A summer trip to Rio de Janeiro is on the line for an Okotokian this week.
Kirstie Kasko is in the pool at the Swim Canada Paralympic Trials in Toronto in need of at least one top eight international time to book her ticket to the 2016 Paralympic Games in Brazil.
“I feel pretty prepared. I have the mindset that I will go out there and do my best job,” said Kasko, in a phone interview on Monday. “I have to be top-8 in one event and I’m aiming for the 100 back as my top-8.”
The Foothills Stingray alumnus is riding high entering the trials.
She joined her former clubmates and head coach Todd Melton at the Man-Sask Swim Meet in late March and set personal bests in the 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke.
She set new Canadian records in the S14 category — for athletes with an intellectual disability — in both the 50 and 100m races.
Her time of 1:13.79 in the 100m backstroke was especially encouraging for a couple of reasons as the short-distance event represents her best chance to breakthrough at trials.
Completing the race at trials in less than 1:14 should be enough to qualify for Rio.
“I wasn’t even tapered and took two seconds off my 100-metre backstroke,” Kasko added. “Before that meet I was adding time – that was a bit of a shock to beat my record by almost two seconds.
“Now I feel like I will take a lot of my 100-back here.”
The Okotokian opened her trials on April 5 in the 200m freestyle event with races to follow in the 100m breaststroke, 200m individual medley and culminating in the anticipated 100m backstroke event on April 9.
Kasko, a veteran of the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, was a four-medal finisher at the Parapan Am Games in Toronto this past summer and a major contributor to Canada winning the medal count on its home soil.
Despite her successes, Kasko had her national funding cut this season as a result of not meeting the stringent criteria.
She launched a fundraising campaign on the Pursu.it platform and was astonished with the support she received from both friends, acquaintances and strangers alike.
Kasko surpassed her fundraising goal of $6,000 to offset the costs of travel and training expenses.
“It really means a lot to me. I had people sponsor me that I didn’t even know,” she said. “I was bewildered with the support. I’m really, really happy with the support Okotoks gave me.”
Kasko credited her sessions with coach Cara Clifford and personal training work at Natural Fitness with Lorna Thiem for getting her geared up for the biggest meet in the nation.
To keep track of the latest results at the Paralympic Trials go to swimming.ca
