Connor Bissett has loved the water since he was a child. His mother, Margo Bissett, had him in swimming lessons by age five, and recalls how the prank-loving youth used to sit happily at the bottom of the pool, panicking the lifeguards. The pool was a place Connor, who was diagnosed with autism at the age of two, could thrive.
“I think it was just the pressure of the water. When he’s in the water, he’s more relaxed, and it just meets all his sensory needs for some reason,” says Bissett.
Swimming quickly became an integral part of his life, and remains so to this day. Though he always felt at home in the water, it wasn’t until his teenage years that he found a second home at The Steadward Centre for Personal & Physical Achievement as a member of the Steadward Bears para swim team.
The Bears are the only exclusively para swim club in Alberta, which provides the athletes with a unique experience tailored to their specific needs.
“It’s a chance for athletes to really connect with one another, to have coaches who have specialized knowledge and information, and just to have that really welcoming environment,” says Jennifer Leo, director of The Steadward Centre.
“I think because it’s exclusively para and that’s our focus, it’s given me as a coach the tools to provide what they need to reach their full potential as athletes,” says head coach Laura Harvey.
When Connor first started swimming with the team, the Bissett family was living in Whitecourt. Connor and Margo drove into Edmonton for pool time every week, and then 16-year-old Connor was with his Bears teammates when he competed at his first Special Olympics trials.
He followed the Bears’ former head para swim coach, Nathan Kindrachuk, to swim with a non-disabled team at the Olympian Swim Club for a period before eventually returning to rejoin the Bears. Under Harvey’s leadership, Connor, now 22, trains in the pool where so many of his teenage swim milestones occurred.
It isn’t only Connor’s swim times that have improved over the years, according to Margo. The team dynamic, both as a part of the Bears and when he’s on the road competing at the Special Olympics, have been invaluable to his growth as a person. Margo credits it with helping bring him out of his shell.
“He’s got more confidence in the pool, more confidence on deck,” she says.
Harvey, who was brought on in September 2022 as the swim team’s first full-time coach, has relished the opportunity to witness Connor’s growth first-hand as the duo cultivate their own athlete-coach connection.
“He’s a man of few words, but the more I get to know him, the easier it is to communicate with him. We’re building a trust with each other, and that’s been important in his journey,” says Harvey.
“I’m here to delve in and find out exactly what he needs and give him those opportunities. He’s had a really successful year so far.”
