Jonathon Dieleman may once have been flailing around in the pool but that that is no longer the case.
Last summer at the Pan Pacific swimming trials, he crushed the Canadian record in the 100-metre breaststroke in the new classification he had to swim in the Paralympic category.
Dieleman lowered the record by a whopping 12 seconds in winning the event. Internationally, his time was good enough for a fourth place ranking worldwide.
The result keeps his national team status in good stead and will help him work towards his goal of a medal at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics in 2020.
Recently, Dieleman and his home pool coach Tom Best received a courtesy visit from Senior National Paralympic Team coach Vince Mikuska to discuss his training plan and technical aspects of his training.
“It was a very fruitful visit from my standpoint,” said Mikuska after two sessions at the local pool.
He felt that his training plan was on course and no major suggestions were made.
“Every time he asked a question or made a suggestion it was something we already had underway,” said Best.
Dieleman felt that his plans for winter training will fit in well with his longer term goals.
“My goal is to be on the podium in two years at Tokyo so the plan is not a short one. Next summer is the world champs in South Korea so that’s a big one but it’s only a step along the way,” he said.
When he started swimming several years ago, Best saw him and offered his help. Within two years, he was in the finals at the Rio Paralympic Games.
Along the way to South Korea, Dieleman will be swimming up to six times a week as well as work on his hand bike and strength training.