On Thursday August 3, some 50 people gathered at the L'Île-Perrot aquatic complex to attend the very first artistic swimming show put on by the Club aquatique de la Ville de L'Île-Perrot (CAVIP).

The aim of the event was to raise funds to support CAVIP's activities. As a result, interested people could attend for a voluntary contribution.

"We also wanted to introduce interested parties to the sport, as well as showcase the breadth of our members' talents. Spectators were able to watch performances by some of our swimmers, as well as those from the Club aquatique de Dollard-des-Ormeaux, an organization with which we share one of our coaches, Meili Kulchinski," explains Mireille Fink, secretary of CAVIP.

Ms. Kulchinski has been a CAVIP coach for some time now. During the cold season, she passes on her knowledge to swimming enthusiasts at the Dollard-des-Ormeaux Club. Her sister Adelle Kulchinski also coaches swimming and artistic swimming at CAVIP.

Two teams on show

Thursday evening's swimming show featured swimmers from two teams or categories. The Junior CAVIP section, made up of youngsters aged 13 and under, presented their choreography, as did a duet made up of senior swimmers aged 13 and 16.

"We will be hosting a major competition next week, and the swimmers took advantage of the show to present their choreography for this event, which will bring together between 150 and 200 swimmers. Meili and her sister Adelle Kulchinski also jumped into the water to perform. The CAVIP members were very impressed, as Meili is out of the water most of the time (laughs). The youngsters were happy to be able to see that," she recounts.

An honored guest also donned her swimsuit especially for the occasion. She was Olympian Audrey Joly, who will be taking part in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. "She presented part of the solo she did at this international competition. At the end, she also spoke with our members to share her journey and proceed to a signing session."

Like Meili, Ms. Joly is also a coach with the Dollard-des-Ormeaux Swim Club.

In addition to the show in the pool, spectators and event organizers were treated to a cute moment. "There's a small pool next to the children's pool. It's open and offers a perfect view of the pool. During Ms. Joly's solo, the youngsters in the small pool tried to reproduce her gestures. They were so cute!"

A major competition

This Wednesday, August 9, CAVIP will be hosting a major swimming competition at the Complexe aquatique de L'Île-Perrot. "This will be our first home competition. We'll be taking on Club Beaurepaire, and between 150 and 200 swimmers will be in the water trying to achieve their season's best time. The event will run from 7 to 8:30 p.m., and anyone interested can come and see us for free," concludes Ms. Fink.

The CAVIP will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2024, and currently has 125 members aged between 4 and 24. Three parents - one father and two mothers of current members - are also members.

More information on CAVIP is available via its Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/pagecavip.