The Burnaby Mountain Mantas (BMM) Swim Club was founded in 1986 by a group of enthusiastic volunteers passionate about youth competitive summer swimming. BMM is a non-profit organization and is managed by volunteer parents and family members.
BMM prides itself on creating an inclusive and encouraging competitive environment, allowing swimmers to achieve their goals through tailored development and quality coaching. Attendance at swim meets is not compulsory, but highly recommended. Swim meets are a great way to motivate swimmers, gauge progress, and cultivate friendships.
Summer swimming begins May 1st and finishes with the Provincial Championships in August. Swim meets are almost every weekend in June and July. While the club will be at every meet, swimmers can pick and choose which swim meets to attend; you do no need to attend every meet. Summer season culminates in the annual Regional Championships in early August followed by the BCSSA Provincial Championships in mid-August. The Mantas also offer winter stroke improvement training from October to April 30.
The Mantas are affiliated with the British Columbia Summer Swimming Association (BCSSA) and its Simon Fraser Regional Office.
VISION
To develop a community of competitive swimmers motivated equally by sportsmanship and success.
MISSION
BMM prides itself on creating an inclusive and encouraging competitive environment, allowing swimmers to achieve their goals through tailored development and quality coaching. BMM fosters a lifelong love of competitive swimming by promoting skill development, boosting team spirit, and rewarding success at all levels.
Executive Committee
| Position | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| President | Ravi Ghanason | president@burnabymantas.ca |
| Vice President | Brian Wiebe | vp@burnabymantas.ca |
| Treasurer | Jeff Wong | treasurer@burnabymantas.ca |
| Registrar | Cornelia Atmadja | registrar@burnabymantas.ca |
| Secretary | Jenny Jin | secretary@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Coaching | Clodine Sartori | coaching@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Communications | Albert Yap | communications@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Equipment | Rudy Eng | equipment@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Fundraising | Peggy Lui | fundraising@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Officials | Carl Kelman | officials@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Training | Michael Wu | training@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director of Volunteers | Rina Wong | volunteer@burnabymantas.ca |
| Social Director Social Director | Jane Pan Tina Herrera | social-jane@burnabymantas.ca social-tina@burnabymantas.ca |
| Director at Large | Plamen Marinov | dal@burnabymantas.ca |
Coaching Staff
About Our Coaches:
Colin Lai:
Colin is one of the oldest active coaches on the roster and has been with the club for around 14 years. Through his time as a swimmer, he has been a provincial qualifier and a provincial medalist. Within the club, he has received the Sportsmanship Award, Division Aggregate Award, and the BMM Most Valuable Manta Award. In his 7 years of coaching with the club, he has coached provincial qualifiers and medalists. His proudest moment as a coach was watching his Div. 4 girls band together to qualify two provincial freestyle relay teams in 2019. Outside of coaching, Colin is working on building a business. His greatest aspiration in life is to help those around him realize their dreams. For now, Colin is focused on giving Mantas swimmers the wonderful experiences and memories he had received when he swam
Alicia Mui:
Hi everyone! I am Alicia and I have been swimming for the club for 6 years. This will be my second year coaching. I began to swim for the club when I was around 13 and was put in a group of experienced competitive swimmers. I was a late starter compared to everyone else, and it was hard for me to keep up. However, with the help of my coaches and teammates I was able to fit right in and improve drastically. I found my love for swimming here and strive to create that same environment for others. Throughout the years I have been in this club, I have competed in multiple Regional and Provincial championships and made memories that I will never forget. Hope to see you around the pool!
Claire Guo:
Hello Mantas, my name is Claire and I have been swimming with the club for nearly ten years! During my time as a Mantas, I competed and medaled in several Regional and Provincial Championships. More notably, however, I overcame a myriad of obstacles, met dozens of inspiring people, and evolved as a swimmer and person. This winter will be my second season coaching, during which I hope our swimmers will end every practice excited for the next, while still focusing on developing their swimming. I strongly believe in zooming in and refining the technique of each individual swimmer, and plan on incorporating that into my practices. Currently, I am certified in NL, WSI, and LSI and hope to soon become a lifeguard for the city. I hope you have a wonderful season!
Brooklyn Sartori:
Hi everyone! I’m Brooklyn and I have been with Mantas since I was 4 years old swimming in the Mini Mantas program, and I began my coaching journey in the winter of 2021. I competed in many Regional and Provincial Championships and countless swim meets over the years, with some of my favourite races being 200 IM, 50 Freestyle and 50 Butterfly. Mantas has always been such a constant in my life and a source of comfort, joy, and fond memories. My main goal as a coach is to pay it forward and pass on my love of swimming and the Mantas community onto my swimmers. Off the pool deck, I attend Simon Fraser University and am studying Criminal Psychology. See you around the pool!
Casian Chen:
Hello Mantas! My name is Casian, this season will mark my tenth year with the club, and my fourth year coaching. Throughout my journey with the club, I have attended countless practices, competed in regional and provincial meets, and created my fair share of great memories with coaches and teammates alike. I hope to pass down my love for the sport to our young swimmers, striking a balance between having fun and sparking a competitive mindset. See you around the pool!
Julia Bodnar:
Hello! I am Julia Bodnar, and I have been a coach with the Mantas for around three years.I have a great passion for swimming, and I am extremely excited to be coaching this season. A few fun facts about me; I adore music, I’m a big gamer, and baking is one of my favourite past-times, although I don’t like eating sweets. Isn’t that funny? My goal as a coach is to allow every swimmer to improve their competitive swimming abilities and be confident while creating a safe and respectful community where everyone is welcome. Of course, you can’t forget to have fun! I look forward to meeting you all at the pool!
Lauryn Sartori:
Hi everyone my name is Lauryn! I’ve been with Mantas for 14 years now and this will be my 7th year coaching. Growing up with this club has given me many amazing opportunities and lifelong friendships, my goal is to be able to pass down that legacy to the younger generation of swimmers and make Mantas their home just as it is mine. I’m currently in my 4th year at SFU studying Kinesiology, and I am excited about being able to put the knowledge I learn in the classroom to the test when working with swimmers. I also run our Mantas Volunteer Coaches Program (VoCo Program), which gives some of our senior swimmers an opportunity to get hands on experience working with various groups of kids and teaches them the in and outs of being a great coach. I look forward to working with your swimmers this year whether they are in the VoCo program or as a swimmer in my group! If you see me at the pool come say Hi!
Emma Liu:
Hello Mantas! My name is Emma and I’m one of the newer additions to the coaching staff. I coached Mini Mantas in the summer of 2022, and moving on I’m even more excited to be working with more swimmers! I’ve been in the club myself for 6 ongoing years, and I hope to contribute much more in the future. Working with swimmers, I wish to create the best, fun, and safe environment where everyone can enjoy this competitive sport!
Gordon Yen:
Hi there, I’m Gordon. I have been with the Mantas for 9 years and this will be my second season as a coach. From all the practices, meets, and events, I have made a lot of memories during my time with the club, and I want to help give others the same kind of experience that I had. I believe that enjoyment should be at the forefront of what you do, so I hope to cultivate that kind of environment for our swimmers.
Matthew Wiebe:
Matthew has been swimming with the Mantas since he was around the age of 11. He has participated and medaled in regionals and provincials. Matthew was in the Volunteer Coaching Program for three years before becoming a coach. He has had an opportunity to be exposed to different coaching methods and styles, as well as many different strategies to help swimmers improve their strokes and skills. Matthews’s philosophy when it comes to coaching is to help swimmers improve both their social and swimming skills. He hopes to help swimmers develop a passion for the sport and learn to support one another. Matthew has a strong passion for teaching and hopes to pursue a career in education. Matthew is currently studying at SFU in the Faculty of Education.
Justin Wiebe:
Hello Mantas, my name is Justin and I have been swimming with the club for nine years. During my time with the club, I have attended countless practices, met dozens of encouraging people, and medaled in several Regional and Provincial Championships. I am certified in First Aid, WSI, and NL, and plan to become an official lifeguard for the city in the near future. This winter will be my second season coaching for the club and I hope that I can pass down my passion for the sport to newer swimmers. My goal for this winter is to help swimmers improve their skills and have fun while still maintaining a competitive mindset. See you at the pool!
Keira Wong:
Hey Mantas! I’m Keira and have been with the club for over a decade either as a swimmer, volunteer, or coach. I’ve been swimming basically all my life and love sharing my passion for the sport with the younger generations. My goal this season is to not only help swimmers improve their skills, but most importantly, make sure they’re having fun! Out of the pool, I’m a second year business student and work as a lifeguard. I enjoy running, baking, and am an amatuer crocheter. See you at the pool!
Zennea Chen:
Hi everyone! My name is Zennea, and this will be my 10th year of swimming and second season coaching. Swimming with Mantas created countless happy memories for me and I hope that I can make your season one of a kind too. I believe in creating a comfortable, safe and fun environment while also excelling on the foundations and techniques of swimming. I’m psyched to be coaching this winter, let’s get swimming! Splash! Splash!
Victor Bellamy:
Victor swam with Mantas for 5 years, before later moving on to swim with winter Swim clubs, SFA, Chena and Surrey Knights. He has medalled in regionals and provincials while swimming with Mantas. Victor has swam with Olympic and National level coaches, and has had the chance to experience a bunch of different sides of the sport, from being fast and technical in the water, to different swimmer and coach dynamics. Victor takes a fun, but technical and serious approach to coaching. He believes that there is time to goof around with friends but get serious when its time to swim. Focusing on the little details to hopefully make positive lasting impacts over the course of their swimming careers.
Alan Huang:
After a long hiatus from coaching, Alan is excited to return to Mantas to share his passion for swimming! Alan has been with the Mantas for over a decade now as both a swimmer and coach.
Over the years, Alan has coached all age groups ranging from Mini Mantas to Senior athletes, with several athletes becoming provincial qualifiers and medalists.
With Mantas, he has received the Sportsmanship Award and the Distinguished Coach Award.
Alan is currently a tax specialist at an accounting firm. In his spare time, Alan enjoys training for and racing in long distance events such as open water races, road marathons, and triathlon races. He is looking forward to competing again in 2023.
Nicole Bodnar:
Hey hey! I’m Nicole and I am so excited for the Winter 2023/2023 Season to begin!
A little bit about myself, I have been with the Mantas for 11 years and a coach for the last 7. I also work for the City of Vancouver as an Full-Time Aquatic Leader and as a Lifeguard/Aquatic Leader in Burnaby. I also hold my baccalaureate degree in Recreation Management from Langara and looking to possibly pursue a career as a Pool Programmer in the future. During my spare time, I enjoy listening to various styles of music, singing, reading, doing word searches and sudoku puzzles, and spending time with my family and friends.
As a coach, and on-top of striving to build strong and efficient swimmers through drills and skills, a passionate focus of mine is to create a fun and welcoming environment that encourages swimmers to keep on swimming, make friends, and have a blast every time they come to practice.
Daphne Li:
Hi Mantas! I am Daphne, one of the new additions to the coaching team. This will be my 10th year with Mantas as a competitive swimmer. Over these years I’ve made lifelong friends, with whom I have created memories with that I will remember forever! I hope to create the same tight-knit environment for swimmers so that they can form long-lasting friendships of their own. I strive to create safe practices that don’t only develop stroke and technique, but also get swimmers used to the competitive spirit of swimming. I will try my best to make sure each practice is full of memories and laughter. I hope to help everyone develop a passion for swimming, a sport that I love loads. See you around the pool!
Kayla Liu:
Hello! My name is Kayla and I’ve been swimming with the Mantas for 9 years. In those 9 years, I’ve competed and medalled in several regional and provincial championships. Swimming with this club has brought me on a truly rewarding journey. One that is full of memories that I will hold onto forever and many, many laughs. I’m so excited to be a part of your journey as a swimmer, a journey that I am still on. I believe in creating a safe and fun environment where we not only build our technique and stroke, but also develop passion for this amazing sport! See you around!
Katrina Lo:
Hi hi! I’m Katrina but you can call me Kat. I am a new coach at Mantas this year and I am loving every second of it! I fell in love with swimming when I was 3 years old, and I started competing when I was 4 and the pool has become my second home since. I have been in the club for over 7 years, training, competing and having a blast in and out of the pool. I’ve participated and medaled in numerous Regionals and Provincials Championships over the last 12 years and created an abundance of unforgettable memories and life’s lessons through this fun sport. I hope to pass on the invaluable experiences I’ve accumulated to help improve swimmers’ techniques and inspire them to develop a lifelong passion for swimming, just like I have. When I’m not by the pool, you can usually find me in the dance studio dancing. You can always hear me laughing before you can see me, so do not be afraid to say hello:)
Burnaby Mountain Mantas Swim Club 