DEDICATED training paid off for Richards Bay swimmer Wendy Cook in Durban last Sunday.
She smashed the SA women’s 50m breaststroke record and KZN 200m breaststroke record at the SA Masters Short Course Championships.
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Representing the KZN masters team, the Synergy Masters Club swimmer clocked 37.8 seconds in the 50m breaststroke, well below the SA record time of 38.58, and completed the 200m breaststroke in a blistering 3min 11.12sec (old KZN record 3min 13.19sec).
‘I’m really pleased with these results as I put my head down and trained really hard during the lockdown period,’ said Cook.
‘The Fina World Championships have moved to May next year, giving me 18 months to shave a further two seconds off my times so I can achieve double gold.’
Wendy finished fourth in the 50m and 200m breaststroke events, and seventh in the 100m breaststroke race at the World Masters Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, in 2019.
‘It was a great opportunity to race against the world’s best and analyse my competition. I’ll be better prepared next year.
‘One lesson I learnt in Gwangju was to take my own nutritional supplements, as I lost a lot of weight there by not eating correctly, which negatively impacted my performance.
‘Lockdown was difficult to cope with, but I had access to a 10m pool, which allowed me to adjust my training regime and keep fit.
‘Once gymnasiums reopened under lockdown Level 1, I went back to my normal training programme.’
Cook says she trains six times a week for one-and-a-half hours per session, per day, focusing on pool and dry land work, combined with weight training.
‘I’m always chasing the clock as it does not lie. Some days I get it right, and other days not.
When that happens, I simply come back the next day to try again.’
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