Didim American College student Maya Gördüemel has returned after competing in her first semi-finals of the Turkish championships.
Maya, representing the Ege Yükselen Spor Kulubu, came second in the 50-metre breaststroke race, third in the 50m freestyle race, and fourth in the 50m backstroke and 100m breaststroke races. All the more remarkable as she was competing against the best of the best in Turkiye, and experiencing competitive swimming in a 50m pool for the first time.
To top it all, Maya was one of only 10 swimmers to finish in the top four across all their races. Because of this she was then only one of five to be chosen for a ‘fin’ award based on her skill, times, and technique.
Her mum Samantha said: “She really did put her heart and soul into it and put Didim on the map. This is truly an experience we will never forget.”
Samantha went on thank all her sponsors, including Diane Eaton, Steven and Sharran Forrest, Truls Strandenæs Strandenæs and Sinbad Jewellery.
She recalled: “Two weeks ago, Maya got a call from the Turkish Swimming Federation to say that she had qualified for nine races for the semi-final Turkish championship.” The semi-finals are held in eight different locations all over Turkey, with around 68 clubs competing at each location. Totalling over 500 clubs with around 6000 swimmers.
“The next day, we heard that Maya’s race was drawn in Sakarya near İstanbul. Even though she had qualified for nine races, she had to pick four only as this is the maximum any one child can swim in this competition.”
When Samantha and Maya reached Sakarya, Sam said: “We had absolutely no idea what we were walking into. Maya had never competed at such a level with the top-level clubs such as Fenerbache and others. She had never even swam in a 50-meter pool, never mind competing in one. It really did blow our minds. We are so proud and so happy of her.” The icing on the cake was being awarded the ‘fin’ award for her overall performance.
Samantha added: “I am not only grateful for the financial support we have from the community, but emotional support and encouragement we get. It takes so much hard work and commitment to do this day in and day out, and this just shows she’s worth it.”