Swimmer Profile – Ricky Ellis

Name of Swimmer: RICKY ELLIS
Main stroke: BACKSTROKE
Squad Allocation: ELITE MIDDLE DISTANCE









1. At what age did you start swimming?

• 4 years.

2. Was your first club Waterborn. If not at which club did you start your swimming career with?

• No – first club was Wanderers.

3. How many years have you been at Waterborn? You obviously enjoy the vibe? Tell us a little on this?

• Since Pete started. The vibe is great. The people you meet at swimming are like your best friends. You go through a lot with them and we enjoy the time spent together.

4. Do you believe that it is good to train on all these juices the market offers? Do you take multi-vitamins?

• Yes – I have been using juices most of my life and believe it helps your training. I take multi-vitamins every night.

5. Do you follow a specific diet during the season, hard training and then adjust this prior to race days? What nutritional aspects do you think are important for a swimmer to know.

• Not really, I tend to carbo-load before competition. I think it is important to eat a lot of carbs and make sure you have a recovery drink after sets to replace lost fluids.

6. How do / did you cope with both school academics and the time required to train each day?

• Friends helping me with homework due to the time constraints. Once in routine it gets a bit easier.

7. What do you think makes you a stronger person? Who / what has helped you?

• Completing goals. Learning from your mistakes. Coaches and peers help with this a lot.

8. What are your swimming strengths? What are your swimming weaknesses? What have you done to try and build on your weaknesses?

• Strength to weight ratio. I concentrate more on my swimming strengths than my weaknesses. I try putting more effort into the things I am not so good at.

9. When did you realise that you could achieve a higher level of success?

• My coach believing in me and letting me know I could achieve at a higher level.

10. What makes you want to succeed at swimming at the highest level – what drives you to want to be one of the best?

• Being the best your body can be. Watching the best in the world and swimming next to these huge figures. Traveling around the world.

11. Is there a specific time of the year that you find the workouts most challenging and when is this?

• Maybe winter due to the cold air. I like training in warm conditions.

12. When you are in the midst of a challenging workout what goes through your head –what do you think about or tell yourself?

• A lot of screaming in my head. I will just tell myself it will be finished soon and I must make sure I do my best.

13. Can you think of a moment in your swimming career that was not fun (or did not feel like anything positive could come of it) when it happened, but looking back, taught you something that has helped make you a better swimmer?

• In Primary School peers would compare me to jean, Greg and Walter so it was tough at times when you didn’t win. You should not worry about what other people think and just focus on personal goals and yourself.

14. Have you ever been drug tested – what was the experience like?

• Yes, it was a bit stressful as I had taken a nose spray and was worried that something funny was it in, but it turned out ok.

15. What is it about swimming or you that keeps you in the pool?

• The chance to do something great and realise some of your dreams.

16. Any message you have for up and coming swimmers?

• It’s very easy to quit, but if you quit you will never know what your true potential could have been so keep at it!