>> Amy Feige

Amanda (Amy) Feige’s thoughts on synchronized swimming. Amy is a former athlete and coach of the OSSC and is presently in her second year of medical school at Tulane University School of Medicine (will graduate with an MD in May 2011). Amy is hoping to practise in plastic and reconstructive surgery and would love to eventually come back to Toronto to work at Sick Kids.

I started swimming in 1991 when I was 7 years old.  I swam at the Olympium for 10 years, winning some local, provincial, and national championships; almost, but never quite making a national team.  What I can tell you is that if I had the opportunity to do it all over again, I would without a second thought, without hesitation, and without blinking an eye.  Why?  Because there is so much more to synchro than just winning – there’s getting up at 5am for practice, there’s disgusting gelatin stuff that I still have nightmares about, there’s aches, pains, and tears, and there’s even more.  What you really get from swimming is a sense of teamwork, sacrifice, time management, dedication, perseverance, and long lasting friendships.  Who else do you sweat with, cry with, shower with, laugh with, and go to school with all at once?   

So what have I taken away from synchro?  I have boxes full of medals, ribbons, and trophies, and more than enough blinged-out bathing suits to outfit next year’s contestants on Dancing with the Stars.  But it’s the intangibles that I use each and every day – desire, passion, ambition, and plain old hard work.  If you take away only these from your swimming career, however long that may be, it will get you miles ahead and light fires in your heart to help you when it’s cold, dark, and gloomy.  My biggest prize from synchro is the ability to prioritize and balance my life.  I have always dreamed of being a surgeon, so when there was schoolwork to be done, or my grades needed to improve, I had to do it, whether it was Tuesday morning, Wednesday afternoon, or Saturday night.  Yet when my work was done, I knew that it was time to play.  

When I first hung up my nose clips from national level synchro, I thought it might be permanent, and I went into coaching at 17.  I went into coaching because I felt I had so much to give to the next group of swimmers.  I thought it would be almost rude if I only took and never gave back.  Being a coach develops a different skill set.  Instead of being on the receiving end of motivation, you are on the giving end.  I also never thought I would learn so much from my athletes – little things – like patience, understanding, and the value of a time out.  

2 years later, off I went to McGill University, thinking that I had smelled my last waft of chlorine.  Little did I know that the first building I would step foot in would be the athletics complex and that a magnetic aroma of chlorine would lure me back to the frigid waters.  Within a week I had signed up for the varsity team.  Within a year I was head coach, club president, and still an athlete.  By my fourth year I was president of the university synchro league.  I am very proud to say that in the past 4 years, McGill has earned the distinction of best overall university by the league and for my involvement I was named MVP twice and was one of McGill’s female athletes of the week.  

Varsity synchro is a little different from national level swimming.  You don’t train as many hours and it is more of an extracurricular activity rather than your primary focus.  But it still leads to immense satisfaction, a great stress release, and a fabulous way to stay fit.  It also gives a sense of belonging to university life, so much so that when I graduated last year I was saddened that neither the undergrad nor the medical school at Tulane has a synchro team that I could join.  I tried water polo, but that didn’t really fit – I guess I was just too graceful.  

My parents were also kind of instrumental in my synchro journey.  They aren’t as embarrassing or as nerdy as I once thought they were.  So for you synchro parents, there are a couple of things that have to be said.  First, you are great.  You take your daughters everywhere, get up early in the morning, pick them up late at night, most importantly pay the bills, but never ever second guess why you are doing it.  I tell my parents this all the time even today – thank you, thank you, thank you, especially for believing in us.  But even more important than that, you should be thankful that your daughters chose synchro – after all, you could be freezing your butts off in a hockey rink.  

Something else that I want to share with you is that synchro, especially in its team centered focus, is a hotter commodity in the real world than you might think.  Whether you are applying to university, college, medical school, or for scholarships, people pay attention to those who can offer more than 1 dimension. In my recent experience applying to medical school, I can’t help but think that my synchro background and accomplishments may well have been my ‘it’ factor that set me apart from tens of thousands of others.  

Recognize that it’s great to win, but the journey to the race is just as important as the final result.  Dream big, work hard, enjoy yourself, and take synchro’s lessons to help you on your journey.  

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