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If any of Team Canada’s athletes need some advice while out in Tokyo, they could do a lot worse than seek out water polo player Shae La Roche.
The 28-year-old from Winnipeg is set to make her Olympic debut when action gets underway at the Tatsumi International Swimming Centre on July 23.
Outside the pool, though, La Roche has earned a diploma in youth work and has aspirations to become a guidance counsellor in schools. She lives by some of the best advice she has ever received.
“It would be around empathy,” La Roche said during a training camp in Greece. “The best skill you have is to empathize with others and that is going to give you the best relationships. And life is built on relationships”
As a relatively late starter when it comes to water pol>, not getting into the sport until she was 14, La Roche worked hard to overcome the obvious challenges that brings.
Some were a little more obscure.
La Roche despised the ‘ugly’ one-piece swimsuit and felt she could not be alone.
“It must have been a common thing,” she said. “Most girls started at six or seven so you don’t mind the one-piece, but being 14, I was not a fan!”
La Roche has travelled all over the world with the sport, including four years in Indiana and a season in Australia. She is now based in Quebec, but remains very much a Prairie girl at heart.
“You never forget the Winnipeg, you know?” La Roche said, but unfortunately the move was essential for her career due to the lack of competition at home.
“It’s definitely lacking. When I was younger the exciting thing was to go to Regina for a weekend. That’s still six hours.
“There’s such a lack of games and only a small amount of people that play in the Prairies. It’s not to say that there’s not a lot of great athletes that come out of it (the Prairies), (but) it’s hard to get that experience.”
La Roche is one of four Prairie athletes on the squad; she’s joined by Albertans Kyra Christmas, Kelly McKee and Kindred Paul.
Amid all the challenges that COVID-19 has brought about, the water polo team has actually had a pretty robust schedule of late, with a fourth-place finish in the FINA Super League followed by pre-Olympic camps in Hungary and Greece.
Now, La Roche says that her team is ready for the next one, the Games themselves.
“We have been together for quite a while now,” she said. “We are a really close team.
“It’s definitely been abnormal, but because we missed out for so long we are so excited for every chance we get.”
Canada faces Australia, South Africa, Netherlands and Spain, and La Roche says the Canadians will take each game at a time before setting too many goals.
“Obviously we want to finish first in our pool,” she said. “As a team we have had time to work together and are coming together in our system.”
La Roche also seems well on her way with her advice for any young athletes wanting to make the Olympics.
‘I’m all about hard work,” she said. “Anyone can do anything. It’s all about the dedication and hard work.”
But what about that pesky swimsuit?
“Now, I love it!” La Roche added.
Canada’s Group Stage Games
Canada vs Australia – July 23 – 23:00
Canada vs Spain – July 26 – 04:50
Canada vs South Africa – July 27 – 23:00
Canada vs Netherlands – August 1 – 00:30
Listen to the full interview – https://iono.fm/e/1076388