Broughty Ferry swimmer’s first race for Scotland
Timing has not always been the ally of Broughty Ferry swimmer, Karen Rigby.
In 2001 she qualified for the Scottish team competing in the British Schools
Championships in Wales but the event was cancelled following the Foot and
Mouth outbreak. Last February she achieved the qualification time for the
Scottish Commonwealth Games team, but her time came too late for her to be
considered for the team.
Now, at 22 years old, an age that a decade ago might have seemed ancient for
a swimmer, the 50m-butterfly swimmer has received her first call up for the
Scottish team competing in next month’s Celtic Tri Nations Championships in
Dublin.
“I’m really thrilled to be representing Scotland; it’s something I’ve always
dreamed of,” said the City of Dundee swimmer, who achieved the Scottish team
’s qualifying time during August’s British Championships. “I’ve swum at
university level and for my club in Olympic trials and Commonwealth Games
trials, so the next thing is to represent your country. It’s really good to
finally do it.”
Everything seems to have come together for Rigby over the past year. At the
February 2006 Scottish Short Course Championships in Glasgow, she was part
of the Tayside quartet that broke the 18 year old Scottish 4 x 50m Freestyle
final. At the same meet she retained her Scottish 50m butterfly title. In
the summer she won the British Universities Championships 50m butterfly.
These results helped her reach selection standards of the Tayside & Fife
Institute of Sport, giving her access to quality training facilities,
individually tailored coaching programmes, delivered by experienced coaches
and a fully integrated strength and conditioning programme.
Complementing and supporting technical and tactical expertise, the Scottish
Area Institute network provides access to sports science, sports medicine
and performance lifestyle services.
“The Tayside & Fife Institute’s swim coach, Gary Vandermeluen has a lot of
input and because he also takes the university coaching, I’ve been with him
for about three years now,” said Rigby. “He’s worked with specialized
sprinters like Alison Sheppard and he’s got a lot of good ideas and
experience, which has been a big influence.”
Next month in Dublin, Rigby will compete in a spiced-up version of the 50m
butterfly. “It’s a Skins event with eight competitors swimming seven 50s
with a rest of two minutes in between and every round someone gets knocked
out,” she said. “It’s quite tactical and the favourite might not win
because you’ve got to last. But it’s exciting because it goes on longer.”
A good result in Dublin could line up Rigby for a place in this August’s
World Student Games, a competition she is still eligible for having
graduated from Dundee University with an Economics degree last summer (she
starts a full time job as a trainee Chartered Accountant next week).
Longer term she hopes to qualify for the Commonwealth Games team.
“The next Commonwealth Games seems far away but I’m sure they’ll come around
quickly and I’d love to go,” she added.
Hopefully for Rigby the best is yet to come.
Rob Eyton-Jones
07775 746981
rob@eyton-jones.co.uk
