Like a lot of my fellow swimmers, I tend to be very clumsy both on land, and even sometimes in the water. It’s for this reason that I have to decided to compile a list of my top three most awkward/embarrassing moments as a competitive swimmer.
1. The first actually happened in the water one day while I was at an outdoor training camp in Florida with my team mates. It was pretty windy, and we were doing sprints of our best stroke. Mine happens to be backstroke and, just my luck, I misjudged the distance between the flags, which were blowing thanks to the steady breeze, and the wall. When I arched backwards to do a dolphin-kick finish, I smacked my face into the wall, breaking the nose piece of my goggles and nearly breaking my nose. I had to make a run for the bathroom with one hand catching the blood as the lifeguard on duty tried unsuccessfully to hold in his laughter.
2. During another incident, I punched an official in the face. OK wait, let me backtrack, because that sounds really awful… I was at a competition and was taking part in the relay team. I was in the zone, ready to attack the water, and was in the midst of completing my relay takeover. I swung my arms around and into streamline, but not without smacking the timer standing…
