By Jim Morris

The objective has remained the same for swim coach Dave Johnson, it’s just how to achieve that goal has changed.

In a career that has spanned more than 50 years, Johnson believes it’s fundamental to be a lifelong learner.

“The basic game, which is to get down to the end and come back as fast as you can, and hopefully beat the person in the lane beside you, hasn’t changed,” said Johnson. “But the information and the fine skills that you need to be successful as a swimmer today, and as a coach, are a lot different than they were when I first started coaching.”

Johnson, the director of swimming and head coach at the Cascade Swim Club in Calgary, guided Ingrid Wilm to a fifth-place finish in the 100-metre backstroke at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. Her result was the highest for a Canadian-based swimmer in an individual event and earned Johnson the award as Swimming Canada’s Coach of the Year – Olympic Program.

Wilm also swam the backstroke leg during the preliminary heats of the 4×100-m medley relay. The team won a bronze medal in the final.

John Atkinson, Swimming Canada’s high performance director and national coach, praised what Johnson has accomplished with Wilm and the many other swimmers he’s coached in a career that has included nine Olympics.

“Dave, as a long-standing national team coach in Canada, continues year after year to work with athletes that are part of the national program,” said Atkinson. “His experience and his commitment to the sport are second to none in Canada.

“The work he’s been doing with Ingrid has seen her develop over the last few years into a world class athlete and I’m sure there is more to come from Ingrid.”

Johnson was thrilled to have his contributions acknowledged.

“It’s always an honour to win these awards and to be recognized,” he said.

When Johnson first began coaching in 1972 at the Point-Claire Swim Club, the amount of mileage done in practice was the benchmark swimmers were measured by.

“Now it’s more about swimming smarter, using the technology and the skills,” said Johnson. “Like starts, the underwater kicking, making strokes much more to your advantage.

“There are just so many more good swimmers and good coaches out there doing their work. If you don’t keep up with the latest trends, and even try to be on the front edge of those trends, you’re going to be left behind.”

Wilm’s success is an example of Johnson’s belief in a swimmer. During her career Wilm battled through a nagging elbow injury and refused to quit swimming even after falling just short of qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. She also struggled to fund her training.

“She’s an amazing young lady,” said Johnson. “Not many people would have had the determination and the stick-to-it that she has demonstrated. To see her being successful is a tremendous testament to her.

“When I look in the mirror, I think we’ve worked really well together.”

Atkinson said Swimming Canada applauds and encourages the kind of relationship Johnson builds with his swimmers.

“One of Dave’s strengths is working with athletes through the long term,” he said. “What he’s doing and hoping to do together as a coach-athlete tandem, we’re here to continue to support them both on that journey.”

Also training at the Cascade Club are veterans like Yuri Kisil, Rebecca Smith and Cole Pratt plus Parker Deshayes, a 16-year-old backstroker and IM swimmer.

Kisil has returned to Calgary after spending time at the High Performance Centres in Vancouver and Toronto. Smith swam at the University of Toronto, University of Calgary and also trained at the High Performance Centre – Ontario. Pratt has been recovering from a shoulder injury. Along with Wilm, all hope to challenge for a spot on the team Swimming Canada will send to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

“We always support our swimmers when they go on to university or go on to the centres,” said Johnson. “I want them to know that we were part of the equation and hopefully they have reciprocal feeling toward the club. I think a good illustration is they are back swimming with me, getting ready for Paris, and trusting me to do my best to help them get there.”

Atkinson said programs like the one Johnson manages are important for Canada’s continued success on the international stage.

“I think one of the strengths of a program is seeing athletes at a young age coming through a program and (later) they’re still there with the coach,’ he said. “That’s really a good thing for Canadian swimming.”

Johnson’s first Olympic experience was as a staff coach at the 1976 Montreal Games. From 1988 to 2004 he was Swimming Canada’s Olympic head coach.

“Working with Swimming Canada I had a great time, I learned a lot,” he said. “Then I returned to my roots, coaching at the club level. Being on the deck every day and working with the swimmers, bringing them through from their age-group stage all the way to international success, you have to be patient and you have to have a love for the game.

“It’s so much fun for me to come and work with these young people. I have a great board of directors at the club level that have supported me through thick and thin. I get up in the morning and I say to myself, ‘what a lucky man I am.’”