Jenny Xu – O-cat 2 Free Relay
- Carson Wong/Christopher Ng/Samuel Kim/ Armaan Basi Basi – O-cat 2 Free Relay
Silver Medals:
- Beck Yu – 100 IM Div 2
- Vivian Yang – 200 IM Div 4
- Carson Wong – 50 Free O-cat 2
- Vivian Yang – 50 Fly Div 4
- Hannah Cui – 100 Fly Div 6
- Keira Wong – 100 Fly O-cat 2
- Jessie Hua – 50 Back Div 3
- Keira Wong – 100 Back O-cat 2
- Tommy Chung – 100 Back O-cat 2
- Liam Russell – 100 Breast Div 4
- Colin Ma – 100 Breast 0-cat 2
- Beck Yu – 100 Free Div 2
- Keira Wong – 100 Free O-cat 2
- Carson Wong – 100 Free 0-cat 2
- Jessie Hua/Angela Guan/Kayla Liu/Zennea Chen – Div 3 Medley Relay
- Boris Zhang/Daniel Wang/Ronan Livesey/Christopher Ng – Div 5 Medley Relay
- Desiree Wu/Lauryn Sartori/Hannah Hui/Eliana Zhao – Div 7 Medley Relay
Bronze Medals:
- Yolanda Ling – 200 IM 0-cat 2
- Christopher Ng – 50 Free Div 5
- Samuel Kim – 50 Free O-cat 2
- Zennea Chen – 50 Fly Div 4
- Carson Wong – 100 Fly O-cat 2
- Matthew Shuen – 50 Back Div 1
- Armaan Basi – 50 Fly O-cat 2
- Claire Guo – 100 Breast Div 4
- Frank Guo – 100 Breast Div 4
- Samuel Kim – 100 Breast O-cat 2
- Lauryn Sartori – 100 Breast Div 7
- Andrew Woinoski – 100 Breast Div 8
- Jessie Hua – 100 Free Div 3
- Samuel Kim – 100 Free O-cat 2
- Colin Du/Jerry Ling/Marty Xu/Jayden Yap – O-cat 1 Medley Relay
- Frank Guo/Liam Russell/Justin Wiebe/Evan Ghanason – Div 4 Medley Relay
- Crystal Yu/Chloe Wong/Sarah Wiebe/Quynh Anh Ha – Div 2 Free Relay
- Richard Li/Aaron Lim/Lucas Ma/Beck Yu – Div 2 Free Relay
- Hannah Cui/Eliana Zhao/Bree Livesey/Yen Nhi Ha – Div 6 Free Relay
- Tommy Chung/Boris Zhang/Adrian Kan/Nathan Li – O-Cat 2 Free Relay
Burnaby Mountain Mantas Swim Club 