Congratulations!

A friend of swimming in the Northwest region was recognized in Toronto at the annual Swimming Hall of Fame banquet. Jim Brow was recognized in the Golden Roll of Honour along with five other Master Swimming Officials for their contribution to the sport.
For over 30 years Jim has volunteered to the Fort Frances Aquanauts and clubs from Kenora to Marathon and from Fort Frances to Red Lake. As a volunteer Jim has worked at meets within the region, provincial championships, national championships and internationally at the Pan Am Games.
As most parents, Jim began his swimming officiating career as most parents do, by showing up to time his children at swim meets. All five have swam competitively at some point in their lives. Even though his youngest son left the pool over a decade ago, Jim continues to be involved at the club level, the regional level and sits on the Ontario Swim Officials Association Board.
As most parents who become involved with their children in sport, Jim became bored with timing and chose to learn more about the swimming strokes of his children. He began taking on different tasks at meets. Billeting of out of town swimmers was common in the 80’s and 90’s and the Brow household always had a houseful of boys when the meets came to Fort Frances. And Jim knew almost all the swimmers on a first name basis.
I grew to know Jim as I progressed in becoming an official. He was my mentor. I learned that as he walked around the deck, his bushy eyebrows hid an intensity of examining everything on deck. His work in handling any situation gained him respect with his peers across the province and they often sought out his advise on situations that rose on deck outside the area.
In swimming, swimmers may be disqualified for making any number of mistakes on strokes, on turning, on touching out at the end of a race, or even starting before the flash of the starter. I was disqualifying a young swimmer who had not touched out properly in executing a turn and I was telling the swimmer while she was in the water, visible to everyone. Jim taught me a lesson.
He pulled me aside and told me that the way I was handling the situation spotlighted the swimmer and may have caused her embarrassment. His suggestion which I follow to this day is to ask the swimmer to meet you somewhere else behind the blocks or off to the side, out of the attention of the crowd and let the swimmer know the mistake they made.
Perhaps Jim is at his best at local meets. It might come as a result of being a proud grand father and knowing that it takes extra time and encouragement for young swimmers to become comfortable in front of large noisy crowds. He offers encouragement. He takes extra time allowing young swimmers to who are learning the procedures to get their goggles ready and gain their balance on the starting blocks.
The swimmers have always come first to Jim and he has gone out of his way to make their swimming experience a good one. He may be known for following the rules to the letter. But throughout the region and the province Jim is recognized for being totally impartial and fair.
It is great to see volunteers recognized provincially for the work that they have done without fanfare in the local communities. Congratulations Jim.

–Jim Cumming,
Publisher