Megan Boothby may be heading to the 2010 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games, but education is her real focus.
The 19-year-old athlete from St. Albert will be competing in five different swimming events in London, Ont., this week at her first national competition — the 25-metre backstroke, 25-metre freestyle, 25-metre breaststroke and a combined freestyle and backstroke, 25 metres in each style.
“I am getting excited, but I’m mostly getting excited about getting it over with and winning some medals,” she said. “I’m just getting tired of all the practice stuff.”
The event began Tuesday and the closing ceremonies are on Saturday.
Boothby has been swimming since she was 11, but said she’ll likely take a one-year break from the sport after the national competition to focus on her schooling. Since December, while preparing for the big 1,500-athlete competition, her main focus has been on finishing her social studies class. She just finished her second year of Grade 12 at St. Albert Catholic High School and earned her diploma.
“It felt so good to get it done,” Boothby said.
In the fall, Boothby will be attending the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) for the Graphic Sign Arts program.
“You basically get to make, like, posters, billboards and even put vinyl on vehicles,” she said. “I can actually learn how to make vinyl stickers.”
Her goals for the competition include trying to win medals and to simply see what it’s like travelling somewhere new, although she is far from new to travelling. She’s already been to Vancouver, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Toronto, Quebec and San Diego.
Boothby qualified for nationals through the Special Olympics Alberta Summer Games held last year in St. Albert. At provincials, Boothby won three gold medals and two silvers.
For the athletes that do exceptionally well in London this week, a spot at the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens, Greece, is on the line.
Boothby says she enjoys the type of family-like relationship that develops among the team.
“Having the teammates cheer you on, no matter how good or not so good you are,” she said. “They’re always there for you.
Among the 1,500 athletes competing in London, Boothby will be joined by 118 teammates on Team Alberta.
Both the Special Olympics Canada Summer Games and the winter games run every four years, with two years in between the summer and winter events.
The next winter games will be held in St. Albert in 2012. At the closing ceremonies this week in London, four representatives from the area will be on hand to receive the national games flag to bring it to St. Albert. There to receive the flag will be Mayor Nolan Crouse, chair of the St. Albert games Dan McLennan, Michelle Sprogis (a five-pin bowler from St. Albert) and Evan James from the West Central district that borders the St. Albert district.
