Two Sports Float his Boat

By Shaunna Grandish
The Regina SUN

When it comes to water and sports, Alex Brazill is ready for just about anything.

The Regina teenager is on his way to compete in a large international water polo tournament just after coming back from winning medals at an international rowing competition earlier this month.

Sixteen-year-old Brazill arrived home in mid July after competing in Mexico City. The teenager was one of 12 male youth athletes from across the country who made the CanAmMex National Rowing Team after a lengthily selection process.

Intense training and hard work paid off and the team did very well at the competition, which featured squads from across North and Central America. Brazill managed to bring home a silver in quads and a bronze in doubles.

"The whole team had high expectations. We really wanted to do well. You don't expect to win, but you do set yourself up to win by training really hard," Brazill said.

His medal wins were not bad considering Brazill started rowing only three years ago during water polo's off-season.

"I wasn't really doing anything and my mom was kind of getting sick of me in the house. So she took me to the rowing course," Brazill said.

Since then, the young athlete has been rowing twice a day in the summer for a couple of hours each session.

Although the teenager already has a busy schedule with rowing, he still finds time to succeed at another sport.

When Brazill arrived home from Mexico, he didn't have much time to sit back and relax before he had to pack his bags again and head out to B.C. to start training for an international water polo competition in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Brazill has been playing water polo for about six years. He began competing because he really liked the water but wasn't a fan of speed swimming.

Since then, he has traveled across the country to play in various tournaments.

Although Brazill is an experienced player, he was quite surprised about being one of 30 youths who made the national team.

The 38th Hawaiian Invitational Water Polo Tournament begins Aug. 8. and runs for almost a week. It will be the largest competition Brazill has ever competed in for the sport.

Brazill hopes that hard training by him and his teammates will pay off at the tournament.

"We don't know what these teams will be like. All we know is that this tournament is going to be big, so we have to prepare ourselves for anything," Brazill said.

To succeed in two sports requires a lot of hard-work, determination, and discipline from the athlete.

However, Brazill also credits his Regina coaches for helping him achieve his athletic heights.

"The quality (of coaches) for both sports is quite high. I've been very lucky with my coaching; it's very high calibre," he said.

Sometimes school life overlaps with Brazill's sporting life. His rowing coach, Ian Mitchell, is also a teacher of his at Campbell Collegiate.

Mitchell is a great mentor, Brazill said. When studies and sport clash, Mitchell tries to keep the young athlete grounded.

"He just tells me to keep my priorities in order," Brazill said. According to Mitchell, Brazill is a wonderful athlete to coach.

"He is a great kid. He is very kind, and is very helpful. He is always supportive of his teammates. He is someone you can always count on," Mitchell said.

After returning from the tournament in Hawaii, Brazill plans on keeping active at both sports. He will start training for other upcoming competitions including the junior world rowing championship in Beijing next year.

Rowing and water polo have not only given Brazill medals and acclaim. Indeed, both sports have given the teenager much more.

"I think that's what's really important in sport, you get the friendships you make, you get the discipline, and you learn determination," Brazill said.

He is fully committed to both of the sports, and this is clearly evident when he is asked which sport he likes better.

"It's kind of like asking me which one of my sisters I like better. Obviously I can't really answer that question because I love them both and they both give me so many different experiences," Brazill said.