Swimming: Prelc glides to backstroke gold

GOLDEN GIRL: Penola swimmer Ebony Prelc has qualified for the Commonwealth Games trials after an impressive performance at the SA Long Course Championships in Adelaide.

PENOLA swimmer Ebony Prelc has returned from the South Australian Long Course Championships in Adelaide with a swag of medals, most notably a gold and a new state record for the MC 50 Women’s Open Backstroke event.

But not satisfied with one medal, she went on to win a silver in the Women’s Open MC 100 backstroke and freestyle, along with a bronze in the 50 MC freestyle.

Prelc swims as an S9 athlete due to her cerebral palsy, dropping a category last year from her original S10 status, with S1 being the least able-bodied and S10 the most able.

She has previously competed in short course competition, but this was her first long course event, making the result even more impressive and to add to the achievement she has made the trials for the Commonwealth Games, to be run in February on the Gold Coast.

Prelc said the result was quite unexpected.

“I am thrilled with the result,” she said.

“The biggest thing was I qualified for national long course – I was not expecting that – it is for the Commonwealth Games trials.”

Prelc returned from the long course championships on Sunday night and said after speaking to her mother, looked at the results, only to find she had qualified for the games trials.

She said the chance to swim in the games was incredible.

“The experience I will get will amaz,” she said.

“I have always wanted to make a long course meet, but had not thought about the Comm Games.

“At one stage I was going to quit swimming, because living in the country it was getting too hard to train.

“I kept going, then I got some records.

“When I was going to give up I thought it would be amazing if I could make my first long course nationals.

“In a way it was expected, but not this soon really.

“Now I do not think I will thinke about quitting any time soon.”

With little time to take it all in, Prelc said she was finally starting to come to terms with the gravity of the situation.

“It was a bit surreal to start off with, I could not really comprehend it properly,” she said.

“But now I have booked my flights and accommodation, it has hit me a bit more.”

The trials begin on February 28, but before then Prelc has another major turning point in her life to deal with, after a university offer to study a teaching/disability degree at Flinders University.

“I go to Uni for an orientation day on the 21st of February, then a week later I fly out to the Gold Coast,” she said.

“There is an elite athlete program I can apply for at Uni, which will mean free physio and massage for the four years.

“Then with major events like national or state competition I can work my assignments around them.”

While it may seem like a whirlwind ride, for Prelc it has been a long, hard road, having to deal with her disability, then working hard to be competitive in the pool, having to train in Mount Gambier, work at the Nangwarry primary school, while living in Penola.

But the support she has received along the way has helped to make it worthwhile.

“It has not been easy,” she said.

“Some of the parents from the Nangwarry school enjoyed following me and added me on Facebook.

“Their reactions were great.

“They did not think I could do this – I did not think I could do it.

“I am thrilled.”