Alan laughs quietly for a second or two.
“I could just imagine talking to someone across the pool whilst I’m swimming, but then you’d just be getting shouted at all the time by the Coach.
I hate it when Mum and Dad moan at me for not swimming well. I’d love to just say ‘Well when you can get me a decent training session plan then perhaps I’ll start swimming better!’, but I know that isn’t the reason, sometimes I just want to give up swimming, but I never will, my grades at school aren’t very good so swimming is the only thing I’ve got going for me. Now that I have won Gold in the swimming nationals I can ‘near enough’ guarantee a job as a fully paid Coach for a large swimming club. I can’t wait!”
Alan leans over to his bedside cabinet and picks up his medal.
“I’ve been waiting for you for a long time. I can still remember being in the car on the way to the competition, it was so nerve racking that I nearly said that I wasn’t going to swim. That definitely would have been a stupid thing to do. But I think that Mum and Dad would have persuaded me into doing the race anyway.
When I went up and stood behind the diving blocks at the beginning of the qualifying race it was really scary. Time seemed to just slow down for a minute, and then before I knew it I was standing on the diving blocks waiting for the Starter to say ‘Take Your Marks’. When he did, I had a strange feeling of disbelief, I always do when I’m on the diving blocks. During the race my mind was blank. I can remember looking up from under the water and seeing nobody in front of me. I finished the race and couldn’t believe that I had won! It was great, everyone was cheering for me, all my friends were, and I still have the vision of Mum screaming ‘Well Done, Al!” over the balcony and Dad just sticking his thumb up at and nodding. I knew that when Dad did that he was really proud and I was really pleased with myself for it.
The Final was even better though. Before the race the commentator said all of the competitor’s names and we had to give the crowd a little wave, I loved doing that, I felt like I was in the Olympics. When the race finally started, I didn’t really know where I was in the race, I just wanted to get to the other end of the pool as quickly as possible. I could see that the boy in the lane next to me was slightly in front, I had to change that. I swam with all of my energy for the last 10 meters or so and touched the end of the pool in first place. That meant Gold. I didn’t believe it at the time. I still don’t think it’s sunk in yet.
Alan places his medal back on his bedside cabinet, roles over and closes his eyes.
I’ll be able to try for the British Olympic team next year, it would be excellent if got in it, Mum and Dad would be so proud. I suppose that really, even if I don’t want to do swimming anymore, as long as I am making Mum and Dad proud, then I am happy, and that’s all that matters.”
