Champion goes back to the future

Former Olympic and World champion Kylie Palmer is back at Redcliffe helping future generations of swimmers.

Kylie is Belgravia Leisure’s new Centre Manager at Redcliffe War Memorial Swimming Pool, in Sydney St.

Her arrival turns the clock back almost 20 years to when she was a rising star of Australian swimming under coach Ken Wood.

Kylie joined Lawnton Swimming Club which merged with Redcliffe, then John Rogers at Albany Creek, went to Chandler and finished on the Sunshine Coast.

In an outstanding career, she swam for Australia for almost a decade, winning Olympic, World and Commonwealth gold - and an Order of Australia Medal (OAM).

But the 34-year-old’s focus is now running the Redcliffe centre and helping “build on the foundations already here”.

“The goal is having a rock-solid Learn to Swim program and developing it,” said Kylie, who grew-up in Murrumba Downs and went to Undurba State School.

“A program where children start to swim, learn to swim and hopefully in time progress into junior and senior squads.”

Being a mum has also changed the way the former Grace Lutheran College Rothwell student viewed Learn to Swim programs.

“Until I became a parent, I probably didn’t understand the importance of early years,” she said. “It’s just so important.

“I think (swimming) teachers under value themselves, the skills they have and importance of what they teach the next generation. It’s absolutely invaluable.”

Kylie started swimming at two - for safety reasons as her family had a backyard pool - and pulled on the green and gold for the first time in 2006.

She won her first major medals at the 2008 World Short Course Championships with freestyle gold in the 200m and 400m – and silver over 800m.

The same year Kylie was in Australia’s winning 4x200m freestyle relay team – with Stephanie Rice, Bronte Barratt and Linda MacKenzie - at the Beijing Olympics.

Kylie clocked the fastest split of 1 minute 55.22 seconds as the Aussies left America and China in their wake to smash the world record by 5.78 seconds.

More gold followed at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, winning the 200m freestyle and being part of the winning 4x200m freestyle relay team.

The freestyle relay also saw Kylie collect silver at the 2011 and 2013 World Championships, as well as the 2012 London Olympic Games.

In recent years she worked in the financial sector, but started thinking “what do I want to do, where do I want to be?”

“The first thing was to be around people and my passion swimming ... more broadly sport and career in sport,” she said.

“This opportunity popped up and at first I was a little hesitant, but I applied and was offered the job. It's exciting and I love being around people.

“I’m not a swimmer anymore and don’t train, but I love watching swimming and love the stories coming out of it.

“I’ve got goosebumps just talking about it! It’s built into me and now I’m trying to help the next generation.

“I’m not a coach but I know how hard training is, pushing your body for two hours or two-and-a-half hours every afternoon.

“I’ve spoken to the new generation of relay girls and that’s my way of trying to give back. I love hearing their stories … and get so much from it too.”

For more on Redcliffe War Memorial Pool's learn to swim program phone 5294 7800 or email [email protected]