The first three years of Jessica Williams-Kathol's career with the Strathmore Silver Sharks have gone swimmingly.
Williams-Kathol is the competitive head coach of the swim club, and she's enjoyed massive success during her tenure.
"I kind of got back into coaching when I was in university, and I just really enjoy helping the swimmers achieve their goals and see success both in and out of the pool."
She mentioned her philosophy as a coach is to also sprinkle in a little bit of excitement for the athletes.
"If you're going to have fun you might as well do what you have fun in."
Williams-Kathol was also selected to be the Zone 2 Assistant Swim Coach for the 2023 Alberta Summer Games.
She represented a group of athletes from Strathmore, Okotoks, Airdrie, and Canmore.
"We placed third overall after Edmonton and Calgary," added Williams-Kathol.
Williams-Kathol told StrathmoreNow that swimmer Charlie Yorston and her performance at the Edmonton Open Swim Meet has been a personal highlight in her coaching career.
The 15-year-old swimmer achieved a Junior National qualifying time allowing her to compete at the 2025 Canadian Swimming Trials. She is the first female swimmer in the history of the club to.
The coach said Yorston's accomplishments are also opening up doors for other swimmers.
"Sometimes swimmers feel like they have to move to Calgary teams to see success, but we're kind of proving that one swimmer at a time that you can see success even in a rural program."
The Strathmore Silver Sharks have around 80 athletes that make up the team.