Ashley Ko eyes success with Marauder's swim team

After moving from British Columbia to Ontario, first year Marauder swimmer Ashley Ko secures high placings for her team

For first-year student Ashley Ko, her transition to university life has included a long distance move from British Columbia to Hamilton. Along with the pressures of adjusting to university life, she also has had to adjust to being a student-athlete. 

She is a part of the McMaster swim team and specializes in mid-distance swimming. Despite the move and the adjustments that come with it, Ko has found the transition to university to be easier than expected.

“I'd say the transition was pretty smooth. I mean, obviously, you get kind of into the groove of it during welcome week. I kind of got a glimpse after the first week. Obviously, I find that it's a lot less stressful because I feel like I have so much more time to myself. I also have a bunch of time to study and just like me time in general, it's a lot more flexible than high school,” said Ko.

An contributor to this ease of transition has been the McMaster swim team’s emphasis on team performance and less of a focus on individual performance. There is also an emphasis on balancing school and sport, which Ko recognizes that head coach Grey Fairley cares greatly about. 

“I think that's why swimming here is so nice because they value your health and schedule, they know you want to do good in school. So in essence, it's also flexible in that way as well,” said Ko.

Ko’s smooth transition to university swimming can be seen already in her opening results of the season. In her first meet, Ko was able to finish first in the 200-metre freestyle and the 100-metre backstroke. 

In the team’s second meet of the year on Sept. 28 at Niagara University, Ko was able to keep up this momentum. She finished first in the 100-yard backstroke, the 500-yard freestyle and the 200-yard individual medley. 

With five first place finishes already this season, Ko has high aspirations for both herself and the team. She sees each meet with the Marauders as a chance to pick up points and chance to check in on her improvements as she has aspirations to compete beyond the university level. 

“Well, honestly, my end goal is actually beyond university.  It's to trial at national trials. And that's where I want to be my best. But that is after U Sports, and I think getting some of my goal times at U Sports would be good for us and ultimately I want to score points for McMaster. I think I just want to show that McMaster is a good team and I think that's one of the goals. Winning individually and as a team,” said Ko. 

The Marauders swim team will continue their season at the Brock invitational on Oct. 20. Ko hopes to continue with her high form as the season progresses, for both the Marauder's as a team and her future swimming career.