Different expectations haven’t changed the sense of accomplishment Cathy Pardy feels as she prepares to attend her first Olympic Games.
Pardy will coach Alex Joachim, a swimmer from St. Vincent and the Grenadines who attends Humber College in Toronto, at the Paris Games.
“It’s something that everybody would like to experience at least once in their career,” said Pardy, the head coach of swimming at Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont. “This is probably going to be my once.
“I’m actually looking forward to it a lot, to see great athletes, great performances and maybe network a little bit with coaches on deck.”
Pardy and Joachim head to Paris with no illusions of a Hollywood movie ending. The 21-year-old had the option of swimming the 50-metre freestyle, 100-m free or 100-m butterfly. With Pardy’s help, he decided to swim the 50 free.
Joachim’s best time in the event is 24.02 seconds. American Caeleb Dressel won the race at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 21.07 seconds. The top eight summers were all 21.78 seconds or less.
“He’s not going to get a second swim and we both know that,” said Pardy. “The goal would be for him to finish middle of the pack and do well for himself.”
Pardy has travelled to St. Vincent where she’s helped run swim camps and mentor coaches. She has found the experience rewarding.
“I love that part,” she said. “Most coaches are givers by nature. They give of their time. They love the sport. They love what it does for somebody in life. To be able to give to an organization that doesn’t necessarily have all the mean that we have, it’s a pretty nice feeling.
“I prefer giving over receiving. To have somebody going to the Olympics like Alex, for me it’s more about his experience than it is mine.”
St. Vincent might not have Canada’s swimming history, but that doesn’t change how Pardy approaches coaching.
“I’m a coach who is all about the person first,” she said. “It doesn’t matter where you go in this world, it’s always about the person first. Everybody is living their life with their own struggles and with their own accolades.
“If you treat people as people, they will step up and train and perform. I don’t think there’s any magic to it. If they’re receiving the message from you as a coach, then they’re willing to put in the work to hit their goals.”
Pardy’s connection to Joachim began when she coached his sister Shne at the Oakville Aquatic Club. Shne was attending Appleby College in Oakville, Ont.
Stephen Joachim, Shne and Alex’s father, is president of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Swimming Federation. He holds a Canadian passport and is a Laurier alumni.
Stephen asked Pardy to accompany his daughter to the 2016 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) in Windsor.
“He understands the swimming world and work ethic,” said Pardy.
Alex Joachim would later attend Appleby College and swim for the Oakville Club. He returns home regularly to visit schools to talk about the importance of education and being involved in sports.
“It’s a really nice way to give back to people,” said Pardy.
Pardy was a competitive summer herself. After retiring she wanted to stay in the sport and reached out to her former age group coach Bill Barton.
“That’s what led me to the coaching path,” she said.
Pardy is also involved in Canadian Swimming Coaches Association initiatives to increase the number of women coaches. She has seen some growth but believes many women still lack the confidence to promote themselves.
“They know they’re capable but tend not to publicly express that,” she said. “We tend to put ourselves forward with what we’ve already achieved, not with our potential we have in us.”
Some women are also hired to simply tick a box.
“It’s starting to shift a little bit but there is still some of that happening,” she said. “You just kind of run into a few roadblocks here and there when selection happens.”
Pardy coaches both men and women. She doesn’t think most athletes care about their coach’s gender.
“They just want to succeed and have the connection with a coach, whether it be male or female,” she said. “As long as it’s working and moving forward, and the success rates happen. It’s just breaking the glass ceiling for a woman is the hard part.”
Taking the job at Laurier has renewed Pardy’s passion for coaching.
“I was club coaching until a couple of years ago,” she said. “That is one of the most difficult coaching positions coaches have.
“Coaching university is truly coaching. You’re not dealing with all the outside stuff. You’re not dealing with parents and boards of directors and a lot of politics.
“Once I got into university coaching I found a whole new groove and a whole new learning curve, which is thoroughly enjoyable.”