Written Year: January 2017

Sydney Munro is a 15-year-old, born and raised Etobicoke resident. Sydney attended Humber Valley Middle School where her two younger sisters, Hailey and Abigail currently attend. Both are following in their big sister’s athletic footsteps and are both competitive dancers.

Currently, Sydney is attending Richview Collegiate in grade 10. The Etobicoke Guardian, featured Sydney’s junior basketball team in the fall, when they qualified and later won the Junior City Basketball Championships. As a multi sport athlete Sydney also participated on the junior varsity volleyball and swim team. Richview’s swim team qualified and participated in OFSAA swim meet in 2016.

Sydney started her swimming career early, participating in parent and tot swim lessons with Parks and Recreation when she was 3 months old. Later she breezed through her swimming levels and was looking to continue her swimming career. At the age of 10, she enrolled in the Parks and Recreation, “Splash” program that introduces the participant to competitive swimming. Sydney a self professed “race-junkie” craved the rush of competing. To feed this craving Sydney joined Lakeshore Swim Club, which swims out of Gus Ryder Pool. This swim club founded by Gus Ryder (ESHOF 1994) in 1930 where 6 past inductees of Etobcioke Sports Hall of Hall, including Cliff Lumsdon (1994), Kim Lumsdon (2006) and Marilyn Bell (2003) to name a few, trained there. Lakeshore is a smaller club with approximately 100 swimmers, some who are ranked provincially and nationally.

Sydney’s stroke of choice is freestyle (front crawl) and back stroke. Sydney is currently on a nationally ranked relay team with 3 close friends. When presented with her award, Sydney was very honoured and humbled. When asked what Penny Oleksiak’s Olympic performance has done for her. Sydney stated that “Penny O has transformed the sport of swimming in Canada and around the world. She has allowed swimmers like me to realize that I can reach my fullest potential with hard work, dedication and a little bit of dreaming.”  She’s an all-round athlete and has great potential along with a wonderful personality says Joanne Noble, Chair of the Board of the Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame.

To nominate an Athlete of the Month, visit our website www.etobicokepsorts.ca.