The Whitehorse Glacier Bears swim club recently returned from the Island Invitational swim meet in Victoria, where they broke 34 club records and picked up seven top three finishes.

'We scored enough points to put us ninth out of 22 teams,' said coach Albert Burgund in an interview Wednesday. 'We're small, but mighty.'

Those who know Burgund are aware that he expects no less than personal bests and club records from his swimmers. But even he was impressed with the performances of several athletes, especially Alexandra Gabor and Bronwyn Pasloski.

'Alexandra happened to make a Canadian record for 10 year olds in the 50-metre fly,' he said. 'And Bronwyn was the second highest point scorer at the meet. The third highest point scorer was Alan Lebedoff.

'So yeah, I would say we did very well. We even scored points in relays. We had some fifth and sixth place finishes and that's pretty impressive.'

Gabor holds a number one ranking in eight different events all the freestyle and fly events. Locally, she holds virtually every record in the first age category. The only exception is the breaststroke events and those records are held by Pasloski.

'These two kids are going to rewrite the entire female record book,' said a pleased Burgund. And with a couple of the boys, it's the same thing.

'That shows that this club isn't just concerned with the top end swimmers. Our program is strong from the bottom all the way to the top.'

Burgund said the performances of the young swimmers this year is exactly what you want to see happen. The coach said when he came to Whitehorse about three and a half years ago, Mackenzie Downing and Lynsey Pasloski, now the top swimmers in the Yukon, had a real uphill battle.

'Although they were good, they just didn't have the right beginning to become as good as they could be. Then it fell on my shoulders to play catch up. As good as they were, there was a lot left to be done.'

Both Lynsey Pasloski and Downing made the trip to Victoria, although Downing did not compete due to an injury.

'Mackenzie dislocated her knee about three weeks ago,' said Burgund. 'She was standing and changing positions on the (start) block and she's so muscular, she literally pulled her knee right out of alignment.'

Burgund said Downing feels a little bit disappointed because it puts a lot of pressure on the season's schedule that neither her nor Burgund anticipated. But the coach said he's still 'guardedly optimistic.

'Most people would have given up,' he said. 'I refuse to. I don't know whether it's a character of mine or if I've just seen a lot of great comebacks.'

Burgund said Downing was back in the pool training within 48 hours of her injury.

'She has a coach that's tough,' he stated. 'And she's certainly no marshmallow either.'

With the MelZajac invitational meet just two weeks away, the coach said he and Downing, along with Pasloski, will make the trip. The decision on whether Downing will compete is going to be made more or less at the moment, he said.

'I don't want her to get any further injured,' he said. 'I don't expect any great results but I do expect that she can still get up and handle a good performance.'

Downing took part in some long course training while in Victoria, and she was also looked at by a national swim team doctor.

'That was probably just to ease my mind a little,' said Burgund. 'You know me. I always go to the best.'

The Island Invitational was a working meet for the elder Pasloski, who swam her 'off' events for practice, so she didn't really stand out as much.

Sixteen Glacier Bears, along with eight parents, made the trip to Victoria, the largest group Burgund has ever taken Outside. For some of the swimmers, the Island Invitational was their first ever long-course meet, and altogether the athletes and their families shelled out more than $25,000 to make it happen. Burgund said it's all worth it in the end.

'This is one of the reasons we get the results we do,' he said. 'You train hard and you compete hard. Alex(andra) and Bronwyn are 10 and 11, respectively, and they've already made Canada Games times. They've qualified for club nationals.

'At the provincial level, we're starting to get a few boys times. If they make the improvements that they've already made this year next year, we're going to have a pretty damn big team for Canada Games.'

After the MelZajac in Vancouver next month, Lynsey Pasloski and Downing will compete at Olympic trials in June. If they don't make the Olympic team, both swimmers will compete at nationals in August, in hopes of making Canada's 'B' team, which travels to international competitions.

Some of the Glacier Bears will participate in the B.C. provincial championships in Victoria in July. Then it's on to club nationals in Winnipeg in August. Burgund is confident his swimmers will only improve over the summer.

'I've got high expectations and they happen to be meeting them,' he stated.

Whitehorse residents will have a chance to watch the Bears in action this weekend, as they host the Yukon Invitational at the Whitehorse Lions Aquatic Centre. A few swimmers from Haines, Alaska, will also take part in the event. The distance events start Friday with the 400-metre individual medley, which Burgund called the hardest race out of all swimming events, and shorter races running Saturday.

While the weekend will be good practice for the Bears, it's also an opportunity for parents to be become certified officials.

'It's important we not only educate our swimmers, but also our parents,' said Burgund.